Restructuring
By Frank Hughes
Restructuring for Tiny Township meant only one thing – giving away Tiny’s lands by changing Tiny’s boundaries, especially at the Highway 93 Shopping Mall Strip, representing 85% of Tiny’s commercial and industrial tax assessment.
The only official position that this Tiny council has had on the Highway 93 strip was to give it away to Midland.
A few weeks after being sworn in as the new council in Dec. 1991, this Tiny council adopted the give away Highway 93 official position and on Feb. 21, 1992, members of this Tiny council went to the County of Simcoe and the Ministry of Municipal Affairs with their give away position. On April 27, 1994, Councillor Doug Taylor said that he made a tactical error in attending the Feb. 21, 1992 meeting.
The only thing that the press and the public have heard from members of this Tiny council is that they are opposed to restructuring.
At the April 27, 1994 meeting of this Tiny council, they did not contradict me or deny it when I said that they had lied to the people of Tiny when they told the people that they were opposed to restructuring for Tiny.
This Tiny council did not contradict me or deny it when I said that they had lied to all the municipalities in Ontario whom they wrote to stating that despite all efforts of this Tiny council to maintain the integrity of Tiny’s boundaries, the County of Simcoe, encouraged by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs, had changed them.
This Tiny council did not contradict me or deny it when I said that not one member of this Tiny council had taken the position with the County of Simcoe or the Ministry of Municipal Affairs that they were opposed to boundary changes at Highway 93.
This Tiny council did not follow up on my remark that their publicity campaign opposing restructuring was a sham. They told Tiny voters that they opposed restructuring and spent $10,000. of Tiny taxpayers’ money doing it, and all the while they were talking to the County of Simcoe and the Ministry of Municipal Affairs about giving the Highway 93 Shopping Mall Strip to Midland. They were deceiving the voters of Tiny.
Mayor Hastings, Deputy Mayor Stubbins and Councillor Barrie, on April 27, 1994, as usual when responding to my questioning of their official position, took time to defend it.
Ross Hastings objected to me quoting him as saying, before the last municipal election, “‘I do not want to see the restructuring of the Township of Tiny implemented’, said Mr. Hastings.”
That is precisely what was written on the front page of the Midland Free Press on August 30, 1991.
Ross Hastings said that I had left something out, inferring that my quote was taken out of context. He emphasized that I had not quoted the word “proposed”.
In the same news article it stated, “Mr. Hastings says he cannot support the proposed boundary line changes for Tiny …”
This is double-talk. It is the same as telling the voters that they did not read the fine print. Ross Hastings was in favor of giving away Tiny’s land at Highway 93 before and after the election. Why did he not tell that to the voters before the election instead of now saying that he was only against the exact, precise, proposed changes by the Simcoe County Committee?
The headline in the Free Press news article read: “Hastings comes out against restructuring.”
How can a person be against restructuring for Tiny if he is in favor of boundary changes for Tiny?
Are you concerned about your property taxes in Tiny? Read this and weep. Tiny’s revenue from the Highway 93 area given to Midland was about $300,000. per year.
This Tiny council boasts about how much money they are going to get for the lands given away.
Year Comp.
1994
1995 $850,346
1996
1997 $168,628
1998 $168,628
1999 $134,903
2000 $101,177
2001 $ 67,726
2002 $ 33,726
2003 $ – 0 –
What about the revenue they have given away?
This Tiny council can talk about the compensation all they want, but they gave Tiny’s land away and they are not making land any more. After 2002, the land and the money are gone forever.
The loss of revenue, the extra tax burden will have to made up by Tiny property owners. It has been said at the Tiny municipal offices by an official that the “seasonal residents” (back lot and shoreline residents) can afford it.
