Good morning, Greater Sudbury! Here are a few stories to start your day on this Tuesday morning.
Greater Sudbury roads’ ongoing degradation under review
How much should the city spend on its roads, what condition should they be maintained at and what’s the financial strategy to hit these targets? These and other questions are expected to be answered by city council this summer, fuelled by information currently being compiled by city staff. In early 2023, the city reported that Greater Sudbury roads were en route for a slip from an overall “fair” to “poor” condition by approximately 2030. At the time, the city’s five-year average annual investment in roads was $35 million, which fell $45 million short of the $80 million required to maintain them in their current condition. As such, they were degrading. This, within a broader annual infrastructure funding gap of approximately $130 million.
Sudbury man sentenced to five years for trafficking underage girl
A Sudbury man convicted of eight charges, including human trafficking, has been sentenced to five years for his crimes. Paul Castonguay was convicted of eight charges on March 18, including trafficking a person under 18, as well as receiving a financial or other material benefits derived directly or indirectly from the trafficking of a person; material benefit from sexual services; assault causing bodily harm: chokes, suffocates or strangles; two counts of assault; possession of property obtained by crime (under $5,000) and breach of undertaking. In custody since his arrest, Castonguay was awarded pre-trial custody credit of 1,163 days meaning he has 662 days (approximately 22 months) left to serve. Castonguay must add his name to the national sex offenders registry (to be listed for 20 years), and also now has a lifetime weapons ban. He was ordered to submit his DNA to the registry and once he leaves incarceration, be subject to a one-year probation order.
GSPS officer cleared after using energy weapon on suspect
A Greater Sudbury Police officer has been cleared by the Special Investigations Unit after an investigation into an Oct. 13 arrest in which a 37-year-old man suffered a broken nose after an officer discharged a conducted energy weapon. In his report, the director of the Special Investigations Unit (SIU), Joseph Martino, found no reasonable grounds to believe a Greater Sudbury Police Service officer committed a criminal offence in connection with the man’s arrest and injury. Greater Sudbury Police were dispatched to an apartment near Falconbridge Road and Margaret Street in Garson with reports of a man causing damage to his own apartment, as well as pulling the fire alarm in the building and damaging the windows of his partner's vehicle, states the SIU report. He was described by Martino as “highly agitated,” and “of unsound mind at the time.”
Glencore, Mine Mill Local 598 reach a new four-year contract
Sudbury Integrated Nickel Operations (Sudbury INO) said the new collective agreement reached with its unionized employees, UNIFOR Local 598, Sudbury Mine, Mill and Smelter Workers Union, had a 73.9-per-cent acceptance vote. The Glencore company and the union reached a new four-year agreement prior to midnight on Jan. 31, when the previous contract was set to expire. The union said it had taken a strike vote and was ready to walk out at midnight if a new agreement could not be reached. The company had issued a notice to the community that temporary trailers were being set up at the company gates as part of its contingency planning. Sudbury INO issued a news release that said the new agreement was distributed to workers over the weekend. A vote was held Sunday. Company vice president Peter Xavier said in the release the contract was good for both sides.
Wheaton donates $ 200,000 for cancer care equipment
Canadian mining investment firm Wheaton Precious Metals has made a major donation to the Northeast Cancer Centre. In a news release, the Health Sciences North Foundation said it was pleased that Wheaton provided a donation of $200,000 towards the CT Simulator Replacement Project at the Shirley and Jim Fielding Northeast Cancer Centre in Sudbury. The CT Simulator is a vital component of radiation therapy, providing radiation oncologists with precise, state-of-the-art imaging to localize tumours and plan treatments with exceptional accuracy, said the news release. The current CT simulator at the cancer centre serves approximately 2,500 patients annually. The foundation said the device has been instrumental in delivering high-quality care, but is at end-of-life and in need of replacement.
Let’s eat! Cindy Harbottle and showing love through tasty food
Humans show love in all sorts of ways. For Sudbury’s Cindy Harbottle, baking is definitely one of the ways she shows her love. Whether butter tarts, banana bread or birthday cakes, Harbottle learned the secrets of baking from her mother. “Growing up in Little Current, my mom was a career cook and would make bread for the neighbours,” Harbottle said. “She also specialized in rolls, butter tarts and cakes and it was how we really connected to each other.” Harbottle studied alongside her mom, hand over hand. She embraced the sweets but never really the breadmaking. She eventually would inherit all the recipes in her mom’s repertoire, including her world-class mayonnaise chocolate cake and banana cake with brown sugar icing.