Condo Units Up For Sale

2009-05-22

12:52:09

The developer of a condominium project in Fort Frances feels there is strong interest.

Robert Zanetti was in town yesterday to promote the project to prospective buyers.

He says he'd like to see at least twenty of the twenty-units available sold before building commences.

"If seventeen, eighteen, nineteen people step up and say yes this is a marketable commodity, then we pretty much know that by the time we finish the rest of the building, we'll be okay," says Zanetti.

Construction could begin as early as this fall.

Frustration Expressed at Forum

2009-05-22

11:59:25

There was plenty of frustration expressed over AbitibiBowater's move toward bankruptcy protection at a town hall meeting last night.

Over thirty contractors, mill workers and retirees attended. Robin Woolsley was among those to direct anger at the company for failing to communicate with local contractors.

"They knew they were going to go broke and none of them had the guts to come and give us a choice," said Woolsley. "They kept saying come in boys, the bridge is closed, but keep coming in. And I'm not the only one in this room who's got hundred thousand dollars plus tied up in this and all we keep hearing is next week, next week, next week."

Chris Pollard said local contractors are being left out in the cold 

"There's a complete lack of communication with Abitibi, with Ernst and Young," says Pollard. "Nobody has any answers. It's absolutely pathetic. I would really like some answers"

Communication, Energy and Papersworkers Union National Rep, Steve Boon says governments need to take more action to help those effected.

"As leaders we all know we're in a terrible time," says Boon, "but we need a government to get us through the trough and out the the other side because there is a future. But right now the government can't sit on the sidelines and say let's let the chips fall where they may as the Americans do the opposite and help their industry."

Area logging firms, who are owed thousands of dollars from AbitibiBowater, say all they're want is the money that's owed to them, and not a government handout.

Thunder Bay-Rainy River M-P John Rafferty, who hosted the forum, says the future of AbitibiBowater's mill in Fort Frances appears to be secure. Rafferty said he got that assurance from a company vice-president he spoke with earlier in the week week.

"I did get the definite feeling that when we were talking specifically about this Fort Frances mill that the company thinks very highly of it," said Rafferty. "I think I would have gotten, even over the telephone, a pretty good indication if this was one of the mills that would be on the chopping block and it didn't sound like it was."

But the future of the mill's number 6 paper machine resuming production in June looks dim. Mill workers say management has told them a planned start-up likely won't happen next month and may not even occur in July. The machine has not been running since March.

 

 

College Upgrades in Doubt

2009-05-21

08:23:24

The presidents of Ontario's 24 colleges say plans for infrastructure projects could be scuttled if they don't get government funding soon.

Colleges Ontario chair Anne Sado says the window of opportunity is starting to close, and summer is the only time when construction can be undertaken.

The colleges are waiting on two billion dollars allocated by Ottawa for infrastructure projects at colleges and universities, as well as $780 million dollars the province has committed over two years for capital projects.

Guiterrez Family Still Seeking Answers

2009-05-21

08:22:30

The family of Elisa Gutierrez says they will likely have to wait until mid-June for a report into her death.

The 25-year-old Thunder Bay woman was found dead on Christmas Day in an office at a Philippines resort.

Officials in the Philippines claim Gutierrez had committed suicide, but her family doubts that finding and has been asking the Canadian government to review the Manila investigation.

Dryden City Worker Facing Charges

2009-05-21

07:58:36

An employee with the city of Dryden faces several charges after police there found several items belonging to the city's Public Works department at the man's home.

Exactly what was found was not revealed, but Dryden City Police say further charges are pending.

City officials are also investigating.

New Agreement with Province

2009-05-21

07:57:38

There's a new agreement with the province aimed at improving the quality of life for First Nation communities in Grand Council Treaty 3.

Aboriginal Affairs Minister Brad Duguid and Grand Council Treaty 3 Grand Chief Diane Kelly signed the
bilateral agreement yesterday during the Grand Council Treaty 3 Spring Chiefs Assembly in
Naicatchewenin First Nation.

The agreement sets out a road map to address the socio-economic issues affecting the 28 communities within Treaty 3.

 It's include continued dialogue on First Nation education, children and youth issues and economic sustainability.

Social Housing Repairs

2009-05-21

07:56:54

There will be some significant repairs done to social housing units in the Rainy River district.

The provincial government is providing the Rainy River District Social Services Administration Board almost a quarter-of-a-million dollars to make repairs to the nearly 480 units across the district.

The work will include roof, sidewalk and deck repairs as well as installing energy-efficient appliances, new elevators and furnaces.

Town Hall Meeting Tonight

2009-05-21

07:48:59

The forestry crisis will be the focus of a town hall meeting today hosted by Thunder Bay-Rainy River MP John Rafferty.

Rafferty says the aim is to hear from people who have been impacted by mill closures or shutdowns.

"What I'm going to do is put them all together on a DVD and distribute it to politicians and city council," says Rafferty. "We need to make sure people understand what this forestry crisis is doing to northwestern Ontario."

The meeting takes place at La Place Rendez-vous beginning at 6:30 p.m.

Nursing Program a Success

2009-05-21

07:40:02

A program established to train new nurses locally will likely be continued, but just not this year.

In 2005, the province funded a four-year community-based pilot program which was delivered at several Confederation College campuses including Fort Frances.

It gave students the opportunity to earn a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from Lakehead University.

Campus Manager Anne Renaud says the program will be now evaluated before offered again.

"The great news is that we've just received accreditation for the program," says Renaud, "which is normally that it's done at the end of the program. It was a pilot, so we are going to be evaluating it in the next year and hoping to offer it again in 2010."

