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Fort Budget Finalized

The budget is now complete for the town of Fort Frances.

Council held a special meeting yesterday to finalize the numbers.

A tax increase of less than half a per cent for residential ratepayers remains.

Mayor Roy Avis says changes in the assessment of the now-closed Resolute Forest Products mill forced them to take a second look at the numbers and take money out of reserves to offset the impact.

Council will bring the budget to a public meeting next week.

Health Care Groups Want More Discussion About Health Care

Health-care leaders are calling on the political parties to make health and health care the number one issues this election.

They're hoping the leaders will take time in tonight's leaders' debate to focus on their plans for improving access.

Registered Nurses Association of Ontario's Doctor Doris Grinspun says the system is at a critical juncture with a growing and aging population and it's a perfect time to discuss how politicians will address the need for more services.

PC's Question Police Union Election Ads

Progressive Conservatives are questioning ads targeting their leader launched by the union representing officers with the Ontario Provincial Police.

The Tories says the action bring into question the impartiality of the provincial police which are currently conducting investigations into the Liberal government over the gas plant and ORNGE air ambulance scandals.

OPP say they don't support the campaign, but notes the Police Association is an independent organization that does not report nor is controlled by the OPP.

Weather Training Offered

Environment Canada wants a few more eyes to watch the weather in the Rainy River district.

It will hold training sessions next week in Atikokan and Emo for those interested in its CANWARN storm spotter program.

Meteorologist Geoff Coulson says participants help them watch for severe weather.

The Atikokan session takes place at the Atikokan Economic Development Corporation's training room on June 10.

Another takes place in Emo at the Emo-LaVallee Community Centre.

Both begin at 7 PM.

For more information or to register in advance for these free workshops contact Coulson by email at Geoff.Coulson@ec.gc.ca

 

Fire Hazard Drops

Rain has reduced the forest fire hazard to low in the Rainy River district.

There have been just five forest fires in our region this year.

The Ministry of Natural Resources says the fire hazard is still moderate to high along the Ontario/Manitoba border as well as in the Red lake and Sioux Lookout areas.

Cool, Wet May For I. Falls

It's been a cooler and wetter than normal month of May in International Falls.

The National Weather Services says average temperature for the month came in at just over 51 F or 10 C which is slightly cooler than normal.

The city also had about 4 inches of precipitation, about 1.2 inches more than usual.

Thunder Bay Dentist Heads ODA

A Thunder Bay dentist has been named to head the Ontario Dental Association.

Doctor Gerald Smith will serve as its president for the next two years.

The long-time resident of Thunder Bay is currently a staff dentist at the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre.

Election Notebook

On the election campaign trail, Premier Kathleen Wynne is pledging to protect Ontario's public sector.

Surrounded, by a number of workers yesterday in Toronto, Wynne warned that Ontario will see a return to the cuts experienced under then-Premier Mike Harris in the 1990's if Tim Hudak wins the June 12 vote.

Wynne says the Tories plan to eliminate 100-thousand public sector jobs will send the province back towards a recession.

Meantime, Hudak is clarifying where some of the cuts will come from in his plan.

Hudak insists front line services won't be effected and will look at eliminating government waste within upper and middle management.

Hudak, is also standing by the numbers in his million jobs plan despite criticism from the Liberals and some economics experts who say the Tories used in-correct math in determining, its strategy.

The Liberals are also being accused of trying to hide a report on the ORNGE air ambulance service.

The PC's says the report contains 95 specific findings related to the service's operations.

The Liberals say, they agreed, to table the report, May 5th, had it not been for the opposition, forcing the election call, and putting a halt to business, at Queen's Park.

OPP Union Gets Active In Election

The union, representing Ontario's provincial police officers, is wading into the provincial election.

For the first time, the Ontario Provincial Police Association is launching ads aimed at the Progressive Conservatives.

Presidents Jim Christie says Tim Hudak's position on such things as arbitration, pensions and wages are concerning.

Christie says the ads are not meant to be an endorsement of the Liberals or the NDP.

Falls Still Looking For City Beach Volunteers

The city of International Falls is still looking for camps hosts for its City Beach.

It needs volunteers to oversee the popular recreational area during the months of July and August through to Labour Day.

Anyone living either in the Falls or Fort Frances interested is asked to contact the city.

Hike It and Bike It

The Northwestern Health Unit is challenging residents to keep the vehicle parked this month.

Health promoter Elaine Fischer says the Hike It and Bike It Challenge is now on and is aimed at getting people outside and moving for the next three weeks.

Participants are asked to keep track of the time and kilometres they traveled and report them to the Health Unit for a chance to win prizes. 

Local Sports For Tuesday June 3

Fort Frances Muskies soccer teams now know their schedules for this week's all-Ontario high school championships.

The boys team finds itself in the A-pool with top ranked L'Essor out of Tecumseh.

