McKinnon To Sit On Police Board

The Police Services Board will have a new member.  Councillor Brian McKinnon was appointed at Monday night's City Council meeting.  McKinnon's term on the Police Board will expire in November 2014.

Spay & Neuter Program Continues

City council is going to continue it's spay & neuter program for cats and dogs but with a few changes.  Council decided to lower the adoption fee for young animals because they are too young to be spayed or neutered at the time of their adoption.  The City will also allow the adoption fee to be reduced when the number of cats or dogs in the Animal Shelter is at or near capacity.

Sir John A MacDonald Up For Debate

Representatives with Nordmin Engineering are pleading their case to turn the old Sir John A MacDonald School into an office building.  President Chris Dougherty  told council last night that the project received very little complaints from the neighbourhood.  Council is asking for a traffic study before they allow the school to be transformed into an office.

Kitty Kare In Running For Cash

Thunder Bay's Kitty Kare is competing for Aviva Community Fund’s million dollar challenge.  They want to build a Cat Sanctuary that would spare cats from being put down.  To vote for Kitty Kare click here.  The group's idea number is ACF13537.

Resolute Forest Products Layoffs

Resolute Forest Products says 345 employees will be impacted when it takes production down at its kraft and paper mills in Fort Frances later this month.  Both mills will be temporarily halted for two weeks beginning October 28th.  Resolute cites market conditions as the main reason.  The company says the halting of a contract for pulp with Boise's mill in International Falls is also seen as having an impact.

Rafferty On Omnibus Bill

New Democrats won't be supporting the massive federal budget bill introduced last week.  Thunder Bay-Rainy River's John Rafferty says the Harper government is once again contradicting itself by introducing a bill that includes changes to several act that should be dealt separately.  Rafferty expects limited debate on the bill as the Conservatives push for implementation as quickly as possible.

T.Bay Business Gets Provincial Cash

Two Thunder Bay businesses are on the receiving end of funding from the Northern Ontario Heritae Fund Corporation.  Aviation InterTec Services is getting 98-thousand dollars towards upgrading their computer software.  NWO Golf Development & Fitting Centre will use 25-thousand dollars.

Multi Plex Plebescite Meeting

A group of concerned taxpayers want to see the location of the proposed Multiplex brought to a vote.  Chair Ray Smith says it's only right for the City to allow its tax base a vote in the decision making process.  A public meeting on the multiplex will be held at the Waverly Resource Library tonight from 7 until 9.

LU Career Fair Expo

Lakehead University will be holding a Career and Job Expo this week from 10 until 3.  The workshops will provide a excellent opportunity for students to explore career choices.  Career Employment Specialist Christina Buzzi says there will be chances to meet industry professionals and employers.  Companies taking part include the hospital, and the OPP.

House Explosion Treated As "Suspicious"

Police say they are treating last weeks explosion on St. Claire Avenue as suspicious. The Police are working hand in hand with the Ontario Fire Marshal's office on the case. Meantime the 57 year old victim of that blast is now in Toronto being treated for serious injuries. Police say the probe is expected to take some time to complete.

Detectives To Face Their Punishment

Two Thunder Bay Police Detectives will find out their punishment Tuesday at a Police Services Act Hearing set for 12:30 p.m. at police headquarters  An adjudicator who found Detective William Wowchuck and Detective Constable Brad Bernst guilty of Unlawful Use of Authority in connection with a drug arrest last year, has had time to ponder his decision regarding punishment. Both sides recently argued their case regarding an internal reprimand and the adjudicator is set to make an announcement later today. Neither Wowchuck or Bernst will face criminal charges in connection with the incident.

Liberal Convention In Three Months

The Ontario Liberal party is holding its leadership convention January 25th. That's only three months away....something that Thunder Bay MPP Bill Mauro admits is kind of fast, because it will leave candidates with little time to go out and drum up support. Natural Resources Minister Michael Gravelle calls it a very short time frame that will favour candidates with a higher profile.

Thunderwolves Round-up

Modest success for the Lakehead University Thunderwolves on the road this weekend. The hockey team split a pair of games losing to Waterloo on Friday and beating Laurier on Saturday. They host Western next weekend. The men's basketball team went 2-1 at a tournament in Saskatchewan, as did the women's team in a tournament in Winnipeg. Meanwhile the women's volleyball team dropped to 0-3 to start the year with three straight losses.

Inspectors Back On St. Claire Avenue

There is still no cause to report for the house explosion on St. Claire Avenue on Thursday morning which sent one man to hospital. Yesterday, fire inspectors made the property safe to inspect and Brian Fisher of the Ontario Fire Marshal's Office says it's still too early to determine why the blast occurred. Fisher says it may take some time before they come up with a cause.

Lindstrom Gets 10 years

A Thunder Bay man is going to prison for 10 years after being convicted in  the 2009 death of Richard Quimet.   Eric Lindstrom received his sentence in a city courtroom today.  Lindstrom is the last of the two men charged in connection to the incident to be sentenced to prison.   Earlier in the process Chistopher Gregorchuk was given a 10 year term for his part in the slaying.   Court was told that Quimet was beaten to death  and his body was taken to a remote area up highway 527 and burned.

City Looks At Sir John A

The City is looking at the vacant Sir John A MacDonald site at it's meeting Monday night.  Staff is asking council to turn down a request to turn the school into a technical office.

LU Athletics Weigh In On Multi Plex

Lakehead University Athletics is interested in becoming an anchor tenant in the new proposed event centre that the city is considering building.  The 57-hundred seat venue has certainly peaked the interest of Athletic director Tom Warden. Warden says talks between the city and Lakehead University would need to happen but he sees it as a chance for the university and Thunder Bay to host future national events.

Gichigami Express Coming To Grand Marais

Organizers with a new 3 day dog sled race in the States are hoping Thunder Bay residents will cross the border to watch.  Beth Drost is the Coordinator of the Gichigami Express that will take place in Grand Portage on January 6th.  Drost explains the history behind the name.  Drost says Grand Marais and Grand Portage have a long history of mushers.

Be A Fan Day Thursday

Local law enforcement will be sporting red shoe laces in support of the local chapter of the Special Olympics.  Constable Julie Tilbury says you can help support local athletes as well by buying a pair of red shoe laces from a variety of area stores.  A flag raising ceremony at City Hall will be held on "Be A Fan Day" which is Thursday.

Hobbs On Police Board Replacement

There's at least several City Councillors interested in replacing Mayor Keith Hobbs on the Police Service Board.  Hobbs says council will consider who is the best person for the job.  One of the names being tossed around informally includes Councillor Brian McKinnon.