More Snow On The Way

Another blast of winter this week.

Not one, but two snow storms are expected to blow through the region.

Bill Laidlaw from Signal Weather Services says the first one will be coming
through this afternoon.

Laidlaw says while this system will produce only a couple of centimeters of white stuff, a second one will be blowing in on Thursday, carrying a lot more snow with it.

OPP Forecasting Lower Costs For Some Municipalities

OPP are releasing some figures on what will be charged to municipalities policed by the provincial service.

Beginning in 2015, policing costs will be based on a 260-dollar per household charge plus calls per service.

Inspector Steve Shouldice of the Rainy River Detachment says municipalities, like Kenora and Red Lake, now paying over 900-dollars per household will see some savings.

He adds that other smaller municipalities like Lake of the Woods, which currently pays 61 dollars per household, will face higher costs.

Shouldice says costs will also be based on 96 different types of calls, instead of the 400 now used.

KDMA Passes Five Resolutions

Municipal Property Assessments, power, and winter road maintenance.

Those were just some of the issues addressed by delegates at the annual
Kenora District Municipal Association Conference in Pickle Lake.

Dave Canfield is president of the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association and believes KDMA still has an important role to play in the region.

In all, delegates passed five resolutions that will be forwarded to the next
NOMA confererence at the end of April.

The next KDMA conference will be held in Ignace.  

Thunder Bay Challenges Province on BioMass Conversion Project

Just call it a bio-mess ...The political battle continues between Thunder Bay and the province's energy minister over the amount of biomass that will be needed to fuel the Thunder Bay Generating Station.

Thunder Bay Mayor Keith Hobbs says both sides remain far apart on how much advanced biomass will be needed once the station is converted

Hobbs says if there is no change in the government's position the city will make the problem an election issue.

The province is in the process of converting the coal plant to biomass.

The Northwest Energy Coalition is renewing demands that the plant be converted to natural gas
by 2016.

NAN Leaders Disappointed With New School Funding

The Nishnawbe Aski Nation says 1.9-billion dollars in federal funding to support first nations control over education is disappointing.

Grand Chief Harvey Yesno says the investment does not immediately address the chronic shortage in education funding in NAN First Nations, especially in remote communities.

Yesno says the only way to remedy the problem is an immediate and substantial investments in schools and education programming across NAN territory.

He notes the funding doesn't take effect this fiscal year and the 500-million over 7-years for education
infrastructure spread across all First Nations across Canada doesn't meet the current 12-year backlog in school construction in NAN alone.

Campbell Gathering Feedback For Provincial Budget

Expect to see the provincial budget released much sooner then it was last year.

That's what Kenora Rainy River MPP Sarah Campbell is saying as the process is moving along nicely.

Campbell has been out and about gathering feedback from residents.

She notes that her number one priority is the cost of living.

Dryden High Set to Follow Beaver Brae's Lead

Could Dryden High School be following the lead of Beaver Brae High School?!

The Keewatin-Patricia District School Board is considering changing DHS to a Grade 7 to 12 school.

The model has been a huge success in Kenora according to Board officials.

Public consultations to discuss the matter are being held February 18th and 26th at the High School library.

Thunder Bay Symphony Comes to King George

A crash course in classical music.

That's what students at King George will be getting this week.

The Thunder Bay Symphony will be playing a concert this Thursday
morning for students and parents.

The school is using the concert as a bit of a fundraiser for it's breakfast
program.

Parents who attend are being asked to bring a box of healthy cereal or oatmeal as their admission fee.

NorWOSSA Single "a" Playoffs Begin Today in Red Lake

Red Lake High School is playing host site for the NorWossa Single-A championships over the next two days.

Play starts today and wraps up tomorrow.

The Junior Girls Volleyball Semi-Final opens play at noon, with the Senior Girls following at 2 o'clock.

The Junior Boys Basketball Semi starts at 4, with the Senior Boys game at 6 o'clock.

Impaired Driving Charge Laid on Ice Road

Yes you can be charged with impaired driving on an ice road.

The OPP say they charged a 40 year old Kenora man over the weekend
on Lake of the Woods.

Police say they stopped a vehicle near Billygoat Island around 1:30 Saturday
afternoon after they noticed it being driven very slowly.

Officers determined the driver had been drinking alcohol and transported him for further testing.

Raymond Iverson is due to appear in Kenora Court March 13th on the charge.

SIU Investigates Red Lake Shooting

The Ontario Special Investigations Unit has been called in to look into a
shooting incident in Red Lake over the weekend.

The OPP say they were called to a home twice on Saturday night to deal with a noise complaint.

