BOWDEN ñ A Bowden resident made a confidential complaint to town hall asking that the practice of ringing a siren at noon end, describing it as "noise pollution."
Council debated the matter during its Sept. 11 town council meeting but in the end, voted to simply receive the request as information, because most councillors were supportive of the siren.
"I request that the noon siren cease. It frightens visitors and even still some locals when it abruptly forces its way into our small town lives. It is unnecessary, intrusive noise pollution," the complainant said.
Chief administrative officer James Mason declined to reveal who the complainant was, noting he had agreed to keep that person's identity confidential.
Sheila Church said people have told her they like the practice.
"I've had people say to me they like the old siren; that you know, it's kind of a nostalgic kind of a thing," she said.
"I totally agree," Coun. Wayne Milaney said. "(If) there's a siren at midnight, are visitors afraid by that? Well no, emergency services are responding to an emergency. So noon for me is a lovely tradition. It's like ringing a school bell."
Church suggested placing a question about the future of the siren on the Oct. 16 municipal election ballot or in the town newsletter.
"This is a request from one person. How do the rest of the citizens in the town feel?" she asked.
Mayor Robb Stuart thought Church's suggestions were good ones. However, he noted the last time this issue arose ñ six or seven years ago, "we did a kind of a straw poll, asked people in the street their opinion, and 80 per cent of them said they liked it."
Coun. Sandy Gamble admitted the siren sounding at noon could disturb people having lunch or those who work nights and are trying to sleep.
"Well at least you know it's time for lunch," Milaney said with a laugh.
Councillors noted that, to their knowledge, there has only been one complaint about the practice.
"Twelve hundred people are OK with it; one isn't," Milaney said.
As a result, Coun. Earl Wilson's motion to receive the complaint as information was passed.
"The bottom line for me is so, if the siren never rings, then the only way this person would be pacified is if our emergency services were never called to duty, because the siren could ring every minute of every day of every year," Milaney said.
"Everybody knows it's at noon and so visitors are in Bowden at noon and they're frightened? Are they not going to be frightened at 12:05 because there's a real siren?"
Wilson suggested the reason the siren sounds each day is to make sure it's working. He said that's the case in Orangeville, Ont. where his brother served as the fire chief for years, because one day, the siren didn't work due to it being frozen.
Councillors said that's a good explanation for the practice.
Milaney said it's important to make sure the siren works because local firefighters respond to many accidents, so the siren is crucial to alert them and thus "save a lot of lives."
"For me it is a lovely tradition. It's like ringing a school bell."WAYNE MILANEYBOWDEN TOWN COUNCILLOR
