Harbortown Biz Ice Rink Officially Opens

The Harbortown Biz Ice Rink recieved the approval of local residents today.

The rink was opened with an official snow spray of memebers of the development committee.

Councillor Sharon Smith laced up her skates and said "the rink is in great shape and brings back memories from her childhood."

The rink is now open 24/7 throughout the winter months.

Lake of the Woods Brewing Seeks Zoning Change

The beer could be flowing in the old Kenora Fire Hall in three months or less.

The owner of the Lake of the Woods Brewing Company is seeking a zoning change to allow brewing in the heritage building.

Taras Manzies updated city council on his plans this morning and says the good news is they don't need a permit from the Ministry of the Environment.

Manzies says his brewing equipment will be shipped from South Korea tomorrow and is expected to be in Kenora by the end of the month.

OPP Lay Trafficking Charges

A 50 year old Kenora man faces drug charges after being arrested in the downtown area.

The OPP say they noticed a man engaged in suspicious activity yesterday afternoon in Hennepen Lane.

He was taken to the Kenora Detachment and officers seized about 120 dollars in cash as well as eight morphine pills.

Kevin Billard has been charged with possession for the purpose of trafficking.

School Buses Operating Today

All school buses will be running as usual this morning despite the one-day walkout by elementary teachers.

The buses will be picking up secondary school students and also students who attend the catholic schools.

The Northwest Student Services Consortium says that bus schedules and timing may fluctuate due to the reduced numbers of riders, however drivers will do their best to maintain the regular schedule.

EFTO Holds One Day Strike In Kenora Today

Lights will remain off in elementary schools operated by the Keewatin-Patricia District School Board today.

A one-day strike is taking place today by members of the Elementary Teachers Federation of Ontario.

Local Union president, Ann Saltel says their members will be gathering in Dryden today for a mass rally.

The one-day strike is against Bill 115, which imposes contracts on the teachers, and is supposed to take away their right to strike.

The rally will take place from 11 till 2:00 this afternoon.

Canfield Optimistic Funding Coming For Bridge Repairs

A glimpse of daylight in the battle to get funding for Kenora's crumbling bridges.

Kenora mayor Dave Canfield is optimistic a new 51 million dollar fund will be able to help the city pay for repairs to the Winnipeg River West Branch Bridge.

Canfield says there is funding set aside for emergency situations.

Canfield says the city is also applying for funding to begin Phase Three work on the Downtown Revitalization Project, which includes sewer and water replacement along 2nd Street South.

Liberal Leadership Hopefuls Gathering Support

Liberal leadership hopefuls have been picking up some support in northwestern Ontario.

Thunder Bay Superior North MPP Michael Gravelle is throwing his support behind Sandra Pupatello.

Gravelle believes she will be a dynamic leader of the Liberals if elected.

Meanwhile, former Liberal leader Lyn McLeod has given her endorsement to Kathleen Wynne, who is also seen as a front-runner in the race to become Ontario's next Premier.

First Nations Rally in Protest of Bill C-45

Aboriginals across Northwestern Ontario rallied today against Bill C-45.

Rallies were held in Kenora outside MP Greg Rickfords office and in Dryden outside the Government buildings.

Onigaming Chief Norman Copenance spoke during the rally in Kenora, and says its time for chiefs to come together and stand up for their self governance.

While Grassy Narrows Chief Simon Fobister says the government did not speak with First Nations about possible changes affecting their communities.

The Rallies were held in part of a national day of action names "Idle No More!"

Sioux Lookout Man Arrested on Prostitution Charges

A Sioux Lookout man has been charged with two counts of juvenile prostitution.

Last month, Provincial Police went to a home after receiving information that there illegal activities going on inside.

Police confirmed that prostitution was taking place, and all of the victims involved were under 18 years old.

Police say the accused is 30 year old Steven Robertson.

He remains in custody and will appear in court on Friday.

Kenora's First Electric Car Charging Station

Kenora now has it's first ever electric car charging station.

The station has been set up at the Best Western Lakeside Inn by Sun Country Highway.

Vice President Chris Misch says the project came together pretty quick.

Misch adds over 80 charging stations are being set up coast to coast along the Trans-Canada Highway to commemorate the highways 50th anniversary and create the world longest green highway.

Both OSSTF and EFTO Begin Job Actions This Week

Both elementary and secondary school teachers will begin their job action today.

Elementary teachers within the Keewatin-Patricia District School Board will be staging a one day strike tomorrow.