Play will begin Thursday in Leamington.

The girls, meantime, have been placed in the B-pool at their competition in Collingwood.

They're making their first appearance to OFSAA's since 2008.

Joe Basaraba is among the list of protected players the Cincinnati Cyclones of the East Coast Hockey League have submitted.

The Fort Frances native joined the club in March after finishing up with the Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs.

He had a goal and 4 assists in 10 games with the Cyclones during the regular season and has played 3 playoff games so far.

The 2010 draft pick of the Florida Panthers was out of the line-up last night as Cincinnati lost 2-0 to Alaska in the 3rd game of the Kelly Cup final.

Weather rained out play in the Rainy River District Women's Fastball League.

Games will be rescheduled to a later date.

Election Notebook

Progressive Conservatives are calling on Premier Wynne to come clean on the cost of the MarS real estate deal.

The Tories released documents last week they claim show the Liberals secretly signed off on a $317-million bailout for the Toronto real estate project.

Critic Vic Fedeli says Wynne should disclose all documents related to the deal before tomorrow's leaders' debate.

The Liberals, meantime, say the inspiration of PC leader Tim Hudak's platform comes directly from the extreme-right Republican movement in the U.S.

The Liberal have released documents of their own, claiming Hudak met with leading Republican and Tea Party strategists during his trip to Washington in April 2012.

They say part of the meeting included media training with a firm who's also worked with Minnesota Congresswoman Michelle Bachman.

New Democrats have released new ads in their campaign to end the scandals at Queen's Park.

The ad, entitled “I’m voting Andrea,” features a number of people who say they voted Liberal in the last election, but will be switching their vote to the NDP.

The NDP have also set up a website for other voters to comment on why they plan switch their vote.

Candidates File For U.S. Elections

Candidates seeking to represent Koochiching County at the U.S., State and County levels are starting to file.

At the County level, Wade Pavleck in District 1, Kevin Adee in District 2 and Rob Ecklund in District 3 are all seeking re-election to the board.

Sheriff Brian Jesperson, Attorney Jeff Naglosky and County Auditor Bob Peterson are also up for re-election.

The deadline to file is tomorrow at 5 PM with the primaries to be held August 12 and the general election on November 4.

Crime Down In Fort Frances

OPP continue to see a drop in crime in Fort Frances.

Police handled a total of 284 calls in April while laying 76 charges.

That's down from the 92 charges issued in April 2013.

The total number of charges to date of 288 is also 50 fewer than this time last year and over 100 less than in the first four months of April.

Minimum Wage Goes Up

Thousands of employees in the Province go to work today with a raise.

Ontario's minimum wage officially increased Sunday going up 75 cents from $10.25 to an even $11.00 per hour.

Some advocates say it still keeps a number of low-wage earners well below the poverty line.

Wet Day In District Forecast

It could be a very wet day in the Rainy River district.

Environment Canada says a system moving through our area could leave as much as 5 centimetres of rain in some part of the region.

The rain is supposed to taper off by tomorrow morning.

NOMA Seeks Energy Answers

The Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association and the City of Thunder Bay are joining together requesting answers on local energy issues from the three main provincial parties.

They have written to the leaders and their local election candidates asking them to commit to a series of demands.

They include converting Ontario Power Generation's station in Thunder Bay to natural gas, expanding the capacity of OPG's Atikokan generating station and creating new transmission lines.

Nickle Promoting Party's Energy Platform

The PC candidate for Kenora-Rainy River is promoting his party's energy platform.

Randy Nickle says Ontario residents are paying some of the highest costs for power, and the Tories have the only plan that will help hydro users save $343.00 a year on their bills.

Nickle is handing out light bulbs to homes he's visiting as a reminder of his party's platform.

OPP Getting Their Man

OPP in Fort Frances are getting their man most of the time.

Statistics show OPP cleared 93 per cent of all violent crime cases in the town in 2013 and almost 33  per cent of all property crimes.

The clearance rate on violent crimes is about the same as last year, but the OPP's ability to solve property crime cases increased by 6.5 per cent over 2012.

The numbers are also better than both the provincial and national averages.

Commission Winding Down Its Work

The work of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission is starting to wind down.

Justice Murray Sinclair visited Kenora last week and says he's still affected by the stories of abuse they've collected.

Sinclair says the exact number of children who have died in residential schools remains unknown because many are buried in unmarked graves.

Skin Cancer On the Rise

Some warm weather, but you do so with some alarming news regarding skin cancer rates.

New data indicates skin cancer is the most common cancer in Canada with an estimated 65-hundred new cases expected to be diagnosed this year.

Canadian Cancer Society spokesperson Kelly Cull says skin cancer is preventable.

The Canadian Cancer Society is launching an awareness campaign this summer focusing on the dangers of tanning.