Good morning, Greater Sudbury.
Here are some stories to start your day.
Winter isn't done with Sudbury just yet: Storm likely for Wednesday:
Environment Canada issued a special weather statement for Greater Sudbury Monday afternoon, as a winter storm is likely to hit the Nickel City on Wednesday. A winter storm from a Texas Low appears likely to affect much of Southern Ontario and parts of Northeastern Ontario. Latest indications suggest that snow will move into Southwestern Ontario and the Golden Horseshoe Wednesday morning and spread northeastward reaching the Quebec border late Wednesday afternoon. There remains much uncertainty regarding the track of this low, but total snowfall amounts of 10 - 25 cm are possible by Thursday morning. Motorists should be prepared for poor winter driving conditions due to low visibilities in heavy snow and quickly accumulating snow.
Core services review closer look: Arenas, user fees and what to do about Pioneer Manor:
Greater Sudbury city council spent three hours Feb. 18 debating the final report on the core services review. At the insistence of council, accounting firm KPMG conducted a review of the city's core services, including arenas, parks, recreation programming, assets and facilities management, road operations, community grants and long-term care. The core services review final report debate will pick back up at council's next scheduled meeting on March 3. Sudbury.com's Matt Durnan digs into more of the details and discussion about the ongoing review of city service. Find the full story here.
Teen driver clocked doing 181 km/h on MR 35:
A Sudbury teen won't like be allowed to use their parents' car for a while after Greater Sudbury Police reporting clocking the 17-year-old doing 181 km/h on MR 35 on the weekend. Police said the teen was caught at around 11 p.m. on Feb. 22. The area where police said they caught the driver has a posted speed limit of 80 km/h, meaning the young driver was travelling at more than twice the legal limit. Facing a stunt driving charge, the teen was arrested on the spot and the vehicle they were driving was impounded.
GSPS goes for a rip in support of Special Olympics Ontario:
Greater Sudbury Police Service (GSPS) hosted its first Law Enforcement Snowmobile Torch Run Sunday (Feb. 23), building upon an already impressive lineup of fundraisers benefiting Special Olympics Ontario. The run took around 18 participants through 210 km of the popular Azilda Cartier Moose Loop and took a little over eight hours to complete. Ultimately raising around $800 for Special Olympics Ontario, in what is believed to be the province's first event of its kind. Blazing a trail alongside participants was Nolan Windle, GSPS constable and brainchild behind Sunday's event, and organizer of Sudbury's Law Enforcement Motorcycle Torch Ride. Windle has been involved in charitable work long before he joined GSPS 11 years ago, he said, making the decision to accept the extra workload an easy one. "Might as well raise funds and have fun doing it at the same time," he said. But despite being a life-long resident of Sudbury, raised in Chelmsford, Windle had never driven a snowmobile prior to Sunday, he said. His inspiration was solely a desire to give back. More on this story here.
Sudbury's first French public high school celebrates its 50th in May:
École secondaire Macdonald-Cartier holds a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the school May 15 to 17. “École secondaire Macdonald-Cartier was the first French-language public secondary school to open in Sudbury,” said a press release. “To this day, École secondaire Macdonald-Cartier continues to offer an unparalleled education, marked by ethics, moral values, knowledge and skills.” Tickets to the anniversary weekend cost $25 each, and are available through Event Brite. Kids and youths 18 and under get in for free.
Use of resources: Police responding to thousands of alarm calls that turn out to be false:
Greater Sudbury Police may be getting out of the business of responding to calls for alarms. GSPS is conducting a review of the False Alarm Reduction program, and will examine current practices in response to residential and commercial alarms, fees associated with response, and an analysis of data around false alarm response. Over the last three years, GSPS has averaged 4,123 service calls for alarms per year. Of those calls, 2,400 do not get dispatched as they are cancelled. However, of the remaining alarms to which officers respond, 97 per cent were false. Today, there are 2,641 residential alarms, 1,224 commercial alarms, and 54 school board systems registered. Greater Sudbury Police charges a registration fee for homes and businesses to be part of its system. A fee is also charged every time police are dispatched to a false alarm. In 2019, $43,155 was collected for false alarms, while $47,512 was collected for alarm registrations. However, what's recovered annually doesn't come close to the cost of responding to those calls, said Sudbury Police Chief Paul Pedersen. Every alarm call is, at minimum, a two-officer response, Pedersen said, because officers never know what they're going to. While those two officers are busy with that call, they're not doing something else the community wants them to do.
Spring must be in the air: Seedy Sunday is this weekend!
Things will get a little seedy in downtown Sudbury on March 1. That's because it’s time for the 10th annual Seedy Sunday event. You don't have to be a gardener or farmer to attend. People with green thumbs of all skill levels are invited to take in the event, happening at Tom Davies Square, 200 Brady St., from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Seedy Sunday will provide an opportunity for the community to swap the seeds they’ve saved from their garden. No seeds? No problem. Seed vendors will also be on site selling many different varieties. Seedy Sunday is celebrated around the world, and is an event that encourages people to partake in the age-old traditions of seed saving and seed trading (or swapping). These events are typically a good place to pick up open pollinated, heirloom or heritage seeds. A number of seed vendors, retail vendors and other organizations will be on site displaying their products and programs. Several presentations will also take place over the course of the day on a number of seedy topics.
Tuesday Weather:
A mix of sun and cloud for Tuesday with temperatures hovering near the freezing mark. Today's high will get up to -1, feeling like -7 with the wind chill. Cloudy skies overhead tonight with the low dipping to -12. It's going to feel like -20 with the wind chill overnight. Snow expected to start by Wednesday morning. For current weather conditions, short-term and long-term forecasts visit Sudbury.com's weather page at www.sudbury.com/weather.
