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PAGE 12, WH1TY FREE PRESS, wEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 7o 1990 Hlomebuilders hope new governent repeals lot- levy legisiatio By Mike Kowalsi Ontario's NDP governinent will be asked te honor its pre- election opposition te school boards collecting lot levies from new homes. In mc doing, the government may be forced te repeal legisia- tien eajeRly awaited by Ontario's financially strapped school boards. AI Libfeld, president cf the Ontario Home Builders' Associa- tien (OHBA), is confident the new government will supprt hie ruP soposition te Bui 20, the Develop'ment Chare Act. The -bill, pasaedlast year by the former Liberal government enables municipalitiem anJ achool boards te charge lot levies on new houses te pay for such services as roads, libraries, achools, wat.r and sewers. Prior te tth. Act, Ontario achool boards were prevented from col- lecting lot levies from developers. However, the OHBA has- pro- iiedto fight the first attempt at using the provisions of the new Act. The OHBA dlaims the Act is unconstitutional ini that it im- poses indirect taxation which is the exclusive right of ii federal government. Tihe OHBA also says the Act contravenes the constitution's denominational school rights because it requires separate school supporters to pay a charge imposed te build a public schoo,.I According to Libfeld, the ORBA has an aily in the govern- ment, if iras pre-election state- menta are te b. believed. "This goverament is on record saying the education le is an incorrect device, it shouldn't be on the backs of new homeowners alone,» said Iàbfeld. "Vie have that i writing from <Premier Bob) Ra.. The OHBA estimates that under Bill 20, lot levies would add about $18 000 te tth. coot cf new homes in bjurham Region. The. education poton -of the e could range m 5,000 te $10,000 while levies imposed by the Region and local municipa- lity would add another $3,000 te what is now collected. Làibfeld said it is unfair te single out new homeowners in this manner. He said someone moving inte a new house should not be penal- ized an "extra $5,000" because he/she chooses te buy new. Although no Ontario munmicipa lity has yet te pass a byiaw under the Act, iàbfeld expects it te happen in the new year. 'Tm .optim*mtic that once a municipalitypute" forth a bylaw, this governnient will not want te b. in the position of defending something [t'a not in favor of.»" Also looking forward te, the new government's response,- albeit from a d*ferent perspec- tive is Ian Brown, chairman of the burham Board of Education. The board hoped ,to have a bylaw drafted for this faîl but Brown said it will not likely be ready until early in the new year. The. delay was due te, the board not receiving regulations con- cerning the. bill until the sum- mer and difficulties ima1-4ing stujent projections throughout the Region, explained Brown. The Whitby truste. noted that the new governument has been «very. quiet" with respect te edu- cation issues ince the Sept. 6 election. "They're going te, realize they're caught in a bind,» said Brown. Rie said the New Democrats Pronfised te return the province's share of education conte to ite traditional 60 per cent level and made a commitment to increased ca4pilfunding. th Liea government for lack of funding but they will have difficulty not seeing lot levies as a source of money," said Brown. Hie said the provincial govern- ment once paid 75 per oent of the cost of new schools but that figure had dropped to to 60 per cent when the legimiation was introduced. "Itfs been a whole year now and not one school board has seen a penny from lot levies. «TIhey <government) have not had to de ilver as much for capi- tal construction and nothing has picked up the slack.».,. " Brown said that wrhile the p ro- vince's share Mon pape? has dropped to 60 per cent, "ini rea- lity its less than that. «Lat year the province paid 55 per cent.» Once the draft byla* isa aplpro- ved bythe boardit will be subiectto public hearings. P ollowing any possible changes, the bylaw will b. passeïd and, sent to the local municipality for its approval. Brown said board officiais are. still holding discussions with the Durham separat. achool board and local municipalities about the aize of the levy. The board ho~ to tap'into industrial an d commercial assesament' as well as residen- tial said Brown. 2l this ia permitted, Brown estimatos t could reduce the levy on new homes by $3,00-$4,000. 0 Ocean cruises popular With more vacationers than ever heading for the. Ingh seas, cruose hlidays are now the fastest-growing segment cf the travel market, experts say. "Thie bigg.at changes. in cruising over the past decade have involved the. lifestyle aboard ship," ays a lIBurns, travel regiatrar with the Ontario Miniatry cf Consumer and Commercial Relations (MCCR). "Cruises are far mor varied, convenient and affordable than they used te b." Once vacationers d"cde on a cruise holiday, they should plan the trip carefuily. A few precautions now can iielp set tiie path for smcoth mailing when the, holiday begins, aya Burns. Travellera should b. sure te, bock their cruises through an agent registered in Ontario. It's AJAX TRAVEL CENTRE Book your winter vacation nozv! 10% off most packages Some early booking discounts available Excellent last minute