Shoal Lake Takes City of Winnipeg to Court

The Shoal Lake #39 First Nation is taking the City of Winnipeg to court to try and prevent the sale of water to other communities in Manitoba.

Winnipeg gets its water from Shoal Lake, but the First Nation has been trying to get the city to cough up 124 million dollars a year for that right.

The Shoal Lake Band argues Winnipeg doesn't have the right to sell the water and is launching a judicial review which could bring the dispute to court later this year.

Yesterday, lawyers went to Manitoba Court of Queen's Bench to prevent the city from concluding its water agreement's with West St. Paul and Rosser.

New Subdivision proposed for Black Sturgeon

Yet another sub-division is being planned for Black Sturgeon Lake.

The city's Property and Planning Committee is being asked to approve a 15 lot project on the site of the former Birchcliff property on the Coker Road.

Doug Lafreniere is planning to develop nine waterfront lots and six lots off the lake.

He submitted his proposal this week for a zoning change on the property from institutional to rural residential.

No objections were made to the proposal.

STR Closes local Snowmobile Trails

The recent warm spell has been great for pedestrians and cyclists, but not so much for snowmobile enthusiasts.

The Sunset Trailriders has been forced to closed down its trails in the Kenora area due to all the melting.

Shaun Clifford is a spokesperson for STR and says overall it was a good season on the trails.

He adds the Cross-Town Corridor got good reviews, but they will continue to look at possible changes in the Lakeside area.

Clifford says another concern was vandalism to some of their trail markers this winter, which were either pulled out or run over.

Local Service Agencies United

There's a new united front coming from the agencies who deliver social services programs in Northwestern Ontario.

Representatives from the Kenora, Rainy River and Thunder Bay District Services Boards joined as one in a recent meeting with the Province to push for more funding.

Spokesperson Deb Ewald says all three face similar struggles.

It's the first time the three have made a joint submission.

Early Start to Forest Fire Season Not in the Forecast

Record high temperatures may lead us to believe we are looking at an early start to the forest fire season.

That may not be the case as Ministry of Natural Resources Information Officer Debbie MacLean says the region experience minimal percipitation over the winter but the long-term outlook calls for wet weather in the Spring.

MacLean says staff training will begin in the next couple of weeks.

City Councillor Takes Premier to Task

Premier Dalton McGuinty's ears might be burning these days.

Councillor Sharon Smith took the premier to task this week for refusing to include an infrastructure program in the upcoming provincial government.

Smith says the time is ripe for government's to be spending money on public projects.

Smith was commenting on McGuinty's speech at the Ontario Good Roads Conference last month, where he told municipal leaders the government was going to focus on skills and education and sacrifice the infrastructure fund.

Lakeside Landmark to Close

A landmark in Lakeside will be going the way of the dinosaur.

The owners of the Lakeside Mini-Mart have made an application to the city's property and planning committee for permission to turn the convenience store into a four unit apartment complex.

There are currently two apartment's on the upper floor of the building and the owners are proposing to develop the lower floor to include two more apartments.

Jeff Port made the pitch to the committee this week and says the change in use of the building will result in less traffic in the area and is consistant with the land usage in the neighborhood.

City Funds Debenture for Harborfront Tent

Kenora City Council will be dipping into the KMTS Citizan's Prosperity Trust once again to help pay for a major capital project.

Council says it will borrow just over 740 thousand dollars in order to finance the long term debt on the new Harborfront tent.

The city has also received 800 thousand dollars from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund,
50 thousand from the Kenora BIZ and a five thousand dollar donation from a local businessman for the tent.

Councillor Ron Lunny says at three percent a year, the city is making good money on the loan, and paying itself at the same time, so its a win/win situation.

He adds this is the last major debenture the city will have to take out, after previously financing the new fire hall and the Discovery Center.

More Co-Operation Sought on Oxycontin

The medical officer of health for the Northwestern Health Unit wants to see more discussion in dealing with the withdrawl of oxycontin.

Doctor James Arthur says it's an issue that simply one agency alone can't solve.

Arthur says placing blame for the reasons behind the drug's high use in Ontario does little to address the problem.

More Temperature Records Fall

A sign of things to come weather wise.

Four records were broken yesterday in Northwestern Ontario.

The hot spot was Fort Frances at 12.6-degrees.

The previous high was 12.5 set in 1995.

Thunder Bay reached 12.2-degrees, blowing away the previous high of 9.4.

Atikokan hit 11.4 and Ear Falls 11.1 degrees.

 

Kenora topped out at 10.2 yesterday, still a couple of degrees lower than

the previous high for March 13th.

