Grassy Narrows to meet with Minister of MNR on forestry issues

After years of negotiations, it looks as if an end in the impasse between the Grassy Narrows First Nation and the provincial government over forest activity in their Traditional Land Use Area could be coming to an end.

A press conference is scheduled this morning in Thunder Bay with Natural Resources Minister Linda Jeffray and Grassy Narrows Chief Simon Fobister.

A press release issued by the MNR only says the two sides will discuss plans to move forward on forestry talks.

Former Supreme Court Justice, Frank Iacabucci will also be on hand.

He was hired by the province to help find a resolution to the impasse over

harvesting rights in the Grassy Traditional Land Use Area.

Police Use Spike Belt to Stop Pick-Up

A 33 year old Calgary man faces dangerous driving charges after a short police chase.

The OPP say officers tried to pull over a vehicle last night around 7:00 for speeding, but the driver refused to pull over.

A spike belt was deployed on Highway 17 east near Transmitter Road and a pick-up truck was finally forced off the road.

Police say the driver was taken to hospital for treatment of minor abrasions and was released a short time later.

Robert Reid remains in custody while the OPP continue to investigate the incident.

Voter Cards for May 2nd Election in the Mail

Voting cards for the May 2nd federal election should start showing up in local mail boxes over the next couple of days.

The returning office in Kenora began mailing out the cards last night.

Gerry Oulette is the returning officer and says while the vote is still four weeks away, local residents will be able to cast their ballot at three advance polls.

Oulette says local residents can also drop by the returning offices in Kenora and Dryden at any time to vote using a special ballot.

OPP Start Positive Ticketing Campaign Next Week

Who says it doesn't pay to be nice.

The OPP in conjunction with the Northwestern Health Unit are launching a positive ticketing program for local youth starting next week.

Constable Dave Cain says they want to reward kids who perform random acts of kindness.

Cain says the Health Unit managed to secure funding for the campaign, which will be carried out over the next couple of months in the Kenora area.

Police Board Concerned about Wild Dogs in the Community

Kenora's Police Services Board has raised concerns about a number of wild

dogs that have been roaming freely across the city.

Three dogs have been seen hunting down and killing deer all winter long.

Board member Glenda McMillan suggests as many as 18 deer have been killed by the dogs.

However, animal control officers haven't been able to get close enough to them to capture them.

She says the dogs are a real concern and wants to get an update from police next month about what's being done to deal with them.

Nurses Recommend Health Care Solutions for Northern Ontario

The Ontario Nurses' Association is urging the Provincial Government to act on a list of 13-recommendations on improving Health Care in Northern Ontario.

First Vice-President Vicki McKenna says a new ONA report on health services can't sit on the shelf and collect dust.

The ONA is demanding that socio-economic and environmental issues in Northern Ontario be examined in order to address the root causes of lower life expectancy.

NAFN Tournament Begins Tonight

A busy weekend at the Kenora Rec. Center.

The annual North American First Nation Tournament of Champions

gets underway this evening.

Jason Stevens is one of the organizers and says some big money is being offered up to the winners, 20 thousand dollars for the Open Division Champs and five thousand for the Oldtimer winners.

The old timers tournament begins this evening at the Thistle Rink, while the open tournament starts tomorrow morning.

The finals will take place Sunday evening.

Health Unit Moves Clinical Services Downtown

The Northwestern Health Unit is shuffling some of its services around in the community.

As of Monday, all of its clinical services have been centralized into office space in Market Square.

Mark Perreault is the Chief Executive Officer of the Health Unit and says the move just made strategic sense.

The news services available in Market Square include the needle exchange, sexual health clinics, travel information, infectious disease control and the tuberculosis program.

Council Members won`t get a raise in 2011

Members of Kenora City council won't be getting a pay raise this year,

but they will begin to look at the issue of their remuneration.

The city's finance committee is expected to hold discussions about

whether to raise councillor wages starting in 2012.

Kenora mayor Dave Canfield says there hasn't been any increases in

more than a decade.

He adds that it will become increasingly difficult to get people to run

for office if they don't address the issue.

Council has at least decided to increase the travel budget of councillors this year.

It previously had been capped at 500 dollars per council member.

Forest Tenure Bill Draws Ire of Northern Groups

The Provincial Government is getting an earful for its decision to not hold committee hearings on its new Forest Tenure Legislation in Northern Ontario.

