Highgate Road Fire

A chimney fire forced a family of four out of their Highgate Road home last night.  Firefighters from Junot, North Central Mapleward, James and Neebing Stations battled the blaze that spread to the attic.  The fire department is reporting extensive water and smoke damage.  Investigators will be looking into the exact cause later today.

Third party management is not for Attawapiskat: Fontaine

The problems in Attawapiskat go beyond band finances according to the former head of the Assembly of First Nations. Speaking in Thunder Bay,  Phil Fontaine said the government decision to appoint a third party to manage the community will not get to the root of the problem. He says "third party managers cannot approve housing initiatives, because it's beyond their mandate."  Fontaine was in Thunder Bay to get an honourary degree from Lakehead University.

False security scare at the airport

 There's a red faced vehicle owner in Florida right now.   Thunder Bay Airport officials say an SUV left running in front of the airport terminal caused a bit of a security stir yesterday.  They had to call police after security spotted it running without anyone in it.   It turns out the owners were already on their way to a sunny Orlando vacation when the vehicle was discovered.   They'll get to pick up the keys and a parking ticket when they arrive

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Small fire causes a scene at Econo Lodge

No one was hurt during a small fire that forced the evacuation of the Econo Lodge on Memorial. Officials say a small electrical fire in one of the rooms caused the evac just before 11 o'clock and crews quickly put out the fire. 

Motors and Muscles launches raffle

The Canadian Diabetes Association is gearing up for it's Motors and Muscles Raffle. 600 tickets will be sold at 100 dollars a pop and Fundraising Chair John Trevisanutto hopes they'll be able to raise more money than last year. The draw will take place at the OLG Casino this year and is for a 2012 Harley Davidson Dyna Switchback Motorcycle.

LU gives Honourary Degree to Phil Fontaine

Lakehead University handed out an honourary degree to the former National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations.  LU President Brian Stevenson says the school is honoured to give Phil Fontaine the degree.  He says its important to celebrate the Aboriginal component of the University and Northwestern Ontario.  Fontaine was given the degree at a ceremony this morning. 

Dilico Christmas Fundraiser

Dilico Children's Foundation is looking to the community to help them with their Christmas fundraiser.  Chair Melanie Albanese says they want to provide 300 kids with Christmas boxes this year.  You can pick up empty boxes and drop off full boxes at the Thunder Bay Insurance, TD Bank locations, the Mary J L Black Branch Library and the Brodie Resource Library.

Arts and Heritage Awards

Several Thunder Bay artists were recently honoured during the City's Arts and Heritage awards.  10 awards were presented to nominees in nine categories representing Thunder Bay's cultural sector.  Magic 99 and The Giant 105.3 presented Paul Morralee with the Performing and Media Arts award.

Hobbs in Chicago this weekend

Thunder Bay's Mayor is in Chicago this weekend talking about the Great Lakes.  Keith Hobbs is taking part in a meeting of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway Initiative. Hobbs says they'll also discuss wastewater management and the invasion of asian sea carp.

Hobbs tackles PETA e-mails

Thunder Bay's Mayor Keith Hobbs is being bombarded with e-mails from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.  The group recently asked its supporters to write the Mayor and Council to cancel their plans for a bow hunt of deer.  Hobbs reiterates that he's opposed to the bow hunt in City limits.  The Mayor says he's taken the time to respond to each of the 200 e-mails he's received.

CP Holiday Train Friday night

It's time to get on board the Holiday Train.  The brightly lit CP locomotive will be passing through Thunder Bay Friday night.  Spokesperson Melissa Murray says the Holiday Train is in support of local food banks.  The train is expected at the CP train station on Syndicate at 9:30 Friday night.  Valdy will highlight the Holiday Train's entertainment this year.

PETA starts letter campaign to Council

The City's decision to allow bow hunting in City limits is not sitting well with animal rights group PETA.  The group wants residents to write Council asking them to scrap their bow hunting legislation.  The group is also applauding the City for discouraging the feeding of deer.

