Good morning, Greater Sudbury! Here are a few stories to start your day on this Tuesday morning.
A light to bring awareness to missing, murdered Indigenous women
The third annual lighting of the Tree of Hope took place Sunday night in the park area north of Tom Davies Square, just outside the Greater Sudbury Police Service (GSPS) headquarters, shines a light on the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women. The event was attended by roughly 50 people, who were on hand to show support for the Murdered missing and murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two Spirit (MMIWG2S+). An initiative that began with Thunder Bay Police Service in 2019 and spread to Greater Sudbury in 2021, the Tree of Hope initiative aims to raise awareness of the issue of the thousands of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and two-spirited people, and to demonstrate to the families of the missing that the police hear them, that they acknowledge their pain and that they acknowledge police have not always been the allies they could have or should have been. With the assistance of Greater Sudbury Utilities, a large evergreen on the grounds of the GSPS headquarters on Brady Street was draped in red lights, the colour of that symbolizes the missing and the murdered.
A deep-dive primer for Greater Sudbury budget 2024/25
The City of Greater Sudbury’s proposed 2024-25 budget is being tabled on Nov. 15, but what will it mean? In short, it’s city administration’s proposed municipal budget, which follows city council’s direction to limit annual increases to 4.7 per cent. The finance committee of city council will debate this base budget in December, and is slated to settle on a final version by the end of the year. With various costs increasing in recent months (the non-residential building construction price index reached 9.9 per cent as of the fourth quarter of 2022), limiting the tax increases to 4.7 per cent will require staff to cut $10.5 million from the base budget. During 2023 budget deliberations, city staff were charged with trimming $17.8 million from that year’s base budget to hit that year’s desired maximum tax increase, which they did in a manner outlined in a report presented to city council.
Suspect wanted in Niagara Falls homicide arrested in Sudbury
suspect wanted on a Canada-wide warrant in relation to the homicide of a woman reported missing in Niagara Falls has been arrested in Sudbury. David Mathew Brown, 46, is facing a second degree murder charge. Tenille Olivia King, whose last name was also given as Lepp in earlier missing persons reports, was last seen alive on or around October 25 in the area of Stanley Avenue near McLeod Road in Niagara Falls. On November 3, the body of an adult woman was located in the area of Thundering Waters Boulevard and Marineland Parkway. Officials determined the remains were that of Tenille Olivia King. The case was turned over to the homicide unit and a Canada-wide warrant was issued for Brown, who had been spotted in the Sudbury area on Nov. 4.
The Soapbox: A tribute to Golden Grain Bakery
I hopped into the driver’s seat, quickly and clumsily fastened my seatbelt, and reached my right hand into the warm bag of croissants, grabbing the first one that called to me. Mindfully, I savoured that first bite, an explosion of oozing warm, smooth, semi-sweet cocoa, that filled every corner of my mouth. I have frequented this local, family owned bakery for the past 40 years for the best freshly baked rye and chocolate croissants in Northeastern Ontario. It is a legendary place tucked away in an older part of the downtown core, on a busy throughway, where you need to navigate puddles in the rain and avoid getting splashed from fast-passing vehicles in the winter in order to enter. A place where my wife and I visited as university students, later with our children and now with our grandchildren. Although simple and unassuming (no fancy Parisian names here, or outlandish prices), it is a place where culinary artists create gastronomic delights. A place where longstanding staff have worked for 40 years, who likely awaken in the wee hours of the morning and continue to work long into the evening after closing.
At least 439 short-term rental listings in Greater Sudbury
There are at least 439 active short-term rental listings in the City of Greater Sudbury, according to a municipal report tabled for the Nov. 15 finance and administration meeting of city council. The figure draws from an online listings aggregator called AirDNA, which notes 88 per cent of local short-term residential rental listings are on Airbnb. City bylaw manager Stefany Mussen clarified in her report that the short-term rental listing estimate isn’t a concrete number, as it’s difficult to get an accurate count of how many exist in Greater Sudbury. Some listings are for certain months or weeks of the year, and there’s constant turnover of properties. Mussen’s report concludes that the city’s Official Plan and Zoning Bylaw should be amended to permit short-term rentals in certain zones, and that a short-term rental bylaw be created. Mayor Paul Lefebvre requested the report in a motion to city council in August, at which time he clarified that his intent was for the city to get a firmer grasp on what’s out there.
Funds available to expand maple syrup operations
Ontario's maple syrup producers can now tap into a new fund that will support their efforts to grow their operations. The Maple Production Improvement Initiative opened to submissions on November 9. It’s an initiative of the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership (Sustainable CAP), a joint program of the federal and provincial governments. “The Maple Production Improvement Initiative is a great opportunity for Ontario maple syrup producers looking to scale up their operations,” said Nipissing MPP Vic Fedeli said in a news release. “The initiative will support the purchase and installation of upgraded production equipment for eligible syrup producers that increase productivity, efficiency, and growth, such as reverse osmosis or remote monitoring systems. “It will also provide funding to cover a portion of certain woodlot management activities, including tree marking and the development of a forest plan, to assist the operation of eligible businesses.”
