Canfield Happy With Mauro Appointment

The appointment of Bill Mauro as the new Ontario minister of municipal affairs is getting a thumbs up from the president of the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association.   Dave Canfield believes with Michael Gravelle also in cabinet it gives our region a leg up at Queen's Park. Canfield says he's had a long political relationship with Mauro and believes they will work well together.

Still Frozen Pipes In The City

There are still close to 70 homes in Thunder Bay waiting to have frozen pipes thawed out by city workers.  Spokesperson Tony Santos says that they are getting to the houses at quick as they can, but the wait could still be a couple of weeks.   Santos says that so far this year there have been about 670 frozen pipe complaints to the city.   He says it's becoming more manageable with the rising temperatures.

Hobbs Livid Over Salary Comments

Mayor Keith Hobbs is taking exception to statements made to our newsroom by Councillor Ken Boshcoff.   Boshcoff commented on what he sees as the gap between the mayor's 90 thousand dollar salary  last year and what councillors make,  saying they both have essentially have the same hours.  Hobb calls it political grandstanding claiming he makes less than other mayors in similar size cities.   The mayor says he's also cut his travel budget for the fourth straight year.

Nurses Get Deal

Thunder Bay's Public Health Nurses are announcing they've reached a deal with their employer the health unit.  The 58 nurses reached the tentative agreement yesterday with the assistance of a conciliator.  Details of the agreement are confidential until ratified by both parties.  The nurses union is currently making arrangements for its members to meet to hear details of the agreement and to hold a ratification vote.

New Group Supports City

A new group is being formed to support the city's stand on the proposed events centre.  It's being organized by city resident Jason Susin who says that over 1 thousand residents have recently joined the rapidly growing online group Citizens For A Waterfront Event Centre. Susin is hoping to hold a recruitment rally in the near future.

Energy East Meeting Tonight

Thunder Bay is one of several stops on a cross province tour by the Ontario Energy Board which is holding community consultations on the proposed Energy East Pipeline project.  They'll be at the Airlane Hotel for a community discussion forum starting at 6:30 tonight. The Energy East Project would use the existing natural gas pipeline to ship crude oil from Alberta to eastern Canada.

NDP Call For Cheaper ATM Fees

The NDP is pushing for limits to the fees Canadians pay to use their credit card and debit cards. Thunder Bay-Rainy River MP John Rafferty says fees now in place are impacting both consumers and businesses. Rafferty says it includes capping the fees paid to use debit cards at competing ATMs and banks at 50 cents a transaction.

Snow Storm On The Way

Brace yourself for more snow.  There's a snow storm moving into Northwestern Ontario.  Environment Canada Meteorologist Mark Schuster says the snowfall will start tonight and continue into Thursday.  The worst case scenario sees us getting about 15 to 20 cm of snow and the best case scenario 10 cm.  The storm is coming in from the Central US and is slow moving.

Mauro Named To Municipal Affairs

A surprise out of Queens Park.   Bill Mauro is the new provincial minister for municipal affairs and housing.  He was named to the post by Premier Kathleen Wynne as part of a wider cabinet shuffle triggered by the resignation of Linda Jeffrey from municipal affairs.   Mauro says the appointment was a surprise to him but he is excited to take on the challenge and that he knows he has a steep learning curve.

Man Pleads Guilty To Child Luring

A 27 year old Thunder Bay man is pleading guilty to charges stemming from a police sting operation last month.   Matthew Lovering was charged with child luring and failing to comply with a court order after undercover detectives responded to an on-line ad on Kijiji.   The ad asked for young boys between the ages of 6 and 13 to model for photographs.    An original charge of Invitation to Sexual Touching was dropped by the Crown.    He is back in court on May 6th.   According to the prosecution, Lovering faces a mandatory minimum 1 year in jail for the offences.

Mask Making Nurses

Lakehead University's nursing students are learning about caring for others by making masks. Students partnered up recently and poured plaster on each others faces to create masks. It helped the students since they had to trust their partner to cover their mouth and nose for a brief moment.

Gambee Back To Court In May

The former chair of the Christmas Cheer fund is coming back to court May 13th on charges that Linda Gambee defrauded the fund of about 22 thousand dollars.  In court,  her lawyer Gil Labine said he still needs to receive some of the paperwork on what he calls a complex matter. He also alluded to his client's mental health.   Gambee herself did not appear in court.

Physiotherapy Money Handed Out

The Provincial Government is providing 588-thousand dollars to two new publicly funded physiotherapy clinics in Thunder Bay.  Closing the Gap Healthcare Group and the Fairway Physiotherapy and Sports Injury Clinic will share the cash.  The money will provide expanded access to physiotherapy services for 472 individuals this year and more than 1,400 people in 2014/15.

Youth Center Project Fails

The Youth Centre partnership between the City and the Indian Friendship Center is being scrapped.  The project won't move forward because they were unable to secure capital funding before the purchase deadline of March 14th. Administration will report back on April 7 to seek further direction from Council to explore other options related to developing City Youth Centre.

Minister Visiting T.Bay

The provincial Minister of Economic Development, Trade and Employment Eric Hoskins is in Thunder Bay today.  He's speaking at the Da Vinci about the government's plan to help create jobs and grow the economy.

Hobbs Makes 90k Last Year

There was a close focus on the city's current financial situation at council last night, the same day it came out that Mayor Keith Hobbs made 90-thousand dollars last year.  Councillor Ken Boshcoff says its something the public may take note of.  The next highest paid member of council is Joe Virdiramo at a little over 44-thousand dollars.

Council Supports Taxi Change

A move that would see the regulation of the city's taxi's switched from the police to by-law is receiving support from city council.  Mayor Keith Hobbs says police officers should be focused elsewhere. Council is expected to hear further details on the issue in the fall.

City's Debt To Reach 184 Million

The city's debt will reach 184-million dollars this year. This comes after the city approved its debt management strategy at council last night. The strategy includes borrowing a little over 8-million dollars for phase two of the Golf Links-Junot Corridor and a 10-million dollar loan to Tbaytel.

Snow Budget Over

Council is looking at all options to keep costs under control following consecutive extreme winters. Due to the weather the 2014 winter budget has been completely spent. The city will review all hiring and look to put an end to all corporate spending including travel considered non-essential.

TBRRI Maps Out Direction

The Thunder Bay Regional Research Institute is mapping out the direction they are taking to councillors. Gary Polanski is Chair of the Board of Governor's and says research efforts are getting noticed. Currently the hospital has over thirty physician researchers.