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

Waterloo was a bargainâ€"hunter‘s paradise Saturday as several community groups held their annual bazaars and craft shows. William Weinstein (top left) was one of a dozen local artisans who came to display or demonstrate their crafts at the Church of the Holy Saviour. Pat Couch (right) couldn‘t resist one of the many stained glass figures on sale. Next stop on the bazaarâ€"hopper‘s tour was Wing 404 headquarters where Ruth Kiertscher (centre left) and Joan Connell look over a selection of gold pendants displayed by Donna Kueh! (right). Rounding out the afternoon was the autumn bazaar held by the George St. Senior where sisters Mary and Anna Stobbe choose Christmas trimmings. BAZAAR BONANZA Pat Arbuckie photos Clear walks goal of this committee Melodee Martinuk Chronicle Staff With the first snowflakes of winter already having fallen in Kitchener and Waterloo, a local group is moving into high gear on a campaign to make this winter a safer one for pedestrians. The group is called the Clearâ€" walk Committee, and has been organized, under the sponsorship of the Kâ€"W Social Planning Counâ€" cil, in an attempt to increase public awareness of the dangers caused by uncleared sidewalks. The clearwalk committee is composed of representatives of local senior citizens‘ centres, the two boards of education, Waterloo regional police, the Ministry of Community and Social Services and the Kâ€"W Social Planning Council. It was formed in January The group‘s motto is, "A clear walk ts a safe walk." 1983 ‘to ‘"‘develop a community approach to pedestrian safety and mobility issues related to snow and ice clearance throughout the Twin Cities." Committee chairman Ruth Bickâ€" nell stressed in an interview that theirs is strictly a public awareâ€" ness program, they are not a lobby group. ‘‘*We‘re appealing to the public to clear their walks as a regular part of property maintenance ... we‘re advocating voluntary compliance with bylaws, not forced compliâ€" ance," she said. ‘"*Pedestrian safety is everyone‘s concern." Bicknell added her group beâ€" lieves that residents who do not clear their walks after a snowfall do so because of ignorance of both the potential hazards and their legal responsibility. ‘"We‘re hopâ€" ing that once they know, they‘ll have enough empathy to do their walks," she said. The committee‘s activities are funded by a $1,200 grant from the Ontario Ministry of Community and Social Services. Motivation behind establishment of the committee came from Kitâ€" chener senior citizens who for several years have complained of difficulties walking in winter created by uncleared walks, exâ€" plained committee member Bettyâ€" Lyn Enns, of Kitchener‘s parks and recreation department. We see a lot of people unable to go out if the sidewalks are slippery or difficult to walk on," Enns But, while the group originally focussed on the hazards to seniors, Bicknel} added it has been expandâ€" ed to take into account the needs of handicapped individuals and small children, who experience similar difficulties. In an attempt to define the problem and gauge the extent of public concern, the committee last week sponsored a public forum at the Rockway Gardens Senior Citiâ€" zens‘ Centre in Kitchener, which was attended by approximately 25 people. â€" Consensus at the meeting was that municipal snowâ€"clearing bylaws need to be tougher. ‘"You can‘t alleviate the problem by telling people to be good neighbors ... there has to be some bite in the bylaw. Either you enforce it or forget it," said a Kitchener busiâ€" nessman. It was also agreed there should be speedier action by the city in response to complaints. In addition, many felt the best way to solve the problem would be to have the city do the snow removal and add a surcharge to each propertyâ€" owner‘s tax bill. Forum chairman Les Rudrum urged those at the meeting not to "stay silent and at home" if there is a problem in their area. "Call the mayor‘s office and complain," he said. "As long as you don‘t say anything, they don‘t know. The important thing is to communicate." City of Waterloo bylaws say that sidewalks must be cleared of snow and ice within 24 hours of a snowfall. However, a complaint must be lodged before the city will step in and make a property owner clear his walks. Waterloo Ald. Charles Voelker told the meeting that, according to city practice, a written warning is first issued and, if the walks are still not cleared, the city will do the removal, charge the property gwner and levy a fine. The alderman also noted the greatest problem the city has, is with absentee landlords. **We write them, but by the time they get back to us, the winter could be over. Then we just go in, clean the walks and add it to their taxes." Bicknell said the committée will follow up on all suggestions and remarks offered at the forum. They will also consult with Kitchâ€" ener and Waterloo public works departments and work with the Waterioo regional police departâ€" ment through their Wally Watâ€" chout safety program to increase ‘awareness of the problem in area public and high schools. A pamâ€" phiet dealing with the problem, including snow shovelling tips and a list of area snow â€" removal services, produced by the commitâ€" tee, is available at the community Information Centre, Social Planâ€" ning Council, the Adult Recreation Centre, and from all committee members.