Five students enrolled in the program at the Fort Frances campus are expected to graduate next month.

Gas Prices Up

2009-05-20

09:19:16

Liberal MP and gas price watchdog Dan McTeague says drivers can expect a jump in price at the pumps this morning.

The price of oil has been rising on world markets, but McTeague says the real reason for the increase is "pure profit taking."

Here in Fort Frances, gas prices rose five cents a litre to 94.9 cents a litre.

In some parts of the province, the cost of gas has risen 15 cents a litre in just the last three weeks.

Human Rights Tribunal Issue for PC Leadership Hopefuls

2009-05-20

09:18:24

The province's Human Rights Tribunal is emerging as a divisive issue in the leadership race of the Ontario Progressive Conservatives.

Leadership hopeful Christine Elliott says a  proposal to scrap the tribunal could hurt the party in the next provincial election.

Two of her rivals, Randy Hillier and Tim Hudak, support abolishing the tribunal.

Both say Ontario should move such cases to the courts, but Elliott says most people can't afford to take discrimination cases there.

GM Dealerships to Close

2009-05-20

09:17:26

A report says letters bearing bad news will fan out across the country today and land at 264 General Motors dealerships.

A Toronto television news station says the letters will inform those dealerships that they're closing.

The closures come as GM and the Canadian Auto Workers union try to hammer out concessions so GM can be eligible for billions of dollars in government aid.

No word yet on where those letters are being sent.

Caution Advised Again

2009-05-20

09:16:44

The Ministry of Natural Resources has issued yet another warning to motorists about using caution when travelling on area bush roads.

A spokesperson says road conditions can change quickly and the potential of encountering washouts and flooded sections is very real.

Spring runoff from melting snow and significant rain has caused several washouts and road closures in the Atikokan area.

Entrepreneur Program Unveiled

2009-05-20

07:46:29

The Ministry of Northern Development has created a new entrepreneur program.

The Ministry's offering up to $125,000 thousand to help residents further their business ideas.

Minister Michael Gravelle says there's no age-limit to participate.

"The age limit was a real barrier to a number of people," says Gravelle, "particularly those people who are facing layoffs as a result of the forestry sector challenges, who had really great ideas. They just need support. They couldn't get the financial support from a bank or financial institution, but through the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund now they can."

Gravelle says Northern residents can apply for funding immediately through the Ministry of Northern Development website.

 

Boston Pizza to Open in October

2009-05-20

07:28:59

The owners of  new Boston Pizza restaurant hope to be serving the first pizza to Fort Frances area customers in mid-October.

Yesterday, Dale and Elizabeth Fortes and their young daughter joined with local dignitaries in a ceremonial sod-turning to kick off construction.

Dale Fortes, a former assistant manager at the local Canada Safeway store, says the restaurant was an opportunity to return to the area.

"We always has a goal of coming back to Fort Frances," says Fortes. "We just had to find the right opportunity and this is it. We did a lot of research in terms of what kind of restaurant would work well here. The Boston Pizza brand with the Fort Frances market was a perfect relationship."

Fortes says they expect to hire between 60 and 100 people begin in July.

Mayors Meet Premier

2009-05-20

07:26:35

Mayor Roy Avis says he made the best of an opportunity to speak with Ontario premier Dalton McGuinty.

The Fort Frances Mayor joined his counterparts from Kenora, Dryden and Sioux Lookout last Friday to sit down with the premier in Kenora.

"We were able to sit down for about 30 to 40 minutes with the premier," says Avis, "and just have a good general discussion on what's going on in northwestern Ontario. Where we need help in order to help our economy out. It was all very positive and very good dialogue."

Avis says McGuinty made no commitments, but showed a sincere concern for the north.

Town Budget Finalized

2009-05-20

07:22:30

There will be a modest tax increase for homeowners in Fort Frances.

After several month of discussion, town councillors finalized the budget yesterday which includes a one-point-one per hike in residential rates.

Treasurer Laurie Witherspoon says slightly higher tax ratios for the industrial sector helped minimize the impact on  homeowners.

"We allocated our ratios across," says Witherspoon. "It shifted a small amount to residential, but we also raised our tax ratio for large industrial so we wouldn't have a large impact on residential, multi-residential and commercial."

Witherspoon says being able to present what she calls a bare-bones budget also helped keep rate down.

The town proposes to spend about $9.9 million in its operating budget

Of the $15 million dollars in capital expenditures, just over a million dollars will be funded through long term debt over a 10-year period.

The public will have an opportunity to comment on the public during council's meeting on June 8.

Boat Checks Planned

2009-05-19

12:36:45

Officials in Minnesota will be checking boats at three popular lakes this weekend in an effort to prevent the spread of zebra mussels.

The Department of Natural Resources is teaming up with law enforcement agencies to check boats at Lake Mille Lacs, Prior Lake in Scott County and Rice Lake near Brainerd.

The DNR wants boaters to "Pull the Plug" on aquatic hitchhikers such as zebra mussels.

Fire Hazard High

2009-05-19

12:35:35

The fire danger in northern Minnesota has reached the high level.

Seven new fires were reported yesterday, including a one south of Ely at Mud Lake.

Here in the Rainy River district, two near fire starts were identified.

Both posing no problems for Ministry of Natural Resources fire crews.

New Banners

2009-05-19

12:34:58

New banners promoting northwestern Ontario are now up at the Canada-US border in Fort Frances.

Images showing boating, a native encampment and the Great Canadian Main Street in Fort Frances replace those destroyed by severe winds in January.