Conmee Street House Fire

A Conmee Street family is safe after their home caught fire over the evening hours. Firefighters from Hodder, North Central and Junot fought the fire and kept it to the outside of the home. The Fire Department is reporting very little smoke damage and no structural damage. Investigators will be on the scene of the fire today to look into the cause.

Shoving match leads to man grabbing an axe

 A shoving match turned ugly last night with Police taking a 56 year old man into custody.  A 911 call was made to a north side residence after two men were arguing.  One man went to the shed to grab an axe, when he got back the other man had retreated upstairs.  The 56 year old is in bail court this morning on charges of using a dangerous weapon.

Busy night for Police

Thunder Bay Police were kept busy last night with several calls for service. Police started off with arresting several people with possession of Oxycodone and Cocaine for the purpose of trafficking. Later in the evening, a 40 year old woman was brought in to the Police Station for Breaching her Undertaking. She then spit on the police officer's face with a mouth full of blood. Finally, a 55 year old man was nabbed for drinking and driving after he almost drove into a train at a railway crossing.

Exacto knife lands man in bail court

A 29 year old man is in trouble with the law after pulling a knife on a woman on Simpson Street last night.  Police say the drunk man didn't like the response he received from the woman so he threatened her with an exacto knife.  The man is in bail court this morning facing charges of Assault with a Weapon and Dangerous Weapons.

Lakehead Public Board likes Anti Bullying Legislation

The Lakehead Public School board is happy with the province's new bullying legislation.  Director of Education Cathi Siemieniuk says the school board supports tougher punishments in bullying cases.  The McGuinty Government introduced a bill that would allow students to be expelled if they bully other students.

Twolves Coach a fan of 4 ref system

The OUA is testing out a 4 man reffing system this season.  Thunderwolves Head Coach Joel Scherban says this past weekend's games against Laurier had the 4 man team and he liked it.  Scherban says it leads to a more open game and helps eliminate stick work behind the play, that normally gets missed when there is only one head ref.  Scherban says the timing is right, to switch to a permanent 4 man system.

More delays for hotel announcement

More delays for the developer who wants to have a hotel built on the waterfront. Gisele MacDonald says the location of a water main at the site caused a delay in the land sale with the city, but is in the process of being settled. MacDonald won't speculate on when an announcement will be made. The delay means an announcement on the hotelier won't come until the new year.

Gravelle says Ontario is a leader at protecting species

Ontario is a leader in North America when it comes to protecting species at risk.  Thats the opinion of Province's Natural Resources Minister Michael Gravelle in regards to Environment Commissioner Gord Miller's recent report.  Miller says the Province isn't doing enough to protect endangered species.  Gravelle says the key challenge is finding a balance between protecting animals and job creation.

Bouchard on literacy mission

Order of Canada Member David Bouchard is trying to inspire Aboriginal and First Nation youth to pick up a book and read. Westgate Students gathered this morning to hear Bouchard's message. Bouchard is a Metis writer and is touring across Canada as a literacy advocate.

World AIDS Day Thursday

Thunder Bay's local AIDS group is marking World AIDS day Thursday.  Spokesperson Bob Manson says their fourth annual breakfast will be held tomorrow morning at the Victoria Inn.

Lang receives lifetime achievement award

Confederation College's past President is being honoured by the Premier.  Pat Lang received the lifetime achievement award.  Four Confederation College Alumni's were also nominated at the recent Premier's Awards.

Canada Border tales

The Canada Border Service Agency is telling tales out of school.  They've released monthly stats for the Pigeon River crossing in October.  Among the highlights, include a Canadian man who went across for a day and came back with a vintage car.  The man provided a border agent with a fake receipt for five thousand dollars but after close examination revealed it cost almost 10 thousand dollars.  He was dinged with over 2-thousand dollars in fines.

