PAGE 6, WHITBY FREE PRESS, WEDNESDAY, MAY 13,1987 fe e VOICE OF THE COUNTY rTOWN Published every Wednesday By 677209 Ontario Inc. Phone: 668-6111 rhe Free Press Building 131 Brock Street North P.O. Box 206, Whitby, Ont. DOUG ANDERSON Publisher MAURICE PIFH ER Editor PETER IRVINE Advertlslng Manager A matter of dollars or tradition ? Whitby regional councillors will have to mount loud, stiff opposition and receive just enough councIl support if.they wish to see Whitby remain as the "county town." A joint committee has supported a recommen- dation by chief administrative officer Don Evans that the City of Oshawa proposai to be home of a new building be accepted of the four posible with regard to a regional headquarters building. Evans has determined that it's the least expensive way to go in the long run (to the year 2009) - even cheaper than merely continuing the existing lease on the courthouse building now used. Evans also favors the Oshawa site because it's the only alternative which will house all the Reaion's deDartments. It's downtown, provides an ."urban Image," and with or without the Oshawa claim of ownership in the existing building, it's cheaper. A Whitby parents' group has been created that will make the education concerns of individual Whitby schools louder and a call or change stronger before both the Town and the Durham Board of Education. The Education Action Committee won't be a shadow group, promises Cathy Rowell, one of the founders. Instead, the committee will 'help' Town and board talk on issues such as bussing and school safety. It will also make clear that the' board shouldn't consider new administrative of- lt's also evident that most of Oshawa's 11 regional councillors are solidly behind the relocation. At the most recent council meeting, some of them dismissed a last-minute option suggested for Ajax. But the vote, 14-13, to allow the alternative to be considered, suggests that there could still be opposition to the Oshawa site when council makes a final decision. Meanwhile, Mayor Bob Attersley told commit- tee the advantages of the·Graywood proposai for Whitby and some questions raised by the Oshawa bid - "Graywood's proposai is firm; Oshawa is hypothetical with no commitment,' he claimed in a prepared report. Whitby has another argument with which it can defend the Graywood plan - one based on tradition. Whitby was proclaimed the 'county town' for Ontario County of Ontario in 1854. Not long after county was succeeded by region, the fices while other problems, such as space and facility improvements exist. With at least five schools and the Corridor Area Ratepayers Association so far as members, it remains to be seen whether other schools, some with no apparent concerns, will join. But an association of at least six aroups is already the beginning of what could be a strong lobbying effort to effect change. We can be sure of one thing - there'll be plenty of talk alright, but. the nature of that dialogue remains to be seen. reaffirmation of Whitby as the -site for future regional headquarters was made by regional council in 1975. Regional representatives from the other municipalities might feel the same way when an upcoming vote is held on the matter. That was in- dicated in the 14-13 vote. It may come down to tradition vs. dollar value, if the dollar value offered by Oshawa can be guaranteed as real. The job of our own regional councillors will be to make a case for Whitby or to ensure that the deal offered by Oshawa is as sound as offered. Dumping on downtown? Say it ain't so, Joe. Councillor Joe Drumm, if we have interpreted his Monday night comments correctly, appears to question the value of shopping in the downtown. It may have been one reason why he supported a motion, eventually passed, to allow in principle a retail plaza on Dundas St. W. If that's true, we're now finding out what some councillors may feel about the downtown and its redevelopment. Councillor Joe Bugelli has also stated that the Town can't consider the downtown area every time a commercial development ap- plication is made. We're finding out what our Town represen- tatives feel about the downtown area. It's unfor- tunate that doubt has been cast on an area that is showing signs of revival and that is at the heart of what Whitby was, is, and hopefully, will be. To the editor: I can remember back about four years a$o, to a sweltering Sunday morning in church. The pastor-was talking about a dichotomy, how Jesus was born in a stable. He was the son of a lowly carpenter, who had few possessions to speak of (None save the clothes on His back).He walked the dusty streets of Nazareth, Capernaum,, Jericho, Jerusalem, the countryside of Galilee, the hillsides of Judea in sandals or A r d Aerhaps bare feet. Jim Bakker travels the world in his private jet. Yet he wishes he coul be more like Jesus. There has been a lot of media coverage in recent days about Jim and Tammy Bakker and the PTL Beyond the stump FROM PAGE 5 He was a bright little boy, full of curiosity for ants and dandelions and friends. But how many friends can you find on a forty-foot patch of sidewalk? Ants and dan- delions are fine. But what happens one day when a butter- fly flutters by? Does Daniel violate the limits of the stump or does something important in him die? My fears may be wrong. Daniel may keep his charm and his curiosity. Perhaps his mind has not been caged to a forty-foot concrete runway. He may grow up without having other stumps to mark out his world. Parents often do that: mark out limits to a child's world, when often the limits are only for the convenience of adults. LETTERS· The Whitby Free Press welcomes letters to the Editor on any subject of concern to our readers. Letters should be brief and to the point - rarely more than 300 words. All letters must be accompanied by the name, address and phone number of the writer; however, on request, your name may be withheld from publication if we agree that there is a valid reason. The paper reserves the right to reject or edit ail letters. Send to: The Editor, Whitby Free Press, Box 206, Whitby, Ontario LiN 5S1 or drop through our mailslot at 131 Brock St. N. 0 awakenin-g club scandal. It is not money, but the love of money that is the root of all evil. To my way of thinking the PTL Club was in trouble long before any allegations of sexual misconduct, before the Charlotte Observer alleged that Jim Bakker misused funds. It was in trouble when wealth, confidence in riches, etc., over- shadowed and clouded the PTL and the Bakkers' view of Jesus Christ. Tammy says she likes nice things. It's not wrong to have them, but if you can handle it. It's also very easy for us to judge and criticize Jim and Tammy with 20/20 hindsight; it is a pretty rare person who doesn't let money, wealth, power, and fame go to their head. But keep your eyes on Jesus Christ, not Jim Bakker or any other evangelist. What a rude awakening for those that have not. Tibor Szep Oshawa Parents speak louder 1 [ The ()ni%-%'hitb-*- rit wspéipt-riii(It-pt-it(it-iiil% rt*%i(it-iiii-fiorliiil)% reideuis