Good morning, Greater Sudbury.
Here are some stories to start your day.
Belanger Ford steps up to fix Food Bank van:
Belanger Ford is in the spirit of giving as the holiday season approaches and have stepped up to help the Sudbury Food Bank get their van back on the road. The catalytic converter was cut off the van overnight between Nov. 12 and 13 and rendered the vehicle inoperable. The Sudbury Food Bank uses the van to pick up and deliver fresh produce and food items for our city’s most vulnerable community members. Upon hearing the news of the incident through local media, the folks at Belanger Ford in Chelmsford have offered up their services and will be replacing the part and getting the vehicle road ready for the winter, free of charge. "We heard about what had happened just by reading about it in the news," said Celine Pellier, social media coordinator, Belanger Ford. "We reached out to them and thought it would be a nice thing for us to do." The mechanics at Belanger Ford will be inspecting the Food Bank van and getting everything in working order ahead Sudbury's roughest season on the roads. Repairs are expected to be completed over the weekend and the hope is that the van will be operational by Monday, Nov. 19. Full story here.
After years of false starts, soccer dome inches closer to reality:
With so many bubble bursts over the last several years, Mike Graham of the Sudbury District Sports Club says he's optimistic that – finally – a sports dome is coming to Sudbury. “I can't see any reason why not,” Graham said Thursday, after a public meeting at Sacre Coeur school on Notre Dame Avenue, where the $3.3 million sports complex will be built. “I mean, we're in the city's hands at the moment. We've asked (city) council to assist in ensuring that the their departments move quickly enough so we can get started.” The crowd of about 100 at the meeting heard details of the proposal, which is being financed by a private donor. Graham said the financier has built several sports dome projects, but wants to remain in the background until the Sudbury facility is approved. The dome should make enough money to repay the $3 million he's providing, and, longer term, pay for maintenance and upgrades. In turn, the French Catholic school board (Conseil scolaire catholique du Nouvel-Ontario) will spend $300,000 on parking lot and landscaping improvements. Full story can be found here.
Here's your list of road closures for the Santa Claus Parade:
The annual Santa Claus Parade will be held in the downtown core on Saturday, Nov. 17 beginning at 5:30 p.m. This year’s Santa Claus Parade route has been changed and shortened. The Greater Sudbury Police Service Traffic Management Unit will be closing and or controlling several lanes of traffic and roadways to ensure the safe movement of parade participants and spectators. Assisting with traffic control will be members of Uniform Patrol, the Auxiliary Unit, and Citizens on Patrol, as well as, the OOPP and the Canadian National Railway Police. Find out what roads will be closed here.
More than $3M in city fines uncollectable, report says:
At its last meeting before the new term begins, city councillors will be asked to write off $3.45 million in unpaid provincial offences fines, including parking and other offences. A staff report says in total, the city is owed $19.8 million in defaulted fines, and several tools are used to try and get that money, ranging from small claims court to adding the amounts to the person's property tax. The current writeoff is something Greater Sudbury has been delaying since amalgamation, the report says. In 2000, the province transferred responsibility for operating provincial offences court to municipalities. At the time, “the vast majority of municipalities undertook large writeoffs of the fines they inherited from the province which they deemed to be uncollectable,” the report says. “The Ministry of the Attorney General recommends that accounts receivable should be reviewed regularly to identify potential writeoffs and to identify accounts deemed uncollectable. “However, the City of Greater Sudbury never carried out an initial writeoff of the provincial offences fines it now was owed.” The current writeoff included more than $33,000 dating back to 1960-1979, but the majority – $2.31 million – occurred between 1990-1999. Unpaid fines from 2000-2010 total $940,000, while the total from 2011-2018 is $56,655.
Woman, 67, found dead after stand-off in Elliot Lake:
A 67-year-old woman was found dead and a 64-year-old man arrested after a stand-off with police in Elliot Lake Thursday. At around 5:45 a.m., the East Algoma OPP were called to a home on Valley Crescent, where there was a barricaded person inside. The OPP established a safety perimeter in the area, and asked the public to stay away.Then, at around 11:04 a.m., the 64-year-old man exited the residence and was arrested by police. The 67-year-old woman was found dead. The OPP have not indicated either how the woman died or what charges the man is facing. The man arrested in this case is scheduled to attend a bail hearing in Blind River. The incident remains under investigation by the OPP. Further information will be provided when it becomes available, say police.
Do these items look familiar? Police trying to identify man who died in 2016:
Ontario Provincial Police are seeking the assistance of the public to identify a man who died on the coast of Lake Superior, near Montreal River Harbour in 2016. Prior to his death, the man was believed to be travelling along Highway 17 between Wawa and Sault Ste. Marie. The office of the chief coroner and the Ontario forensic pathology service have determined that the man was approximately 5-3 to 5-8 tall and between the ages of 45 to 65. He was believed to be wearing a blue JanSport backpack and may have been carrying a long cardboard box containing a rifle. In addition, the man had a number of personal effects with him. Further information, including a list of items found on the man and a video are available here.
