Good morning, Greater Sudbury.
Here are some stories to start your day.
Wild at Heart closes, Pet Save hopes to be operating in wildlife centre's old building next summer:
The Wild at Heart Wildlife Refuge Centre recently announced it has permanently ceased operations and transferred its assets to another local organization that helps needy animals. Pet Save Sudbury, a rescue, shelter and adoption organization for dogs and cats, is taking over Wild at Heart's Lively facility. The animal rescue plans to start renovations as soon as possible in the new year, and hopes to move into the former Wild at Heart building by August 2020. While Pet Save receives Wild at Heart's assets, it also, under Canadian law, is taking on its debts. Veterinarian Dr. Rod Jouppi, Wild at Heart's founder, explains that the centre, which has been around since 2004, lacked any continued revenue stream, and has lost money every year. Get the full story here.
Police met with harsh online criticism after 'non-emergency' poster includes sexual assault:
The Greater Sudbury Police Service were in the crosshairs of some social media outrage on Wednesday after a photo of their online non-emergency reporting poster was circulated. Among the crimes classified as "non-emergency" was sexual assault. Including sexual assault among crimes like breaking and entering a shed, stolen licence plates and graffiti angered hundreds of people online, who were quick to post that it seemed local police don't view sex crimes seriously. One Facebook post on the Valley East page garnered more than 225 comments, many of which calling the list unacceptable and insensitive. Get the full story here.
Parole board will let Sudbury cop killer appeal parole denial:
The appeals division of the Parole Board of Canada has granted a request from cop killer Clinton Suzack to review a June 2019 decision denying Suzack day parole. Suzack and his accomplice, Peter Pennett, were convicted in 1995 for the murder of Sudbury Police Const. Joe MacDonald and sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years. Suzack, now 55, applied for day parole in June of this year. Parole Board of Canada spokesperson Holly Knowles said at the time that day parole is a way to gradually reintegrate offenders into society. Offenders on day parole normally must return each night to a community-based residential facility or halfway house. In addition to standard conditions of day parole, the Parole Board may also impose special conditions that an offender must abide by during release. More on this story here.
'False hope': Revamped Ontario autism program delayed until 2021:
It's hurry up and wait for autism parents in Ontario as the Ford government announced Tuesday that the introduction of a needs-based autism program will not be fully up and running until 2021. Autism parents in Sudbury were delivered a gut punch with Tuesday's announcement, after being led to believe during minister of children, community and social services Todd Smith's visit to the Nickel City on Aug. 8 that a new program would be introduced by April 1, 2020. On July 29, the Ontario government announced that they were expanding the scope of the autism expert panel to provide advice on what a new needs-based and sustainable autism program would look like. The Ford government backpedaled on their initial plan that steered away from needs-based services and funding and looked more at clearing a waitlist of more than 20,000 children. The Ontario government swung back toward the needs-based model on the advice of the autism expert panel, and it looked as though a course had been set to roll out the program by April of next year. On Tuesday, Smith said only the workshop and family training piece will be ready in April. The rest is underway and will be rolled out as soon as possible, he said, but it is complex and will take time to fully implement. Full story here.
What a haul! Edgar Burton Christmas Food Drive collects 100 tons yet again:
Every Christmas, Greater Sudbury comes together to support the Edgar Burton Christmas Food Drive. Like putting a star on top of the tree, the food drive has become a Christmas tradition in the Nickel City. And the community came together in force once again this year to bring in yet another 100 tons of food. The Rainbow District School Board and more than 250 local businesses were all in for the cause. Edgar Burton was a Vale divisional shops employee for 36 years. In what has become a famous local story, Burton got the idea for the annual food drive 32 years ago when his daughters asked if their family could start collecting food for the less fortunate. More on this story here.
Wizard of diagnosis: Highly regarded Sudbury physician Dr. Istvan Waldmann has passed away at 93:
A Sudbury physician highly regarded by the medical community and by countless patients passed away Dec. 16 at the age of 93. Known for his ability to diagnose patients whose cases baffled other medical professionals, Dr. Istvan Marcell Waldmann only hung up his stethoscope relatively recently after practising medicine for 67 years. His life and achievements were featured in February 2019 in an extensive Sudbury.com article written by the late Sudbury journalist Carol Mulligan, who also passed away this year. Full story here.
Wolves and Knights face off Friday in final game before holiday break:
The Central Division-leading Sudbury Wolves will look to get back in the win column on Friday night when they host the London Knights for the one and only time this season. Friday’s game also marks the Wolves final pre-Christmas game as they wrap up the first half of the season. Puck drop is 7:05 p.m. The Knights currently sit second in the Midwest Division and are led by NHL first-rounders defenseman Ryan Merkley (San Jose) and forward Liam Foudy (Columbus). Merkley is second in team scoring with 37 points and Foudy is fifth with 26 (in only 20 games). London will be without their leading scorer Connor McMichael (Washington Capitals) as he will be competing for Canada in the 2020 World Junior Hockey Championships.
MacDonald: City budget was a shock — but maybe not for the reasons you think:
Council is taking a lot of heat for this year's tax increase, but Sudbury.com city hall reporter Darren MacDonald says they deserve some credit for making a tough decision that local politicians 10, 20 or even 30 years ago didn't have the fortitude to make. Now that the shock has worn off a bit on the 4.8-per-cent property tax hike homeowners are facing this year, it's a good time to reflect on just what the hell happened at Tom Davies Square on Monday. Get MacDonald's take here.
Friday Weather:
Sunny skies to start the day, becoming a mix of sun and cloud late in the afternoon. Friday's high will be -12, feeling like -27 with the wind chill this morning. It's going to feel like -18 with the wind chill this afternoon. Mainly cloudy this evening with a low of -11. For current weather conditions, short-term and long-term forecasts visit Sudbury.com's weather page at www.sudbury.com/weather.