Ontario Forest Industries Association spokesperson Scott Jackson says the McGuinty Liberals don't seem interested in the opinions of Northerners.

Minister of Northern Development Michael Gravelle says they still want to hear from area residents.

Hearings will be held in Toronto on April 11th and 13th.

Con College to Offer new Course in Kenora

Confederation College has received funding to offer a new pre-apprenticeship program in automotive and heavy equipment mechanics at its campuses in Fort Frances and Kenora this spring.

Don Bernosky, executive director of Innovation and Skills Development says it addresses a local demand.

The 275-thousand dollars in government money allows the College to begin offering the 40-week program this May.

Final Team for Allan Cup to be Determined Thursday

We are going to have to wait a couple of more days before we find out the 6th and final team competing at the Allan Cup finals here in Kenora.

The Norwood Vipers and forced a seventh and deciding game in the Major League Hockey senior AAA final last night with a 5-2 win over the Dundas Real McCoys.

The best-of-seven series, now tied 3-3, will be decided Thursday in Dundas.

The Allan Cup starts next Monday in Kenora.

JM Judo Club Collects five Medals in Edmonton

The JM Judo Club took five fighters to Edmonton for the International Judo Tournament at the West Edmonton Mall this past weekend and brought home five medals.

Ben and Kaitie Dennis won their respective divisions, while Thomas Hertz and Taylor Tom also won gold.

Daniel Gordon took home a bronze medal in the 46 kilo division.

This weekend, the club is heading to Steinbach for the Eastern Manitoba Championships.

More Traffic Tickets Issued in Kenora

Traffic tickets have been a big area of growth for the City of Kenora.

In the past year there has been a 65 percent increase in the number of

traffic tickets written in the city.

In 2010, police and by-law control officers generated about 85 hundred

tickets, compared to just 55 hundred the year before.

Due to the increase in fines, the city says it can afford to hire a part time

worker for the provincial offenses offices, to help with extra paperwork.

Rotary Auction Now On-Line

The annual Rotary Club Auction is all going to be on-line this year.

Bidding began Monday morning and is scheduled to wrap up later this week.

Nancy Tulloch is a Rotary Spokesperson and is encouraging local residents to take a look at their web-site.

Proceeds from the auction will go towards Rotary projects not only in the community, but around the world.

Five teams now Confirmed for the Allan Cup

One more team has qualified for next week's Allan Cup tournament in Kenora.

The Bentley Generals from Alberta advanced to the national senior men's championships with a 3-2 win over Fort St. John last night.

Bentley is the Pacific representitive.

Five of six teams in the week-long tournament have now been finalized.

The Ontario representitive could be decided by tonight.

The Dundas Real McCoys have a 3-2 series lead over the Norwood Vipers in their best-of-seven final.

Non Union City Staff to get Raises in 2011

Despite a provincial mandate to freeze salaries, it looks as if Kenora's

non-union staff will be getting a pay raise this year.

Last week during its budget deliberations, council approved both a cost

of living increase of 2.5 percent and also a grid movement for eligible

employees.

The cost of the pay raises could be an 80 thousand dollar hit to the

city's budget.

Councillor Ron Lunny says they would be bullies if they refused a pay increase for non-union staff, when unionized workers are getting a pay raise in 2011.

Alcohol Seized in Far North

A large amount of booze has been seized from a Northern Ontario First Nation community.

Nishnawbe-Aski Police say around 330-bottles of alcohol were discovered in Kaschechewan First Nation.

Sergeant Jackie George says police discovered the alcohol in hockey bags.

Kaschechewan is supposed to be a dry community.

George says the total street value of the alcohol is around 16-thousand dollars.

Thistle Pavillion Tender Awarded

The City of Kenora is going to have to scale back work to fix up the Thistle Pavillion.

Council has approved a tender for the work, which includes expanding the washrooms and making them more accessible to those with physical handicaps.

Operations manager Rick Perchuck says they had to cut some parts of the project in order to come in on budget.

The total cost of the project is estimated at 244 thousand dollars.

Sierra Construction had the lowest of four bids received for the tender.

Consultations on Forest Tenure Bill Wrapping Up

The Provincial Government has put the breaks on consultations surrounding its new forest tenure bill.

Public input will be accepted until Thursday.

Randy Hillier is the Conservative Critic for Northern Affairs and says that's just the beginning.

The Legislation has been an issue of dicontent in several area communities attempting to keep their mills operational.

