Anten Mills by Dennis Gannon
‘Fantastic idea’: Anten Mills hall could be in line for makeover
By: Wayne Doyle,
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Source: BarrieToday.com
Sep 06, 2024 – While the members of Springwater Township council agree that the Anten Mills Community Centre is historically and culturally important, they remain divided on how best to deal with its inevitable restoration.
At Wednesday night’s council meeting, Coun. Matt Garwood, a member of the cultural and heritage committee, presented a proposal from the committee that requests the township receive for information a request for restoration of designated heritage attributes at the centre, located in the heart of the community 15 minutes north of Barrie. “The request is seeking a few key items, including inspecting the bell tower and making it workable, restoring the ceiling, installing replica lighting in the space and focusing on the flooring as well, moving forward, to bring the space back to the period it was created,” Garwood said. “The goal here is to showcase and highlight what made this, the Anten Mills Community Centre, a heritage property. “I think it’s a fantastic idea, one that I supported at our committee and one that I’m happy to speak to today,” he added.
According to Garwood, there are three stages to the plan. The first stage is to research the costs associated with the restoration. The second stage is to conduct the necessary reviews and assessments and report back to council with options and total costs associated with restoring the centre. Stage three would be the approval of the project and moving forward with the project itself. “I definitely think it’s our responsibility to maintain these buildings within our municipality,” said Coun. Phil Fisher. “Particularly those that are designated heritage buildings.”
Fisher said he liked Garwood’s approach. “Going out and looking at costs first and then bringing it back, I do like that,” Fisher said. “If we’re looking at an itemized cost list of what it would be, I would definitely think that that’s a very smart approach and allows us, as a council, to pick and choose, maybe get our best deal in terms of maintaining it.”
While Deputy Mayor George Cabral is not opposed to having work done on the Anten Mills Community Centre — he thinks all of the heritage properties should be reviewed for potential repairs — he did express concerns about doing restoration work on a building that received its heritage designation only three years ago and the impact a working bell tower would have on the community. “The one piece I question is restoring things that weren’t already there in the initial period when it was designated as a heritage building,” Cabral said. “However, I also have to wonder whether or not everybody in Anten Mills would be wanting a bell ringing in the bell tower if it was actually made operational. “I could be 100 per cent wrong and they might love the idea,” he added.
While she said she couldn’t speak for everybody in Anten Mills, Springwater Mayor Jennifer Coughlin, who lives across the road from the community centre, said she would look forward to hearing the bell chime. “It’s something uniquely special to Anten Mills,” Coughlin said. “And I think there are a lot of generational families in the area, but also a lot of new families, who gather there.” A recent trip to Europe has reinforced her commitment to heritage and culture and the value it holds. “The attention and dedication that the European cities pay to holding on to what was and making sure that’s available to generations to come was an overwhelming experience,” she said. “I think investing in our heritage and our culture, opportunities that however they come to us, I think that we need to embrace them,” the mayor added. “I think doing the due diligence, as Coun. Garwood pointed out, step-by-step, and not just jumping right to the final, is a good first step. “I think, building by building, I’m hopeful that we can restore and enhance our heritage through our buildings.”
Garwood offered an amendment to the original motion. “The motion now before council be amended as follows: and that council direct staff to obtain quotes from qualified contractors to undertake the proposed works and report back to council prior to the 2025 budget deliberations.”
The amendment was seconded by Coun. Brad Thompson and was carried. The main motion, as amended, was also carried.
ANTEN MILLS
by Dennis Gannon
September certainly has started off with a flurry of activities and events that are going to keep everyone busy this month. First, school returned and families have gotten back into a regular routine. Knotty Knitters and the Thursday night Euchre group have returned and there will be more on that a bit later. Springwater Township Council had their meeting and some interesting and hopefully in the future, positive news for our community and as we celebrate 150 years was discussed.
Let’s start with the Council meeting. On the agenda there was a resolution to accept a memo from the Cultural and Heritage committee. That memo was in reference to a delegation made by the Anten Mills Community Recreation Association in August requesting their support to return some of the heritage features of the building. In particular was the desire to see the school bell and tower restored to a working condition. Further the request asked that the ceiling be explored to see if it could be returned to expose the tongue and groove boards and the floor be refurbished. The discussion at Council was very receptive. Mayor Coughlin spoke about how she has seen the importance of heritage restoration and the benefit it has. The discussion regarding this item took almost thirty minutes and in the end, a revised motion and the original motion both were approved. The motions directed staff to come back with recommendations so that they can be discussed during the upcoming 2025 budget discussions. It is encouraging that Council sees the importance of restoring and retaining the heritage of the community and hopefully, when our 150 celebrations take place in about a year’s time, there will be a school bell to ring.
The Knotty Knitters started up again for the season with a group of happy knitters. They will again be supporting their charities with a weekly focus on the needs of women and the Elmvale and District Food Bank. All knitters and those who just want to socialize with others are invited to attend Tuesday afternoons starting at 1PM.
Euchre players were returned to their fun game on Thursday night with a good contingent of players. This group meets starting at 7PM and if you are looking for some different social fun, consider stopping by and playing a few hands.
There are a number of other events happening that should be marked on your calendar.
On Wednesday, September 25, the members of the Springwater Fire and Emergency Services will again be traveling through the communities collecting food for the Elmavale and District Food Bank. Unfortunately the shelves at the food bank are getting bare and low on stock. This is your first opportunity to help restore the shelves so that those in need can be looked after. A post on the Anten Mills Community Bulletin Facebook page will provide more details of the immediate needs of the food bank and the times and streets being covered by the firefighters so check it frequently.
Saturday, September 28 is the big day in the village. That’s the day the Anten Mills, Artisans and Food Craft Fair takes place at the community centre and park. The event runs from 10 to 2 and features over 20 local crafters and food producers offering their wares. The morning begins with a Toonie Pancake Breakfast where you can get 2 delicious pancakes, topped with real maple syrup and 2 sausages for $2. This is all in support of the food bank so come hungry. For lunch, Roslyn is looking for 8 Anten Mills residents who think that they have the best chili around and looking for not only bragging rights but a nice prize as well. For a $5 donation, you can get lunch and the opportunity to vote on what you think is the best chili. To enter or find out more details, email Roslyn at farmview@on.aibn.com.
This past week a valuable group of volunteers have laid the foundation for our Halloween adventures. They will start on Friday, October 25 with Witches Walk which will wind its way through the community ending at the community centre where Bombshell, a local band that entertained us last year will again return with great music. On Sunday, there will be the kids event and more details will be posted on the Facebook page for both events.
If you are looking for some fun this weekend, Springwater is having a family fun filled event at the Tree Nursery Park. There is lots of entertainment for the family and the evening will conclude with a professional fireworks display. More details are available on the township website or their new app.
The last movie night of the year was held on August 28 with the assistance of our firefighters. It was a fun evening and our thanks go to the firefighters and to Lindsey and Casey and their families for hosting the nights and we will look forward to next summer’s editions.
Our summer was a great one for growing. The anniversary garden at the community centre blossomed throughout the summer and is now winding down for the year. Thanks to those who made it look great with the weeding and thinning through the season. In order for the insects that need hiding through winter and so that the birds have shelter, the garden will be left to overwinter with the stems and stalks in place. A cleanup will happen in the spring.
If you are looking for fresh vegetables like squash, potatoes, cauliflower, broccoli, beets and carrots or even fresh and beautiful gladioli, then head over to Clarke’s on Nursery Road. They have an abundant supply at their self-serve stand. Better quality is close to home and not in their grocery store.
That’s it for this week. THANKS for READING, BE WELL and STAY SAFE.
