Loblaws/Shoppers Deal Approved

The Competition Bureau is approving Loblaw's acquisition of Shoppers Drug Mart.  The deal is expected to close as of next Friday.  As a result of the deal Loblaws is selling 18 Shoppers Drug Mart stores around the Country.  Thunder Bay isn't on the list.

Volunteers To Be Honoured In Kenora

The region's volunteers will be honoured at a ceremony planned for Kenora this May.  The Ontario Volunteer Service Awards will be handed out to volunteers for continuous service to an organization of between 5 and 60 years.  Youth will also be recognized for two or more years of volunteer service. The Kenora event will take place May 27.

Chamber Makes Scholarships Available

The Chamber of Commerce is giving out two 500 dollar scholarships to local high school students. Applications are being accepted from students planning to attend a business related program at a Thunder Bay post-secondary institution for the 2014-15 school year.  The application deadline is April 16th.

Local Beekeeper Comments On Report

Premier Kathleen Wynne is thanking the Ontario Bee Health Working Group for their report into the risk honey bees face from pesticide use.  Wynne adds that the province is working with the Federal Government when it comes to the use of pesticides.  Barry Tabor says 1.2-million dollars in funding from the province is a good start.  Tabor says he would of liked to see more attention given to bee keepers instead of growers, in the bee health working group's report.

Investigators Back From Ottawa

Investigators with the Thunder Bay Police and RCMP are returning from Ottawa after conducting interviews with staff and players with the University of Ottawa hockey program.  According to a release from city police the majority of players cooperated with investigators however a few chose not to speak.  The investigation continues into an alleged sexual assault that took place when the hockey team was in Thunder Bay for a pair of weekend games early February.

Hernandez Verdict May 13th

It will be another month and a half before Christian Hernandez learns his fate.  The 28 year old is charged in connection with the 2010 traffic death of 45 year old Richard Carmichael, who was a pedestrian crossing the street.  He faces two impaired driving related charges along with failing to remain at the scene of an accident where death has ensued.  After hearing closing arguments from both the defence and the prosecution, Justice Joyce Pelletier will hand down her verdict in the case May 13th.

Anishinabek Nation Comments On Education Act

 

Chiefs with the Anishinabek Nation believe proposed education legislation from the Federal Government will render 18-years of negotiations useless.  Anishinabek Nation Grand Council Chief Patrick Madahbee says that the legislation does not translate to first nation control over their own education.

Municipal League Meeting In Schreiber

Municipal League President
Larry Hebert

Municipal leaders from across the district are meeting in Schreiber this week.  The conference starts Friday morning and runs through the weekend with a variety of issues being discussed. Policing, Crown land policies, poverty, and nuclear waste are up for debate.

New Courthouse Opening Soon

We are getting closer to seeing the new consolidated courthouse open.  A spokesperson from the Attorney General's office says the Superior Court of Justice will be operational at the new building starting April 7th. The Ontario Court of Justice will be operating out of that building as well a week later on April 14th.

Stroke Forum On This Week

Health care providers from across the Northwest are in Thunder Bay this week for the Regional Stroke Forum.  Regional Stroke Educator Elaine Edwards says the region sees a number of stroke cases. Area doctors will learn from the leading stroke neurologists over the next two days. 

Trudeau Skypes With Dryden Kids

An experience that Dryden's New Prospect's Grade 5 class will never forget.  Yesterday the class skyped with Justin Trudeau and asked him 24 questions.  Teacher Mary Trist says the students may not have known who the Liberal Leader was at first but after a mock parliament they clued in. The skype session went on for a half hour.

Tbaytel Fixes Problems

Tbaytel is announcing that technical issues with their voicemail service have been sorted out and service is back to normal.  Users were unable to access their voicemail this morning but spokesperson Katie Crowe says if you were expecting an important message you will still get it. A change in software was required to fix the issue.

Bluesfest Lineup Announced

The 2014 Bluesfest lineup is out.   Among the headliners coming to Thunder Bay this summer, Melissa Etheridge, Jimmy Vaughn and the Wallflowers.   Community Auditorium General Manager Bob Halverson says there's several bands people should be excited to see.  Bluesfest takes place at Marina Park July 4th to the 6th.  Tickets go on sale tomorrow at the Community Auditorium.

Swing Bridge Work Continues

CN Rail officials say work continues at the James Street Swing bridge. Scaffolding is in place at the site to assist the consultants in their extensive review of the bridge. The final report is still expected to be complete at the end of the month.