Questions Raised about former LHIN's CEO's Salary

The former CEO of the Northwest Local Health Integration Network is in the spotlight.

Gwen Dubois-Wing only worked 2-months last year, yet made 276-thousand dollars.

Board Chair Jan Beazley says the reason for the huge salary is a private matter.

No reason has been given for Dubois-Wing leaving the Northwest Local Health Integratin Network.

OPP Remind Motorists to "Lock it or Lose it"

Yet another reminder to local motorists to lock up their vehicles when not in use.

The OPP say that over the weekend, they received a number of complaints from the Pump Avenue and Park Street areas of unlocked vehicles being entered.

In one incident, the keys were actually left in the ignition and the culprits decided to steal it.

Police say as the weather begins to warm up, they expect to see more of these types of incidents and vehicle owners are reminded to no only to lock their cars and trucks, but to keep valuables out of sight.

Blood Donor Clinic Starts Today

Its time once again to roll up you shirt sleeves and get ready to give the gift of life.

Canadian Blood Services will be holding a two-day blood donor clinic starting this afternoon.

Harvey Heather from Blood Services says this is one of their regularly scheduled clinics they hold in Kenora each year.

Today's clinic will start at 4:30 at Thomas Aquinas and will run until 9:00 tonight.

It will take place once again tomorrow from 9:30 to 12:30.

Election Campaign Enters Second Week

It was a busy weekend for the candidates in the Kenora Riding.

Both Conservative Candidate Greg Rickford and Liberal Candidate

Roger Valley officially opened their campaign offices.

Meanwhile, NDP Candidate Tania Cameron became the first person to

officially register to run in the Kenora Riding.

She filed her nomination papers at the Returning Office in Kenora

this past Saturday.

Economic Development Commission Holds the line on it Budget

Kenora's Economic Development Commission says it will not be seeking an increase in its budget from the city this year, despite increased costs.

Members of the Commission presented their budget request to council on Friday.

Chair of the commission, Dennis Wallace says they want to hire two extra  staff members to take on specific tasks.

Wallace says the two new positions will be on a one year contract basis and will be funded through reserves the Commission has accrued over the past couple of years.

Council continues to trim 2011 municipal budget

Kenora City Council is still trying to bring down an potential tax increase in

this year's budget.

Council spent all day Friday going through its operating budget line-by-line

looking for cost savings.

At the beginning of the day, Councillors started with a potential 3.28 percent

increase in taxes this year, but by the end of the budget meeting they had

trimmed the increase down to 1.7 percent.

Kenora mayor Dave Canfield says they want to keep any increases to a minimum,

because for many people, they've already experienced a tax increase this year

with the new Munipal Property Assessments.

Northern School of Medicine announces Lay-offs

A battle is brewing between the Northern Ontario School of Medicine and the Ontario Public Service Employees Union.

The school is eliminating 24 positions in order to balance the budget.

OPSEU Spokesperson Len Mason says they don't intend to take the lay-off notices lying down.

The layoffs affect staff members at campuses at Lakehead University and Laurentian University in Sudbury.

Canfield has mixed feelings on Provincial Budget

Last week's provincial budget doesn't have a lot that's going to help out municipalities across the region.

That's the feeling of Kenora mayor Dave Canfield.

Canfield says even though the government has promised to continue to upload social service costs, the city isn't seeing much benefit.

The City is continuing its budget deliberations, but there is still no time table for the release of the 2011 financial statement.

McMaster Disregards Fraser Report

The Keewatin-Patricia District School Board is paying no attention to the latest report on student success from the right-wing think-tank Fraser Institute.

Director of Education Jack McMaster says the Institute has never stepped into a local classroom to witness what they are doing with teachers and students.

McMaster adds the Board has made it a priority to have more one-on-one instruction to improve literacy and numeracy results.

Drug Bust in North Spirit Lake

A 30-year-old woman faces charges after she tried to bring drugs into North Spirit Lake, about 200-kilometres north of Red Lake.

Nishnawbe-Aski Police seized more than 24-grams of marijuana and 3-and-a-half grams of cocaine.

Police say the street value of the drugs is estimated at over 24-hundred dollars.

Tobia Victoria Rae of North Spirit Lake has been charged with possession for the purpose of trafficking.

Internship program returns

Local students looking for a head start in their careers will be getting a helping hand from the Provincial Government.

The Northern Ontario Heritage Fund is once again helping local businesses provide paid internships to students across the Northwest.