As a result, all elementary schools within the board will be closed.

Director of Education Jack McMaster says that it was a unanimous decision.

Elementary Schools will re-open on Wednesday.

Teachers Job Action to Affect NorWOSSA Leagues

The job action at the public school board is creating some confusion for parents at Kenora Catholic District School board.

Director of Education Phylis Eikre says it will be business as usual at all their schools this week.

But she admits the job action is having an impact on their sports teams.

Eikre says the job actions will affect their high school sports teams, because the NorWOSSA season has been put on hold due to the withdrawal of the Secondary School Teachers from extra curricular activities.

Eikre adds that school buses will be running tomorrow, even though all elementary schools will be closed.

Rickford Impatient for Highway Twinning to Begin

The Ministry of Transportation is taking some heat for failing start work to twin the Trans-Canada highway west of Kenora.

Kenora M.P. Greg Rickford says the project was ready to roll over a year ago.

He blames the province's inability to negotiate a deal with area first nations.

Rickford says the federal government is still committed to the project but he wants the province to confirm funding for twinning the entire length of highway from the Manitoba Border right to the City of Kenora.

Ontario Liberals Debate Northern Autonomy

Ontario's Liberal leadership hopefuls don't all agree on whether northern Ontario needs its own regional government.

Glen Murray wants full autonomy for the north so it can forge its own path. Speaking at the leadership debate in Thunder Bay, Murray says the north should make its own decisions.

But not everyone agrees. Kathleen Wynne is warning that it sounds like separation, and that's not where she wants to go.

Meanwhile, Gerard Kennedy told the audience more needs to be done for Aboriginal students.

Other topics of discussion included the Ring of Fire and Economic Development in Northern Ontario.

Hospitals to Study Non-Emergency Transfers

Area hospitals are going to study the management of non-emergency patient transfers.

Lake of the Woods District Hospital CEO Mark Balcaen says hospitals and services boards West of Thunder Bay are taking part in the study.

Belcaen adds the goal of the study is to find financial solutions for payment of the transfers after the Kenora District Services Board announced it will no longer fund the program.

Youth Faces Charges for Taking Replica Gun to School

A youth who brought a replica handgun to the Fort Frances high school last week is facing charges.

Provincial Police have charged the youth with two counts of assault with a weapon, posession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, and failure to comply with an order.

The accused remains in custody and is expected to appear in court today.

A Good Weekend for PeeWee and Midget Thistles

The Kenora double "a" PeeWee Thistles skated to the B-Side title at their own tournament over the weekend at the Rec. Center.

The Thistles doubled up the St. James Canadians 4-2 in their final game of the tournament on Sunday morning.

Meanwhile, the Kenora Triple "a" midget Thistles earned a split of their weekend series against the Brandon Wheat Kings.

Yesterday, the Wheat Kings earned a 3-2 in in a shootout at the Rec. Center.

Saturday the Thistles had a solid defensive effort in a 1-0 win.

Scott Parsons earned the shutout for the Kenora Midgets making 35 saves.

Saints Win Manitoba Hockey Tournament

A good weekend for the Thomas Aquinas boys hockey team.

The Saints were in Killarny, Manitoba and walked away with the gold medal from a high school tournament there.

T.A. went through the tournament with a perfect 4-0 record including a 5-4 win over Deloraine in the A-side final.

Jackson Fregeau led the way with three goals in the final.

Meanwhile, Beaver Brae's girls team spent the weekend on the road.

The Broncos attended a tournament in Portage La Prairie, and lost the gold medal game to the
NorWOSSA rivals from Fort Frances 3-2.

Yesterday, Beaver Brae was back on the road in Sioux Lookout and skated to a 7-0 win over the Warriors.

The Broncos had seven different goal scorers in that contest.

Harbourtown Biz Ice Rink opens this Saturday

The much awaited skating rink under the whitecap pavillion opens tomorrow.

Special Events Coordinator Mark Duggan says the Harbourtown Bic Ice Rink the will open at 9:00 tomorrow morning.

Duggan also wants to remind the public that rink will be for skating only.

Fort Frances High School Locked Down

The presence of what turned out to be a replica firearm put the Fort Frances High School into a lookdown situation yesterday.

OPP Acting Sergeant Anne McCoy says the measure was necessary to secure the area while police searched for the person seen carrying it.

The lockdown was lifted about an hour later after a 16-year-old boy was taken into custody without incident off school property.