Standing Room Only At All-Candidates Forum

It was a standing room only crowd for the final all-candidates forum in the Kenora Riding prior to the May 2nd federal election.

About 100 people crammed into the Days Inn last night to hear from the five candidates.

Most of the main party candidates stayed close to the message of their parties.

Conservative Greg Rickford touted the intiatives of the Harper Government over the past two and a half years.

Meanwhile, NDP Candidate Tania Cameron suggested its time for a change in Ottawa.

Independant Candidate Kelvin Chicago-Boucher added a touch of humour to the proceedings when asked about what he would do about the inflation rate.

Green Party Candidate Mike Schwindt and Liberal Roger Valley also took part in the all-candidates forum.

American Man charged with importing illegal Baitfish

An Iowa man has been fined for importing live baitfish into Ontario for a second time in less than a year.

This time Thaddeus Strecker was stopped on Lake of the Woods back in February.

Conservation officers found that the man also failed to maintain a clear and unobstructed view of a fishing line and hid several dozen live minows in a container in the snow.

He has been fined a total of 11-hundred dollars.

Tories looking for a breakthrough in NWO in Provincial Election

Tim Hudak appears confident about his party's chances in the upcoming Provincial Election.

The Progressive Conservative leader says getting solid candidates in the region will certainly help in getting Tories elected in Northwestern Ontario.

Hudak has his work cut out for him as the PC's haven't elected a member from northwestern Ontario since 1987, when Leo Bernier
represented the Kenora Riding.

Green Party Candidate Campaigns in Kenora

The Green Party Candidate in the Kenora Riding doesn't think remote communities in the far north will benefit from the construction of a new high voltage electrical line.

Mike Schwindt says even though most remote aboriginal communities in the riding rely on Diesel generators, it probably doesn't make a lot of sense to expand the transmission line into those reserves.

Schwindt feels a better solution is developing hydro, wind or solar power projects in remote communities to wean them off of costly diesel generators.

Kenora To Fly Fort Frances Town Flag

The Fort Frances' town flag will soon be flying high over the city of Kenora.

Mayor Roy Avis says its the outcome of a bet he made with Kenora Mayor Dave Canfield during the recent Allan Cup tournament.

Canfield bet Avis that the Thistles would be Fort Frances in the Quarter-finals of the Allan Cup earlier this month.

The Thunderhawks eliminated Kenora from the tournament with a 5-3 victory.

Fort Frances Man Remains in Jail

The man involved in a lengthy stand-off with O.P.P. in Fort Frances last November will be spending a little more time in custody.

Richard Edward Kabatay was sentenced to eight months in jail after being convicted last week on a charge of assault with a weapon.

An initial charge of attempted murder was dropped.

Another man was stabbed during the November 27th incident

Kabatay has been in Fort Frances jail since.

Sioux Narrows/Nestor Falls passes Municipal Budget

The average property owner in Sioux Narrows/ Nestor Falls can expect to pay almost 10 percent more in taxes this year than last year.

The town council passed the budget last week and it contained a minor increase of 0.6 percent in the mill rate.

Mayor Bill Thompson says while they have tried to hold the line on spending, the cost for social services and policing continues to go up.

Thompson says he's also concerns in the 8.9 percent increase in the town's overall property assessment, which is making it more difficult for people on a fixed income to make ends meet.

OFIA says Little Support has been Shown for Bill 151

The Ontario Forest Industries Association says the McGuinty Government doesn't have a lot of support for its Forest Tenure Legislation.

The OFIA attended hearings last week in Toronto on Bill 151 and says a majority of presenters expressed concern with the Act.

Scott Jackson is a spokesperson for the OFIA and says the legislation doesn't address the concerns of the forest industry.

Jackson says the legislation should not just create new employment opportunities, but needs to protect the existing forestry operations.

Police Costs lower in Kenora lower in 2010 than expected

The OPP managed to patrol the City of Kenora last year for less than expected.

The final audited policing figures for 2010 have been sent to the Kenora Police Board, and it shows cost were almost 600 thousand dollars less than expected.

Inspector Dave Lucas says there are a couple of reasons for the lower costs in 2010.

Lucas says their initial budget was set at 6.4 million dollars, but their actual cost was around 5.8 million dollars.

Ignatieff Visits Northwestern Ontario Today

Northwestern Ontario will see its third national leader in a week.

Liberal leader Micheal Ignatieff is to stop by Thunder Bay later today.

Local Liberal officials say the final details of the visit are still being confirmed.

