8/6/2019 Year Look Ahead 2011

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 5, 2011$1.19 plus 6 HST, $1.25 U.S. Printed in Canada Volume 117 Number 36

INSIDE

A bill to protect pensionswas the centrepiece of 2010for Thunder Bay Rainy-RiverMP John Raffertyand willcontinue to be a focal pointfor his efforts heading into2011.

Pension billhighlight of 2010

Having taken her first stepinto the dental world as a highschool co-op student with Dr.Mike Botsford and Dr. Steve

Chown, Joanna McQuarrie isnow on the road to becominga dentistwith plans of return-ing to Fort Frances to practicein a couple more years.

On the roadto being a dentist

Fort Frances wrapped up2010 on the right note, put-ting an end to a season-highfive-game winless streak asthey skated past the expansionDuluth Clydesdales 7-2 onNew Years Eve at the Heri-tage Sports Center.

Lakers dumpClydesdales

See story on B5

See story on A3

See story on B1

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By Duane HicksStaff writer

While town council will have itsplate full once again this year, FortFrances Mayor Roy Avis is more

optimistic about 2011 than he wasin 2010.Its nice to see our major em-

ployer come out of bankruptcyprotection, he said in an interviewlast week.

I think that gives us solid footingin Fort Frances.

With that, and with the thingsthat are happening in the district,the mining developments, I thinkit looks very, very good for the up-coming year, Mayor Avis added.

I am much more optimisticnow, he stressed. We do havesome hurdles, but I think, witheverything remaining equal, weregetting there.

On another positive note, MayorAvis noted the town recently ac-quired two pieces of propertytheold Huffman school and the formerFort Frances Public Libraryandcouncil will try to find the best usefor them.

Theres been interest shown [inthe library] by different parties inthe community, Mayor Avis said.Theres been interest shown in theHuffman school property.

Thats all on councils table this year, and moving forward I thinkwell see those occupied within theyear, he added.

One of the first items on theagenda for 2011 is the budget,which town administration and theexecutive committees have beenworking on for several months.

I wanted to see us maintain abudget that was in line with the rateof inflation for 2010, the mayorsaid.

Mayorbullishon yearahead

Gabi Peters, left, Stephanie Lizotte, and Hailey Wirtz ofDancemakers jumped together into Sand Bay on New YearsDay during the Voyageur Lions Clubs 111th-annual PolarPlunge. Altogether, Dancemakers students raised $1,695 for

the charity event, with half going to the dance school and halfto the Lions. The event raised more than $13,400 and saw arecord 71 jumpers this year. See story, more photos A5.

Duane Hicks photo

Here we go!

By Peggy RevellStaff writer

Health care and the economywill be the focus for local MPPHoward Hampton heading into2011.

Theres real pressures in the health-care system, especially inlong-term care, and those are prob-ably going to get worse, Hamptonwarned, noting many constituents have contacted him over concernfor their parents and grandparentsand the care that theyre receiv-ing, or increasingly the care thattheyre not receiving.

Institutions like Rainycrest arenot receiving the funding theyneed, Hampton charged.

And that situation is probablygoing to get worse, he said.

Our homes for the aged in-creasingly are not homes for theagethey are becoming very muchunderfunded nursing homes andthe quality of care is suffering as aresult of that.

This is through no fault of thestaff at places like Rainycrest,Hampton stressed, but becausethey arent getting enough budget-

Health care,

economytops forHampton

By Peggy Revelland Duane HicksStaff writers

Although district municipal lead-ers arent expecting stimulus fund-ing for any more big projects thisyear, theyre optimistic about what2011 holds in store.

La Vallee Reeve Ross Donaldsonsaid he is feeling pretty positiveabout the upcoming year, althoughat this point its much about gettingcouncil up to speed followingOctobers municipal election.

With the mix of new and oldcouncillors, I think its going to bea really good experience, ReeveDonaldson said, noting to this pointcouncil just has been working tosort out such things as who is sit-ting on which committees.

The first year is a learning expe-rience, he reasoned. You almosthave to get into the middle of theterm before you do big things.

Last year saw the completionof the bridge project, with ReeveDonaldson saying this year thetownship will be looking into somenew equipment.

There also is a road rebuildscheduled inbut this depends onthe townships budget, which hasyet to be laid out.

