TCP Consults T.Bay Residents

Mixed reaction to the TransCanada Pipeline's Energy East project. The last stop on their consultation tour of Northwestern Ontario was held Tuesday night at the Thunder Bay Community Auditorium. Eugene Lefrancois took in the public information session and says he's in favour of the project as long as they do it right and protect the environment.  Several residents who were concerned about the project rallied outside the auditorium.  If approved the project will see Alberta oil sent to the East Coast.

Inmates Safe After Jail Fire

No one is hurt after a dryer fire at the District Jail on McDougall Street Tuesday afternoon.  Platoon Chief Dave Long says it was a small blaze but the inmates had to be taken to a safe place in the institution.  It's thought that dryer lint could have been the cause.

Woman Charged With Stealing Lotto Tickets

The OPP are charging a 56 year old woman with theft under 5-thousand dollars after police say lottery tickets and tobacco products were stolen from a convenience store in Thunder Bay.  OPP say Karen Ruberto was employed as a clerk at the convenience store.  The accused will appear in court on November 29th.

Children's Centre Gets Cash

The Children's Centre of Thunder Bay is getting almost 25-thousand dollars from the Canadian Women's Foundation.  The charity is donating the money to the local organization for their work in supporting teen girls.

Lawyer Says Sewage Plant Shouldn't Have Failed

The lawyer leading a class action lawsuit against the City over the Spring 2012 flood says they're ready for the case to proceed.  Watkins Law's Sandy Zaitzeff says they didn't approach this 300 million dollar lawsuit lightly, they've brought in a panel of experts to review the local sewage plant and the events that lead up to the storm.  The City and Watkins Law will spend the next 12 months reviewing each other's information. None of the allegations have been proven in court.

Police Investigating Suspicious Death

Thunder Bay police say they are looking into what they believe is the suspicious death of a female. They say that her body was found in a residence on the 200 block of South Archibald street at around 6:20 this morning.   The police have secured the area and are asking for any public help in their probe.

LU Outpost Offers Pregnancy Tests

Lakehead University's Outpost bar is the first in Canada to offer pregnancy tests in their bathroom dispensers.  The purpose is to help prevent Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder.  The initiative starts today and they hope to have more local bars get on board and offer pregnancy tests.  Tests will cost 3 dollars.

Hobson Sentenced For Marion Murder

A Thunder Bay man must spend at least 15 years behind bars for the 2009 murder of Edgar Marion.   In Superior Court this morning Leif Hobson was given life in prison for the beating death of the 65 year old man.    Hobson's lawyer Gil Labine says his client has deep remorse for his actions. Hobson's sentence also includes time for burning Marion's body and for setting his basement apartment on fire.  He will be serving his sentence in a British Columbia prison.

Former Rangers Want Program Back

Alumni with the former Ontario Rangers program are bringing their fight to restore the program directly to Queen's Park today.  They are holding a lobby day in hopes to convincing MPP's to support their cause.  The program ran in Sioux Lookout, Ignace and Quetico Provincial Park.  Spokesperson Martin Dubec says they want MPP's to hear directly from those who've benefited.  The program and camps were axed last fall.

Human Rights Training Wraps Up Today

The Ontario Human Rights Commission is wrapping up a two day training session today.  Chief Commissioner Barbara Hall says during her time in the City she heard several issues around disability rights. Over 100 people are taking part in a full day training session looking at aboriginal issues as well as housing rights.

Country Club Gets More Condo Units

The Club Project Developers

The City is allowing the Thunder Bay Country Club to build 109 condos on their property.   The original plan was for 80 units but due to a demand for more 2 bedroom condo's the developers decided to offer more.  Project Manager Jim Peterson says they're making good progress on the construction project.

Flood Lawsuit Going Forward

The City is ready for the next stages of a  class action lawsuit.  Both the lawyers for the plaintiff and the defendant agreed Monday to allow the spring flood lawsuit to go forward.  City Manager Tim Commisso says it puts them in a better position. Commisso adds they started updating Council about what the next steps were two months ago.

Back To The Farming Days

Kendal Donahue 

Some interesting questions for the new head of the local Food Strategy.  Councillor Brian McKinnon asked about the possibility of offering back yard chicken coops. Meanwhile, Councillors Ken Boshcoff and Linda Rydholm brought up the fact that deer are eating public gardens.  Rydholm suggested the Food Strategy look at the by-law banning electronic fences as away to spur more local grown food.

Energy East Pipeline Meeting Tonight

TransCanada Pipelines' Energy East Pipeline Project is going to dominate discussion at a public meeting tonight at the Community Auditorium.  The proposed project is a pipeline that will see Alberta's oil sent to the East coast.  The public meeting will run from 4 to 8 tonight.

Tweet Your Q's To Garbage Meeting Officials

The City's second public meeting on garbage and recycling in the City is going to be streamed online.  A link to the video stream can be found here.  The City is also going to use Twitter to take residents' questions and feedback on the future plan for garbage collection.  Twitter users can tweet @CityThunderBay and use #TBayWasteStrategy.