Free Business Workshops in the City

A couple free workshops in the city for local businesses.

Dana Bridgeman-Cross with Shooniyaa Wa-Biitong says they are bringing in a  renowned speaker  Denise Bissonnette for the workshops title "Workplace Inclusion Training" and "30 Ways to Shine."

The workshops take place at the Bestwestern Lakeside inn tomorrow and Wednesday.

to R.S.V.P you can email Dana at dcross@shooniyaa.org

Kenora's Snow is Twice as Much as Usual

How much snow is too much snow.

Bill Laidlaw from Signal Weather Services says the Kenora area has already seen about twice as much snowfall as  we'd get in a "normal" winter.

He says the snow pack at the Kenora Airport is about 85
inches, which is about double the amount for the end of February.

The Kenora Airport says this has probably been the most snow they've seen in at least 25 years.

Attiwapiskat Walkers Make it to Ottawa

A more than 17-hundred kilometre walk from the remote northern community of Attawapiskat to Ottawa is over.

The group has arrived on Parliament Hill and is sharing its experience.

The trip, organized in part by Danny Metatawbin, started on January 4th.

Roughly 25 people ended up taking part in the trek when all was said and done.

Metatawbin has stated that they need to have open dialogue with the Provincial and Federal governments.

Walkers raised several issues including poverty, poor housing and high suicide rates.

School Board Pleased With Solar Projects

The Kenora Catholic District School Board says it's run into a bit of a problem with it's solar panels.

The separate school board installed a number of solar units on top of Pope John Paul School
last year.

Operations manager Andrew Poirier says overall they are exceeding their targets for electrical
generation.

However, he admits they haven't been able to generate any power over the past couple of months
because their solar panels are covered with snow.

He says they haven't been able to remove the snow from the solar units and is hoping for an early
spring they can resume generating electricity.

City Well Represented at Good Roads

Municipal leaders are in Oakville today for the annual Good Roads Confererance.

Mayor Dave Canfield says they have one big issue on their agenda this year.

He says they have a file on homelessness that will be presented to
the cabinet ministers they meet.

Canfield also notes that bridge repairs and taxation will be on their agenda.

NOMA has applied for upwards of nine meetings with provincial cabinet ministers.

RCMP Officer Injured In Weekend Collision

A close call for an RCMP officer on duty in eastern Manitoba.

Early Sunday morning, a marked police cruiser was on patrol just west
of Pinawa, when it was side-swiped by an eastbound vehicle.

The force of the collision caused the window of the police car to shatter.

The car made no attempt to stop, so police began pursuit.

The suspect vehicle was pulled over about a kilometer away from the scene of the collision.

The RCMP say the 45 year old driver was charged with impaired driving
and breach of conditions to abstain from alcohol.

The driver of the police cruiser was treated in hospital for minor injuries, while the officer in the passenger seat was unharmed.

Rickford Outlines Government Infrastructure Plans

Minister of State Greg Rickford says the new infrastructure program for Canadians will be rolled out shortly.

Rickford says the focus this year will be on such things as roads and bridges.

Several communities are looking at other projects including Kenora with a new events center and arena and Rickford says funding for the those projects is up in the air.

He notes the Recreational Infrastructure program was in place a couple of years ago.

Health Unit Works on Customer Satisfaction

The Northwestern Health Unit is taking new steps to improve its client services.

Offices are collecting client feedback surveys and have put in place a scent-reduced policy for all of its offices.

Quality Improvement Officer, Alex Berry says it's all about making sure local residents are happy with the service they receive.

The surveys are anonymous and voluntary.

Union Gas Doesn't Expect Any Natural Gas Shortages

No worries of a shortage of natural gas for users in northwestern Ontario.

The colder than usual winter has increased demand.

But Union Gas' Andrea Stass says supply is still strong.

New prices come out in March, but Stass says any change will likely below market price because the company purchase on longer-term contracts to keep consumer costs down.

NAPS Launches Project North Star

A new anti-gang initiative is being launched by the Nishinabe-Aski Police Service.

Sergeant Jackie George says they have received 100 thousand dollars for something they call Project North Star.

Project North Star will start up today and run for 6 months.

The money for funding was provided by the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services Proceeds of Crime.