We have lots of work that needsto be done, Reeve Donaldson

admitted. Of course, thats thedifficulty to prioritize because itsalways a trade-off between whatwe would like to do and what wecan afford to do.

He certainly doesnt see the in-frastructure funding coming fromsenior levels of government con-tinuing into this year at the sameamount.

So its going to be tough for usto do some of the bigger projectslike the [completed] bridgetheresno way we could have affordedto do that on our local tax base,Reeve Donaldson noted.

Were really at the mercy of theprovincial and federal governmentsfor a lot of our bigger project be-cause thats the only way we canafford them, he stressed.

For Chapple Reeve Peter VanHeyst, the biggest highlight of the past year was the replacement ofthe Barron Bridge north of Bar-wicka nearly $2-million projectwhich hopefully will be completedthis spring.

Theres always the goal to main-tain what we have, he said aboutthe upcoming year, noting thereare quite a number of bridges inthe township that need to be up-graded and lots of roads to lookafter.

If theres any more funding that

District optimisticheading into 2011

Little Jaxson Speaker was welcomed to the world on New YearsDay as the districts first baby of 2011. He was born at 5:40 p.m.at La Verendrye Hospital here, weighing in at eight pounds, fiveoz. Proud parents are Whitney and Jeremiah Speaker of RainyRiver, along with older sister, Kathleen, two. Each year, gifts andgift baskets are provided for the New Years baby courtesy ofCanada Safeway, Fort Floral, Pharmasave, Wal-Mart, and Shop- pers Drug Mart. Peggy Revell photo

New Years baby

Please see Health, A6Please see District, A6

Please see Mayor, A6

8/6/2019 Year Look Ahead 2011

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Fort Frances Area Forecast

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FORECAST FOR THIS WEEK

www.weathertec.mb.ca2011 Weather Tec Services. Inc.

Temperatures shown on the map areNORMALS averaged over a thirtyyear periiod. Arrows indicate generalWIND FLOW patterns.

Thursday, January 6th ... Sunny skies.Cool termperatures

Low near -24C. High near -18C.

Friday, January 7th ... Sunny skies.Cool temperatures.

Low near -27C. High near -15C.

Saturday, January 8th ... A mix of sunand cloud. Normal temperatures.

Low near -19C. High near -12C.

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Lows will be -24 to -19C. Highs will be -14 to -10C.

Daylight on January 6th lasts for 8 Hours and 29 Minutes.Sunrise: 8:05 AM. and Sunset: 4:34 PM.

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More from A1In doing that, it doesnt give

us too much wiggle room, headmitted. But council is takinga good look at the overall costsof services, every cost.

Were hoping to get the bestbang for our buck.

Council members have beenreviewing the draft budget at an

executive committee level, withthe mayor saying theres no realsurprises so far.

Its kind of a lean and mean budget were coming up with, he remarked. At least counciland each department and eachdivision is aware of where weregoing to be.

Mayor Avis said bi-weekly budget meetings will start bymid-January, at which time thecutting will start and each de- partment will try to fit into theparameters council has set.

Another issue expected to seediscussion this year is assistedliving, which last year was desig-nated a high priority by Seniorsand Law Enforcement TogethersAssisted Living Action Group.

Theres a need for assistedliving housing that council wouldsupport, Mayor Avis said. It

cant be a totally Town of FortFrances-driven solution, butcouncil would definitely supportitems like that.

Thats one of the main ones.The town also will continue to

pursue Connecting Link fund-ing for road projects.

Were always trying to securemore capital from the provincialgovernment so we can main-tain our roads infrastructure, es- pecially those roads coming inand out of the community, themayor said.

Weve got what we call ashelf-ready project for the eastend of Scott Street, he noted.Weve been waiting for a coupleof years for that funding.

If were successful, that wouldbe a go-ahead for 2011.

In addition to the reconstruc-tion of Scott Street (from just eastof Reid Avenue to Colonization

Road East), a project initiallytendered by the town back in January, 2009, other priority projectsif the town can secureConnecting Link fundingwould include asphalt patchingon the west lane of ColonizationRoad East from Second Streetto Fifth Street, on the west laneof Mill Road from the EighthStreet intersection to the SchoolRoad intersection, and on KingsHighway from just east of theWright Avenue intersection to100 metres east of the York Av-

enue intersection.Other priorities in the year

ahead include the doctor short-age, petitioning senior levels ofgovernment for legislative changethat would empower council tohave more control over taxation,economic development, as wellas the towns sewer and waterservices and aging infrastruc-ture.

