KDSB Supports Housing Coordinator

The CAO of the Kenora District Services Board is in favor of a housing coordinator in Kenora.

Dan McNeill says the board recently received an inventory of mental health services in the region.

McNeill says a housing coordinator could do the same thing for housing providers.

The idea for the coordinator was passed by city council this week as part of a 2 to 3 year pilot project on homelessness.

The city is hoping for a provincial grant to fund the position.

Rec. Center Expansion Pegged At Almost 25 Million

A proposed expansion of the Kenora Rec. Center could cost anywhere from 16 to 25 million dollars.

Those were the figures put on the table at a public meeting yesterday on plans to adds a second ice
surface and multi-purpose facility.

Mike Dietsch is the co-chair of the Event Center Committee and says they looked a five different proposals for expanding the Rec. Center and have come out with a preferred concept.

Dietsch says the biggest challenge will be to come up with the funding for the project, which could require
up to 14 million dollars in government and private contributions.

The rest of the project would be mortgaged through the city of Kenora.

Dietsch says if they did a phased expansion, starting with just a second ice surface, costs would still
be almost 16 million.

A final draft of the Rec. Center expansion project will be prepared for City council by the end of February.

Osisko Rejects Goldcorp Offer

Osisko Mining has formally rejected Goldcorp's hostile takeover offer.

Osisko Mining says the 2-point-6 billion dollar offer announced last week  "significantly undervalues" the company's assets, including its flagship Canadian Malartic gold mine in Quebec.

Osisko also has the Hammond Reef gold project near Atikokan in its portfolio.

Economic Development Commission Reports Surplus

The Lake of the Woods Development Commission is reporting a surplus on it's operations last year.

The Commission told council this week, it earned almost 50 thousand dollars through the operations of the Whitecap Pavillion and the Discovery Center.

Sharon Smith is the council representative on the Commission and says that should help out with future special events in the city.

The Economic Development Commission says it's not looking for more money from the city this year, but would like to put the surplus into reserve for future use.

Rickford Still Waiting For Meeting with Province on Ring of Fire

There is still no formal meeting announced between Greg Rickford and Michael Gravelle on the Ring of Fire.  

Both are their government representatives  for the giant mining development in the far north.

Rickford says the two are still only exchanging information periodically

Rickford says he and Gravelle continue to have conversations about the opportunities available for the project.

Wind Chill Warning In Effect

Another cold one today.

A windchill warning is in effect for much of northwestern Ontario and
southern Manitoba.

Bill Laidlaw from Signal Weather Services says even though it will start to
warm up today, winds will also be increasing, still producing significant windchills.

Currently, the windchill is running around -42
.