The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Page 4, Terrace Bay-Schreiber News, Wednesday, May 18, 1983 editor's choice Editorial by HARRY HUSKINS Both the Schreiber and Terrace Bay Councils have begun to draw up property standards by-laws to give the Councils some control over the appearance of private property in the Towns. The moves ~ have begun independently and have quite different roots, but one common objective., To force property owners to maintain their property at whatever standards of cleanli- ness and appearance the Councils decide. People in Schreiber have been concerned for several years about abandoned build- © i: 's, abandoned vehicles and the speed at whch fire damaged buildings are not pul < ' down. There has been dissatisfact- ion wich the Council. People don't feel that they acted on the problems quickly enoug! and the Council has said that it does not... 'e the authority to take the kind of action peu, le want. In Terrace Bay there h~- been a general longter:n concern over property standards. This is < beautiful town and it didn't get that way «vithout a lot of care and work on the part of some of the people and they naturally want to see other properties in town kept up to a reasonable standard. Then of course we have the Great Chip Stand Debate. There appears to be four sets of opinion in town over the Chip Stands. The first group of people couldn't care less and are generally satisfied to have fast food outlets available. This would appear to be the great majority of the people. Then we have the property owners on Timbercourt Court who have a very legiti- mate cause for concern about garbage blowing down the embankment, people trespassing and the possibility of that 40 foot bank of earth collapsing into their ba<~ yards. Last but certainly not least we have two groups that are doing a lot of talking. Those who feel that a "Man's home is his Castle, and his Chip Stand is his Chateau." According to them, '"'what a man wants to do with his private property is his business and no one else's." The listener gets the impression that that includes testing atomic bombs in the back yard, however, this group does have tradition, the law and a fair bit of reason going for them. The last is the smallest but the most vocal group. They object to 'Chip Stands' period. Trying to find out why, exactly why, is not all that easy. The reason seems Arthur Black Terrace Bay Schreiber Serving Terrace Bay, Schreiber and Rossport Ltd. GRANDPA AND ME Published every Wednesday by Laurentian Publishing Box 579, Terrace Bay, Ontario TELEPHONE: 825-3747 Deadline: Friday, 5:00 p.m. Subscription rates: $19.00 per annum (local) $14.00 per annum (out-of-town) Second Class Mail Registration No. 0867 -- Editor: Harry Huskins Features Editor: Judie Cooper Business Manager: Diane Matson Production Manager: Mary Melo member of Receptionist: Sharon Mark Contributing Editors: Win. Campbell Kelly McGuire Mary Hubelit Anne Todesco BY MARK TURRIS WO.L GOT wWt6Ee TIME. ve to be generally identified as 'it detracts from the beauty of the community,' 'it lessens the value of my property', and a feeling that they are vaguely immoral. Somehoe we don't think that Chip Stands this summer are going to lead to massage parlours and strip joints next summer, so the morality argument can probably be safely dismissed. As to lessening property values, the stands conform to the Zoning by-laws as highway- commercial enterprises and if there is a serious concern on that count, that is how it should be addressed. Those concerned should apply to have the zoning changed. However, we can see some reason for concern. After all, if you allow Chip Stands somebody might go ahead and build a factory in town that would foul the water and sour the air and really lessen property values. That leaves a valid concern that Chip Stands and other businesses be confined to that part of the community where they are -appropriate, just as homes, schools, and churches should be. That is taken care of in the Zoning by-laws. There is also a need to ensure a reasonable standard of property maintenance and appearance. That is not taken care of in any by-law and so the Councils should proceed to put one in place. However, care is going to have to be exercised in both towns. Everyone is going to agree that stand- ards are needed. But nobody is going to ag. *- on what they should be. Just as € ve.vbody is agreed that Morals should be tacglic in the schools, but nobody can agree on w) use Morals should be taught. Other cornmunities have such by-laws. They have werked in some places and have been d'sasters in others. We would sugg 't'atacareful st dy be made to see wi. aad then adopt the by-laws that have worked best. If such property standards by-laws are put in place the Councils are also going to have to be prepared to enforce them con- sistently, and not fall into