KMTS Prosperity Trust Fund

The City of Kenora is lending itself 800 thousand dollars to help pay for

a municipal infrastructure project.

Council voted last night to borrow the money from the KMTS Prosperity Trust Fund
to cover the city's costs of installing the new submarine sewer and water line.

Councillor Ron Lunny says even though the water line was installed two years ago,
they still had to arrange long term funding for it.


Lunny adds he would also like council to borrow from the KMTS Prosperity Trust Fund for
a long-term debenture on the new fire hall on Barsky's Hill.

Resolute Forest Products

Some workers at Resolute Forest Products in Thunder Bay are getting an unexpected Christmas break.


Spokesperson Pierre Choquette says market conditions are forcing the company to temporarily halt kraft operations for 10-days starting on Friday.

The newsprint mill will continue to operate during the period.

Rickford Opens new Office in Kenora

Just in time for the holiday season, Kenora M.P. Greg Rickford is opening up a new office in Kenora.

Rickford has moved over into the Optomistist Building on Main Street South.

He's holding his official opening today and says he likes his new digs.

Rickford held an open house this afternoon for his constituents.

Union Gas Rates to Drop in the New Year

A nice gift of savings for Union Gas customers in Northwestern Ontario.

The Ontario Energy Board has approved changes to the price Union Gas charges its customers for natural gas.

Local residential consumers who use 26-hundred cubic meters a year will pay about 28-dollars less per year.

The changes go into effect January 1st.

Lower natural gas prices in North America are credited for the drop in price.

28 Year old man killed in Fort Frances

A 28-year-old man is dead after he was struck by a freight train in Fort Frances on the weekend.

OPP say the man was hit near the Canadian National Railway main yard just after 2 o'clock Sunday morning.

Police say the westbound locomotive was leaving the rail yard when it hit Justin Degagne.

OPP and CN Rail Police are looking into the circumstances surrounding the death.

Foul play is not suspected.

Skead Re-elected Chief of Rat Portage

A couple of familiar names are back on the Rat Portage Band Council.

Mid-term elections were held on Friday, and chief Ken Skead fended off five other challengers and has been returned for another two year term.

Former chief George Kakeway is back on the band council, after being elected to one of three council positions.

Newcomers include Nathan Landon and Chris Skead.

A total of 13 people ran for the three seats on the Rat Portage Band Council.

Federal Government provides funding to local agencies

The federal government is giving a helping hand to a couple of regional agencies that deal with small business.

The Northwestern Ontario Innovation Centre has been promised 320 thousand dollars.

Centre Manager Judy Sander says the money will be used to provide 5 thousand dollar grants to help get business projects off the ground

As part of the same FedNor announcement, the Northern Ontario Enterprise Gateway get 450 thousand dollars

Better Ambulance Service Demanded for Machin

An initial surge is on to place a land ambulance base in the Vermilion Bay area.

The push is being made by the District of Kenora Unincorporated Area Ratepayers Association.

President Bill Blower says they are concerned that the closest ambulance is in Dryden and the response times to the Machin area is at best over half an hour.

Blower says first responders do a great job, but stress they are unable to transport a patient for medical care.

The group is asking Machin Council and the Kenora District Services Board to approve the move.

KDSB CAO Dan McNeill says a comprehensive reivew of land ambulance services is taking place next year and the recommendation will be included in that review.

Northwest EMS passes review

Rave reviews for the Emergency Management Services team in the Kenora District.

Services Board CAO Dan McNeill says they have been certified for another 3-years after passing an extensive Ministry of Health review.

Northwest EMS had 14-findings against them, down from 24 in 2008.

The Inspectors also described the patient care as professional, courteous and well managed.

OFIA questions Caribou Protection Plans

The Ontario Forest Industry Association is asking the Provincial environmental commissioner where he's getting his information from.

Gord Miller has stated that caribou protection measures won't hurt forestry in Northern Ontario.

OFIA Spoksperson Scott Jackson says current forest management plans already report an impact.

The areas outlined as caribou management zones supply wood fibre to mills in Dryden, Fort Frances, Kenora, Thunder Bay, Terrace Bay and Timmins.

