Good morning, Greater Sudbury.
Here are some stories to start your day.
Sudbury's second cannabis shop, Highlife, opens this Friday morning:
Sales, food trucks, DJs and ... there's something we're forgetting ... oh, yeah, cannabis will be on hand as Greater Sudbury's second cannabis store, Highlife, opens its doors on Marcus Drive on May 24. The shop is the second last of Ontario's 25 cannabis shops to get its licence to open its doors. Owned by a man named Anton Lucic, who is not a Sudburian, HighLife will carry about 350 lines of cannabis products, mainly from the Ontario Cannabis Store, but a few of their own, as well. Customers won't be able to handle the marijuana before they buy, but they will be able to take a sniff from special goblets, and even take a look with a magnifying glass. The store will operate seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. Age restrictions will be vigorously enforced and anyone under age 30 should expect to be asked for ID. The doors finally open at 9 a.m. today with a bit of a bang. Highlife is offering a 10-per-cent-off sale all weekend long, and some of Canada's top cannabis producers are expected to be on hand to answer questions.
MoL's fight against city's acquittal for Cecile Paquette's death starts today:
The Ministry of Labour and the City of Greater Sudbury head to the Superior Court of Justice on May 24, as the ministry is appealing the city's acquittal in the 2015 death of Cecile Paquette. Paquette, 58, died Sept. 30, 2015, at the corner of Elgin and Beech streets when a grader operator ran her over, killing her. The City of Greater Sudbury pleaded not guilty to seven charges from the Ministry of Labour, which attempted to prove the corporation was the constructor and the employer of the project, and therefore culpable in the circumstances that led to Paquette's death. One charge was dismissed on the first day of trial at the urging of the Ministry of Labour. Following the trial, Ontario Court Justice Karen Lische ruled the city was not acting as either the constructor or the employer on the Elgin Street project. Furthermore, the Ministry of Labour failed to show the city was the constructor, she said. Check back with Sudbury.com for updates from the appeal, which gets underway at 10 a.m. today.
Report recommends Shaughnessy site for art gallery/library:
With the Kingsway Entertainment District locked in an uncertain legal battle, city staff have found a new downtown location for the new art gallery and library, two of the three projects that make up The Junction. City council asked staff in February to find another option for the two projects because the original site, the current Sudbury Arena on Elgin Street, won't be available at least until the planning fight over the KED is complete. A report headed to city council May 28 recommends city owned land on Shaughnessy Street be used to house the $42 million art gallery/library project. The two were split from the $65 million convention centre because they are eligible for funding from upper levels of government. But those funds can't be applied for unless the project is close to being shovel ready, something that can't happen on the Elgin Street location until the KED battle is resolved. Full story can be found here.
Three councillors team up on motion to declare a climate emergency:
A motion headed to city council May 28 calls on Greater Sudbury to join other Canadian cities and declare a climate emergency. The motion from Ward 9 Coun. Deb McIntosh, Ward 4 Coun. Geoff McCausland and Ward 8 Coun. Al Sizer would have the city join Vancouver, Halifax and 286 other Canadian communities that have passed similar motions. “The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ‘Global Warming of 1.5 °C’ report states that we have less than 12 years to avert the worst impacts of climate change and identifies cities and urban areas as one of four critical global systems that can accelerate and upscale climate action,” the motion reads. Greater Sudbury is a member of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ Partners for Climate Protection program, and a member of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, which adopted a resolution in 2016 recognizing the need to pursue efforts to limit global temperature increases. More on this story here.
Small fire forces some residents to be evacuated from Val Caron long-term care home:
Some residents of the Elizabeth Centre in Val Caron had a rude awakening at about 3 a.m. this morning when what is suspected to be a short in a bathroom fan caused a small fire. Greater Sudbury Fire Services received the call just after 3 a.m. regarding a fire in one of the wings of the long-term care home. Residents with rooms near the bathroom were evacuated for their safety. The fire department said the fire was small, if smokey, and was contained to the area of the bathroom. The entire building didn't need to be evacuated fully. The all-clear was declared around 4:40 a.m. and residents were allowed back into their rooms. No injuries were reported. The Elizabeth Centre is a 128-bed long-term care home operated by Jarlette Health Services.
Billion-year-old fungi: LU scientist part of team that cracked open window on very ancient life:
Groundbreaking research by an international team of scientists – including Dr. Elizabeth Turner of Laurentian University – has led to the discovery of the world's oldest fungi, which dates back as far as a billion years ago. That's about half a billion years older than the previously discovered fungi – and it sheds some light on a largely blank era of pre-history when life was first evolving. The view many people have is that bacteria began as a sort of soup in the world's oceans billions of years ago, and later plants and animals emerged. Turner said Wednesday fossils such as bones, shells and teeth only begin appearing about 540 million years ago, when several complex lifeforms suddenly appeared on the scene. But that leaves about four billion years of Earth history we know very little about. Scientists believe life began as bacteria, which contain very basic cell structures known as prokaryotes — basically bags of chemistry. Fungi is important, Turner said, because it's made up of eukaryotes (still bags of chemistry, but containing, for instance, a nucleus), a more complex and organized cell structure that evolved later and is also found in plants and animals. Get the full story here.
Friday Weather:
Finally a bit of a break from the rain showers today as skies should be clear most of the day. Mainly sunny Friday with a daytime high of 15. Partly cloudy into the evening with chances of some overnight showers near midnight. Low will be sitting at around 9. For current weather conditions, short-term and long-term forecasts visit Sudbury.com's weather page at www.sudbury.com/weather.
