by Connie Tabbert
Editor
WHITEWATER REGION (Foresters Falls) – Harry Aswal is hopeful the payphone located at his Foresters Falls business can be saved.
Whitewater Region council agreed it’s important to keep that payphone available in Foresters Falls.
Mr. Aswal recently received a letter from Bell Canada informing him that within 90 days the payphone will be removed from Annies Gas Bar and Variety due to declining use and revenue and escalating operating costs associated with providing the service.
That phone has been at a corner of the store for at least 25 years, Mr. Aswal said. He knows it was there prior to that, but he’s not sure for how much longer.
A technician from Bell Canada came to the store to remove the phone, but Mr. Aswal asked him not to until he spoke with someone at the company.
So now, Mr. Aswal is fighting Bell Canada.
I’m trying to stop Bell (Canada) from taking out the payphone, he said. We aren’t a city. We don’t have a lot of services. We’re rural. We don’t have public transportation, high speed internet or good cell service.
There are people within the area who don’t have a home phone, or a cell phone, and need to use a phone and this is the one they use, Mr. Aswal said.
As for declining revenues, he questions whether the company is including revenue generated by calling cards.
Bill Olmstead, who lives across the street from the store, is one of those people who rely heavily on this payphone. He does not have a telephone and totally depends on the payphone.
There is also a lot of whitewater rafting and tourism traffic that comes through, some stopping to use the phone because they have no cell service, Mr. Aswal noted.
After receiving the letter, Mr. Aswal created a petition for people who came into the store to sign. It is a petition stating the pay phone should not be removed and it’s directed at Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke MP and MPP, CRTC, Bell Canada and the Township of Whitewater Region.
Within five days, close to 150 signatures were on the petition, he said . The petition was sent to those to whom it was directed.
Cheryl called me and we spoke about it, Mr. Aswal said. She’s going to touch base with her Bell counterpart.
As of Wednesday afternoon, Mr. Aswal had not yet heard from MPP John Yakabuski.
The payphone was discussed at last night’s Whitewater Region council meeting.
Councillor Chris Olmstead said getting close to 150 signatures on the petition is pretty significant.
Cell service is almost non-existent in that area and in my opinion, that’s an extremely important item in Foresters Falls, he said, adding, for residents, vacationers and travellers.
He supported the idea of a letter being sent to Bell Canada by council in support of keeping the payphone in Foresters Falls.
Councillor Daryl McLaughlin agreed.
There is so much dead service and there’s a lot of tourists, he said. If there’s an accident, how will they have a way of contacting (emergency services) without the payphone.
I think we should send a strongly worded letter of support to Bell Canada, he said.
Councillor Dave Mackay questioned why there is great cell service in Quebec, and yet, in this part of Ontario, it’s very poor.
Mayor Hal Johnson quipped, Maybe we should go and ask. They are certainly lackadaisy on this side.
He noted when using a cell phone in the Foresters Falls area, it’s usually from a tower in Quebec.
Bell Canada has been asked when it is going to upgrade the service in this municipality, but there has never been a response, he said.
Travelling from Cobden to Ottawa, Mayor Johnson counted how many times he had to do a redial because he lost service.
I counted 17 dead spots, he said. That is nothing to brag about stepping into the future.
I believe we should be backing the people of Foresters Falls.
A letter will be sent to Bell Canada advising the importance of the payphone remaining in Foresters Falls, with a copy going to Mr. Aswal.