The second time they responded, officers were refused entry.

The woman inside told police she had consumed a quantity of medication.

The OPP say the officers forced their way inside, where an altercation took place and a firearm was discharged.

The woman was taken to hospital for treatment of an injury.

The two officers were also checked out at the hospital and later released.

Rickford Applauds New First Nations Education Act

Nishnawbe-Aski Nation and Treaty 3 could soon have greater control over their education.

Details of the First Nations Education Control Act were revealed last week.

The act gives First Nation Communities greater resources and authority.

Kenora M.P. Greg Rickford says administrators of academic programs will soon have greater
leeway in how they deliver programs.

Rickford says the act is a call for students to stay in school and study hard, for administrators to ensure they are getting the standards that are widely accepted in their province.

Tories to Use FOI On Winter Maintenance Fines

The Ontario Conservatives say they are trying to find out how much winter
road maintenance contractors have been fined.

Tory Finance Critic Vic Fedeli says it's one thing for the province to say contractors have been hit with financial penalties for poor winter road maintenance.

But he says the devil is in the details.

Fedeli says the state of highways this winter has been one of the biggest issues raised in his pre-budget consultations in the past month.

Food Vendors To Return to Harbourfront

Food vendors will be back on the Kenora Harborfront this summer.

The City of Kenora launched a pilot project two years ago to see how the food trucks would be received.

Councillor Rory McMillan has confirmed the initiative has gone from being a pilot project to becoming an annual summer tradition.

A request for proposals has been sent out to potential food vendors.

The city says it will licence up to three food trucks for the Kenora Harborfront
and one for the Discovery Center out in Norman.

They can set up shop starting June 1st and must be open seven days a week from 11 until 4:00.

The deadline to submit a proposal is February 27th.

Fatal Snowmachine Crash in Manitoba

A fatal snowmachine accident in Manitoba over the weekend.

The RCMP from Beausejour say they were called out Saturday night around 6:30 to a collision in the Rural Municipality of Brokenhead.

Police say four riders were traveling on a trail near Tyndall, when a 32 year old man from Winnipeg was involved in a single vehicle collision.

He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The Mounties says speed and drugs are believed to be factors in the
accident.

Campbell Offers Support for Increase in Minimum Wage

A mixed reaction to the minimum wage increase by Kenora Rainy River MPP Sarah Campbell.

Campbell says the increase will be good to help citizens, but businesses are also facing financial challenges.

Campbell does note that business owners at a recent pre-budget meeting in Thunder Bay were in support of the annual minimum wage increase.

The annual increase was proposed when the Ontario government announced the minimum wage would be increasing to 11 dollars an hour earlier this month.

Horwath Optimistic About NDP's Chances in Northwestern Ontario

Provincial NDP Leader Andrea Horwath is optimistic with where the NDP stand in Northwestern Ontario.

Horwath was in Thunder Bay yesterday for the NDP Nomination in Thunder Bay-Atikokan.

She says the region needs better representation.

Mary Kozorys won yesterdays nomination to represent the Thunder Bay-Atikokan for the NDP over Madge Richardson.

New Gold Looks to Expand Rainy River Project

More exploration at New Gold's Rainy River project.

Part of the work will explore the potential of expanding the footprint of its planned open pit mine.

Vice-president of exploration Mark Peterson says areas to the west of the original site will be looked at.

The company says it's also moving to complete the environment assessment process and obtain the necesary permitting to begin construction next year.

Senior Thistles Sweep Southeast Thunder

The Kenora Triple "a" Senior Thistles remain perfect so far in 2014.

The Thistles won a pair of games against the Southeast Prairie Thunder
over the weekend, including a 4-2 decision yesterday at the Rec. Center.

Sean McAslan netted a pair of goals in the game and says the team seems to be building for a run at the Allan Cup.

Marlon Gardner and Jeff Richards also added singles yesterday.

The Thistles also beat the Prairie Thunder 4-3 on Saturday night.

Midget Thistles Make Play-Offs

A pair of wins in the final two games of the regular season have ensured the Kenora Triple "a" Midget
Thistles will make the play-offs.

The Thistles capped the season yesterday with a 2-1 win over the Central Plain Capitals.

That followed up on a 3-1 win Saturday night against the Yellowhead Chiefs.

Tristan Salesse scored goals both Saturday and Sunday for the Thistles.

The Thistles three-game road trip didn't start out well, as they dropped a 4-2 decision to the Southwest Cougars Friday.

The Kenora Midgets finished one game above .500 which is good enough for 6th place.

The play-off match-ups have yet to be announced.