Business Plan for new Education Center to be released this week

The Lake of the Woods Economic Development Commission is hoping for an early Christmas present this year.

The Commission is holding a special meeting on Wednesday to go over a business plan for a proposed Education Facility at Lakewood School.

Members of the Training and Education Committee got their first look at the report on Friday.

The building would involve a number of education partners who provide post-secondary education opportunities in Kenora.

The facility would also include a performing arts center.

The business plan is expected to show whether the project is feasible, and how much it would cost to transform the elementary school into a post-secondary institution.

The Keewatin-Patricia District School Board has not indicated whether its interested in selling off Lakewood School, though members of the commission will be making a special presentation to the school board in early January.

Highway 17 near Ignace Re-Opened

Highway 17 near Ignace is open again to both lanes of traffic after it was closed for some time yesterday.

Sections of the Trans Canada were closed on and off again due to a transport going into a ditch.

The road was closed while crews cleared the area and removed the wreckage.

Junior Saints see silver lining at Dryden Tournament

The St. Thomas Aquinas HS junior girls volleyball team continue to show improvement in their play and lost a close 25-20, 25-22 semi-final match to the Dryden Eagles in the Santa Claus Classic held in Dryden this weekend.

The junior Saints sent a split squad to the final tournament until the new year.

TA #1 finished 3rd in their pool winning 7 out 12 sets.

This meant a quarter-final match with the Dryden HS junior girls #2 team.

The Saints won a 2-1 decision in the quarter-finals despite giving up a 23-20 lead in the 2nd set of the match.

Strong defence lead the Saints to a 15-13 win in the 3rd and deciding match.

The Saints then played Dryden's other team, but the Eagles eked out a close 2-0 decision over the Saints
in the gold medal game.


The other TA split squad lost a close quarter-final match 2-0 after finishing 4th in their pool play.

Saints win gold in Thunder Bay

Another golden weekend for the Thomas Aquinas Senior Girls volleyball team.

The Saints travelled to Thunder Bay this past weekend where they went on to win the 2011 Spike Off tournament.

T.A. came first in their pool going 5-0, defeating: St. Ignatius, Atikokan, West Gate, Hammarskjold Collegiate and Churchill.

In Championship play they defeated Laverandraye in the quarter finals, West Gate in the Semis; and lastly defeated Dryden in the Finals 25-13 and 25-20.

The girls went 8-0 on the weekend, not losing a set nor letting any team get over 10 points until the finals.

Bekki Elliott was named tournament the tournament All-Star.

The Saints Girls volleyball will join the rest of the court sport teams at St. Thomas Aquinas at home for league play Tuesday.

Council to vote on new Snowmobile Corridor Monday

Mother Nature hasn't been co-operating with the Sunset Trailriders Snowmobile Club, but at least city council has been more receptive.

Council is expected to endorse a revised snowmobile by-law for the city on Monday night.

It will outline the new cross-town corridor though the city.

The by-law will also ban the use of modified exhaust systems.

The new cross-town corridor was outlined by the STR earlier this fall.

Emergency Shelters get money from DSSAB

Help for the homeless in the Kenora District.

The Services Board is spending over 68-thousand dollars on four programs.

The Red Lake Area Emergency Shelter and Sioux Lookout Out-of-the-Cold Shelter are both getting over 24 grand.

The Kenora Fellowship Centre is receiving 15-thousand dollars.

Five grand is going to the Dryden Food Bank.

The money is from the Ministry of Community and Social Services.

Police Issue Warning about Coyotes in Pickle Lake

Provincial police have issued a warning about coyotes in Pickle Lake Township.

Police say coyotes are usually wary of people and avoid humans whenever possible.

However, O.P.P. note they are wild animals and should never be approached.

Police add people should not feed coyotes or any other wild animal, as it makes them less fearful of humans and gets them used to food provided by people.

Senior Thistles add new players

The Kenora Triple "a" Senior Thistles will have a few new faces in the line-up this weekend.

The Thistles face the Fort Frances ThunderHawks tomorrow night at the Kenora Rec. Center.

Thistle captain Sean Hughes admits he doesn't know a whole lot about the extra skaters being brought in.

All the players being brought in have some junior hockey or semi-pro experience behind them.