Man fined for Illegal Gravel Pit

A Vermilion Bay man has been fined 1-thousand dollars for illegally operating an aggregate pit on Crown Land.

Court heard that during the summer of 2010, Daniel Desmarais removed roughly 100-yards of gravel from a pit on Slush Road without the proper permit.

In Ontario, operators require licences and permits that regulate the amount of material removed and how it can be used.

Final Day for Advance Polls

Today is the final day for the advance polls in the Kenora Riding.

Advance polls were held on Friday and Saturday, and will be open again at noon today and will run until 8:00 this evening.

Election day is one week from today, and the candidates in the Kenora Riding will have one final chance to reach out to a bigger audience tonight.

The final all-candidates forum is scheduled for this evening at the Days Inn.

The event is sponsored by the Kenora and District Chamber of Commerce and gets underway at 7:00 this evening.

MNR Levies Huge Fines for Illegal Hunting

A group of seven hunters from Southern Ontario have been ordered to pay nearly 46-thousand dollars for 30-offences relating to illegal hunting in northwestern Ontario.

Six men and one woman pleaded guilty to numerous offences for the poaching of three adult moose and a deer in the Schreiber area. 

Charges include hunting during the closed season, possessing and abandoning illegally killed animals, unlawfully using another person's licence and obstructing a conservation officer.

One of the men has been banned from hunting for 10-years.

Hampton Demands Help for Border Communities

A Northwestern Ontario MPP wants the McGuinty Government to help border communities.

Kenora Rainy River MPP Howard Hampton is suggesting we reduce the liquor control board's mark up of liquor sold at duty free stores.

Hampton is calling on the liquor mark up to be dropped from 50 percent to 30.

Public School Board faces Funding Cuts

The Keewatin-Patricia District School Board has been hit with a 1.2-million dollar reduction in funds from the Provincial Government.

Funding has been cut in native studies, special education, transportation, professional development, operations as well as classroom computers.

Superintendant of Business Dean Carrie admits balancing the 2011-2012 budget will be a challenge.

He hopes to have the budget ready for Trusteses on May 24th, with final approval on June 14th.

Green Party Candidate on Talkback this morning

As the countdown to the federal election continues, CJRL News will continue its coverage with the third talk show with the candidates in the Kenora.

This morning, Green Party Candidate Mike Schwindt will make a guest appearance on Talkback.

Talkback can be heard right after the 9:00 news.

Meanwhile, all the candidates in the Kenora Riding will also scheduled to be in attendance at a forum sponsored by the Kenora and District Chamber of Commerce.

Its scheduled to take place at the Days Inn starting at 7:00 this evening.

Council seeks funding for Library

Kenora City Council is seeking more funding for the Kenora Public Library from the provincial government.

The Federation of Ontairo Public Libraries has submitted a funding proposal to the Ministry of Tourism and Culture.

Councillor Rory McMillan says annual grants for libraries haven't increased since 1989.

In the meantime, libraries have been relying increasingly on municipal funding to support their operations.

The proposed funding model would provide a consistant per capita rate plus additional supplements for rural and northern libraries.

American Anglers Fined for illegal Ice Fishing on Lake of the Woods

An ice fishing trip on Lake of the Woods has ended up costing two American men a good chunk of money.

The Minnestoa residents were stopped by Conservation Officers on Mica Point last March.

Robert Cook has been fined 14-hundred dollars for having 7-walleye over the legal limit and 800-dollars for having 4-walleye over the limit on a separate day.

Glenn Ostlund has been ordered to pay 1-grand for fishing without a licence and having 4-walleye in his possession.

Both men were also fined 500-dollars each for importing live minnows into Ontario for bait.

Advance Polls Open Tomorrow

Advance polling for the Federal Election will be held this Friday, Saturday and Monday.

You can cast your vote each day from noon until 8 o'clock.

Gerry Ouellette is the Kenora Riding Returning Officer and he says advance polls have been busy in the past.

Elections Canada is expecting a heavy turnout according to Ouellette.

OPP Report a decrease in Crime in the Kenora Area

The OPP say they have seen a decrease in most criminal activity in the Kenora area in the past year, except in a couple of specific categories.

Inspector Dave Lucas says crimes against property is down as is mischief, but the number of assault complaints has remained fairly steady.

Lucas released his annual report to the Police Services Board this morning and believes they are making progress.

Lucas says this year they will be focussing on crimes which are the result of drug abuse.

That includes violent crime and theft under five thousand dollars.