Ontario Youth Advocate Releases New Report

The province's advocate for children and youth is releasing a report today titled Feathers of Hope.

The report urges both levels of government to help provide healthier communities for aboriginal youth.

Spokesperson Uko Abara says the report was written by first nations youth and has a few specific recommendations and an action plan to implement those recommendations.

The action plan is  being released simultaneously today in Thunder Bay, Toronto and Ottawa.

Broncos Girls Lose in Overtime

Close but no cigar.

Beaver Brae's girls hockey team gave up a third period lead and saw the
Fort Frances Muskies take game one of their best of three semi-final
4-3 in overtime last night at the Kenora Rec. Center.

The Broncos don't have a lot of time to lick their wounds, as they are back on
the road this morning to face Fort in game two this afternoon at 2:15.

Meanwhile, the semi-final series between Beaver Brae and Thomas Aquinas
is going the distance.

The Broncos forced game three with a 4-1 win Saturday night.

Tonight's third and deciding game has been pushed back to a 7:30 start
at the Kenora Rec. Center.

Novice Boys Teams Fall in Dryden Finals

Kenora teams were well represented at a Novice hockey tournament in
Dryden.

Local teams made three of the finals, only to fall just short of winning.

The Thunder Bay Ram Rangers won the tournament with a thrilling 5-4 win over the Kenora On Deck Fries in shootout.

Sioux Black took home the 'B' side title with a 5-4 victory over the Kenora DST Penguins.

The Sioux Orange Blades won the 'C' side championship over the Kenora Stingers 3-2.

Gold For Novice Girls in Emo

Some hardware for a couple of Kenora girls hockey teams at a tournament in Emo over the weekend.

In the novice division Blue Sharks and White Lightning met up in an all-Kenora final, with the Blue Sharks coming out on top 3-2.

In the Atom Division the Blue Buccaneers settled for silver, after losing 3-0 to the Superior Spartans in the A-side final.

Taylor Beaten In Northern Ontario Women's Seniors Final

The Peggy Taylor foursome was a win away from advancing to the National Seniors Curling
championships.

Taylor made it to the final of the Northern Ontario Senior Women's Playddowns at the Kenora Curling Club yesterday, but lost 7-3 to Vicky Barrett from Sudbury yesterday.

Barrett was a perfect 4-0, while Taylor ended up at 3-1.

Meanwhile, the NorWOSSA curling championships continue today in Sioux Lookout.

Action began yesterday with the winners to be crowned later today.

PeeWee Thistles Win/Midget Thistles Lose

The Kenora Double "a" PeeWee Thistles have advanced to the semi-finals of the Eastman Hockey League.

The Thistles wrapped up their best-of-three quarter final on Saturday with a 5-0 shutout over Niverville.

The Kenora Peewees will now face Ile Des Chenes starting next Saturday at home in game one of their series.

Meanwhile, the Kenora Triple "a" Midget Thistles have a couple of weeks to prepare for the Northwest Branch Playdowns.

The Thistles were ousted from the Manitoba Midget play-offs by the Winnipeg Thrashers with a 4-2 loss Friday night at the Rec. Center.

The Branch playdowns will take place this year in Thunder Bay starting March 14th.

Highway 17 Re-opened

Ontario Provincial Police have reopened highway 17 East of Igance.

The road was closed earlier today due to a 5 vehicle collision involving 2 transports, 2 passenger vehicles, and a snow plow.

Thankfully nobody was injured in the accident.

The OPP are still advising caution on all area highways as the winter storm conditions continue.

Highway 17 Closed Between Ignace and Thunder Bay

The snowy and icy conditions continue to cause havoc on area highways.

Highway 17 is closed just east of Ignace due to a five vehicle motor vehicle collision involving two tractor trailer units, one snow plow and two passenger vehicles.

No injuries reported.

Provincial Police are urging motorists to adjust their driving during the winter storm conditions in the region.
Constable Ann McCoy says use caution.

If you are heading east of Thunder Bay today, Provincial Police have closed Highway 11 between Nipigon and Hearst due to poor road conditions.  

Assault Vicitm Upgraded to Stable Condition

A 54 year old man continues to recovery in Kenora hospital following an assault earlier this week.

Police say the man was attacked on the Whitedog First Nation on Wednesday.