Minister of Northern Development Michael Gravelle says the program is vital for keeping students in the North.

Gravelle says over 400-students are expected to take advantage in the program this year.

Wait Times for Lung Cancer Tests being shortened

Patients waiting for results from their lung cancer tests could be spending less time waiting.

Regional Cancer Care Northwest plans to cut waiting time from 18 weeks to just 6 or 7.

Spokesperson Sam McKnight says she can't put a timeline on the goal

Officials say cutting the waiting time will help ease anxiety with patients and their families.

Children's Aid Agencies in Kenora and Rainy River set to merge

The long awaited amalgmation of Kenora-Patricia Child and Family Services and

Rainy River District Family Services is going to take a little longer than expected to complete.

The merger was supposed to be finalized today.

Bill Leonard is the executive director of the new children's aid society and says they hope to have all the paperwork finalized in the next couple of months.

In the meantime, he says the marriage between the two agencies should benefit everyone.

Leonard says they are just putting the finishing touches on their 2011 budget for the new agency, and once that's approved by the province, they can proceed with the merger.

Public Sector Salaries Released

Doctors and lawyers continue to lead the way in terms of the top public

sector salaries in the Kenora area, but teachers are making up some ground.

Dr. Kerry McDonald, chief pathologist at Lake of the Woods District Hospital was the highest wager earner last year at 311 thousand dollars.

He was followed by Dr. James Arthurs, the chief medical officer of health at the Northwestern Health Unit at 262 thousand.

Justice Donald Fraser was the top paid person in the legal profession at 268 thousand.

The City of Kenora had five people earning in excess of 100 thousand dollars last year, led by former Chief Administrative Officer Bill Presentanz at 136 thousand.

The Keewatin Patricia District School Board had the most employees on the so-called Sunshine List, with 49 people making in excess of 100 thousand grand.

Slow start expected for 2011 Fire Season

With spring around the corner, fire season is on it's way.

April 1st marks the official start of fire season in northwestern Ontario. 

Ministry of Natural Resources spokesperson Debbie Mclean says she's anticipating a quiet start to the 2011 season.

Mclean says the average number of fires in the area has dropped in the past few years.

OPP Investigate Theft of Car Batteries

The OPP are looking into the theft of 27-inoperable vehicle batteries from Piston Ring in Vermilion Bay.

Police say the batteries were slated to be picked up Tuesday evening, but someone else got to them first.

OPP are concerned because one of the batteries was damaged and was possibly leaking acid.

If you have information on this case or have located one of the missing batteries you are asked to contact OPP or Crimestoppers.

Snowmobile Trails closing across NWO

Police are warning motorists and snowmobilers about unstable ice conditions.

Police say travelling on ice is not recommeneded now that the Spring weather has finally arrived across Northwestern Ontario.

Most snowmobile trails are also closed for the season, although a small number along the Trans-Canada in the Dryden area are expected to remain open for the first weekend of April.

Anglers are urged to carefuly check ice depths before heading out for one final fishing venture.

OPP warn of thin ice

With the warmer weather this week, the OPP is warning local residents to careful when heading out on the ice of local lakes and rivers.

Over the past few days, officers have responded to reports of youth

playing on the ice near open water.

Police say ice conditions can change quickly at this time of year,

and kids put not only themselves at risk playing near open water,

but the lives of emergency service personnel as well.

Independant Candidate Hits the Campaign Trail

Kenora Riding Independant candidate Kelvin Chicago-Boucher says he has a list of recommendations  on how grassroots aboriginals can hold their leadership accountable.

That's his main plank in his Federal election campaign.

Chicago-Boucher says more transparency is needed in all levels of Government.

The 46-year-old is from Lac De Milles Lac First Nation outside Upsala, but lives in Minaki.

Taxi rates going up next month

Its going to cost a bit more to catch a cab in Kenora next month.

City council has approved a modest increase in taxi rates effective April 18th.

Most of the rate increases have to do with the implementation of the Harmonized Sales Tax.

The starting rate will go from three dollars and 83 cents, up to four dollars and 30 cents.

For each one tenth of a kilometer, the rate will actually drop from from 22 cents down to 10 cents.

Council agreed to the rate changes following a deputation earlier this year from the cab companies

in town.

CDC prepares for Merger

The delivery of child and family services in the Dryden and Kenora District's will change on Friday.

'Firefly' will replace the amalgamated agencies of Patricia Centre for Children and Youth and the Lake of the Woods Child Development Center.