Diversity Breakfast

Diversity Thunder Bay welcomed a prominent figure to their 'Celebration Breakfast' this morning.  Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish is a three-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee and spoke at their event in support of ending racial discrimination. Chair Tina Tucker says their guest speaker brings with him first hand experiences living near the Gaza strip. Abuelaish is now an Associate Professor at the University of Toronto.

Mercury Removal Planned

Mercury Sludge

Cole Engineering is pitching several ideas on how to clean up the mercury contamination in the Thunder Bay Harbour.  Around 40 people representing a variety of environmental agencies took part in a meeting Wednesday night. Cole spokesperson Mark Bassingthwaite says one of the ideas is to pour clean material on top of the spoiled sediment.  Another idea is to physically remove the sludge and dispose of it at either the Mission Bay facility, a new confined facility or at the landfill.  The price tag of the ideas range from 30 million dollars to over 90 million. It's not known yet exactly who will pay for the remediation.

College Float Plane Program Moved

A program originally based east of Atikokan is moving west. Confederation College Aviation Chair Paul De Oude says the school's float plane training program will now be based on the Kenora Harbourfront. De Oude says training will start as soon as possible.  He notes the partnership is with River Air and community support provides the long term foundation needed to run the highly successful program.

Resolute Fires Back @ Greenpeace

Resolute Forest Products is responding after Greenpeace unfurled banners in Montreal to denounce the company's forestry practices in the boreal forest. In a release, the company says Greenpeace's actions are consistent with those its taken since withdrawing from the Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement a year ago.  Resolute also calls Greenpeace's allegations untrue, noting all of its woodlands are independently certified to one or more internationally-recognized standards. And it adds that only point 2 per cent of boreal forest is actually harvested with 40 per cent of the forest off limits to forest companies.

Rickford Named Natural Resources Minister

A major promotion for Kenora MP Greg Rickford. Rickford has been named Minister of Natural Resources in a Prime Minister Stephen Harper cabinet shuffle.   He says he's grateful for the confidence the prime minister is showing in him.   Rickford replaces Joe Oliver who replaces Jim Flaherty as Finance Minister.   He retains responsibility of FedNor and the Ring of Fire but gives up his Minister of Science and Technology portfolio.

Woman Injured In Rollover

A woman is in hospital after her vehicle rolled over in the ditch on Highway 61 between Arthur Street  and the Harbour Expressway just after 8:30 this morning.  Thunder Bay fire Captain Craig Venables says they used to the jaws of life to extricate the unconscious victim from her vehicle.   Police and paramedics were there as well.  Police say the victim suffered serious injuries and her immediate condition is not known.

OPP Report Several Collisions

In addition to the serious traffic mishap on Highway 61 today, the OPP are reporting a number of vehicle collisions this morning during our snow squall.    They say that at Around 7:45 on Mapleward Road a woman in her Nissan SUV ended up in the ditch.  The woman was taken to hospital but her injuries aren't considered life threatening.  And at 10:45 on Highway 527, the road to Armstrong, two trucks collided, but there were no injuries.

Thunder Bay MP's Voice Concern

Bruce Hyer

Bruce Hyer is voicing concern for the appointment of Kenora MP Greg Rickford as new federal Natural Resources Minister. Despite believing he has the intelligence for the job, Hyer says that Rickford's priorities concern him. Rickford replaces Joe Oliver who moves into the Finance Minister position.  Thunder Bay MP John Rafferty says Rickford has big issues to deal with involving major oil pipelines, but looks forward to working with him.

John Rafferty

Car Destroyed By Overnight Fire

A car is a total write off after an overnight fire.  Firefighters responded to the vehicle blaze around 4 o'clock this morning in the 900 block of Mountdale Avenue.  The car was parked in the driveway and there was some exterior smoke damage to the house.  Fire officials aren't sure of the cause of the blaze, but have ruled out foul play.  There were no injuries.  

Thief Hit By Vehicle

A 48-year old man is in Regional Hospital with non-life threatening injuries after being struck on a bicycle at the corner of May and Finlayson Street.  City Police report the incident took place just after 9 o'clock last night. Ironically, it turned out the victim had been seen moments earlier smashing a window to break into a vehicle on the CLE Grounds.  Witnesses stated the thief then took off on a bike.  A tool box was recovered at the accident scene.  The man has been charged with possession of stolen property, mischief and failing to yield under the Highway Traffic Act.  