Shelter House kicks off $ drive

Shelter House has a lofty fundraising goal this Christmas season. Manager Cal Rankin says they are looking to raise 150 thousand dollars in the community and are hoping they can reach some new donors this year.  He says no donation is too small. The money raised is a critical part of the homeless shelter's yearly operations.

Open house makes its mark

New design proposals for the main streets in Thunder Bay are now public. They were presented at a City open house. Scott Garner of the local office of the Canadian National Institute for the Blind came to see if his groups ideas were included in the consultants plan, as did Gloria Cyr from the Heritage Committee. City council will get to see the final report in the new year which will present guidelines on how make the city's main drags look nicer through tree planting and landscaping

Wood Supply is not the reason for struggles at Global Sticks

The Forestry Minister says a wood supply is not to blame for the problems at Global Sticks.  Michael Gravelle says his ministry has worked tirelessly to find the company a proper wood supply and has in fact identified over 30 options for the struggling company.  Gravelle says there is no question the company is having problems but nothing more could have been done at providing a wood supply.

Northern teens drink and smoke more

Northern Ontario teens are doing more drugs and drinking more alcohol than their colleagues in the south. That's the findings of a new provincial survey.  Patty Hajdu of the District Health Unit says the good news is that drug use in general is going down, except for cannabis

Chamber prez touts zero per cent

The president of the Chamber of Commerce wants the city to look at other ways of raising money for road repairs. Harold Wilson questions why taxes have to go up 1 and a half per cent in order to make it happen.  He suggests that other areas be found to fund those projects including internal savings.  Wilson says Chamber members would be willing to work with the city to help find those savings.

Party planned for Prince Arthur's Landing

The City wants to celebrate the opening of the new look waterfront at Prince Arthur's Landing. Events Supervisor Doug Henry says they plan to hold a big bash next month.   He says on the evening of December the 16th there'll be  events and ceremonies to mark the occasion.   Henry says the evening will end with a fireworks display.

Allstate Canada rates T. Bay sixth

Thunder Bay ranks sixth on a list of the safest places to drive in Ontario.  The study that was carried out from 2009 until this year was conducted by Allstate Canada.  Thunder Bay has a collision frequency rate of 3.66 per 100 cars on the road.

Ring of Fire Conference on this week

The Ring of Fire continues to be a hot topic for First Nation Communities.  The Centre for First Nations Governance is holding a two day conference in Thunder Bay this week and Spokesperson Len Hartley says they hope to foster good discussions.  The aim of the conference is to develop a better working relationship between Government and First Nations.

Clean, Green and Beautiful

City Council celebrated some of the best and brightest buildings in the city last night. The New Mary J L Black Library earned a Diamond Award, with Gold Awards going to Isabella Retirement Living and the McIntyre Building at Confederation college. The committee chose the the buildings that best enrich the life of the community through art beautification, heritage and environmental greening.

City Council looking to tackle road deficits

Council accepted a recommendation from administration calling for an increase in property taxes to fix our roads.  The recommendation would increase taxes by an average 2.88 percent over the next 3 years.  Councillor Andrew Foulds says its time to take our roads seriously and council needs to be aggressive and show some courage and vision to make Thunder Bay a city that our kids can be proud of.  An amendment to cap the tax increase at 2.5 percent was defeated 6-5. 

DSSAB looking at a big budget increase

The District Social Services Administration Board is facing a 6 percent budget increase this year.  CAO Melissa Harrison says DSSAB will leverage the money from the property tax payers but that will be reimbursed through the province.  This years DSSAB budget is pegged at just under 20 million dollars. 

City lays charges after alleged dog attack

Charges are being laid against the owner of a dog that allegedly killed a small puppy in Current River last week.  Manager of Licensing and Enforcement Ron Bourret says a restraining order has been laid against the owner of the dog and charges for letting the dog run at large.

Police lay charges in connection to weekend fire

Thunder Bay police are charging a 45 year old man with arson in connections to last night's fire on Robertson Street.  Officials say a 69 year old man is in the ICU in critical condition after being found in the home by fire crews. 