Outdoor Patios Being Encouraged by City

Outdoor eating could soon be the rule rather than the exception in downtown Kenora.

Kenora City Council is looking at a policy that would encourage businesses to set up patios.

Councillor Ron Lunny supports the idea and wants to see council move the concept forward.

The City's Planning Department is hoping to come up with a policy, including costs and regulations for business owners by the middle of May.

Dufresne Furniture Extends Charity Challenge

Four Kenora groups could benefit thanks to a new Dufresne Furniture promotion.

The Winnipeg-based company has expanded it's 1-million dollar charity challenge and is now giving away a 5-thousand dollar bonus to one of 51 charities.

The Firefly Minto Resource Center, the Hospital Foundation, Triple Play and Aamiikowish Housing are in the running.

You are asked to go on Facebook and like Dufresne.

For there you will be able to pick which charity should be selected for the extra 5-grand.

Man Arrested Following Stand-off on North Spirit Lake

A 42 year old man faces charges following a stand-off with Police in North Spirit Lake.

Nishnawbe-Aski Police were notified by Band Council on Monday about a barricaded man and a second injured individual.

Officers made contact with the man and were able to reach the victim.

The man was airlifted to Hospital in Winnipeg with 4-stab wounds.

Provincial Police and Negoitators were called in and the accused turned himself in on Tuesday morning without incident.

Police say Robert Anthony Rae has been charged with aggravated assault, uttering threats and breach of probation.

He remains in custody.

OPP seeks Summer students for Marine Unit

The Ontario Provincial Police is looking for applications for a summer Marine Assistant position.

The salary position will start July 3rd and will run for about 7-weeks.

Constable Anne McCoy says the students will help officers conduct marine checks on recreational vessels as well as perform other duties.

Two positions are available this summer in Kenora, one in Fort Frances and one in Dryden. 

You must be over the age of 18 and have a Ontario G2 Driver's licence to apply.

OPP Investigate Cottage Break-Ins

A couple of camp owners got a unwelcome surprise this week.

The OPP say they were contacted Monday about break-ins to two camps on Lake of the Woods.

One was on Pine Island and the other on Gordon Island.

In both instances, the culprits broke a window the gain entry.

Once inside furniture, walls, doors and other personal property was damaged.

The damage estimate has been put at about three thousand dollars.

Anyone with information about the break-ins is asked to contact the OPP or Crimestoppers.

Council Covers Economic Development Deficit

Kenora City Council seems to be in a forgiving mood.

Council has agreed to fund an almost 50 thousand dollar deficit for the Lake of the Woods Economic Development Commission in 2011.

Councillor Sharon Smith says over the past few years, the Commission has consistently had a surplus.

But she says the accumulated surplus was only 80 thousand dollars, not 130 thousand, as the commission was led to believe.

That left them with a bit of a shortfall last year, due to extra costs for consulting fees on the Lakewood School project and the commissioning of the new Discovery Center.

Rickford Supports Legislation Preventing Air Canada Strike

It could be a long night for M.P.'s tonight in the House of Commons.

A bill to keep Air Canada pilots and ground crews working will be voted on this evening.

Kenora M.P. Greg Rickford says the bill not just about preventing workers from striking.

Rickford expects the bill will likely gain third reading early tomorrow morning, barring any prolonged delays.

Council Supports IJC Report on Lake of the Woods

The City of Kenora is once again being urged to support efforts to preserve the water quality on Lake of the Woods.

Council is being asked to support a resolution calling on the federal government to go ahead with recommendations to create a joint watershed management board for the Lake.

Todd Sellars is with the Lake of the Woods Water Sustainability Foundation and says that's the main recommendation contained in a recent IJC report on the lake.

Sellars says the federal government has already committed funding for the protection of border waters, so the decision should be a no brainer.

Kenora Forest Management Plan Approved

Users of trails in the Ingolf and Kramer Lake area can breathe a sigh of relief.

A final Forest Management Plan for the Kenora Forest has been drafted, and some of the concerns of recreational users have been taken into consideration.

Ian Pyke is an area forester for the MNR and says logging buffers have been put around some of the recreational areas identified by the public.

While the final Kenora Forest Management Plan has been approved by the MNR, there is still a 30 day comment period until the beginning of April.

More Doctors Sought for NWO

Kenora-Rainy River MPP Sarah Campbell wants a letter-writing campaign to Ontario's Health Minister to continue.

The campaign was started to force solutions to the town of Rainy River's doctor shortage.

While Deb Matthews is promising to keep the Rainy River Health Centre's emergency room open, Campbell says she still needs to visit.

Campbell says the issue in Rainy River won't be resolved until more doctors are found.