Estimates put the replacement of a recently-stolen “Welcome to the Town of Erin” sign at roughly $7,000.
On May 21, council reviewed road superintendent Larry Van Wyck’s report on the stolen sign and then authorized the replacement of the sign along Trafalgar Road north of Hillsburgh.
Van Wyck noted that on April 24, he received a telephone call advising that the large sign had been stolen.
“The theft of this sign was reported to the OPP and stories have appeared in various local Newspapers. To date the sign has not turned up, nor has there been any information regarding the whereabouts of this sign.”
Van Wyck noted the cost of one replacement sign the same as the one stolen would be $6,916 including tax. Installation would be an extra cost and would be completed by town staff.
The original signs were purchased in 2007 and installed in 2008.
Van Wyck noted there are no funds in the 2013 operating budget for this expenditure.
As to the theft, councillor John Brennan asked “what the heck good is this sign to anyone else?”
Councillor Barb Tocher suggested the culprit might be someone whose girlfriend is named Erin.
Van Wyck added that when the sign is replaced, it should be placed somewhere a bit less vulnerable.
“We only had one [welcome] sign which was vandalised, and it was at the same location. Now it has been stolen.”
As an aside, Van Wyck said that when this particular sign was installed, a crane was required to lift the sign in place.
“The people who took this, they worked for it,” he said.
Council agreed to the sign replacement.
