News
Homes must have deadly gas detectors on every level by Jan. 1
All homes must now have carbon monoxide (CO) detectors on every level, not just near bedrooms, Aylmer Fire Services Coordinator Charity Fisher informed the Express recently. Carbon monoxide is a potentially deadly gas, and so far this year Aylmer firefighters have already responded to three calls with such gas confirmed as present in a home.…
Read MoreIntegrity commissioner admonishes Central Elgin council
Central Elgin addressed municipal code of conduct complaints against councillors Morgaine Griffin and Michelle Graham on Oct. 6, amidst integrity commissioner (IC) admonitions that “enmity” between members of council seems to have sparked a total of 13 code complaints in the past six months at a cost to taxpayers of about $16,300. A report on…
Read MoreAylmer council votes 5-1 for library expansion
Warning: this story contains strong language “The time has come to make a decision,” Mayor Jack Couckuyt told fellow Aylmer council members at a special meeting at Old Town Hall, about that building’s future, on Wednesday, Oct. 15. They voted 5-1 in favour of an option to expand the Old Town Hall library and upstairs…
Read MoreSteve Peter steps back after 37 years in politics
Steve Peters resigned his seat as a member of St. Thomas council on Oct. 15, with hopes of creating more time for family, and his passion for local history, while also focusing on his year-old role as chair of the Leamington-based Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers (OGVG) board of directors. “I’m 62 years old, I was…
Read MoreComplex board votes 8-5 to seek library renovation cost
East Elgin Community Complex board, at a meeting Wednesday, Oct. 8, voted 8-5 to get a detailed cost estimate, costing up to $10,000, on renovating Imperial Hall into a new space for the Aylmer library. Malahide Mayor Dominique Giguère, Deputy Mayor Mark Widner and councillors Sarah Leitch, Johnny Wilson, Rick Cerna, Scott Lewis joined town…
Read MoreAylmer library options: costs $6-million and up
Aylmer council, meeting at Old Town Hall on Wednesday, Oct. 15, will discuss the cost of three options for potentially enlarging the downtown branch of the Elgin County library or building a new one, with costs ranging from $6.2-million to $8.9-million. The costliest option, according to JPM Architecture, would be $8.9-million to put an addition…
Read MoreNew doctors, nurses welcomed to area
Nine new family doctors and two nurse practitioners were welcomed to the community on Oct. 2 as the St. Thomas-Elgin Health Recruitment Partnership, in conjunction with St. Thomas and District Chamber of Commerce and Doug Tarry Homes (DTH), hosted a “meet-and-greet” in Central Elgin. The health care workers were treated to soft drinks, finger foods…
Read MoreAylmer Pool might not open in 2026
Aylmer council’s finance committee members decided on Wednesday, Oct. 1, that they’d rather wait to see if the municipality received a provincial grant to help pay the estimated $805,000 in needed repairs to the town pool in 2026, even if that meant the facility might not open next summer. Doing so was proposed by Councillor…
Read MoreProtests over proposed heritage home demolition
Cherry Street, a nonprofit group that provides affordable housing in Aylmer, is planning to demolish 50 Centre St., as well as 32 Centre St., to make room for a new development. At a town council meeting Wednesday, Oct. 1, two neighbours, Cynthia Grant and Stephen Blankenship (the latter’s father was a founding member of the…
Read More“Liberation Day” tariff worries in area
The pomp and glory expected on U.S. President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” on April 2 is lost on Elgin County businesses. Instead of the celebratory mood promoted by the White House, the proprietor at Phil Mauer and Associates, in Eden, for example, is “not thrilled” with the dreaded tariffs regime that President Trump is expected…
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