United Way Gets Help From Hotels

Four local hotels are going to do their part to help out the United Way. The Valhalla Inn, Prince Arthur Waterfront Hotel & Suites, Days Inn and Best Western – Crossroads Motor Inn will donate fifty cents from every hotel stay to the charity from now until April 17th. The announcement came today during the United Way's 50th anniversary celebrations in Thunder Bay.

U-Turn Launched By Three Agencies

Three community agencies are rebranding their network to better target local teens. Thunder Bay Counselling Centre, St. Joseph's Care Group and the Children's Centre are behind the U-turn program which will help youth make positive changes in their lives whether it involves mental illness or substance abuse.  The initiative will also include a new social media campaign featuring the Facebook & Twitter hashtag #sharehowUfeel

Pinewood Declares Outbreak In 1 Unit

The Kingfisher Unit of the Pinewood Court long term care home is declaring an outbreak of a stomach illness. Visitors to this unit are limited to family members and caregivers only, so please call for more information.  The Health Unit is urging people to refrain from visiting hospitals and long-term care facilities when feeling unwell.

Sexual Interference Charges Laid

City Police are charging a 57 year old Thunder Bay man with three counts of sexual interference involving a child under the age of 14.  The alleged incident occurred between 1992 and 1996.  Donald Neil Miller was convicted of a similar incident in 2003. Police say the victims in both occurrences attended the Round Lake Bible Camp between 1992 and 1998 when Miller was affiliated with the camp. Miller has been released with a court date of March 21, 2014.

Tablets, Zone Policing & Texting 911 On The Way

City Police are shedding some light on their ongoing initiatives including zone policing, tablets in cruisers and texting 911 service.  Chief JP Levesque says they should have the high tech devices in their vehicles in the next couple of months. The same time frame goes for getting zone policing off the ground which will see specific officers assigned to designated areas of the City. Levesque also updated the Police Board behind closed doors on Tuesday about how long it will be before the area will see texting 911 service.  It comes after the 911 call centre that serves the Metro Vancouver and select surrounding areas of British Columbia will be able to communicate with hearing or speech impaired Canadians using text messages. E-Comm 911, the emergency call centre that serves Metro Vancouver and select surrounding areas is the first emergency call centre in Canada to provide Text with 911.

No Alder For Now

Don't look for the American Coast Guard ice-breaker Alder to be up our way until at least the weekend.  Originally the Alder was supposed to be here on Monday, but Port Authority CEO Tim Heney says that has been delayed indefinetly with a possible appearance on the weekend.  Heney says however, the visit may not include any ice-breaking in the harbour itself.

A Call For More Ice-Breakers

There's a call for more ice-breakers on the Great Lakes from the Canadian Shipowners Association.  President Robert Lewis-Manning says it's critical because, under current conditions,  ships will not be able to navigate the lakes to move their cargo.  He says it's especially serious here in Thunder Bay. Lewis-Manning believes there should be at least one Canadian ice-breaker sent to help break up the Thunder Bay Harbour.

Complaints On The Decline

City Police are seeing a decrease in the number of public complaints they receive. Last year 29 complaints were lodged compared to 2012's 51. Chief JP Levesque says that's in part because they've changed the way they deal with grievances. 5 complaints from 2013 are still continuing.

2013 Police Budget Ran Over

City Police are over their 2013 budget by two percent.  Chief JP Levesque says the extra expenses came from Workplace, Safety and Insurance Board claims, overtime and legal services.  The operating budget for 2013 was approved at just over 35 million dollars.

Event Centre Moves Forward

City Council continues to get a piece of the public's mind when it comes to holding a vote on the event centre. Several organizations came out to ask the City to make the proposed arena a question in the upcoming municipal election. Andy Wolff thinks having a question on the ballot would result in a higher voter turnout.  Meanwhile, Council is moving forward with the third phase of the event centre.  Councillors awarded a 1.4 million dollar contract to BBB Architects.  The company will be in charge of creating a design for the proposed facility.

Greenpeace Slams Resolute On Mt. Royal

Greenpeace is continuing it's public relations battle with Resolute Forest Products. This morning, the environmental group unfurled two banners on the Mount Royal Cross in Montreal. Greenpeace says the action is part of it's campaign against Resolute's operations in the Boreal Forest. It  wants the pulp and paper giant to establish a better balance between it's logging practices and protection of public forests.

