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10 + WATERLOO CHRONICLE + Wednesday, May 7, 2008 AND RECEIVE A $50.00 GAS CARD FREE, WITH THE PURCHASE OF A MATTRESS SET. We thank you and apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. waterlOe The Waterloo Mattress ad that ran on Wednesday, April 30th, should have read: §RI_N_G_I§_T_!1IS§D Sat. May 31 ....... ... .. NIAGARA REGION WINE TOUR Wed. June 4 GOING BANANAS â€" FAMOUS PEOPLE PLAYERS Wed. June 11 ... .. . . CREDIT VALLEY EXPLORER TRAIN Tues. July 15 . . . TALL SHIP & CITY TOUR â€" DATE ADDED Wed. July 30 TOM NETHERTON â€" WALTERS FAMILY FARM Fri. Aug 8 ...... .. .. GRAND RIVER LUNCHEON CRUISE Wed. Aug. 13 . .. COUNTRY GOSPEL â€" WALTERS FAMILY Wed. Sept3 ... .. . JERSEY BOYS & LUNCH â€" TORONTO â€" Sat. Sept. 6 ... .. .. . . CHI CHEEMAUN GOSPEL CRUISE â€" Wed. Oct. 1 .... . FALL LUNCH CRUISE â€" BRACEBRIDGE â€" Mon. Oct6 .. .. .. BARBRA STREISAND TRIBUTE â€" MISS. Wed. Oct. 8 .... ... . . CREDIT VALLEY EXPLORER TRAIN Wed. Oct. 15 FAMOUS PEOPLE PLAYERSâ€"LET‘S ROCK EH! Sat. Nov. 8 .. .. . . . JERSEY BOYS & LUNCH â€" TORONTO â€" Fri. Nov. 14 . .ROYAL AGR. WINTER FAIR & HORSE SHOW May 14â€"18 ... .. . . . . . SPRINGTIME IN NEW YORK CITY â€" $789 June 10â€"13 ... . .. .. MANITOULIN ISLAND AOVENTURE â€" $599 June 1417 ... . . .. MACKINAC ISLAND LILAC FESTIVAL â€" $548 June 23â€"26 ............ .. 272 ~MYSTERY TOUR â€" 222 â€" $619 July 8â€"29 . . NEWFOUNDLAND & EASTERN PROVINCES â€" $3,798 August 47 ... ... . .. IN THE BEGINNING â€" LANCASTER â€" $578 August 11â€"16 . . . . CAPE COD AND NANTUCKET ISLAND â€" $998 Sept4â€"8 ........ .. .. WASHINGTON DC & ARLINGTON â€" $678 Sept 10â€"14 .. ... . .. NATIONAL QUARTET CONVENTION â€" $849 Sept 15419 ...... ... IN THE BEGINNING â€" LANCASTER â€" $715 Sept 22â€"26 ..... ... .. . AGAWA CANYON FALL COLOUR â€" $839 Sept 27â€"30 _ ... EASTERN ONTARIO & ALGONQUIN PARK â€" $599 Sept 30â€"O0ct 2 ...... ... . . AMISH ACRES & FAIR OAKS â€" $439 October 23 .......... ... ORILLIA CRUISE AND STAY â€" $289 October 5â€"6 . . . MUSKOKA LAKES & CLEVELAND HOUSE â€" $449 October 812 ........... ... FALL IN NEW YORK CITY â€" $789 Oct 24â€"Nov 16 .. ... ... ... EXPERIENCE CALIFORNIA â€" $3,698 Nov 14â€"16 . .....0..... ... . FRANKENMUTH SHOPPING â€" $349 Nov 22â€"28 ... ... . .BRANSON CHRISTMAS SPECIAL â€" $1,299 Nov. 24â€"29 ... ... NASHVILLE COUNTRY CHRISTMAS â€" $1,259 www.exceltours.ca Proes per person based on double occupancy. includes al wams. and U S. mchange Pease cll the ofice for insurance pricing. For more information or to receive our tour booklet contact: Apine Countries & Oberammergau Passion Play Highlights: Vienna + Danube Cruise * Saizburg Mozart Dinner Concert * Munich Oberammergau Passion Play * Neuschwanstein Castle * Black Forest « Zermatt * Lucerne * Bern TAKING FRIENDS EVERYWHERE WE GO! Call us for your copy of the "New" 2008 Brochure See the full list of trips on our web site C@XCReLT0o1u1rs 70 Battin Place, WATERLOO, ON N2V 177 Phone: 519â€"747â€"1626 EXCEL TOURS CORRECTION Ayr Coach Lines Ltd. 0/a Travel Act #50008934 â€" $89 â€" $38 â€" $95 â€" $85 â€" $97 â€" $82 â€" $94 $129 $145 $106 â€" $96 â€" $95 â€" $98 $164 â€" $80 $715 $839 $599 $439 $289 ambridge Mayor Doug Craig took his antiâ€"amaigamation fight on the road last week making his pitch for a new regionalism to the local Rotary Club. He was introduced by former Waterâ€" loo Mayor Herb Epp, an opponent of amalgamation himself, at Kitchener‘s Delta Chelsea Hotel, where he talked about some of his concerns about a proposal being pushed by a group called Citizens for Better Government. Chief among them were the group‘s assertions that amalgamation would both save money and streamline the bureaucracy and red tape that comes from dealing with eight local municipal governments. MEA UE T. 3 7 % . To Cambridge mayor makes his case against amalgamation The Waterloo Region District School Board‘s 2008â€"09 operating budget is scheduled to be tabled on Monday, June 2, 2008 at a Special Committee of the Whole meeting starting at 7:00 p.m. A number of additional meetings are tentatively planned for debate of the budget and to provide opportunities for delegations to present to trustees: Chaiperion of h Sowrt Obecter of Edhcation Learning * Caring * Connecting By Bos VRBANAC Chronicle Staff It is expected the budget will be approved at a Board Meeting on Monday, June 23, 2008. All meetings will take place in the Board Room at the Education Centre, 51 Ardelt Avenue, Kitchener. All meetings start at 7:00 pm. Presentations to the Board â€" Individuals wishing to make a presentation to the