Huron County Warden Jim Ginn says one of the highlights of the past year was the International Plowing Match in Walton.
The event was a huge success and he also considered a great team-building effort for county and municipal staff. Ginn is the second Huron County warden to serve a two-year term, the first being Morris-Turnberrry Reeve, Paul Gowing in 2015 and 2016 and the feeling at that time was that it takes a good part of the first term to get a feel for the job so it didn't make sense to waste that experience at the end of the first year and bring in someone else to start learning all over.
Ginn says he's definitely finding that to be the case. He says the job is a major commitment and it takes four or five months to really understand what's required so he's a firm believer in the two year term. Ginn says bringing broadband service to Huron County is a big part of the overall economic development package and he says he's more optimistic than he's ever been about things that are going on in the county. One of the trends is the continued growth in breweries and wineries in the county. Ginn says that's just one more reason for people to come to Huron County and they tend to like what they see when they get here.
Ginn adds he's not as optimistic about the former Bluewater Centre. The Centre closed in 2012 and Central Huron and the county have been waiting for the province to put it up for sale since then. Ginn says he has no idea what the province is thinking but the buildings are deteriorating quickly to the point that very soon they'll be liabilities rather than assets.
“I think it's quite important. It's quite a commitment really, it takes a while to learn how everything works and because you're so busy, you don't have a lot of time to act on it, so you're probably four or five months in before you realize all of the things you need to do and act on them.”
“I'm more optimistic now than I ever have been at the county level as far as what's going on. Developments like Cowbell Brewery for one, as well as the other breweries and wineries too, that's really going to change the outlook of Huron County and the promotion of it.”
“It's been frustrating, you know there's a lot of jobs at the Bluewater Centre and we really want something to come back in there that'll bring jobs back. It just seems like the Province is twiddling their thumbs. I just can't understand what they're thinking – why they're taking so long – the building continues to deteriorate and it's gonna get to the point where it's a liability, not an asset.”