Twolves Coach a fan of 4 ref system

The OUA is testing out a 4 man reffing system this season.  Thunderwolves Head Coach Joel Scherban says this past weekend's games against Laurier had the 4 man team and he liked it.  Scherban says it leads to a more open game and helps eliminate stick work behind the play, that normally gets missed when there is only one head ref.  Scherban says the timing is right, to switch to a permanent 4 man system. 

More delays for hotel announcement

More delays for the developer who wants to have a hotel built on the waterfront. Gisele MacDonald says the location of a water main at the site caused a delay in the land sale with the city, but is in the process of being settled. MacDonald won't speculate on when an announcement will be made. The delay means an announcement on the hotelier won't come until the new year.

Gravelle says Ontario is a leader at protecting species

Ontario is a leader in North America when it comes to protecting species at risk.  Thats the opinion of Province's Natural Resources Minister Michael Gravelle in regards to Environment Commissioner Gord Miller's recent report.  Miller says the Province isn't doing enough to protect endangered species.  Gravelle says the key challenge is finding a balance between protecting animals and job creation.

Bouchard on literacy mission

Order of Canada Member David Bouchard is trying to inspire Aboriginal and First Nation youth to pick up a book and read. Westgate Students gathered this morning to hear Bouchard's message. Bouchard is a Metis writer and is touring across Canada as a literacy advocate.

World AIDS Day Thursday

Thunder Bay's local AIDS group is marking World AIDS day Thursday. Spokesperson Bob Manson says their fourth annual breakfast will be held tomorrow morning at the Victoria Inn.

Lang receives lifetime achievement award

Confederation College's past President is being honoured by the Premier.  Pat Lang received the lifetime achievement award.  Four Confederation College Alumni's were also nominated at the recent Premier's Awards.

Canada Border tales

The Canada Border Service Agency is telling tales out of school.  They've released monthly stats for the Pigeon River crossing in October.  Among the highlights, include a Canadian man who went across for a day and came back with a vintage car.  The man provided a border agent with a fake receipt for five thousand dollars but after close examination revealed it cost almost 10 thousand dollars.  He was dinged with over 2-thousand dollars in fines.

Shelter House kicks off $ drive

Shelter House has a lofty fundraising goal this Christmas season. Manager Cal Rankin says they are looking to raise 150 thousand dollars in the community and are hoping they can reach some new donors this year. He says no donation is too small. The money raised is a critical part of the homeless shelter's yearly operations.

Open house makes its mark

New design proposals for the main streets in Thunder Bay are now public. They were presented at a City open house. Scott Garner of the local office of the Canadian National Institute for the Blind came to see if his groups ideas were included in the consultants plan, as did Gloria Cyr from the Heritage Committee. City council will get to see the final report in the new year which will present guidelines on how make the city's main drags look nicer through tree planting and landscaping

Wood Supply is not the reason for struggles at Global Sticks

The Forestry Minister says a wood supply is not to blame for the problems at Global Sticks.  Michael Gravelle says his ministry has worked tirelessly to find the company a proper wood supply and has in fact identified over 30 options for the struggling company.  Gravelle says there is no question the company is having problems but nothing more could have been done at providing a wood supply.

Northern teens drink and smoke more

Northern Ontario teens are doing more drugs and drinking more alcohol than their colleagues in the south. That's the findings of a new provincial survey.  Patty Hajdu of the District Health Unit says the good news is that drug use in general is going down, except for cannabis

Chamber prez touts zero per cent

The president of the Chamber of Commerce wants the city to look at other ways of raising money for road repairs. Harold Wilson questions why taxes have to go up 1 and a half per cent in order to make it happen.  He suggests that other areas be found to fund those projects including internal savings.  Wilson says Chamber members would be willing to work with the city to help find those savings.

Party planned for Prince Arthur's Landing

The City wants to celebrate the opening of the new look waterfront at Prince Arthur's Landing. Events Supervisor Doug Henry says they plan to hold a big bash next month.   He says on the evening of December the 16th there'll be  events and ceremonies to mark the occasion.   Henry says the evening will end with a fireworks display.

Allstate Canada ranks T.Bay sixth

Thunder Bay ranks sixth on a list of the safest places to drive in Ontario.  The study that was carried out from 2009 until this year was conducted by Allstate Canada.  Thunder Bay has a collision frequency rate of 3.66 per 100 cars on the road.

Ring of Fire Conference on this week

The Ring of Fire continues to be a hot topic for First Nation Communities.  The Centre for First Nations Governance is holding a two day conference in Thunder Bay this week and Spokesperson Len Hartley says they hope to foster good discussions.  The aim of the conference is to develop a better working relationship between Government and First Nations.

City Council looking to tackle road deficits

Council accepted a recommendation from administration calling for an increase in property taxes to fix our roads.  The recommendation would increase taxes by an average 2.88 percent over the next 3 years.  Councillor Andrew Foulds says its time to take our roads seriously and council needs to be aggressive and show some courage and vision to make Thunder Bay a city that our kids can be proud of.  An amendment to cap the tax increase at 2.5 percent was defeated 6-5. 

DSSAB looking at a big budget increase

The District Social Services Administration Board is facing a 6 percent budget increase this year.  CAO Melissa Harrison says DSSAB will leverage the money from the property tax payers but that will be reimbursed through the province.  This years DSSAB budget is pegged at just under 20 million dollars. 

Clean Green and Beautiful awards handed out.

City Council celebrated some of the best and brightest buildings in the city last night. The New Mary J L Black Library earned a Diamond Award, with Gold Awards going to Isabella Retirement Living and the McIntyre Building at Confederation college. The committee chose the  buildings that best enrich the life of the community through art beautification, heritage and environmental greening.

City lays charges after alleged dog attack

Charges are being laid against the owner of a dog that allegedly killed a small puppy in Current River last week.  Manager of Licensing and Enforcement Ron Bourret says a restraining order has been laid against the owner of the dog and charges for letting the dog run at large.

Police lay charges in connection to weekend fire

Thunder Bay police are charging a 45 year old man with arson in connections to last night's fire on Robertson Street.  Officials say a 69 year old man is in the ICU in critical condition after being found in the home by fire crews.