Feds Promising Gas Tax to Aboriginal Communities

The Federal Government is out with more money for infrastructure projects in First Nations communities.

Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Minister Bernard Valcourt says funding of 155-million dollars over 10-years will be allocated under the First Nation Infrastructure Fund starting in 2014-2015.

It's part of the 2-billion dollar Canadian Gas Tax Fund.

The money will go to five main areas including energy, solid waste, planning and skills development, roads and bridges and connectivity.

Valcourt notes the goal is to ensure both on and off reserve communities become stronger.

Two Communities in NWO Still In Running for Nuclear Waste

One area community is still in the running to be a host site to a nuclear repository facility and one community has been eliminated from competition.

Ear Falls won't be advancing to the second phase of the lengthy process.

Nuclear Waste Management Organization Spokesperson Michael Krizanc explains why some communities weren't selected for more detailed study.

Ignace has advanced to the second phase.

Schreiber is the other northern community selected to move forward.

Catholic Board Looks At New School Names

What's in a name.

Plenty if your school is named after a Saint.

The Kenora Catholic District School Board has agreed to change
the name of it's school in Red Lake.

St. John's Separate School will now be simply known as St. John School.

Principal Michelle Sawa says they made the change after extensive community
consultions.

Meanwhile, the Catholic School Board is wondering whether it should also look
at a name change for Pope John Paul II School in Kenora.

Trustees point out John Paul could be made a saint as early as next spring and
wondered if they'll have to change the name of the school to Saint John Paul.

Broncos Boys Place Third At Dryden Tournament

Beaver Brae won the battle of Kenora at the Dryden High School Hockey tournament.

The Broncos met Thomas Aquinas in the b-side final Saturday afternoon and skated to
a 6-2 win, good enough for third place in the tournament.

The Broncos got three goals from Rhyse Mandamin to help secure
the victory against their cross-town rivals, the Saints.

Beaver Brae was undefeated in round-robin play and its lone loss came in the semi-finals,
where they lost a 5-4 decision to Northlands Parkway from Winkler.

Fort Frances beat Northlands in the A-Side final to take top honors.

The Broncos are back in action tomorrow night against Dryden.

Thistles Take Two of Three on the Road

A good road trip for the Kenora Triple "a" Midget Thistles.

The Thistles took two of three games they played this weekend in western Manitoba.

Yesterday, Nicholas Prouty had a pair of goals and an assist to lead the Thistles to a 5-1 win over the Parkland Rangers in Dauphin.

The lone blip on their weekend road trip was Saturday night, where the Kenora Midgets were
upended 9-3 by the Brandon Wheat Kings.

The Thistles started the road trip off with a hard fought 2-1 win over overtime against the Central
Plains Capitals in Portage.

Midget Thistles on the Road This Weekend

The Kenora Triple "A" Midget Thistles will get lots of time on the road this weekend.

The Thistles are kicking off a 3 game road trip tonight with a stop in Portage La Prairie against the Central Plains Capitals.

Game time is 8:00.

Tomorrow, the Kenora Midgets head further west for a stops in Brandon to face the Wheat Kings.

The puck drops for that game at 7:30.

The Thistles then hit the road again for a stop in Dauphin on
Sunday when they take on the Parkland Rangers.

That game gets underway at 2:30.

Supreme Court to Hear Kokopenace Case

The Supreme Court of Canada has agreed to review the case of the Crown versus Kokopenace.

Clifford Kokopenace had his manslaughter conviction overturned back in 2008 because of a lack of aboriginal jurors at his trial.

The provincial government has appealed the decision all the way to the Supreme Court, but has also been working to address the problem of first nation representation on jury rolls.

The Nishinabe Aski Nation says it has asked for intervenor status in the landmark case.

Campbell Introduces Private Members Bill Targeting Energy Retailers

A private members bill has been introduced at Queen's Park to prevent fixed price contracts for residential customers.

The Bill was introduced yesterday by Kenora-Rainy River M.P.P. Sarah Campbell.

She says the bill is really aimed at unscrupulous electricity retailers.

Campbell says a recent report by Ontario's Auditor General found that approximately 15 per cent of the province’s customers are currently signed up with a private retailer and are paying 35 to 65 per cent more for the electricity.

Committee Created to Tackle FASD

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder is gaining a strong voice in Northwestern Ontario.

Jack Martin is a director for Creighton Youth Services and says service providers from across the region have formed a committee which will join a lobby group in Southern Ontario.

Martin says the committee has very specific goals.

Martin says FSAD is a lifelong illness and that early detection can prevent people from falling into substance abuse and mental health issues.

He adds that only recently was FASD recognized provincially and they had to go to Western Canada for expertise on the subject.

Bad Weather, Icing Blamed for North Spirit Lake Air Crash

The Transportation Safety Board has ruled that operational pressures, bad weather, and a lack of experience factored in a fatal plane crash in northwestern Ontario.

