Good morning, Greater Sudbury.
Here are some stories to start your day.
Sudbury hits vaccination target for long-term care homes:
Public Health Sudbury & Districts has achieved an important milestone in the journey to protect the area’s most vulnerable from COVID-19. All consenting residents of area long-term care and high-risk retirement homes in addition to residents and staff of Elders’ lodges have now been vaccinated and PHSD has met the provincial target date of Feb. 10. Through extensive planning and partnership with homes and area paramedics, a total of 1,729 individuals were immunized with their first dose of the COVID-19 Moderna vaccine. “We have a long way to go but it is a joy to celebrate this milestone. As we see ongoing outbreaks in these vulnerable homes and as we witness the emergence of the more transmissible variants of COVID-19, we are all energized by the vaccination program,” said Dr. Penny Sutcliffe, Medical Officer of Health with Public Health Sudbury & Districts. In addition, residents of the Wikwemikong Nursing Home, the first people in Public Health’s service area to receive the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, have now also received their second dose of the vaccine. The second doses for all other residents will be scheduled over the coming weeks in accordance with second dose requirements. Full story here.
Lawyers for Laurentian, faculty face off in court insolvency proceedings:
Legal counsel for Laurentian University and its faculty, among other interested parties, faced off in court Feb. 10 following the university’s announcement earlier this month that it’s insolvent and has applied for creditor protection. The Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) filing means LU must give control of its finances to a third-party monitor, in this case Ernst & Young. Through Ernst & Young, the university has stated it is its intention to present a restructuring proposal to the court by April 30. Ontario Superior Court judge Geoffrey Morawetz oversaw today’s proceedings. Laurentian’s legal counsel, D.J. Miller of Thornton Grout Finnigan LLP, started off the hearing by laying out the university’s financial picture, saying there are too many courses and too many programs taught by too many faculty for too many students. The union representing Laurentian’s faculty, the Laurentian University Faculty Union (LUFA), said the CCAA is being used as an attempt to achieve concessions from faculty. More on this story here.
Worried grad students pepper Laurentian president with questions at Senate meeting:
Laurentian University president Robert Haché was peppered with questions by worried graduate students during the Feb. 9 meeting of the university’s Senate. It’s the first time Haché has appeared before a public meeting since Laurentian announced Feb. 1 that it is insolvent, and has filed for restructuring under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act. Most of the students would not normally have had standing at the Senate meeting, but professors who are members of the body allowed them to speak in their stead, asking questions of Haché after his brief oral report. He was asked if Laurentian’s tuition fees would be increased (tuition fees are regulated by the province, Haché said), and how students would be able to finish their programs, if the professors were laid off (the university is committed to providing the necessary courses, he added). A couple of students asked questions focusing on how research activities and the payment of student researchers and graduate teaching assistants will continue, given the university’s insolvency. Haché said it’s expected these activities will be able to continue with the $25 million proceeds of the Debtor In Possession (DIP) funding, which is bridging the university’s finances through until April 30 as the insolvency proceedings continue. Get the full story here.
Council narrowly backs motion to fund St. Joseph's Villa repairs:
City council narrowly passed a motion that asked staff to prepare a business case that will look at providing $300,000 a year to St. Joseph's Villa for the next three years. Members of the St. Joseph's Villa Foundation capital campaign team made a presentation to council on Jan. 26, outlining their $4.6-million retrofit program for some much-needed repairs at the long-term care residence. Mayor Brian Bigger brought a motion forward to direct staff to prepare a business case in response to St. Joseph's Villa's request, to be presented during the 2021 budget deliberations. The motion was passed by a formal count of six to five. Ward 6 Coun. René Lapierre's vote was not recorded and Ward 12 Coun. Joscelyne Landry-Altmann was experiencing technical difficulties during the recorded vote, though she indicated to City Clerk Eric Labelle that she would be voting in favour of the motion. Ward 1 Coun. Mark Signoretti said that while he appreciated the spirit of the motion he couldn't support using city money to fund a provincial long-term care home, cautioning council about setting a precedent by funding an organization that falls under the province's umbrella of responsibility. "The concern I have with the motion is these long-term care facilities are provincial matters and if the municipality starts setting a precedent of contributing to one long-term care facility, what stops other long-term care facilities from coming forward with the same requests for funding from the municipality?" said Signoretti. "The money should be coming from the provincial level to support initiatives like this." Find the full story here.
Hydro rates for seasonal property owners are expected to rise sharply:
The Ontario Energy Board is reviewing a plan that will see electricity rates increase sharply in the coming years for many camp owners and other customers who are currently in the seasonal rate class. The Federation of Ontario Cottagers' Associations says that for about 78,000 customers, bills will increase by $54 a month. The proposed rate hikes are the result of an Ontario Energy Board directive to Hydro One to eliminate the seasonal rate class, and move those customers into one of three residential rate classes. According to Hydro One, the OEB decided that the distribution rates applied to the seasonal class don't appropriately reflect the cost of providing service. If the plan is implemented, bills will increase for those customers transitioned to the Low-Density residential class, while approximately 70,000 customers moving to the Medium Density residential class will enjoy a slight decrease in their bills.
Public Health Sudbury and Districts has five new COVID-19 cases for Feb. 10:
Five new cases of COVID-19 were reported by Public Health Sudbury and Districts (PHSD) on Feb. 10. This means there are now 27 active cases now being monitored. This is a drop from the 35 active cases reported on Monday. Since the pandemic was declared in March 2020, there have been 546 total COVID-19 cases reported to the Sudbury health unit, with 519 of those cases being resolved locally. With respect to where the new case occurred,the PHSD daily update page reported that five cases were found to have occurred within the Greater Sudbury Area. In terms of the possible causes, PHSD reported seven new cases as outbreak related, two cases as close contact of a confirmed case, two cases of no known epidemiological link and six cases listed as information pending or missing.
Sudbury raised more than $114K for Infant Food Bank in December:
This year's All We Need for Christmas campaign raised $114,931 for the Sudbury Infant Food Bank (IFB). The monetary contributions, food and baby supplies that were collected during the month of December will help struggling families with the necessities of life for their children. "We are so grateful for all the donations we have received from community members, local businesses, community groups and any others who helped support our campaign this year," IFB executive director Dedee Flietstra said in a press release. "We continue to be amazed by the support of the community, especially during these trying times. This year has been unlike any other, and your generosity means so much to our families. We cannot thank you enough for the endless support we have received from the Greater Sudbury community." This year marked the 12th annual All We Need for Christmas campaign, which began in 2009. Though the campaign only runs during the month of December, the Infant Food Bank accepts donations throughout the year.
Thursday Weather:
Mainly sunny today with more chilly temperatures. It's going to feel like -33 with the wind chill this morning. Afternoon high will be sitting at -16. Clear skies overhead into the evening with temperatures dropping steadily. Overnight low will hit -28, feeling like -36 with the wind. For current weather conditions, short-term and long-term forecasts visit Sudbury.com's weather page at www.sudbury.com/weather.