Patricia Centre President Jackie Mitchell says its seen as a welcome move.

Mitchell says the merger will allow staff to share ideas and will create more services for more families.

Con College Likes provincial budget

Confederation College President Pat Lang says she's pleased the Provincial Government supports post-secondary education in tough economic times.

Lang is supportive of yesterday's Budget, noting it showcases education as an economic driver for Ontario.

Lang notes she would like the Government to keep investing in rural education.

Finance Minister Dwight Duncan is promising funding to add 60-thousand spaces to post secondary institutions by 2015-16.

NDP Leader says provincial budget is bad news for the North

The NDP is continuing its critique of the provincial budget.

In an interview with CJRL news, party Leader Andrea Horwath says even though the McGuinty Government has promised to increase spending for hospitals, they are going to have a tough time making ends meet.

Horwath says the McGuinty Liberals are also cutting the budget for the

MNR by 7.3 percent, which will have a big impact on northern Ontario.

Boutwell to attend National Junior Selection Camp

A former member of the Thomas Aquinas Senior Boys Volleyball team will be attending the National junior men's selection camp.

Dan Boutwell is the starting middle hitter for the Brandon Bobcats men's volleyball

team and will be heading to Gatineau, Quebec for the camp.

Boutwell earned a silver medal at the CIS national championships last month with

the Bobcats.

The National junior men's volleyball team will be competing in tournaments this

summer in Argentina, Brazil and Slovenia.

UFO Sighting?

(Photo courtesy of Sandra Allan)

Some residents of northwestern Ontario are talking about a strange object that has appeared over the night sky over the past couple of days.

Sandra Allan of Fort Frances, who took photographs, says it hovered for nearly half an hour last night before it disappear.

Some residents on the Shoal Lake and Rat Portage First Nations have reported seeing the UFO as well over the past few nights. 

Hampton Pans Provincial Budget

The provincial budget isn't getting good reviews from the opposition at  Queen's Park.

Kenora-Rainy River M.P.P. Howard Hampton claims yesterday's fiscal plan is a pre-election budget for Southern Ontario.

He believes the budget does more harm than good for northern Ontario.

Hampton says the budget forges ahead with the controversial forest tenure reform plan.

Provincial Budget Gets Mixed Reviews

The Minister of Northern Development is standing by his Government's Provincial budget.

Michael Gravelle admits there wasn't specific money set aside for the Region but notes there were projects that were mentioned.

Randy Hillier, the Progressive Conservative Critic for Northern Affairs says the budget is 300-pages of nothing for Northern Ontario.

Hillier points out the only announcement was one that was already made; 10-million dollars extra for the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund.

Two mergers of child care agencies in NWO near completion

Not one, but two mergers will be finalized this week involving local child care agencies.

The Lake of the Woods Child Development Center will be joining forces with the Patricia Center for Children and Youth out of Dryden.

The new agency will be called "Firefly".

The other merger will see the Kenora-Patricia Child and Family Services amalgamate with Rainy River Family Services.

Both amalgamations will take effect on April 1st.

Kenora-Patricia Child and Family Services is holding a meeting Thursday afternoon to update staff and the media about the merger.

Council supports proposed changes to building code

Kenora City Council is supporting proposed changes to the Ontario building code that

would allow the use of wood in the construction multi-story buildings.

The province is looking at allowing the use of wood in constructing buildings up to six stories high.

Council has passed a resolution saying such changes to the building code would support the forest industry in northern Ontario and increase opportunities to use wood in building projects.

Mayor Dave Canfield says some countries in Europe allow wood in buildings as high as 10 stories.

The resolutions urges the government to include the changes in the 2012 Ontario Building Code.

Daffodil Days here again

The Canadian Cancer Society 'Daffodil Sales' campaign kicks-off Thursday across Northwestern Ontario.

Fundraising Coordinator Margaret Saville says they are offering a new twist this year.

The fundraisinig campaign helps off-set transportation costs for patients requiring treatment.

Last year, the Society assisted 336-cancer patients from this area.

Fire Department to get another truck

Kenora's Fire Department is going to be getting a new piece of equipment.

An aerial ladder truck is being purchased second-hand from the Oakville Fire Department.

The total cost of the purchase is expected to be about 80 thousand dollars.

Fire chief Warren Brinkman says that includes the cost of having the truck shipped to Kenora, and a retrofit of the truck, including the installation  of new tires on the vehicle.