In his inaugural address lastmonth for the 2010-14 term, themayor said the town has workedextensively developing strategiesthat will fund shortfalls in local

sewer and water utilities, andmust continue its plan for replac-ing aged infrastructure.

At that time, he also had saidtowns economic developmentcommitteewith its new man-datewill have the support ofcouncil, adding theyll work to-gether to attract new businessand development here while re-taining current ones.

He would like to see councilwork with the local BIA andChamber of Commerce to im- prove the downtown core areaand support initiatives broughtforward for the betterment ofour community as a whole.

The terms of all municipal boards and committees elapsedat the end of November. MayorAvis said councillors have beenappointed to various boards andcommittees for the new term,and every day more citizens are

coming forward to sit on thosesame committees.

Council really appreciatesthat, the mayor stressed. Itsexcellent to see the people in thecommunity get involved.

It gives us a sounding board,as well as it gives them someidea as to how the communityoperates, he noted.

Mayor Avis concluded by say-ing hed like to wish all citizensa happy and prosperous newyear.

District optimistic heading into 2011More from A1

comes throughinfrastructurefundingwe probably will do an-other project, Reeve Van Heystremarked.

But the government has beencutting back, so its going to bedifficult to do any big project thistime, he added, echoing ReeveDonaldson, while also noting thatChapples budget has yet to be setfor this year.

Thats always the challengetowork within the budget and fulfill-ing the expectations of the ratepay-ers, he explained.

But economically speaking,Reeve Van Heyst was optimisticabout 2011.

I think that things are lookingup a little more for agriculture andforestry, we hope, and then theresa fair amount of mining activity inour township, in Richardson Town-ship, and that creates employmentand it helps boosts the economysome, he noted.

Were always open for new business ideas, he stressed. If people are willing to come to ourtownship, were open and will helpwherever we can.

Working to attract new busi-nesses and initiatives is an areawhich the Township of Emo also isfocusing on in the upcoming year,said Vincent Sheppard, who waselected mayor back in October.

I think from what people see,a lot of the district population is

declining, so were looking at least

[of] trying to hold our own, heremarked.

Mining developments in the re-gion, and the employment whichcomes from it, are positive, headded.

Keep our fingers crossed onthat one. Minings always touchy,Mayor Sheppard warned.

With the exception of incumbentGary Judson, Octobers election inEmo saw a whole new council cho-sen to take on the next four years.

Weve had a couple meetingsnow, and are getting to work to-gether, said Mayor Sheppard, not-

ing the projects going so far includeworking to make buildings such asthe public library, curling club, andrec centre handicapped accessibleand up to standards.

As well, Emo is looking into theexpansion of the water system andwater plant, as well as a new sewerlagoon, he added, noting council iswaiting to hear back about fundingfor all of these projects.

Other than that, were just tak-ing it as it comes, the mayor said.

Revisiting the towns official planis already in the works, MayorSheppard continued, as well as re-instating the Ontario Ombudsmenas the townships closed meetinginvestigator.

Meanwhile, having just wrappedup an eventful year which saw thecompletion of major projects inAlberton, Reeve Mike Hammondconceded 2011 wont be as busy.

We completed quite a bit last

year, he noted. We had a fire halladdition that was sponsored by theinfrastructure stimulus fund.

At the Millennium Park, we had renovations and an exten-sion to the rink shack, ReeveHammond added, noting this wasfunded through the RecreationalInfrastructure Canada Programand Ontario Recreation Program.

As well, new equipment wasinstalled at the parkpaid forthrough the township and rec cen-tre reserve fund.

The final lift of hard surfacingalso was laid down on the hill on

the north part of Ducharme Road,which was paid for through federalgas tax funding and road surfacingreserve.

There was a lot of stimulusfunding. We took advantage of it,Reeve Hammond said.

Theres no more to come, Idont think.

As such, Reeve Hammonddoesnt expect there will be any big capital projects for 2011 inAlberton, but noted theres beensome people musing about puttingin a beach volleyball court at theMillennium Park.

It sounds kind of good. Not ex-pensive. And you see a lot of themaround now, he remarked.

It hasnt been priced, but itprobably will become a reality be-cause the cost isnt that much.

