Liberal Cheating with Grad Rates

The opposition parties accuse the Liberals of cheating for saying Ontario's high school graduation rate is 82 per cent because they include students who take five years to finish.

N-D-P Leader Andrea Horwath says the real grad rate under a four year program is really 73 per cent.

Ontario has had a four-year high school curriculum since 2003.

Steggeman Visit

A Canadian entrepreneur says you don't have to be an international conglomerate or a national government to affect change.

That was one of the message's delivered by Barb Steggeman in Fort Frances Thursday.

Steggeman, who launched her perfume business from her home, says it' not always  about making money.

Steggeman's visit coincided with International Women's Day, a day she used two years ago to launch her company.

A Warm February

Environment Canada is backing local observations that February was warmer than usual.


Spokesperson Chantale Cerny says in fact it was the warmest February in more than a decade.


Temperatures were about 4 degrees above the monthly norm.


Snow falls amounts in the district ranged between 25 and 40 centimetres, a normal, Cerny says, for the month.

Hospital Not Closing -Health Minister

Ontario's Health Minister has given assurances that the Rainy River Health Centre's emergency room will not close when the town loses its only doctor next month.

Mayor Deb Ewald says Deb Matthews made the remark during her visit with the Minister last week in Toronto.

Ewald says she didn't get an answer to resolving the town's doctor shortage, but didn't expect to get one at that meeting.

The town wants the Health Ministry to consider a different funding formula that's more attractive to doctors to work in small communities where patient volumes are low.

The town's last remaining doctor is ending his practice April 16.

School Board Expresses Concern with Fuel Prices for Bussing

The Rainy River District School Board wants government to ensure fuel prices in the district are reflected in the rates used in contracts with school bus operators.

That rate is based on a comparison of prices across northern Ontario.

Chair Mike Lewis says it's based on a 98 cent a litre price when local operators are paying closer to $1.30 a litre.

Lewis says government currently does not include prices from the district in its comparison.

Fort Frances Supportive of Registry

Fort Frances is being hailed a leader in a campaign to get a million Ontarians signed to an organ and tissue donor registry.

The Torch of Life passed through yesterday.

Coordinator George Marcello says the town was the first to pass a proclamation supporting the registry.

The registry can be found on the Torch of Life's website.

Koochiching County Looks for State Money

Koochiching County is seeking 12-million dollars from the State of Minnesota bonding bill for its gasification project.

County Commissioner Mike Hanson says the project does has a high ranking by Governor Mark Dayton.

The project proposes to generate energy by burn waste wood and garbage

Possible Gold Deposit Identified

Another possible large gold deposit has been identified in the Rainy River district.

Fairmont Resources believes it's identified, through an aerial survey, property to the east of Atikokan that has similarities to Osisko's Hammond Reef gold project.

Fairmont is planning to follow up on its findings with a drilling project to start this month.

Death Related to End of Oxycontin Reported

A user of Oxycontin in Northwestern Ontario is dead as the result of a possible overdose of a replacement prescription drug.

Regional Coroner Dr. Michael Wilson says the man was prescribed a higher dose of the substitute drug than he should have received.

Wilson wouldn't say where in the region the incident occured.

He is recommending better communication between physicians and pharmacists.

Water Quality Meeting in International Falls

Efforts to improve water quality of Lake of the Woods and Rainy Lake will be a focus of attention at a conference today in International Falls.

Researchers and Scientists who will attend,are favourable of the International Joint Commission recommendations.

Todd Sellars of the Lake of the Woods Water Sustainability Foundation says they bode well for the watershed's future.

The IJC's report still needs approval from the Canada and the U.S governments.

Student Trust Land Legislation Worrisome

Koochiching County is worried about the State halting payment in lieu of taxes on so-called student trust lands within the county.

County Land Commissioner Dennis Hummitzch says its part of legislation to change how those lands set up to generate funds for education are managed.

A third of those lands in Minnesota are located within Koochiching County.

Hummitzch says if the legislation goes ahead, the County would lose over half a million dollars.

New Manager Ready for Post

The new Community Services Manager for Fort Frances wants to wait until he's on the job before considering what changes, if any, he'll bring to the position.

Jason Kabel will take over the retiring George Bell April 9.

Kabel makes the move after working in the telecommunications sector for several years.

Torch Run Today

A run to raise awareness of organ and tissue donation makes it way through Fort Frances today.

Members of Step-by-Step will begin the Torch of Life run at Canada Safeway at 10:30 a.m. ending at the Civic Centre at 11:30 a.m..

Members of the public are encouraged to participate.

Uploading Audit Questioned

Fort Frances council is wondering how it's going to explain to government how its using the savings received from the uploading of social services costs.

The Drummond Report suggested municipalities will have to account for those savings.

But Treasurer Laurie Witherspoon says she's not sure how it's going to be done in their case because the town has never seen any of the saving directly.

The province says the town is suppose  to see more than $500-thousand in savings this year alone.

Border Numbers Up

The number of people across the border at Fort Frances was up in January.

The Canada Border Services Agency says more than 50-thousand people in 29-thousand vehicle passed the border in January.

That's a 6 per cent increase in travellers and a 6.5 per cent increase in the number of vehicles compared to January of last yeaer.

Budget Discussions Done.

Some residential ratepayers in Fort Frances can expect an a tax increase of almost 2.5 per cent this year.

Town councillors completed their discussions on the budget last night.

Mayor Roy Avis says it's about as low as they could have gone.

The town will also spend $4.4 million on the capital projects.

Final approval of the budget will come later this month.

DSSAB Dollars Watched

Fort Frances town council will be paying close attention to the amount of money they have to pay to the District's Social Services Administration Board.

A more than $2-million expenditure includes an extra $82-thousand for land ambulance costs if patients must be moved from Rainy River due to its ongoing doctor shortage.

Councillor Paul Ryan doesn't think it should be paid out right way because there's no closure right now.

The town will also ask that the extra levy be is clearly identifed on invoices to ensure it doesn't become a permanent expense.

New Community Services Manager Named

A one-time high school teacher has been named the new community services manager for the town of Fort Frances.

Jason Kabel takes over from the retiring George Bell April 9th.

Kabel started his career as a teacher a Fort Frances High School before relocating to Winnipeg where he became general manager of a techology firm.

He returned to the community a few years working as a contractor for Tech Telcom.

He's also working toward a master's of Business Administration degree.

Coffee Shop Offer

Fort Frances is being eyed as the potential location for another coffee and donut shop.

An offer to establish an outlet of a well-known but unnamed National franchise chain is being made through the on-line site Kijiji.

The offer includes complete training and financing to qualified candidates.

Job Centre Cuts Defended

FedNor Minister Tony Clement is standing by a government decision to cut funding for summer student job centres.

Clement was in Thunder Bay yesterday and says they're offering the same services online.

Clement says there's no need for overhead costs of operating actual offices during the summer.