He had life threatening injuries when he arrived at the Lake of the Wood District Hospital but has since been upgraded to stable condition.

As a result of the attack 27 year Russell Muckle was charged with Aggravated Assault.

He will answer to the charge today.

OPP Seek Marine Student

The Kenora OPP are looking for a new student.

The OPP are seeking applications for the Marine Assistant position.

The students will work along OPP Marine operators and conduct checks on boaters.

The OPP requires the following for consideration for this student position:

• Must be 18 years of age.
• Possess a Pleasure Craft Operators Card.
• Have a minimum Ontario G2 Driver’s Licence.
• CPR & First Aid qualifications.
• Strong swimming abilities, good communication skills, professional appearance as well as previous boating experience are all assets.

The “Marine Assistant” position is available for application: February 21-March 2, 2014.

• Only electronic applications will be considered and can be located at http://www.gojobs.gov.on.ca/SEP.asp, or the Career pages of www.opp.ca.
• It is recommended that students retain a copy for proof of their application

Highway 17 Re-Opened Again

Traffic is finally moving again on Highway 17 east of Kenora.

The Trans-Canada was closed for roughly three hours after a tractor
trailor unit jack-knifed just east of the Highway 71 junction.

The OPP just re-opened the highway about a half an hour ago.

Roads in the area are listed as snow covered with poor visibility this
morning.

Snow Sculpture Contest to Begin This Weekend

If the snow ever lets up, you might start to notice some activity on
the Kenora Harborfront.

The Snow Sculpture competition for the Winter Carnival is scheduled to
get underway this weekend.

Tourism Services officer, Heather Gropp says it's been a challenge to
get the contest underway.

Gropp says they will have seven sculptures this year with the winners to
be announced on the opening night of this year's Winter Carnival on
March 7th.

Province To Review MPAC

The Province is taking action against the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation.

The government is directing the Ministry of Finance to develop an action plan to implement 26 changes.

Dryden Mayor Craig Nuttall notes it's a long time coming.

The Minister of Finance and Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing are also calling for a comprehensive, independent performance evaluation of MPAC.

Alzheimer Coffee Breaks Well Received

The Alzheimer Society of Kenora Rainy River has received a java
jolt.

The annual Coffee Breaks fundraiser has wrapped up and
spokesperson Elizabeth Paul says they managed to raise about
24 hundred dollars.

Paul says they have a number of other fundraisers planned this year including
their Ride for Memories and Taste of Kenora dinner.

Hunters Fined For Illegally Killing Moose

The hammer is coming down on more illegal hunting in the region.

This time it's a southern Ontario man who has been fined a total of 37 hundred dollars for illegally hunting two cow moose and for shooting across a road.  

He has also been banned from hunting for a year.  

The Ministry of Natural Resources says that the incidents happened at a resort in the Lac des Mille Lacs area, west of Thunder Bay last fall.

Ontario Chamber of Commerce Bullish on Ring of Fire

The Ontario Chamber of Commerce is out with a report saying the Ring of Fire mining project will generate benefits far beyond mining and the north.

Charla Robinson is a chamber spokesperson and says this study helps to sell the project to the movers and shakers in the province.

The study shows the Ring of Fire will generate up to 9.4 billion dollars in economic activity in its first 10 years.

OPP Name new Commissioner

The Ontario Provincial Police have found their next commissioner.

Vince Hawks will take over the position from Chris Lewis on M
arch 29th.

Hawks, who has been with the OPP since 1984, has served commander of investigations and organized crime, Deputy Commissioner of Field Operations, and played a role in creating the national crime strategy.

He has won received an Exemplary Service Medal and a Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal.

TBay Tel Shut Out of Wireless Sell Off

Tbaytel was shut out in the recent sell-off of wireless services in Canada.

The regional company participated in the auction but failed to win any bids.

Bell, Rogers, Telus and Bragg Communications received the winning bids for licenses in northern Ontario.

A total of 97
licenses were awarded to 8 companies.

The auction netted the federal government more than 5.2 billion dollars.

Saints Boys Hockey Team Wins Game One of NorWOSSA Semi-final

The boys semi-final hockey series between Thomas Aquinas and Beaver Brae looks like it's going to be a hard fought, low scoring affair.