Game time is 8:00 tomorrow night.

Thistles and Rams In Action Tonight

A tough weekend road trip for the Kenora Triple "a" midget Thistles.

The Thistles head to western Manitoba for three games in three days.

Tonight, the Thistles take on the Yellowhead Chiefs, followed by stops in Brandon and Portage Saturday and Sunday respectively.

The Thomas Aquinas boys hockey team is a home for a pair of games against Red Lake this weekend.

Tonight, the Saints take on the Rams at 7:30 at the Thistle Rink.

The same two teams will meet up at noon tomorrow at the Rec. Center.

Meanwhile, the Thomas Aquinas girls hockey team will have to deal with a familiar foe tonight.

The Saints take on the Dryden Eagles for the third time in two weeks.

Thin Ice

Stay off the Ice


That's the message from law enforcement agencies on both sides of the border as ice forms on area lakes and rivers.

OPP Constable Anne McCoy says children especially should be reminded ice conditions may not be safe right now.

Last weekend, a 77 year old kenora man managed to escape the waters of Lake of The Woods after his ATV broke the ice.

Student Absentee Policy

Making sure students stay in school and stay engaged.


That's the focus right now for the Keewatin-Patricia District School Board.

Director of Education Jack McMaster says they new policy is paying dividends.

Staff will contact parents after 5-missed classes and if the problem persists administration will bring the parents in for an interview.

Attawapiskat Homes

The first few modular homes headed for Attawapiskat will hit the road today.


Maple Leaf Homes out of New Brunswick is building the 22 homes ordered by the Federal Government.

Sales Manager Jacques Roy says the game plan includes transportation by rail from Cochrane, Ontario to Moosonee, Ontario.

Roy adds:

"The next phase is waiting for the winter roads freeze solid so that these homes could be transported to Attawapiskat"

Attawapiskat First Nation VS Third Party Management

The Attawapiskat First Nation is going to court to try and end the Harper government's Third Party Management.


Speaking in Thunder Bay Chief Theresa Spence says as it stands now the independent manager is slowing things down

Spence says Third Party Management is punishment for the impoverished community.

Kenora District Services Board 2012 budget

It only took one try to pass the Kenora District Services Board 2012 budget.


Board Chair and Red Lake Mayor Phil Vinet says they have unanimously approved the 2012 fiscal document and Municipalities will be required to shell out more than 15-million dollars next year.

The budget is 2-million dollars higher from the 2011 budget which was defeated and debated at great length last year.

The financial impact for each Municipality won't be known until the New Year.

HARBOURFEST 2012

Burton Cummings is coming back to Kenora!

David Blake, Entertainment Director for Harbourfest says:

"The Guess Who front man headlines what we're calling our "Manitoba Night".

Queen City Kids and The Pumps/Orphan have also signed on to perform under the new tent!

Tickets go on sale Tuesday December 20th 2011 at 11 A.M online:
http://www.harbourfest.ca/

Kenora Remains Investigation

Investigators are hoping the release of new facial approximations created by an Ontario Provincial Police Forensic Artist will bolster their efforts to identify human remains found in the City of Kenora in June 2009.


OPP investigators believe foul play was not a factor in her death. The deceased was a Caucasian female, between the ages of 35 and 55 years, approximately 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighing approximately 110 pounds, with shoulder length light brown hair. She was wearing oval-shaped eyeglasses with wire upper rims. The investigation revealed that the deceased experienced extensive reconstructive jaw surgery -- likely done in a major centre.

        The facial approximations, photos of the scene surroundings and other   information that may help identify this individual are available at Missing Persons and Unidentified Bodies Unit

Keewatin-Patricia District School Board

Dave Penney appears to be a permanent fixture as the head guy at the Keewatin-Patricia District School Board table.

For an eighth straight year the Ignace Trustee has been elected Chair of the Board.

Kenora's Cecile Marcino is back as Vice-Chair.

The elections were held Tuesday night in Dryden.

Long-gun Registry

The national long-gun registry will live on for a few months to come.

The House of Commons won't get the chance to debate the bill to abolish the controversial registry before M-Ps break for Christmas.

