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Waterloo woman shares her story of survival. Fun for all at Oktoberfest Parade. Viewpoint Arts focus 14 Sports Saab of Kitchener Waterloo 663 Victoria St. N. 744â€"5811 WATERLOQ.CHRONICLE Looking for a new or preâ€"owned BMW? : WHAT‘S INSIDE Leather by Mann, Uncle Joe‘s Furniture mIgMAIRIE 527 King St. N. WATERLOO (519) 885â€"5090 Page 11 Come to Canada‘s Benchmark BMW Showroom 32 27 Local housing group has big plans for Brighton school site ne of the group‘s interested Oin taking over the Brighton public school site bent the ears of some Waterloo regional councillors last week, emphasizing that at least part of the property should be dedicated to affordable housing. Options for Homes â€" Waterloo Region, which focuses on affordâ€" able home ownership as opposed to rental housing, offered a bus trip last Thursday for those interested in seeing firsthand the organizaâ€" tion‘s completed projects in the Toronto area. The goal of the trip was to point out the economic benefits of a By Anoprea Bamuey Chronicle Staff WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2001 + WATERLOO, ONTARIO _\gjik%rvz;ng your community since 1856 model built on ownership, which will allow homeowners to build equity, while maintaining a mortâ€" gage and operating costs. To date, the notâ€"forâ€"profit group, which began in the Toronto area four years ago, has over $150 million in projects, with 1,000 units being built in Toronto this year, and an additional 2,000 units planned for the city next year. But Jan Ciuctura, president of the local chapter, said the group hopes to expand its market to the Waterloo region, where there are currently about 4,000 families on the waiting list for affordable housâ€" ing. ‘Given the uptown location of the Brighton school site, he said it‘s an ideal place to start, and could Open wide_ prove to be a beneficial partnerâ€" ship with the City of Waterloo. _ "It‘s a prime piece of real estate," Ciuciura said in describing the site. "Transportation is someâ€" times a problem for our (homeâ€" owners), so a spot in the core area would work out great. With the city‘s support, the organization‘s _ plan _ includes demolishing about 50 per cent of the school to make way for the construction of 75 townhomes and duplexes. "It‘s the perfect site for the city to earmark for its affordable housâ€" ing mandate." â€" But he also said between oneâ€" quarter and half of the school would be maintained as is to Continued on page 24 $1 INCLUDING GST ANDREA BAILEY PHOTO City council decided in August to solicit expressions of interest for entering into a lease or partnership arrangement regarding the future of Rink in the Park. The site was made surplus when the forâ€" mer Carolyn Fedy Skating Centre, operâ€" ated by the Kâ€"W Skating Club, moved to their new facilities at RIM Park at the start of September. All submissions had to be received by Sept. 14, with a letter that included the background information of the organiâ€" posal is for the indoor ice facility. Andrew Friedel, team leader of faciliâ€" ty services for sites on the west side of town, said that it was strictly an exploratory approach with no commitâ€" ment on the part of the city to accept any of the proposals. Friedel said staff are preparing a report on the six proposals for council for a midâ€"October meeting, where council will give further direction in which way they want to pursue the interest in Rink in the Park. Future direcâ€" tions could include defining the lease or partnership arrangement, or even the outright sale of the site. Friedel said the expressions came from various organizations and memâ€" bers of the public, but wouldn‘t specifiâ€" cally identify them until the council that Waterloo Minor Hockey is one of the interested parties in the site, and has learned that a group that includes Peter Brill, a former general manager of the Waterloo Siskins, and Eric Calder and Roy Russell of the local Skills Plus develâ€" opment program have also expressed interest in the site. "The letters of expression themselves are fairty general in nature, which was all the Park The Chronicle has already reported click here By Bos VRBANAC Continued on page 5