Spokesperson Peter Hildebrand says the pilot and three passengers died when the Keystone Air Service aircraft went down in a snowstorm about 2-kilometers shy of the runway at North Spirit Lake on January 10th, 2012.

Hildebrand says the aircraft was forced to circle for several minutes resulting in the build-up of ice.

He says the plane stalled during the final approach at an altitude from which recovery wasn't possible.
36-year-old Brian Shead from Winnipeg
was the only survivor of the crash.

Red Cross Raffle Tickets Now On Sale

The Red Cross needs your help to continue offering disaster relief services.

The organization has launched its Northern Raffle and hopes to sell over 4-thousand tickets.

Disaster Manager Coordinator Dave Wright says money raised stays local.

Tickets can be purchased Canadian Red Cross Offices across the region.

Horwath Critical of Government Handling of Ring of Fire

NDP Leader Andrea Horwath says the Provincial Government has dropped the ball when it comes to the handling of the Ring of Fire.

Cliffs Natural Resources has announced it will suspend indefinitely its chromite project in Northern Ontario by the end of the fourth quarter of this year.

Horwath says she's not surprised by the company's decision.

The announcement will mean the loss of around 40 jobs.

Bronco Girls lose on the Road

The Fort Frances Muskies look like the team to beat this year in the NorWOSSA girls hockey league.

The Muskies shut down the Beaver Brae Broncos 10-0 last night in Fort Frances.

The Broncos will get a chance to work on their game this weekend as they welcome the Baudette Bears to town for a pair of exhibition games.

The first game is tonight at 7:00 at the Keewatin Arena.

The same two teams will square off again tomorrow at noon in Keewatin.

Meanwhile both Thomas Aquinas and Beaver Brae boys hockey teams are in Dryden this weekend for a high school tournament.

The Subway-Dingwall Ford Invitational gets underway this morning.

The Saints will play their first game at 11:30 against the Murdoch McKay Clansmen from Winnipeg, while the Broncos will take on John Taylor at 1:00.

Substance Abuse Task Force Adds Housing Pillar

The Kenora Substance Abuse and Mental Health Task Force is creating a new pillar of action.

Kim Elke with the Northwestern Health Unit says the task force are adding housing into their attack plans.

Elke says when someone doesn't have a safe meaningful place to live it hinders the possibility of making a healthy recovery.

Elke also says when someone receives the housing and support they need they can better look after their children and in turn help prevent them from entering the system themselves.

She adds the task forces decided to add the pillar as housing is a social determinant of mental health.

TSB To Release Report on North Spirit Lake Crash

The Transportation Safety Board is planning to release a report on a fatal plane crash in northwestern Ontario almost two years ago.

The crash of the Piper Navajo near North Spirit Lake killed four people, including the pilot and three other people from southern Manitoba.

36 year old Brian Shead was the only survivor of the crash.

The plane went down in a snowstorm about two kilometers short of the runway at North
Spirit Lake on January 10th, 2012.

The report is being released at 10:00 this morning.

School Buses Running This Morning

Overnight snow hasn't been enough to cancel school bus service this morning.

About five centimeters of white stuff has fallen so far.

But all roads in the Kenora area are open this morning and no bus cancellations have been announced.

Motorists are asked to drive with caution as intersections are very slippery and not a lot of plowing has taken place so far.

Food Bank Use Down Slightly

Surprising numbers from a new survey by Food Banks Canada.

It shows the number of people using food banks has dropped by about
40 thousand in the past year.

Sandra Poole is the business manager for the Salvation Army in Kenora
and says they've also seen a decline, but its mostly because they've
tightened up their qualifications.

Poole says they usually see anywhere from 30 to 40 people a month
at their food bank in downtown Kenora.

Fellowship Center Gearing Up for Winter

Kenora's only emergency shelter is gearing up for another winter.

The Kenora Fellowship Center is collecting winter clothing to distribute
to homeless.

John Pencoff is one of the supervisors and says they can still use some help from the community and are looking for warm weather gear such as mitts, toques and winter boots.

Pencoff says they offer overnight shelter to an average of 14 people a night, but their actual capacity is 21.

The Fellowship Center held an open house this week to let community members learn about some of
the services they provide daily.

Province Reviewing New Snowmobile Regs

There may be hope for snowmobile clubs in Ontario.

The provincial government is promising to review a decision to force
clubs to pay to use hydro right-of-ways.

NDP critic, Michael Mantha is worried that the government will instead foist  the costs onto local towns and cities.

Transportation Minister Glenn Murray says they are looking are reviewing the decision because of the feedback they've received.

Christmas Tree Lighting Tonight

Christmas is still more than a month away, but that's not stopping Kenora's Business Improvement Zone from celebrating a little early.

The lightning of the big Christmas Tree on Main Street will take place
tonight.

Lisa Lyle from BIZ says there will be lots of other activities as well.

There will also be sleigh rides beginning at 5:45.

The actual tree lighting will take place at 6:00.