No early drinking in Thunder Bay

You won't be able to celebrate the FIFA World Cup in Thunder Bay by indulging in an early morning alcoholic beverage. Council is opting out of the province's longer bar hours that start at 10 am for the World Cup only. The City will be writing the Alcohol and Gaming Commission telling them their intentions to not allow the earlier drinking time.

Green bike lanes?

What colour should the bike lanes be?  That was one of the main topics of discussion at last night's city council meeting.  Councillor Aldo Ruberto brought the subject up suggesting the bike lanes should be a different colour than the white traffic lanes.  Councillor Iain Angus isn't in favour of changing the colour; he says its a waste of taxpayer money.  Ruberto feels if the bike lanes were green seniors and others would be able to easily identify what lanes you can drive in.

Bottled water vs. tap

The City of Thunder Bay is sticking with the status quo.  A policy limiting the sale of bottled water at muncipal facilities was amended to allow people the choice between drinking municipal water or paying for bottled.  The original policy was written to say you wouldn't be able to buy bottled water or get bottled water at any municipal facilities.  Several councillors were in favour of the original policy and Andrew Faulds voted against the amended version.  Foulds feels the new policy is watered down.  The city will be conducting an education study and will promote the use of municipal tap water.

High props for Power

Thunder Bay's Michael Power is being hailed for his accomplishments. The 38 year old Power has been recognized for his work at the Health Sciences Centre by Caldwell Partners International. The organization has put him on their annual list of the top 40 Canadians who have made great achievements before the age of 40. Power founded the Thunder Bay Regional Research Institute

Six arrested in drug raids

City police now have 200 thousand dollars worth of drugs and cash after a buslast week. They say the raids took place at a business on the 200 block of Pearl Street and homes on Bay and South May streets along with homes on Dublin and Carl avenues. They say 6 men were arrested who ranged in age from 19 to 40. Drugs seized in the raids included cocaine and marijuana worth an estimated 140 thousand dollars.

Mac's robbery spree continues

City police are still investigating two unsolved robberies at local Mac's Mart Stores since May 22nd. The latest was early Sunday morning at the North May Street location. Police spokesperson Chris Adams says it's part of a string of robberies at south side Mac's locations.  In the last two weeks there have been 5 separate robberies altogether and Adams say police are trying to look for any links between them.   Meantime,  police have a person in custody who was believed to have been carrying a knife outside the North May Street store early Monday morning.

Mourners gather for Willow

Family and friends said good-bye to Willow Scott-Hannam today at a funeral service at the Everest Wesfort Chapel. The 4 year old girl died last week after an accident at Fort William Historical Park involving a horse drawn wagon. She had been part of a school field trip. There are several investigations taking place into the incident including one by the Lakehead Public School Board, the Coroner's Office and the Ministry of Labour.

Aids organization gets info on drug users

New research shows that the typical chronic drug user in the city isn't what you might expect. The study for AIDS Thunder Bay was conducted over two years at a cost of 50 thousand dollars. Executive Director Lawrence Korhonen says they now have valuable information. He thinks the most important finding gathered from the survey is how well they got a better understanding of the population that uses drugs in the city and how much and how frenquently they are using drugs. Korhonen says they were surprised to learn that many frequent drug users in the city are beween 35 and 54 years old. The findings will help to re-direct priorities within the organization.

Construction delay at Marina effects boaters

Boaters using the marina will have to deal with no water or power for a couple of weeks. The city's parks manager Paul Fayrick says boaters can still use the docks but won't have water or power for about two weeks. Fayrick says he doesn't expect other problems for boaters this year.

A man roller blading across Canada made a stop in Thunder Bay Tuesday. Daniel Cloutier says he's raising money for cancer research. He says he has many family members who were diagnosed with Cancer and lost his uncle last year. Cloutier's goal is to raise one hundred thousand dollars.

Ad campaign attracts tips

A two month ad campaign to help solve a 44 year old double murder appears to be working. It's been a week since police re-opened the probe into the deaths of Doreen Hardy and Jane Bernard. Inspector John Horne of the OPP says the response is encouraging. In the last week he says there have been 13 tips and they appear to be good. Horne says investigators are hopeful the information can be helpful.