The Saints drew first blood in the best-of-three series last night with a 2-1 win over the Broncos.

Rory Keith scored the game winner for T.A.

The two teams will do battle again Saturday night for game two.

Puck drop is 8:00 at the Kenora Rec. Center.

The other semi-final between Dryden and Fort Frances was supposed to start last night
as well, but was cancelled due to the weather.

That series will now begin Sunday afternoon in Dryden.

Saints Senior Girls Heading to OFSAA

The Thomas Aquinas Senior Girls volleyball team is heading back to the
All-Ontario Single A championships.

The Saints easily won the NWOSSA finals yesterday.

T.A. beat St. Joseph from Wawa in two straight games in the best-of-three final.

The Saints also did not drop a set in the two matches played yesterday.

Thomas Aquinas now prepares for the OFSAA finals in Richmond Hill starting
March 3rd.

School Buses Canceled Again

For the second day in a row, school buses will not be running in the Kenora area.

The Northwest Student Services Consortium says while we didn't get the snow we expected
yesterday, more is in the forecast today and is expected to create poor driving conditions.

Up to 25 centimeters of snow is forecast in some areas, so buses in the Vermillion Bay, Dryden,
Red Lake, Sioux Lookout and Ignace areas have also been cancelled.

The Thomas Aquinas music trip to Winnipeg has also been cancelled today due to the bus situation.

Local schools will remain open today.

Highway 17 Closed at Highway 71 Junction

Traffic has ground to a halt on Highway 17 east of Kenora.

The OPP have closed the Trans-Canada from the Redditt Road intersection all the way
to the Highway 71 junction due to a number of jack-knifed transports.

The highway was closed just after 4:00 and police say it will remain closed until all the
trucks can be cleared from the roadway.

Lake Smart Ready to Hit the Water

Be Lake Smart.

That's the message from the Lake of the Woods District Property Owners Association as they prepare for the Lake Smart Program for 2014.

Executive Director Susan McLeod says this year they want to get off the "big lake" and spend more time in places like Mianki, Black Sturgeon Lake, and Trout Lake.

McLeod also says they want to partner with Centre of Sustainable Watersheds to create a database that can highlight there work showing what is working and what can be improved.

This will be the 4th year that LOWDPOA runs the Lake Smart program.

Police Seize 4 Pounds of Marijuana

For the second time this week over $10,000 of drugs were taken off the streets.

Kenora OPP say they stopped a vehicle early yesterday afternoon on highway 17A.

During the stop police seized 4 and a half pounds of pot valued at $10,800.

As a result 38 year old Ronen Estein and 46 year old Mario Trunzo, both from Winnipeg, have been charged with possession for the purpose of trafficking and possession of property obtained by crime.

Both men answered to the charge in Kenora court earlier today.

It's the second large bust in the city in the past week, as police seized 17 grams of cocaine from a home during a search warrant on Friday.

Greenhouse Suffers Roof Collapse

All the snow this winter has been not only hard on roads and highways, but roofs as well.

Debbie's Greenhouse on the Redditt Road was the casualty from Monday's snow storm.

Vince Schatkowski says the roof of the main greenhouse collapsed while they were trying to

shovel snow off of it.

Schatkowski says they are supposed to start their spring seeding in another month, but doesn't know if they will be able to repair their greenhouse in time.

Arrest In Pickle Lake Assault

A 51-year-old man faces charges following an assault in Pickle Lake.

Provincial Police say the charges stem from an altercation that occurred at a Cat Lake Road residence.

Police say a woman sustained an injury to her head during the incident.

Richard Muckuck of Pickle Lake has been charged with assault causing bodily harm.

Union Gas Offers Winter Warmth Program

Union Gas is offering some relief to eligible families struggling to pay their natural gas bills.

It's Winter Warmth program allows customers to receive one-time financial assistance of up to five-hundred dollars.

Spokesperson Andrea Stass says there anticipate demand to be high given this year's winter.

 Stass says prices now being paid are locked in until March.

And while consumption this year has increased, Stass says it's doubtful we'll see the type of increases being experienced in parts of the U.S.

City Gets Ready for New Strat Plan

City Council is looking for funding to create a new five year strategic plan.

Councillor Rory McMillan says they are looking for upwards of 80 thousand dollars from Fednor and the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund to help bring it together.