the temptation to use them as a tool to appease whatever pressure group that happens to be opera- ting at any given moment. All in all, the by-laws are needed, but great care is going to have to be taken to ensure that they are a fair and reasonable balance between the Rights of property owners and the community-at-large. THE PROPERTY WAS AVAILABLE FOR VIEWING OULY AT A CERTAIN OH? wHEN? Northern Affairs Food freezer plans by JANE E. GREER Rising food prices may be forcing you to consider alternatives such as food freezer plans, especially if you're on a fixed income. But the plans can turn out to be more costly than you expect- ed, so examine the plan carefully before sign- ing anything. Fast-talking salesmen often use a clever confu- sion of figures to make the plan irresistible and then ask you to sign-on the dotted line. Don't be afraid to admit that you don't understand; ask questions and don't settle for vague an- swers. A reputable com- pany will give you clear answers. For example: -- If you have to pay a membership fee or buy a freezer in order to join the food plan, will that amount be part of your payment? If so, will it reduce the quantity of food you get? -- Separate the cost of a freezer and/or micro- wave from the food cost. Is the price of the appli- ance lower in local stores? If the company argues that their model is better and has a longer guarantee, write down the specifications and check it out. -- How much food will you actually receive? Check staple items the following way: if you eat one pound of bacon a A Tale of Two Oscars week, you would need 26 Ibs. for six months, and so on down your weekly shopping list. -- Are you ordering meat by 'hanging' or 'carcass' weight? Be-. cause of the shrinking, cutting and trimming of the meat, the net weight you get in frozen pack- ages will be less than the 'hanging' or , 'car- cass' weight you order- ed. Food and freezer plans are complex. Get someone you trust to go over the details with you. Try to break down the costs involved, to ensure you're getting the best deal possible. There's a story about the Irish wit, Oscar Wilde, on his first trip to North America. When he hit U.S. Customs, he was asked if he had anything to declare. "Only my genius" said Wilde. The story doesn't say how many hours Wilde spent in the Customs Shed for that crack. Going through Customs is one of those passages in life during which you should Never Try To Be Funny. You know that. I know that. And now, John Zaritsky knows that. Remember John Zaritsky? You might, if you watched the Aca- demy Awards a few weeks back. He's the one who won an Oscar for best documentary film. Zaritsky was riding high after the flight back from Hollywood that night. Suddenly he was a Famous Canadian. An interna- tional star. His fellow passengers had toasted him with champagne, there was a little golden statuette nestled among the socks in his suitcase ... and here he was at Canada Customs, coming home. Hail the conquering hero. The customs officer asked him if he had anything to declare. "Just an Oscar." said Zaritsky smugly. "Value of object?" queried the customs man, who had obviously missed the Academy Awards. Zaritsky was taken aback. He said something like: "Well ... I don't know ... It's just a little gold stat..."" '""GOLD?" demanded the cus- toms man, gimlet eyes widening. About then, Zaritsky sensed that he was in trouble. How much was this gold statuette worth, the customs man wanted to know. Good question. Oscars are only gold-plated, but winning one is worth millions to an up-and-com- ing actor or filmmaker. So how to judge its "monetary value"? '*Several millions."? "'Incalculable."? Then Zaritsky remembered that he had signed a pledge when he won his Oscar, promising never to sell his award for more than $10. "Ahh ... it's monetary value is $10." Zaritsky told the customs man. 'Is that $10 American, or $10 Canadian?" the customs man wanted to know. They settled on $12 Canadian. But it wasn't over. Zaritsky, his wife and their luggage were shepherded down to the Special Section. "The one where all the dope smugglers and jewel thieves get sent" - for the full search. Zaritsky had to face two mre Customs sleuths. They wanted to know exactly what percentage of the Oscar was gold and what the rest of it was made of. Where he got it. Was it a gift or a purchase Living in what seems to be a skit from a Monty Python movie gets tedious after awhile. Zarit- sky blew his stack. He pulled a hundred dollars out of his pocket, thrust the wad at the tireless customs men and snapped: "Look, take what you need, but | have to go!"' Well, they finally worked it out. Zaritsky was eventually allowed back in his own country. Along with his $12 Oscar. If you ever get a chance to see Zaritsky's Oscar-winning film -- Just Another Missing Kid -- be sure to take it in. It's about bureaucratic insensi- tivity.