NOMA voices concerns to Finance Committee

The Vice-President of the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association says area communities are facing extreme challenges with population declines, rising social costs and declining tax revenues.


Dave Canfield asked for a boost in funding for infrastructure and the Northern Communities Grant at a Provincial Pre-Budget session this morning in Thunder Bay.

Canfield also raised the on-going issue of non-emergent land ambulence transfers in the region.

As well, the Kenora Mayor called for an energy transmission and generation strategy for the North.

Canfield represents City at Pre-Budget Consultations

The provincial government is being urged to cough up more funding for municipalities in northwestern Ontario.

That was the plea from Kenora Mayor Dave Canfield, who made a presentation first thing this morning at a pre-budget consultation session in Thunder Bay.

Canfield says municipalities are facing extreme challenges with population declines,

industrial closures, increasing social costs, and declining tax revenues.

He is asking for a 75 dollar increase in the Northern Communities Grant to deal with declining assessments and a new system for transferring non-emergency patients in the region.

Canfield was one of the first presenters this morning.

Ontario Realty Corporation disappears

The Ontario Realty Corporation is in for a change.


The McGuinty government is merging it with another agency.

Liberal MPP Michael Gravelle says he doesn't know exactly how the merger will
affect the Corporation's offices in northwestern Ontario.

Gravelle says the goal is to elimated about 5 per cent of the province's agencies.

New funding for BISNO

The Northwest LHIN is rolling out a number of new programs for residents living with brain injuries.


715-thousand dollars is being used to offer a variety of programs across the region.

A family therapist will work with families in the region, while program facilitators will be posted in Dryden, Fort Frances and in Thunder Bay.

Changes in store for Endanged Species Act

Good news for forest companies in northern Ontario, but environmental groups are crying

foul.

The provincial government is proposing changes to the Endangered Species Act which would

make forest companies exempt from provisions dealing with woodland caribou.

Catherine Grant is a spokesperson for Greenpeace and says they actively been working with

forest companies on the issue.

Grant says they will be bringing back their Caribou Caravan this spring and target ridings

held by provincial cabinet ministers.

Pre-Budget Hearings stop in NWO

The government's pre-budget committee makes its only stop in northwestern Ontario today.


It's chair MPP Pat Hoy says he expects to hear the usual concerns in the northwest like transportation along with forestry and mining

The morning opens with a presentation from Kenora Mayor Dave Canfield on behalf of the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association

Ice Roads almost Ready

Ice roads to remote First Nations across northwestern Ontario are beginning to open up to light vehicle traffic.

But the routes over frozen lakes and swamps are still not strong enough to support heavy supply transports and fuel trucks.

At Bearskin Lake First Nation, residents started driving south on the weekend.

That road runs through Muskrat Dam First Nation, with links to Weagamow Lake, Keewaywin, Koocheching and Sachigo Lake First Nations.

The road opening is a little late this year due to the heavy snow the area has received.

Supplies, like wood for building houses, had to be flown in later than usual,
by costly air transportation.

There are almost three-thousand kilometres of ice roads in northern Ontario.

Early Morning Drug bust on the By-Pass

A 28 year old Fort Frances woman has been arrested after being pulled

over on the Kenora By-pass.

Acting on a tip, the officers stopped the vehicle shortly after 3:00 this

morning and discovered about 50 oxycodone pills, with a street value

of about 54 hundred dollars.

Police say the pills were bound for the Big Grassy First Nation and Fort Frances.

Lindsay Copenace has been charged with possession of a narcotic for the

purpose of trafficking.

She's due to appear in Kenora Court on February 28th to answer the charge.

Canfield to appear before Pre-Budget Consultations

The provincial finance committee will likely get an earful when it makes a pit stop

in Thunder Bay.

Tomorrow's pre-budget consultation is the only one taking place in northwestern
Ontario.

Kenora Mayor Dave Canfield will be making a presentation not only on behalf
of the city, but also for the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association.

He's upset with the lack of notice municipalities were given to attend the session.

Canfield says he only has about five minutes to make a presentation on behalf
of the city, and will focus on funding to repair municipal bridges and road, and
the municipal infrastructure deficit.

Sioux Narrows Man fined

A Sioux Narrows man has been fined 800 dollars for failing to attach a tag

to a deer he had killed.

The Ministry of Natural Resources says Conservation Officers came upon
Christopher Frenette in the Maybrun Road area near Sioux Narrows
last month.

