Good morning, Greater Sudbury! Here are a few stories to start your day on this Monday morning.
Flour Mill drop-in centre has neighbours concerned, fearful
An April 8 Flour Mill Community Action Network meeting over neighbourhood concerns about a drop-in centre for people who are homeless highlights the ongoing challenges of the city’s homelessness and drug addiction crises. The meeting was an opportunity for residents and business owners near the Sudbury Centre for Transitional Care (SCTC), located at Notre Dame Avenue and King Street, to air their concerns about the centre, its clients and what residents see as the impact it is having on their neighbourhood. The SCTC drop-in centre opened in 2021 and recently partnered with the City of Greater Sudbury to extend its hours in the wake of the closure of two harm-reduction services, including the Sudbury Action Centre for Youth and The Spot supervised consumption site, both of which closed in March. The SCTC contract with the city is valued at $75,125 and runs until April 30.
Medical journal cautions against easing access to booze
A new article published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ) is critical of the idea of making it easier to buy alcohol in Ontario. The article, "Harms and costs of proposed changes in how alcohol is sold in Ontario", is authored by researchers Norman Giesbrecht, PhD, and Daniel T. Myran, MD MPH. The authors explore the potential impacts of the Government of Ontario’s recently announced plans to improve “convenience and choice” for consumers starting in early 2026, by expanding alcohol sales into 8,500 new privately operated stores and decreasing the price of alcohol. The article highlights the impact alcohol currently has on Canadian society, pointing out it already leads to approximately 17,000 deaths a year in Canada “and creates a larger health system burden and overall cost to society than any other substance," said the article.
Seven Sudbury students heading to Canada-Wide Science Fair
Lo-Ellen Park Secondary School student Zavier Simard was awarded best in fair for his project “VAWT to WATT: Capturing Wind Energy on Cars” during the 2024 Sudbury Regional Science Fair, which took place April 6-7. A select group of judges reviewed the top projects in the fair, ultimately selecting seven students who will represent Sudbury at the Canada-Wide Science Fair (CWSF) in Ottawa May 26 to 31. Besides Simard, these students include Ben Kawa, Felix Naghi, Eden Abols, Jack O’Connell, Violet Simon and Camille Landry. "We are delighted that the projects selected to represent Sudbury at the Canada-Wide Science Fair are from Rainbow District School Board," said Rainbow board director of education Bruce Bourget, in a press release.
Nurses push for better staffing, wages at for-profit LTC homes
Members of the Ontario Nurses' Association (ONA) in Sudbury joined an information picket line at the Elizabeth Centre long-term care home in Sudbury on April 11 to send the message that more staffing is needed to provide better care for the residents at for-profit nursing homes. Chris Bolstridge, president of the ONA bargaining unit at the Val Caron nursing home, said similar information pickets were staged all across Ontario on Friday as the union prepares to enter contract negotiations. "There are 35 other homes across the province,” said Bolstridge. “We're going into negotiations next week with all the for-profit homes and we're trying to put out our message, which is for better staffing, more staffing for RNs, and PSWs (personal support workers) and RPNs (registered practical nurses), and better wages.” He said there is a significant wage disparity between home workers and hospital workers that should not exist. He added that nursing home corporations are taking significant profits from the business.
Wolves dig themselves a 2-0 hole in playoff series with Troops
The Sudbury Wolves were once again in North Bay for Game 2 of Round 2 of the Ontario Hockey League Playoffs against the North Bay Battalion on Saturday night, hoping to tie the series 1-1 after losing in Game 1 a couple of nights prior. Despite the Pack’s best-laid plans though, it was all North Bay from start to finish in Game 2. The goaltending matchup was the same as in the first game, with Marcus Vandenberg getting the start in goal for the Wolves while North Bay went with Mike McIvor. Less than 30 seconds into the game, the Battalion gave themselves a 1-0 lead with a goal from Sandis Vilmanis, his second of the playoffs. With 5:46 remaining in the first period, Jacob Therrien scored his second goal of the playoffs to give North Bay a 2-0 lead after the first period of play.
Sturgeon man fined for building illegal road on Crown land
A Sturgeon Falls man has pleaded guilty to unlawfully constructing a road without a work permit, was fined $20,000, and was ordered by the court to remediate the site. Jason Cyr was also fined $2,000 for unlawfully depositing things on public lands, and $3,000 for operating a pit or quarry without a licence. The court heard that on May 17, 2022, conservation officers were conducting a patrol in Janes Township, north of River Valley. After seeing what appeared to be heavy traffic on a dead-end road, they investigated and uncovered a new road being built on Crown land. It was determined the road was being built without permits issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, as required by the Public Lands Act. Further investigation determined there were two sites where aggregate material was being removed for the illegal road. There were also several personal items, vehicles and pieces of construction equipment left on nearby public lands.
