The KED is dead: City council unanimous in rejecting $215M build
Greater Sudbury city council was unanimous in rejecting administration’s proposal for a $215-million Kingsway Entertainment District during today’s meeting. Between this and a failed proposal to pare down the project to $150 million, the long-discussed KED is now effectively dead. Tuesday’s meeting was the latest in a series of go/no-go moments of city council for the municipal arena/events centre project, but this the first time since its 2017 approval when a majority of city council members took a no-go stance. The proposal for an alternative $150-million project was brought forward by Ward 5 Coun. Robert Kirwan and Ward 11 Coun. Bill Leduc, who were alone in supporting it. Their proposal would have allowed the city to proceed into the next phase of the progressive design-build process, which would have lasted a few months and cost approximately $3 million.
GSPS: Racist incident in Sudbury under investigation
Greater Sudbury police are investigating a racist incident that occurred in Sudbury over the weekend, one that was caught on video and circulated on social media. The video is available here, but viewer discretion is advised. (Content warning for racism, heated arguing and possible violence.) The incident took place at what appears from the video to be a convenience store. GSPS spokesperson Kaitlyn Dunn confirmed the establishment is located on Lasalle Blvd, and the call came in around 9 p.m. on July 9 regarding an “assault after the fact.” “Information provided was that two individuals had been in a verbal argument where a man made racial slurs towards another customer resulting in a physical altercation between the two individuals outside of the store,” continued Dunn. Police say the investigation into the incident is ongoing. In the original Instagram post by the victim, now removed, the woman said she had stopped at the gas station near her home around 10:30 p.m. “When I entered the store I could already hear yelling so I knew something wasn’t quite right,” she wrote. “The man paying (for) his stuff was being a complete —-hole to the worker. He kept going at it and I kindly asked him to stop.” Read the full story.
Public Health Sudbury reports a local person has monkeypox
Sudbury has its first case of Monkeypox. Public Health Sudbury and Districts (PHSD) said it has received notification confirming there is a case of a person infected with monkeypox in this area. "This individual likely acquired the infection in the Toronto area. This individual is currently isolating, and the close contacts have been identified," said a news release from PHSD. The health unit said the risk to the general population remains low and there is no evidence the virus is circulating in Sudbury and surrounding areas. Nor does the monkeypox disease spread easily, said Dr. Penny Sutcliffe, the Medical Officer of Health. Learn more here.
Anti-poverty advocate welcomes court decision on Basic Income Pilot Project
An anti-poverty advocate in Thunder Bay says the Ontario Court of Appeal made a just decision when it allowed a class action lawsuit related to the cancelled Basic Income Pilot Program to proceed. Frank Wilson, a volunteer with Poverty Free Thunder Bay and Diversity Thunder Bay, said it wasn't right for the provincial government to abruptly cancel the three-year program in 2019, after just 18 months. Eligible participants were receiving up to $17,000 per year, less 50 per cent of any earned income, while couples received up to $24,000 per year. Wilson said the 4,000 recipients in the Thunder Bay, Hamilton and Lindsay areas had made commitments to go to school or find proper housing with their new source of income. "So when the government came along and cancelled it with no compensation...that's unfair." The Lakehead Social Planning Council at the time asserted that the abrupt end to the program had left 1,000 area residents in crisis mode.
Pursuit: Best young Ontario golfers take on Sudbury’s Timberwolf
Three shots back with one round to go at the 2022 Ontario Junior (U19) Boys Golf Championship last Friday at Timberwolf Golf Club, Oscar Feschuk saw no reason to deviate from an approach that was working. In the end, the 18-year-old member of the Weston Golf & Country Club was well served by his patience, overtaking leader Cameron Pero (Picton Golf & Country Club) and capturing the 100th edition of the prestigious event with a four round score of 12 under par (276), an effort that included a 67 on Thursday. “My first round was really wet, pouring rain, so I just tried to get through that one,” said the Toronto native, who opened with a 71 and will be heading to Texas A & M International in the fall. “After the second round (69), I knew that I was hitting it well so I tried to keep the same game plan for the last two rounds.” Meanwhile, Pero was showing few signs of faltering, stringing together three consecutive efforts of four under par (68), sitting atop the leaderboard each and every day, with the pair joined by Matthew Javier (Scarboro Golf & Country Club) as the final trio on the course mid-afternoon on Friday. Read the full story.
Meagan McGrath named Science North Honourary Life Member
Sudbury native Meagan McGrath was named an Honourary Life Member of Science North at a July 7 event. McGrath is an aerospace engineer, an explorer, a proud member of the Canadian Armed Forces, a scientist, and a trailblazer for all women in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math). She joins 51 other individuals with the title of Science North’s Honorary Life Member. The Honorary Life Member Award was instituted in 1984 by the Board of Trustees of Science North to recognize individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to science and/or Science North. McGrath is host to a magnitude of outstanding achievements and incredible stories. In May 2007, she reached one of her most incredible milestones — she summited Mount Everest, the world’s tallest mountain at 8849 metres, located in the Himalayas. She was supported by Science North to do so, achieving her goal of climbing the “Seven Summits.” Read the full story.
Drag performer brings show to Science North on Aug. 27
Cira Flexion comes back to Sudbury next month to host a “Queens of the Cave” drag show. Flexion is a drag performer who is originally from Sudbury but now lives in Toronto.The performer also brought the show to Sudbury in 2019. And while the last edition didn’t have much of a theme other than the venue being the Vale Cavern at Science North, this year she’ll be bringing a rather primitive theme to the event. The drag show will be held Aug. 27 for an evening full of music and dancing with a jungle and safari theme to the music and attire. Having grown up in Sudbury, Flexion wanted to bring a LGBTQ+ friendly event to the region. “Sudbury doesn't essentially get big shows like this, especially for the LGBTQ+ community. There's only one bar in Sudbury, which is Zig’s, but it doesn't hold big events,” Flexion told Sudbury.com over the phone. “I'm just more excited about people really experiencing drag in general. Most people in Sudbury haven't been to a drag show. So it's their first time participating in an LGBTQ+ event,” Flexion said. “So for me, I think that's what I'm most excited about really, letting people be a part of something like that.” The event will be at Science North at the Vale Cavern at 100 Ramsey Lake Rd. from 10 p.m. to 12 a.m. with an intermission period in the middle. Doors open at 9 p.m.
Wednesday weather:
Wednesday there will be a mix of sun and cloud. Thirty per cent chance of showers late in the afternoon. Wind north 20 km/h becoming light late in the morning. High 22. UV index 7 or high. Wednesday night will be clear with a low of 12 C.