The Conservative government tabled the bill in October, around the same time as other marquee Tory legislation was being presented.

While bills to end the Canadian Wheat Board's monopoly and add 30 new seats to the Commons could be passed into law as early as tomorrow, the gun registry bill has yet to make it to a final vote
in the House.

The Tories say they just couldn't get around to everything

Attawapiskat Update

Attawapiskat Chief Theresa Spence and Aboriginal Affairs Minister John Duncan are to meet today in Thunder Bay.

Spence and Duncan are making another attempt to find a lasting solution for the housing crisis on the James Bay reserve.

Duncan has announced a third-party manager, in addition to an audit and emergency aid for Attawapiskat.

Spence says she welcomes the aid and will work with the auditors but is opposed to the third-party management.

Highway 17

The winter weather has resulted in a highway closure here in Kenora.

Highway 17A is closed at Airport Road .

The road was closed around 2:30 this morning.

OPP say east and westbound traffic will be re-routed through the Kenora by-pass for the most part today.


Motorists are urged to use caution on the road today due to blowing snow and slippery conditions.

Strategic Improvement Plan

The Director of Education for the Keewatin-Patricia District School Board says they are making good strides in their Strategic Improvement Plan.

Jack McMaster says staff and administration continue to focus on three main areas.

McMaster says the plan is aimed at ensuring students are taking full advantage of their time they spend in school.

Emergency Landing

It was a lucky day for 8 passengers aboard a Thunder Airlines flight from Attiwapiskat to Thunder Bay.

They had some tense moments when one of the engines went out and they were forced to land in Geraldton. Greenstone Mayor Renald Beaulieu says the fire department was called in.


Beaulieu believes the passengers could be band officials from the troubled First Nation on their way to meetings with the Aboriginal Affairs Minister.

Phone Scams

'Tis the season for telephone scams.

The OPP in Kenora say they have received numerous complaints from local residents in recent days.

Police say the scams include callers claiming to be relatives involved in a motor vehicle accident and needing funds to get home.

In another scam, the caller says they represent an estate and they require a fee to release the funds.

If you have any concerns about the identity of a caller, you are encouraged to
contact the OPP or Phonebusters.

Bus Service

Due to road conditions and various road closures, First Student school buses have been cancelled in KENORA, RAT PORTAGE and SIOUX NARROWS.

Kenora City Transit will be running as scheduled today.

Tri-Municipal Handi-Transit will be running as scheduled today.

War in Iraq

The war in Iraq is officially over.

After nearly nine years, 45-hundred Americans dead, 32-thousand wounded and more than 800-billion dollars -- the U-S will send its troops home.

In Baghdad, there was a symbolic ceremony today during which the U-S Forces-Iraq flag was
officially retired.

The U-S military lowered the flag and wrapped it in camouflage, formally ``casing'' it, according to Army tradition.

U-S Defense Secretary Leon Panetta says  troops leaving Iraq that they should be proud of their
service.

Rent Rates in Kenora

Some good news if you're a renter in Kenora.


The vacancy rate has hit its highest level in five years at five percent.

Warren Philp is an analyst with the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation and suggests
vacancy rates can be considered an economic indicator for the city.

Philp adds that the average rent for a two bedroom unit in Kenora has dropped to 757 dollars a month, down from 799 dollars last year.

OPP investigate vandalism at Golf Course

The Kenora Golf and Country Club has been the target of vandals once again.

The OPP say they were contacted yesterday about some damage to some of the greens.

Police say that sometime during the evening hours, someone drove an ATV around the golf course.

Anyone with information about the mischief is asked to contact the Kenora OPP or Crimestoppers.

Community Foundation hoping for stable funding from City next year

The Kenora and Lake of the Woods Regional Community Foundation is hoping the city restores its full grant next year.

Members of the Foundation made a budget presentation to council yesterday.

Chair, Don Parfitt says they anticipate another good year in 2012.

Parfitt says while donations have been going up, they still need operational funding.

He's hoping the city continues its 25 thousand dollar annual contribution in 2012.

Penney re-elected as Chair of the public school board

Dave Penney appears to be a permanent fixture as the head guy at the Keewatin-Patricia District School Board table.