Board Won't Comment On Bullying Complaint

The cone of silence is on at the Thunder Bay Catholic District School board.   It follows a report of bullying at a Catholic elementary school in the city.   A family member claims that the board hasn't done anything to help her 13 year old relative deal with the students who pick on her because of her tourette sydrome.    The Board says it can't comment on any one case but that each school is mandated by the provincial government to have a bullying protocol in place.

ROF Framework Almost Ready

The Ring of Fire mining development is getting scrutiny at the Greenstone Expo in the city.  Mines Minister Michael Gravelle was the keynote speaker last night and said the behind the scenes negotiations continue on getting a framework agreement between all parties involved.   Gravelle says while the framework should be signed soon,  out of respect for the process he won't speculate on when that might happen.

Deputations Ask For Plebiscite

City Council continues to get a piece of the public's mind when it comes to holding a public vote on the proposed event centre.  Several organizations came out to ask the City to make the event centre a question on the municipal election ballot.  Andy Wolff thinks having a question on the upcoming ballot would result in a higher voter turnout.  Another group of residents who are in favour of the Event Centre also came out to show their support to Council.

Planning Meeting At City Council

The City is giving the go-ahead to a proposed six storey building on a piece of land that currently houses the Cumberland Cineplex.  City lawmakers approved the rezoning application at their meeting last night that will allow property developers to knock down the former cinema and build the new mixed use building.  Some neighbours shared their concerns with the City over the loss of the view of the Sleeping Giant.  Meanwhile,  City Council is going to take some time before officially green lighting Nadin Contracting's request to change the allowed uses of two pieces of Arthur Street West property.  The company says there's a high demand for large lots serviced by the City in the rural parts of town. Norm Nadin says there subdivision is a good project and one the City should get behind. Council is expected to approve a new resolution supporting the development at another council meeting.

Weldon Is Back In T.Bay

Thunder Bay's Para Olympian Robbi Weldon is back from Sochi, Russia. Her flight arrived Monday night at the Thunder Bay Airport.  She says she's happy with her performances noting she's still suffering from injuries she sustained last year. Weldon was welcomed by her friends and family. She says it was fantastic to visit Russia and the Russian people were very gracious.

Hospital Gets 2 Million For Research Projects

Local orthopedic surgeons are giving 2 million dollars to the local hospital for a orthopedic research program. The money will go towards a variety of research projects including one that will look at diabetes patients and how many in the Northwest need to have limbs amputated. Officials say this is one of the largest donations in the hospital's history.

Rags Spontaneously Combust

The City's Fire Service is deeming the cause of a house fire on Park Row Friday night as spontaneous combustion.  They say improperly discarded oily rags just caught fire on their own.  Damage to the home is estimated at over 50-thousand dollars.  No one was home at the time of the fire.

Sears Robbed Of Jewelry

City Police are releasing a picture of a man they say is responsible for a break, enter and theft to the Sears store on the weekend.  Officers arrived at the east entrance to the store on Sunday just before 4:30 a.m. to find that two exterior glass doors had been smashed.  Someone had robbed the store of jewelry. The suspect is described as a man with a medium build, wearing a two tone greenish brown jacket and a beige baseball hat. Anyone with information about this incident is asked to contact Crime Stoppers.

OPP Cruiser In Weekend Mishap

A 31 year old Thunder Bay man is charged with impaired driving after police say his vehicle slammed into an OPP cruiser on the weekend.   They say it happened on Highway 61 and Arthur Street just before 3 in the morning Saturday as the cruiser went through a green light when it collided with a  truck making a left turn. There are no injuries to report.

Beardy Helps People Get Screened

Ontario Regional Chief Stan Beardy is doing his part to help get more people screened for cancer.  His cancer story is in a new cancer awareness video for the Thunder Bay Regional Health Centre.  The moral of the video is that a commitment to cancer screening saved Beardy's life because his cancer was caught early.

Early Detection - The Path to a Good Life from Apple Wagon Films on Vimeo.

War Amps Campaign Underway

War Amps key tags are being mailed out to people in Ontario.    Spokesperson Jamie Lunn says that 3.7 million of them are being distributed throughout the province.  As for northwestern Ontario, we won't receive them until next month.   She says they will begin distribution in the "P" postal code at the end of April.
Money from donations is used to help war amputees in Canada.

Winter Opening Hailed As Success

The experimental winter opening of the Chippewa Park Wildlife Exhibit is being hailed as a success.  City spokesperson Lorraine Lortie-Krawczuk says attendance was more than expected and she hopes it means the exhibit will be open again next winter.  Lortie-Krawczuk says response to the winter opening was fantastic.