Good morning, Greater Sudbury.
Here are some stories to start your day.
Sudbury.com will carry State of the City speech live:
Sudbury.com will have live coverage of Greater Sudbury Mayor Brian Bigger's annual State of the City presentation today at the Caruso Club. Bigger will speak at the Sudbury Chamber of Commerce event beginning around 1 p.m. “He will reflect on his term as mayor, outline his priorities for the coming months and discuss the future of Greater Sudbury’s economic growth,” the chamber said in a news release. Before he was elected mayor in 2014, Bigger held roles in the private sector, at the Regional Municipality of Halton and served as Sudbury's first auditor general. Bigger is seeking reelection in the October municipal election.
Celebrate National Indigenous Peoples Day in Bell Park:
Today is National Indigenous Peoples Day across Canada, and Sudbury will be celebrating along with communities across the country. The N’Swakamok Native Friendship Centre is hosting festivities, the highlight for many being a concert by musician Susan Aglukark at Grace Hartman Amphitheatre. “Susan Aglukark is truly one of Canada’s most significant cultural treasures. Apart from being a beautiful singer and powerful songwriter, she provides a significant view to the culture of our northern communities. She is an inspiration to humanity,” said Deane Cameron, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation of Massey Hall and Roy Thomson Hall. The N’Swakamok Native Friendship Centre annually hosts the event and concert at Grace Hartman Amphitheatre to foster unity and fellowship among residents of the City of Greater Sudbury. This year the event will also host a mini pow-wow in partnership with Kina Gbezhgomi Child and Family Services. Opening ceremonies kick off at 12 p.m., with a mini pow-wow from 1-4 p.m. Musical entertainment begins at 4:30 p.m. with entertainers Susan Aglukark, Jace Martin, Elijah and The Backburners, JoPo & the RiZe, Lisa Marie Naponse and Matt James.
City's new hotel tax expected to bring in $1.7M a year:
Without any debate, members of the finance committee approved a new accommodation tax Tuesday, which will see a levy put on hotel and motel rooms in the city. The new tax on the city's 2,000 hotel rooms is expected to bring in $1.7 million in 2019, half of which will be used to finance tourism initiatives, with the other half helping to pay the mortgage on the $100 million arena planned for the Kingsway. The tax should raise about $425,000 for the balance of 2018. The province passed a law in 2017 giving municipalities the right to bring in the tax, and Sudbury is the third city to do so, following Toronto and Ottawa's lead. Another eight municipalities are in the process of implementing the tax. Full story here.
Pot laws, loss of grants driving up policing costs:
Legalized pot, loss of grant funding and the need to renovate their headquarters are some of the factors squeezing the Greater Sudbury Police budget, members of the police services board will hear Thursday. A report on the state of the $57 million police budget will be reviewed by board members, after a request from city council to do what they can to limit budget increases so the property tax increase doesn't exceed 3.5 per cent in 2019. With about 85 per cent of the budget devoted to salaries and benefits, officials have little fiscal wiggle room. And even the 3.8 per cent increase estimated for next year could be unrealistic, because of the unknown costs for officers to enforce the rules surrounding legalized marijuana, which take effect Oct. 17. While upper levels of government have said their would be money available, no details have been released, nor have the costs or details of how training for police to enforce the new laws will be handled. More on this story can be found here.
Feds will make marijuana legal in Canada on Oct. 17, Trudeau says:
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says recreational marijuana will be legal in Canada as of Oct. 17. Trudeau made the announcement during question period in the House of Commons on Wednesday. He says the government has delayed the legalization schedule in order to give the provinces and territories more time to implement their regimes. On Tuesday, the Senate voted to end its opposition to certain aspects of the federal bill, most notably the plan to permit Canadians to cultivate marijuana plants at home. A proposed Senate amendment would have prevented legal challenges to their constitutional right to do so. Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould called the legislation — which still requires royal assent to become law — "transformative" and predicted it would protect young people and keep organized crime out of the pot market. But she's reminding Canadians that until it goes into effect, recreational marijuana remains illegal, as is driving while impaired. Bill C-46, a companion bill that Wilson-Raybould predicts will give Canada the strongest impaired-driving rules in the world, will also become law "in the near future," she said.
Man allegedly committed theft while on recognizance:
The Greater Sudbury Police Service has outstanding warrants for the arrest of Ryan Oppenheimer. It is alleged that on Jan. 24, Oppenheimer did committed the offence of theft of merchandise. At the time of the offence and in February, Ryan Oppenheimer failed to comply with recognizance. He is described as 5-6, about 180 lbs, with black hair and brown eyes. Oppenheimer is known to be in the city of Greater Sudbury and is wanted for theft under $5,000 and two counts of breach of recognizance. If you know this person is presently located, you are urged to call the Crime Stoppers tip line toll-free at 1-800-222-TIPS or locally at 705-222-TIPS (8477). You must call this number to be eligible for a cash reward. Tips can also be submitted online at www.sudburycrimestoppers.com.
Spartans hit home field this weekend:
The Sudbury Spartans return to action at home this Saturday June 23 as they face the GTA All-Stars at James Jerome Field at 7:30 p.m. The Spartans will be hungry to get back in the win column at home after dropping two tough road contests the past two weekends. Last Saturday in Sault Ste. Marie, the Spartans seemed to run out of gas leading with eight minutes to go in the fourth quarter before dropping a 23-10 final to the Steelers. With two regular season games left, this weekend’s game is pivotal to set the direction for the rest of the season and earning a post season position. After the GTA All-stars this weekend, the Sault Ste. Marie Steelers will pay there only visit to the Nickel City July 7 to play the Spartans at James Jerome. Tickets for Saturday’s game will be available at the gate for $10 each.
Grass Mobile: Meet the man behind the wheel of the grass truck:
Sudbury resident Sean Lamothe says he lives to make people laugh and his Grass Mobile (btw, not the 'wacky tobaccy' kind of grass) is helping him do just that! When the body of Lamothe's 1998 Mazda B-Series pickup started to rust, he just couldn't part with his truck. "The engine still ran great," Lamothe said. "It just felt wrong, getting rid of it so I had this ridiculous idea." Inspired by the Dumb and Dumber Shaggin' Wagon, Lamothe figured out a way to keep the truck intact and gain some laughs at the same time. He detailed the truck with artificial turf — yes, that plastic green grass looking carpet stuff! "Once I started the first panel at the back, I didn't want to do it anymore." Knowing there was no turning back, Lamothe managed to complete his truck's turf makeover over the course of a month. Check out the grass mobile in our video right here.
Thursday Weather:
Beautiful day on tap to mark the first official day of summer 2018. Mainly sunny today with a high of around 23. Clear skies heading into the evening with a few clouds. Tonight's low will get down to 10. For current weather conditions, short-term and long-term forecasts visit Sudbury.com's weather page at www.sudbury.com/weather.