For an eighth straight year the Ignace Trustee was elected Chair of the Board.

Kenora's Cecile Marcino is back as Vice-Chair.

The elections were held Tuesday night in Dryden.

Sprague area hotel damaged by fire

A hotel in a small town in southeastern Manitoba has been damaged by fire.

Mounties say it happened early Tuesday morning at the Woodridge Inn near Sprague.

No one was in the hotel at the time.

The Manitoba Office of the Fire Commissioner is also investigating.

City-Property Deals

The City of Kenora is getting ready to complete a transaction that will see
the old Kenora Fire Hall on 2nd Street South sold off to private investors.

They are planning to transform the heritage building into a brew pub.

Meanwhile, a deal between the Kenora Catholic District School Board and
the City of Kenora is also nearing completion.

The city is planning to sell the old Pinecrest Community Club to the separate
school Board.

Both deals will be finalized at Monday's open meeting of council.

Rainy River Resources

Rainy River Resources plans to scour the countryside for workers for its proposed open-pit gold mine north of Barwick.

The company will be creating just under 1300 jobs in 2015. On the construction side they’ll need at least 675 workers and it’s estimated that they’ll also add another 600 plus men and women in the mine.

Vice-president of Operations Garret McDonald says they hope to attract some of those now out west.

McDonald says the company is already planning to build its current workforce which sits at 60.

City Council Budget

The cost of living continues to go up, but not every group in Kenora is looking for
more money from the City.

City Council heard five budget presentation yesterday and two groups, Triple Play
and Handi-Transit indicated they would not need more money in 2012.

Debbie Novak is the coordinator of Triple Play and says they can actually manage with
less money next year.

On the other hand, the Museum and the Economic Development Commission are looking for an increase in their budgets totally almost 100 thousand dollars in 2012.

2009 Human Remains

More details will be released tomorrow morning in Orillia on an unsolved mystery in Kenora.


The investigation centers around human remains found near Miller Rapids Road on June 17th, 2009.

OPP say a Forensic Artist has enhanced the investigation with facial re-creations.


OPP will be seeking further assistance from the public and medical community to identify the individual.

The Regional Coroner for Northern Ontario and a representative of Ontario Forensic Pathology services will take part in the Media Conference.

Kenora District Services Board

Housing for low income residents in the Kenora Riding will continue to be a huge challenge

for the Kenora District Services Board in 2012.

Chief Administrative Officer Dan McNeil met with city council yesterday to provide an
overview of some of their budget issues next year.

McNeil expects they will end up working more closely with the province on the issue of homelessness.


McNeil adds that municipalities currently pay 100 percent of the non-profit housing budget in
the Kenora District, and that continues to be a huge part of their budget.

No Parking

Motorists who insist on parking in the fire lane beside the Kenora Rec. Center may soon get a rude awakening.

The City wants to get tough on people who continue to park illegally.

Council says its not willing to tow away vehicle just yet, but it is prepared to
start ticketing vehicles.

The lane on the north side of the Rec. Center is currently posted as a Fire Lane.

The Nutritious Food Basket

Northwestern Ontario continues to be one of the most expensive areas of the province to buy

food.

The Health Unit has released the results of its annual Nutitious Food Basket.


It shows the cost to feed a family of four has risen to just over 918 dollars a month.

Public Health Dietician, Chelsea Lecain says that doesn't leave a lot left over for other
bills.

The Nutritious Food Basket is based on 67 food items purchased in 13 communities the Northwestern
Health Unit services in the region.

http://www.nwhu.on.ca/

Water Meters

When it comes to reading water meters, the City of Kenora is going to continue to

go "old school".

The Operations Department wants to hire a meter reader to go door to door, once
every three months.

Operations manager Rick Perchuck says it would cost two million dollars to install
a new remote "reading" system.

He expects the cost will eventually go down, but in the meantime, he says its more
feasible to hire someone to do the reading manually.

Kenora Assembly of Resources

The City plans to extend its agreement with the Kenora Assembly of Resources for another year.

K.A.R. is responsible for helping out with special events on the Kenora Harborfront.

Councillor Ron Lunny says the contract is the same as last year at 151 thousand dollars.