Board should call 519â€"570â€"0003 ext. 4336. Each delegation will have a maximum of five minutes and no more than five delegations will be heard on the same topic. Speakers are requested to bring written copies of their presentation for distribution to trustees. Share your views in writing â€" Written submissions are welcome from anyone not able to attend a meeting. You can sbmit them through our web site at www.wrdsb.on.ca or by sending them to Budget Submission â€" Chairperson‘s Office, Waterloo Region District School Board, 51 Ardelt Avenue, Kitchener, ON N2C 285 â€" Doug Craig Mayor of Cambridge "If there‘s a problem with that I didâ€" n‘t hear about it," said Craig about the plan to revive the amalgamation talks that were killed in 2000. "We missed it probably by a whisker, but I think it would have been a disaster. "The real strength of this region is its diversity. Cambridge is not Kitchenâ€" "The real strength of this region is its diversity. Cambridge is not Kitchener, there is a different cultural boundary here ..." Committee of the Whole (Budget) Monday, June 2, 2008 Committee of the Whole (Budget) Wednesday, June 4, 2008 Committee of the Whole (Budget) Wednesday, June 11, 2008 Committee of the Whole (Budget) Wednesday, June 18, 2008 Board Meeting Monday, June 23, 2008 Special Board Meeting (if needed) __ Wednesday, June 25, 2008 er, there is a different cultural boundâ€" ary here and we‘re all different which is important because we all do different things." â€" Craig said he‘s all for cost savings, being the mayor of one of three municâ€" ipalities in Ontario that is debt free, but in this case he doesn‘t believe bigger is better. In fact, examples like Toronto and other more recent amalgamations such as Hamilton and Ottawa suggest higher costs as services and wages go up to the highest benchmarks instead of contributing any savings. "Why destroy our roots and pride," said Craig, quoting another famous politician. "I disagree with restructurâ€" ing because it believes bigger is better. "Services always cost more in large communities. The person who said that was (former premier) Mike Harâ€" ris." The amalgamation of Chathamâ€" Kent is always used as an example, but Craig said that the economies of scale work for that example because of its size. He argued that amalgamations work best with communities of about 150,000 people and become unwieldy in bigger centres, like Waterloo region, which boasts a population of close to 500,000 and is expected to grow by another 225,000 over the next 25 years. Amalgamation is also a uniquely Canadian concept that brings 200 years of .baggage with it instead of being a new and innovative concept. He said that major centres in the U.S. would never consider it. Craig cited the examples of San Francisco and Boston, which really are made up of hundreds of municipalities and several larger counties. Silicon Valâ€" ley, the highâ€"tech capital of the world that Waterloo region aspires to, is made up of dozens of municipalities with only one major city, San Jose, which is closing in on 900,000 people. Yet, it has no problems attracting attention, funding and being a locus for new business, all things local amalâ€" gamation supporters argue that oneâ€" tier government would do for Waterioo region. In fact he said it‘s a curious fight over the tax dollar when municipalities are responsible for eight cents of every dollar whereas the federal and provinâ€" cial governments spend the other 92 cents. Craig, quoting Hazel McCallion, the outspoken mayor of Mississauga, said the feds have all the money, the province has all the legislation, while the municipalities have all the probâ€" lems. . If anything he said municipal politiâ€" cians are the "Walâ€"Mart" specials of the political system. They are people who make $20,000 to $25,000 a year and work just as hard as an MP or MPP. "A MPP recently said to me that we‘ve got the hardest jobs, and I know that," said Craig. "We‘re the Walâ€"Mart specials, and make considgrably less than MPs and MPPs." If anything, Craig said it might be time to push for a new regionalism in the area that takes the power back from the regional level of government and gives it to the cities of Kitchener, Camâ€" bridge and Waterloo. He said since 1999 the regional govâ€" ernment has added 682 employees. The City of Cambridge only employs Looking at the police budget, which is always cited as a successful example of a oneâ€"tier service, Craig argues that the Waterloo Regional Police Service is now spending more than Cambridge‘s entire operating budget and is closing Continued on page 11