McMillan says council will set guidelines on topics such as budgeting and operations

He adds the Strat Plan will be in place for the next installment of council, and it
will be able to upgrade the document as it sees fit.

Gravelle Defends Handling of Ring of Fire

Northern Development and Mines Minister Michael Gravelle is defending progress in the Ring of Fire mining project.  

The NDP say that there is virtually nothing happening to get the development corporation in gear.

But Gravelle says that's not so, adding the hiring of the consulting firm Deloitte is an important part of the equation

Gravelle says there is plenty going on behind the scenes to come up with a transportation route for the area

Con College Hands Out Bursaries

Over 250 Confederation College students from across the region have one less financial worry.

They have been awarded scholarships and bursaries totaling 120 thousand dollars to help them continue their education at the institution.  

President Jim Madder says it's all made possible by donations from alumni and other fundraising events, like the charity golf tournament in Kenora.

The ceremony was held at the Thunder Bay campus yesterday afternoon.

Saints Senior Girls In Wawa for NWOSSA

A long road trip for the Thomas Aquinas senior girls volleyball team.

The Saints are in Wawa to face St. Joseph's in the NWOSSA finals.

The best-of-three series gets underway this morning, with game two
this afternoon.

The winner will move onto the All-Ontario Single A championships in
Richmond Hill in early March.

Midget Thistles Avoid Playoff Exit

The Kenora Triple "a" Midget Thistles have managed to stave off elimination the first round of the play-offs.

The Thistles came back to beat the Winnipeg Thrashers 3-2 last night in Winnipeg.

The Thrashers built a two goal lead early in the game, but the Thistles mounted their come back in the second and third with three unanswered goals from Josh Brunton,  Daniel Nault and Brandon Stanley.

Game four of the best of five series returns to Kenora tomorrow night.

Game time is 7:30 at the Kenora Rec. Center.

Snow Day for local Students

Not a lot of snow so far, but the Northwest Student Services Consortium has decided to err on the side
of caution and cancelled all it's buses this morning.

The Consortium is worried the winter storm will wors
en as the day progresses making for poor driving
conditions for it's drivers.

As of 5:30 this morning, buses in  Kenora, Sioux Narrows,  Dryden, Vermillion Bay, Red Lake, Ear Falls.
Sioux Lookout, Ignace and Upsala have been cancelled.

All schools in the Kenora area will remain open.

Police Investigate Assault in Whitedog

A man is in Kenora hospital following an early morning assault on the Whitedog First Nation.

Treaty 3 Police and the Ontario Provincial Police say the man was attacked with a weapon and is now at Lake of the Wood District Hospital with life threa
tening injuries.

Police say that a 27 year old man is already in custody as part of the investigation.

He will appear in Kenora court tomorrow to answer to the charge of aggravated assault.

The investigation is ongoing.

School Board Grappling With Higher Utility Costs

The cold, snowy winter is making it difficult for some local agencies
to make ends meet.

The Kenora Catholic District School Board says it's natural gas costs are up this year because of the cold.

Operations manager Andrew Poirier says all their utility costs are up this year.

Poirier adds that the 10 percent increase in the city's sewer and water rates
also hit them hard, because students use a lot of water.

Two Sledders Found Safe and Sound in Eastern Manitoba

All the snow is even making it hard for snowmobiles to get around.

The RCMP in eastern Manitoba were advised of a pair of stranded snowmobilers Monday morning on George Lake northwest of Lac Du Bonnet.

Police say a 39 year old man and a 38 year old woman were sledding in the back country when they became stuck in several feet of slush.

Because of the lake conditions, the RCMP brought in a helicopter and managed to rescue the
two sledders.

They were checked out by emergency service personnel and declared to be in good health.

Kenora Officer Faces Police Service Act Charge

A Kenora OPP officer isn't out of the woods yet.

Constable Troy Bender was fined 11 hundred dollars for careless driving
just before Christmas in connection to an accident that resulted in the
death of a 42 year old Grassy Narrows woman.

Gloria Assin was being transported to the Kenora Detachment in September of 2012 when the cruiser was hit by a semi.

While criminal charges against Bender were dropped, he now faces a
charge of discreditable conduct under the Police Services Act.

No date for the hearing has been announced.