70 Years Ago
March 17, 1948
– Napanee council deferred action on a bylaw that would restrict building of garages in designated areas after they determined not enough public notice had been given prior to its consideration at a special meeting requested by five councillors.
After soliciting the advice of the Ontario Municipal Board and provincial planning department, councillors intended to create a temporary bylaw to address concerns over garage location and create a comprehensive bylaw that would zone the entire town at a later date. Councillors would consider the temporary bylaw at their next regular meeting.
– The Town of Napanee received 16 bids to provide debenture funding for its new $306,000 West Ward School. The tenders ranged from a low price of $97.65 to a high of $99.15. The highest bidder, Bell, Guoinlock & Company was accepted. The debentures were to mature over a 20-year period, paying interest at a rate of three per cent for 10 years,then 3.25 per cent for the balance.
– Bruce McPherson was named chair of a temporary Napanee Chamber of Commerce committee looking into building a modern Memorial Arena. Residents were asked to forward their building or fundraising ideas directly to McPherson.
40 Years Ago
March 15, 1978
– Ontario Solicitor General George Kerr approved a reward of $10,000 for information leading to the arrest and convictions of the persons responsible for the murder of Linda Bright.
The 16-year-old London, Ont. resident’s body was found at dawn March 9 alongside County Rd. 11, west of Selby, in an isolated area near Boundary Road. Bright was last seen at Frontenac Mall selling magazine subscriptions the day before. A passing driver spotted her red coat and called police.
– The Lennox and Addington County Board of Education was met with protests and large audiences of 200 and 100 respectively at meetings at Centreville and H.H. Langford Public Schools as members of the public pleaded with trustees to keep their community schools open and to refrain from relocating students. Trustees Gerald Hannah and Roy McDannold both took the opportunity to criticize the moves their colleagues had planned.
– Frontenac-Lennox and Addington MP Douglas Alkenbrack announced he would be retiring from federal politics after six terms. He said it was a family decision as he looked to spend more time with his wife, two children, and four grandchildren. A Progressive Conservative, Alkenbrack also criticized Pierre Trudeau’s “socialistic Liberalism” for parliamentary ineffectiveness and called for change.