School closures and rural bus routes cancelled

The freezing rain is wreaking havoc with school buses. All rural school bus routes are cancelled. Meanwhile, the Christian Schools in the City are closed for the day as well as several Lakehead Public School board schools. School's closed for today include Crestview, Mckenzie, Five Mile, Nor'Wester View, Gorham and Ware, Valley Central, Kakabka Falls and Whitefish Valley.

Human Rights hearing set for Thunder Bay

Thunder Bay residents interested in human rights enforcement in the Province are being encouraged to attend a meeting in the city next week. A group set up to review the Province's human rights system is holding a hearing next Wednesday at the Victoria Inn. The hearing was originally set for February but was cancelled due to a lack of interest. For more information click here.

Council increases Budget

City Council has approved an increase to the 2012 budget.  Councillor Andrew Foulds brought forward an amendment to the budget to include about 84 thousand dollars to fund 4 not for profit organizations.  Foulds says the funding will help protect some of Thunder Bay's most vulnerable citizens.  Council decided to vote on each of the organizations seperately but passed each one. 

City approves Waterfront Land Transfer deal

The City is ready to close the land transfer deal for Prince Arthur's Landing. At Monday's Council meeting our Municipal representatives were advised that the developer has approved the final document implementing the land sale. The next step is for both sides to fulfill their obligations of the agreement. Officials say information on when the actually signing will take place will come in early April.

City Council looks at its investments

Our elected officials got a look at the city's investments at Monday night's meeting.  Currently the city has around 97 million dollars invested mostly in Government Bonds.  After a small amount of debate council decided to shift a small amount of investments from cash assets to the Equity One Fund.  Councillor Paul Pugh voted against the increase in equity investment because he felt it was smarter to keep that money in less volatile types of investments. 

Three ships heading here

There are three ships vying to become the first vessel in the harbour for this shipping season in the Port of Thunder Bay. Harbour Master GuyJarvis says they are all due before 6 a.m Tuesday morning. The captain of the first ship in will be given the ceremonial top hat in the afternoon.

Card could fetch 1.5 M

A million dollars is a lot to pay for a baseball card, but Thunder Bay collector Frank Wenzell says it's worth that and more. The 1909 Honus Wagner is considered one of the most sought after sports collectibles in the world, so Wenzell says now that it's up for auction, anything can happen.  There's talk the card could even go for a million and a half dollars and Wenzell agrees.

Police target River Terrace Park

Thunder Bay Police are cracking down on partying at River Terrace Park.  Officers dealt with about 50 youth in the area of the park over the weekend and seized a large amount of alcohol from minors and also charged 2 people with drug offenses.  The park has a reputation as a party location for many youth in the area.

Hobbs to Bradley: Don't leave us holding the bag

Thunder Bay's mayor is hoping a proposed new law designed to protect the Great Lakes will not be a financial burden to the city. Keith Hobbs says past experience has shown the city has been left holding the bag on some initiatives.  As an example he says the city didn't get "a whole lot of money from the province" for our new the waste water and water treatment plants.  Hobbs' comments follow a meeting in the city with Ontario Environment Minister Jim Bradley on the proposed Great Lakes Protection Act.

Bradley seeks local input on bill

Ontario's Environment Minister is travelling the province getting input on his proposed legislation he says is designed to protect the Great Lakes. Jim Bradley has just completed meetings in Thunder Bay with area mayors. He says on some of the issues there is a northern "slant" but says for the most part our leaders have the same concerns they do in southern Ontario. Bradley hopes to have the bill introduced in the legislature by the summer.

Transit fare going up

It's going to cost more to ride the bus as of this weekend.   Starting Sunday Thunder Bay Transit is increasing the adult cash fare by ten cents to two dollars and sixty cents.   Spokesperson Jon Handel says the increase is needed to keep up with the cost of inflation.   The last time transit fares were increased was back in 2009.

Community learns to heal

Community leaders are meeting today to talk about how the community can heal relationships when harm is done.  Spokesperson Sheena Albanese says it could be used in a variety of settings such as the legal and school systems.  The one day conference will also look at ways of keeping students connected to the school system.

Garage fire on west Mary Street

Thunder Bay's Fire Department is still looking into the cause of a garage fire on the City's south side over the weekend. Crews responded to the blaze on west Mary Street Saturday morning. The garage was completely destroyed. A fire spokesperson says they're treating the fire as an accident not arson. The investigation is continuing today.

First Nations evacuated

About 300 residents of two First Nations were evacuated Sunday after their communities declared states of emergency.  Ice breakup on a nearby river is causing ice jams and flooding in the First Nations of Kashechewan and Fort Albany on the James Bay coast.  A spokesman with Ontario's Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services says the evacuated residents were taken to Kapuskasing and Wawa.

Shannon heads N.S. Human Rights Commision

A Thunder Bay lawyer is now the head of the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission.  Dave Shannon was recently appointed as the organization's CEO.  Shannon who has been a quadriplegic since he was 18 will work towards making that Province more accessible for all residents.

Police investigating robbery

Thunder Bay Police are looking for two men they suspect in a robbery over the weekend.  A 26 year old woman on Nelson Street was jumped from behind, knocked to the ground and had her purse stolen.
The suspects are described as wearing hoodies and being 5'5 to 6 feet tall.  The woman was taken to Thunder Bay regional with non life threatening injuries.

Lottery winner still unknown

The city is buzzing about who might be the winner of the 50 million dollar lottery draw on Friday. The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation says that the winning Lotto Max ticket was sold in Thunder Bay. So far no one has come forward to claim the prize, so it isn't known yet if the winner is a single purchaser or if it was bought as part of an office lottery pool. Lottery retailers in the city are equally perplexed. Those we spoke to had no idea if the ticket was purchased at their outlet or not.

Woman rescued in harbour

An 19 year old Thunder Bay woman is in hospital suffering from hypothermia after being rescued on the harbour near the mouth of the Neebing-McIntyre Floodway. A Fire Service official says she had become stranded and police say she was hanging on to a tree stump. A hovercraft was used in the rescue. It's not clear how she got there but police say alcohol was involved. . Her cries for help were heard by workers at Keefer Terminal before 10 o'clock this morning.

Who has the 50 million dollar ticket?

One lucky person in Thunder Bay is holding the 50 million dollar lotto max ticket. The ticket was purchased in the city and was picked from last night's OLG draw.

Eye on the Street helps police

A 21 year old woman is in police custody after a late night stabbing. Eye on the Street reported the stabbing to police which happened at the intersection of Brodie Street and Victoria Avenue just after three oclock this morning. Police say the 25 year old victim was taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.