bargains- usually easier te iron out probleme wiien dea]ing with a local company than it would with an agent operating outaide the province, Burns says. AUl Ontario travel agencies must b. registered with MCCR. This ensures they follow the regulations and practices set eut in the. Ontario Travel Industry Act. It also provides their custemners with some financial protection through the Travel Compensation Fund. According te, Burns, traveilers should think carefully about booking trips directly with a cruise lin. using a teil-free number for an out-of-province office. This is a popular marketing tool in the industry, the registrar says. "While it's an efficient way cf malcing a booking and is usually legitimate, consumera should remember that if anything happens te the cruise lime, their funds aren't protected," lie warns. Air/sea combination packages, which prvde for connecting flights te tthe appropriate port, are usualhy less expensive than booking each portion of the trip separatel. Off-peAik bargains, early-bird specials and last- minute discounts can aloo provide savinga, but b. certain te research these packages carefuily. Pnice shiould net b. the onhy factor considered, Burns says. Coat will- also b. affected by choioe cf accommodations. Air conditioning and modemn stabilizing systems make roomn location less important te comfort than it once waa, Burns says. So, when choosing a room, don't just look at location. Compare size, layout and any special features, h. suggests. Should traveilers have problema despite careful Planning, they should try te resolve them on board. According te the. regiatrar, the. best person te s.. is the purser, on. cf the ship'" administrative officers. F information about the Travel Compensation Fund, contact MCCR's Consumer Information Centre at 5M5 Youing St., Toronte, Ontario, M7A 2H16 Or teli free at 1-800-286-1142. Ontario residents with an 807 area code may cailthe, 416 number coilect. The TDDftTY line for the hearing/speech impaired i (4W~) 326,M&.~ VI.E WPOI4JT FROM PAGE 6 giiette-like developments surrounded by miles. of insipid fences. Io it good planning te locate a magjor tranprtation facility (GO) in south Whiby, when at that tume al cf the projected development was te take place in the. north, forcing most who would use it te travel completely through tewn? Is it good planning te approve a very large sehool complex with 675 parking spaces at Taunton Rd. and Anderson St.? 1 would think net, especiaily when Taunton Rd. is bumper-te-bumper fromn about 4 te 6 p.m., sund Anderson St. having an increase in trafl¶c volume of about 300 per cent in the last year. Is it good planning te even give the time of day teaa velpr who would like te build six high rime apartment buildings ranging in height from eight te, 12 steries with over 600 units at Brock St. and Rosland Rd., adding about 600 cars in the area? Io it good planning te, consider' an application te axnend the official plan to, erect, an eight-story (including two parking levels) apartment, plus 39 tewnhouses, with 280 parking spaces, in close proximity te single family neighbonhocos on Blair St. b.tween the proposed exenios of Dunlop and Coîborne streets? Also, imit good plnnngte improve the Garden St. level crossing? This *900,000 goof wil host the. highest north-south traffic flow in Whitby in the. near future. Most sensible communities eliminate level crossinga,' especially with 200-mph trains anticipated. And, this on. is only a block away fr»on two achools where many children must transit the. tracks daily. Oh, yes . .. the wiites wiil stiil be a flowin' eacii day and night. And'is it realY good Planning te destroy the Whitby shorehine with =hillconceivedprcjectm much as Harbor Iole or Sailwindus? Many, many, people think not. The. number cf existing residents seeking compensation for the total disruption cf their lives, due te development, is on the increase. I flnd this te be moat encouraging. There is no logical reason why existing homeowners should ubsidize dvlprsin the, form cf being deprived of their morning or afternoon sun, eating dumt and dirt liste *n te earthmovers and bulldozers nor 12 or 13'-hours a day for free. We al have a right te enjoy aur property in peace. Developers will argue that they cannot afford to compensate their neighbors, but if they must, they will simply add the. cot te the price cf the unit. Very well. But what they don't say is thus: By getting draft approval, it went up another ten times, minimum. %' a]most in tears thining about these poor fellows. They ail leave this community much richer, and leave us with a legacy of unbearable taxes. Spealcing of unhearable taxes. The residential tax levy thrust upon Whitby homeowners will surely be a very hot tepic throughout the coniing year, in particular. And it will b. paramount in the years ahead when the rushed, substandard roads, curbs and sidewalks must be replaced long before their normal lifespan. If, by smem. miracle, Whitby council should adopt a common-sense, more controlled and responsible planning and development strategy, and the political will te bring such a motion te fruition, Whitby could flourish at 'a reasonable pace, and b. a model conununity te b.e envied. Opinions given in the oelumn are those ofit/w writer and do not neoeasarily reflect those of T/w Whitby Free Pres. PIea~c Pecycle 1li~ ~C\~P~PCF lit