He had a white-tailed deer fawn on the rack of the snowmobile he was
riding.

The MNR says even though he had a antlerless game seal for the area,
he failed to attach it.

The deer was forfeited to the crown, and his firearm will be returned once
the fine has been paid.

OPP warn of another Phone Scam

Local residents are being warned about another phone scam that's
been reported in the Kenora area.

The OPP say someone has been calling local homes, saying they work for the local court house

The caller goes on to say they are attempting to clear up minor outstanding fines in the community and they then offer the chance to pay your outstanding fine over the phone by credit card.

Police say often there are no outstanding fines, but some people have been paying without
first checking with the local court house.

The OPP say court offices do not use this method to collect outstanding fines.

Long Form Census Coming

Use your voice and take part in the 2011 long-form census.


That message is being pushed by the Union of Ontario Indians.

Grand Chief Patrick Madahbee says they've struck a deal with Statistics Canada to hire aboriginals to collect the data from area reserves.

The data collected by Stats Canada is then later used by the Provincial and Federal Governments for funding allocations.

Slippery conditions result in numerous weekend accidents

There wasn't a lot of snow over the weekend, but what did fall seemed to cause a lot of problems for local motorists.

The OPP say over the past couple of days they were called out to 19 motor vehicle collisions in the Kenora area.

While no serious injuries were reported, police says the collisions did cause significant damage to the vehicles involved.

The OPP says most of the accidents were the result of drivers not

adapting to the road conditions and not staying alert.

Federal Government preparing for March Budget

Kenora MP Greg Rickford admits Canada is still pulling out of financial hardship and that will impact the upcoming Federal budget.

The Government is working on the fiscal document.

However, Rickford says taxpayers won't see massive cuts.

Rickford says the budget could be released sometime in March.

Market bullish on Rainy River Resources

Analysts are looking for big things from Rainy River Resources this year as the junior exploration company recently closed a 75-million dollar financing arrangement and released its latest drilling results.


The company, which is developing a gold project south of Kenora, says the infill drilling results also opened up new areas for potential expansion.

RBC analyst Stephen Walker says on-going results will be the prime catalyst driving share prices until the company releases its resource update this spring.

RESPECT program to be expanded

A local committee is looking at how to expand Confederation College's RESPECT campaign across the the region.


Trudy McCormick, co-chair of the Celebrating Diversity committee says the campaign, recognizing the value of diversity, would be a good fit for the area.

McCormick says they've formed a separate committee to review how aspects of the RESPECT campaign can be adopted.

Ontario wins softwood ruling

The Ontario government says it's pleased with an international tribunal's decision on softwood lumber.

The ruling limits an additional export tax on Ontario softwood lumber to just one-tenth of a per cent, dramatically lower than the 20 per cent the U.S. requested.

The tribunal rejected found that Ontario's forestry programs had no significant adverse impact on U-S producers.

Tourism Group complains about access to Crown Land

A northern Ontario recreational group says the Ministry of Natural Resources is blocking local access to lakes and rivers in favour of foreign-based tourist outfitters.

The Ontario Outdoors Recreational Alliance complains the ministry closes logging roads to prevent residents and local tour companies from driving into remote areas to hunt, fish or canoe.

Alliance president Tom Brason says the government is keeping locals out at the request of remote tourist operators who fly customers into camps on Crown lands.

Brason says a select group of remote-based outfitters is controlling vast areas of Crown land.

Thistles win pair of games on the road

A trip to Dauphin was just what the Kenora Triple "a" midget Thistles needed to

break a mini two game losing streak.

The Thistles won both of their games on the road this weekend.

Yesterday, the Kenora Midgets earned a 4-1 win over the Parkland Rangers.

That moved the Thistles out of the basement of the eastern Division of the
Manitoba Midget Hockey league.

On Saturday night, the Thistles dropped the Rangers 6-4.

Tim McFatridge had a pair of goals and two assists in that game.

J and M Judo Club collects three medals in Regina

Three members of the Jaffray Melick Judo Club took home three medals from the
Saskatchewan Open Judo Championships this past weekend in Regina.

Kaitie Dennis won her Under 20, 57 kilo division and took home gold.

Both Luke Heatherington and Daniel Gordon settled for bronze.

The tournament was a tune-up for the Canada Winter Games taking place in
Halifax next month.