Schools have new ski equipment

High School students in Thunder Bay now have access to cross country skiing equipment. It's thanks to Chris Serratore  and the Big Thunder Nordic Ski Club who applied for a 22 thousand dollars government grant to pay for the skis, boots and poles. There's enough equipment purchased to outfit 40 students.

Another waterfront addition

The metal beacons that will decorate Prince Arthur's Landing on the waterfront are now being put in place.  The beacons are towers which have L-E-D lighting installed along with an audio system which, among other things, will provide a bit of Thunder Bay history to those who visit the piers where they're to be located.

Local Fashionista posts new video for BBM Challenge

A local student has posted her latest fashion video for Blackberry's BBM Challenge.  Alex Kruse says she's hoping for more support from the community so she can put Thunder Bay on the fashion map.  The winner will be picked by Whitney Port and Blackberry but every vote helps.  Click here, to see her video and vote for her in the BBM Challenge.

Missing teen now found

A missing teenager is now back with his guardian. 14 year old Cole Yapput had been reported missing over the weekend, but city police say he turned up safe and sound on Sunday.

Making our streets look better

The City is giving you the chance to have a say on the future design of our main drags. A consulting firm has made several proposals to improve the look of streets like Red River Road, Edward and May. Spokesperson Jessica Hawes says there are a variety of recommendations they have come up with including tree planting and landscaping.   They are also looking at some streets with a view to how they can function better. The open house is taking place at the Community Auditorium starting at 4:30 Tuesday. 

Calendar Parking in effect

Calendar Parking is back in effect in the City.  Hopsital, school zones, transit routes and downtown cores will be off limits for parking from 2 am until 7am.  Certain streets subject to calandar parking will be off limits from 9am until five pm as well.  The restrictions are necessary to allow for quick and effective winter road maintenance.

Red Cross helping Attawapiskat

Attawapiskat is getting some help from the Canadian Red Cross.  The Red Cross says it's working closely with public authorities and the community to identify and address urgent, short-term needs.  Red Cross spokesman John Saunders says some of the needs currently identified include generators, heaters, insulated sleeping mats, blankets and winter clothing.

Global Sticks President in City

The President of Global Sticks says they hope to reopen the Oliver Paipoonge plant in two weeks time.  Reggie Nukovic is in the City this week meeting with bank officials looking for over a million dollars in loans.  Nukovic says they're implementing a restructuring plan this week.

Macs Robbery Sunday

Thunder Bay Police are investigating yet another robbery at a local Mac's Mart.  This time around it was the North Edward Street store that was held up for cash yesterday around seven pm.  Police say one young man entered the store with a knife while another kept watch outside.  The two youths will be in bail court this morning.

Fire at Mcivor Court

Firefighters are investigating the cause of a fire at Mcivor Court on the city's South side. Crews from four fire stations responded to the call just after 10 o'clock Sunday morning. Platoon Chief Kim Hutch says it might have been caused by smoking material being thrown down the garbage shoot. Firefighters had to force entry where the fire was quickly put under control. There have been no injuries reported, and damage to the apartment is minimal.

Macs Robbery

Thunder Bay Police are investigating another Macs Mart robbery. The Waterloo St. location was robbed early Sunday morning just after midnight, by a woman with a knife. There were no injuries reported and Police haven't made any arrests in connection with the robbery.

T.Bay's first TEDx conference

Thunder Bay will host its first TEDx conference on February 16th, 2012. Manager of the North West Innovation Centre, Judy Sander says the theme is reinventing your community. The organization committee is now looking for speakers. For more information visit www.tedxthunderbay.com.

Humane Society fundraiser

A fundraiser for the Thunder Bay Humane Society is gearing up for a big event. Organizer Jessica Leinich says her and a group of residents are having an event at the Westfort Tavern to raise money to help save the Humane Society.  The event will happen December 10th, from 8pm to 2am.