Thunder Bay Hydro wants dibs on solar projects

Thunder Bay Hydro is asking city council to make them the exclusive developer of solar power. Council will decide the matter at Monday night's meeting. The agreement would mean Thunder Bay Hydro would be given first dibs on city owned buildings that could host solar panels on their rooftops.

Police cruiser in a smash up

A city police cruiser is out of commission after being involved in a traffic accident. Police say that the cruiser collided with a car at the corner of Tupper and Peter at around 11:30 Tuesday night. Police were responding to an emergency call at the time. A woman and a baby were taken to the Health Sciences Centre as a precaution. The officer driving the vehicle was not hurt, but has been charged.

OPG updates workers on plant's future

Ontario Power Generation is being tight lipped about the immediate future of its coal powered station in Thunder Bay. Spokesperson Ted Gruetzner says employees were given a wide range of scenerios this week, on how the plant will be winding down its coal operations.  Gruetzner wouldn't say if possible layoffs were discussed with the workers, but stresses no decisions have been made.

Habitat cashes in with celebrity shoes

Habitat for Humanity is back with a new fundraising event. It's called Champagne and Shoes and it's a both a designer shoe sale and an auction of celebrity shoes according to CEO Dianne Mitchell.   She says that includes shoes from Governor General Michaëlle Jean, Jessica Simpson and Mike Weir.  The event takes place October 6th.

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Highway improvements on the way

The McGuinty Government has increased the funding for the Northern Highway program. An extra 125 million dollars was added to this year's budget. Minister of Northern Development Michael Gravelle says four laning the highway will help our economy and our safety. Highway 61 between Broadway Avenue and the Neebing River, and Highway 11/17 between Balsam Street and the Current River are next to be improved. Bruno Contracting won the 9.9 million dollar tender.

Jack Irving dies in New Brunswick

A sad note to pass on about the parent company of Northwoods Broadcasting today, its chairman Jack Irving passed away in Saint John New Brunswick after a short illness. He was 78. Among other accomplishments, Jack Irving was a member of the Order of Canada. In 1952 he joined his father's businesses and worked all his life, along-side his brother Arthur in Irving Oil. In addition, he was a Director of all Irving businesses and was responsible for and managed a number of the companies within the varied Irving enterprises.

New scoreboard highlights stadium improvements

Preparations continue at Port Arthur Stadium for the World Junior Baseball Championship.  The tournament begins on Friday with  games  at the stadium and at Baseball Central.    The new stadium scoreboard has now been installed  and there are other numerous preparations that are taking place to get both locations looking good for the event.

Bad news for an unfortunate bear

Residents on Lambert Island are on the lookout for an unfortunate Black Bear. The bear was seen yesterday wandering around with some sort of container stuffed over his head. Rob Peterson says the MNR has been called in to rescue him but he's proving to be rather illusive. The MNR has set up  traps in the area in an attempt to capture the Bruin.

City ranks number 2 in murder rate

The latest crime study from Statistics Canada has Thunder Bay with the second highest homicide rate in the country.    Deputy Police Chief J.P. Levesque says it's a result of the 6 murders last year which was very unusual.  He says the way the Stats Can survey is done it tends to put heavier weight on more violent crimes.
The study shows an increase of 17 per cent in violent crime.

Terrace Bay Pulp Close to starting up

Terrace Bay Pulp could be out of creditor protection by next Tuesday. That's the day the company will have a hearing on the matter.  Lawyer Yves Fricot says they've been allowed to prepare the mill for restart. The company is also purchasing material that is needed for the start up of the mill.

City gets 594-thousand dollar payment from OLG

The latest payment to the city of Thunder Bay from the provincial government casino is 594 thousand dollars. That's 22 thousand dollars more than the last quarterly payout.The money represents 5 per cent of the slot machine revenue from the facility.  It was the cash collected from April to June.

Province scraps eco-fee

The province is scrapping the controversial eco-fee. The McGuinty government admits consumers and businesses were not properly informed about the fee. The province says it's re-evaluating the program that's designed to fund waste diversion. Thunder Bay's Ellen Mortfield of EcoSuperior calls it a surprising move and hopes it can be re-introduced in the near future.

Man running across Canada for equal parenting reform

An Ontario man is attempting to break the Guiness World Record for the Fastest Crossing of Canada on Foot. David Nash is also trying to raise awareness for family law reform. A private members bill is before the house of commons and looks to avoid pitting parents against eachother. Nash is making his way to St. John's Newfoundland.

Cross country fundraiser for Alzheimer's

Two Guelph university students are cycling across Canada in support of Alzheimer's research. Ian Whatley and Ben Love hope to raise 25 thousand dollars through their cross country trek. The duo will stop in Thunder Bay this weekend and then continue their journey to Victoria, B.C.

Innova Business Park upgrades

Innova Business Park is going to get some upgrades thanks to Thunder Bay city council.  Taranis Contracting came in with the lowest bid at over 1.5 million.  Sewer and water will be extended on Golf Links Road to Innovation Drive.   Several roads will also be built linking up the business park to Golf Links Road, the Harbour Expressway and the Lakehead Expressway.  The Northern Ontario Heritage Fund is helping to pay for part of the project.

More money spent on gas collection facility

The City of Thunder Bay will be spending a little more on its gas collection system at the Solid Waste and Recycling facility.  The construction costs and other assorted fees have come in greater than expected.  Council is putting an extra 100 thousand dollars towards the project.  The gas collection system will eventually be used to generate power.

New test questions for pleasure craft operator card

Some changes are in store for the test to get a pleasure craft operator card.  That card is now needed to operate a boat. Cameron Taylor of Boat Smart Canada says Transport Canada is looking at new test questions.  The new tests, which include a total of 50 questions, will be administered starting in September.

MNR talks Moose Tags

The Ministry of Natural Resources is looking to prohibit hunters from passing moose tags onto others in consecutive years. Wildlife Management Coordinator Tosh Gierick says the M-N-R has been seeking public comment on the proposal with input coming to an end Thursday. Gierick says the regulation was based on input from hunters who expressed concern with the increase in tag transfer in past hunting seasons.

OBA board has a Thunder Bay face

A Thunder Bay lawyer is now on the board of directors for the Ontario Bar Association.  Peter Mrowiec will represent Northwestern Ontario lawyers.  The OBA represents more than 17-thousand lawyers, judges, law professors and law students in the province.

We could be headed to a transit strike

Thunder Bay transit employees could be headed for a strike. Negotiations with the city and the amalgamated transit union have fallen through. Local 966 President Charlie Brown says the city isn't offering up anything remotely reasonable. Brown says the city has so far only asked for a number of concessions. Brown says the next step will likely be a strike vote.