Joanne Shuttleworth

GUELPH – Dr. Nicola Mercer has expressed concern about the province’s recent move to allow the sale of beer and wine at convenience stores. She noted 8,500 new stores in the province will be able to sell alcohol as of Sept. 5, “and it is likely we will see an increase in alcohol harms."

ELORA – The developer of property at 19 Mill St. E. in Elora has lowered the height of the proposed development and that sat well with council.

PUSLINCH – If touring around a lake in a boat sounds like a fun way to spend a day, imagine being welcomed into beautiful homes on that same lake. Throw in a community barbeque and you might have found yourself at the Puslinch Lake Home Tour, returning this year on June 15.

FERGUS – Centre Wellington council has passed the Fergus South Secondary Plan. The plan still calls for higher density than the community is used to but changes have been made to lower buildings on Highway 6 from eight storeys to six and allow four-storey buildings low-density areas.

ELORA – The Elora Rocks Hockey Club got the reprieve it needed from council to start a new season with a clean slate and a pathway out of debt.

FERGUS – A growing population, schools bursting at the seams, and a desire to get children off school buses are the main reasons the Wellington Catholic District School Board wants to build a catholic high school in Fergus.

ELORA – Elora’s largely unknown power couple Kristy Hillis and Don Kogen are at it again, this time offering to build public washrooms in Elora.

ELORA – Green Lanes, the cycling and active transportation advocacy group, has two initiatives going on thanks to a donation from the Green Gryphons student group at Elora Public School.

ABERFOYLE – Puslinch council has deferred, for a second time, a decision to designate three heritage properties after the owners filed objections with the township.

ELORA – It took two rounds of recorded votes, but council passed a motion at its May 27 meeting to maintain the status quo when it comes to allowing cannabis retail stores in the township. Which is to say the township will not be opting in to the program.

FERGUS – Two bridges in rural Centre Wellington that have been closed for several years celebrated their grand opening on May 22.

FERGUS – It’s scarcely a week into the road and infrastructure project and downtown Fergus businesses are already feeling the burn from construction on St. David Street North. But there are "Sunny Days Ahead," says a local businesswoman.

PUSLINCH – A group of local scientists thinks there’s enough need for another science centre in the province and they think it should be in Puslinch. Royal City Science hopes to build the $50-million venue on a rehabilitated gravel pit owned by the University of Guelph.

ABOYNE – Using a harm reduction approach to helping people with addictions is more effective and more humane, panelists said at the “Reducing Harms, Building Community: A Wellington County Conversation” event hosted by the Wellington Guelph Drug Strategy.

FERGUS – Russ Kelly is not the hero of this story, although he is the impetus behind it. Fifty years ago, Kelly and his buddy Paul Liebold went on a vandalism spree through Elmira, slashing tires, breaking windows and defacing property.