You go to a lot of towns and yousee that kind of stuff, Reeve Ham-

mond continued.

So, for the price, I could prob-ably go for that one.

2011 also will hold challengesand issues the district as a wholewill have to address, Reeve Don-aldson stressed.

The Fort Frances Airport is go-ing to be an interesting issue thatwere going to have to address, henoted, referring to the recent callby the Town of Fort Frances thatdistrict municipalities help foot thecost to operate and maintain thefacility.

As well, Fort Frances has broughtthe issue of OPP policing costs

to a forefront, Reeve Donaldsonadded.Again, the [Rainy River Dis-

trict Social Services AdministrationBoard] is a big one, the healthunit, what they call uncontrollablecosts, he said.

But theyre not uncontrollable,we just have to control them, hestressed.

Reeve Donaldsonwho sits onthe local DSSABsaid one of themain issues for him is workingto try and control costs while stillproviding the services.

I think what these things bringup is how we have to stick togetheras municipalities, he remarked.

The [Rainy River District] Mu-nicipal Association and NOMA re-ally work because we all have thesame concerns.

We have to stick together, hereiterated.

More from A1wise to allow them to do the workthey want and need to do for pa-tients.

Meanwhile, on the economicfront, Hampton said his focus espe-cially will be on the mining sectorin 2011.

I think that we need to do allthat we can to ensure that the min-ing opportunities that are out therefor our part of the province achievesome success, he remarked.

We have far too many peoplewho are out of a job or who arefacing job insecurity, and [the]mining sector is probably the best bet to ensure that people actuallycan obtain jobs that will sustain

families and sustain communities.With the demand for gold grow-

ing, especially in the face of theU.S. deficit and more and morecountries wanting to hold goldas a sort of currency protection,Hampton predicted there will bea significant mining announce-ment for the west end of RainyRiver District sometime this year,which also could mean a numberof jobs.

For Northern Ontario as awhole, I think youre going to seemore and more focus and concen-tration on mining as an opportu-

nity for people to attain good jobsand as the basis for the economyfor a lot of communities, he said.

And while the tourism industryhas been hit hard over the past few years, Hampton is optimistic thisyear will see a bit of a reboundas Americans who are the areasmainstay may not be a lot betteroff, but they arent worse off.

But carrying over from 2010,Hampton sees the HST and rising

hydro rates as something that willcontinue to affect people in north-ern communities.

I think most people would saythe HST has had a real impact ontheir life, he noted.

I think most ordinary folks, iftheyre lucky, their income hasremained steady over the last threeor four years, but for many theirincome has actually declined, headded, pointing to workers at thelocal mill who have taken a pay cutand others who have had their payfrozen.

And yet the HST represents avery substantial increase in taxesat the same time that people areeither taking a pay cut or pay

freeze, Hampton said.I think that hurt a lot of peo-

ple.Hand in hand with the HST,

Hampton cited skyrocketinghydro bills seen this past year.

I think people are going toget another electricity shock, hewarned. The hydro bills are goingto continue to skyrocket.

You know I make no bonesabout that.

I think the current government has made a number of bad deci-sions when it comes to Ontarios hydro electricity and now the

chickens are coming home to roostas the cost of those bad decisionsare hitting people on their hydro bills, and that will happen againsome more this year.

Yet despite the economic down-turn across the globe, Hamptonsaid Fort Frances through to RainyRiver has been probably luckycompared to most other people inNorthern Ontario over this pastyear.

If anything, if you looked acrossNorthern Ontario, the Rainy RiverValley was probably the brightspot in all of Northern Ontario inthe sense that you didnt see theshutdown of a major employerand the loss of hundreds of jobs all

at once, he remarked, comparingthe area to communities like Tim-mins, Sault Ste. Marie, Nipigon,Red Rock, and Marathon wherehundreds of people have lost theirjobs.

Its especially a positive if youcompare us with whats been goingon south of the border, where youliterally have tens of millions ofAmericans out of work, Hamptonadded.

So relatively speaking, we didwell in the Rainy River Valley com-pared to elsewhere in Canada, theUnited States.

Health care, economy tops for Hampton

Mayor bullishon year ahead

Howard Hampton

I am much moreoptimistic now.We do have somehurdles, but Ithink, with ev-

erything remain-ing equal, weregetting there.

Roy Avis