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All nine candidates for the five seats on Wawa Municipal Council were given the opportunity to answer the same questions in a conversation up to five minutes. Below are all nine, in alphabetical order (by surname).
Electronic voting (by phone or internet) is set to begin at 10 am Tuesday, October 11th, and concludes at 8 pm Monday, October 24th (which is the province-wide municipal election date).
Details on voting in Wawa’s municipal election can be found on the municipal website.
Charges have been laid after a local family dispute.
Superior East Ontario Provincial Police say they responded to a dispute on Michipicoten First Nation around 1:30 pm Sunday afternoon, with investigation leading to the arrest of a 24-year-old from Sault Ste. Marie, charged with two counts of mischief and three of fail to comply with probation order.
They've been released from custody, scheduled to appear in Wawa's Ontario Court of Justice next month.
Local police will be watching the roads over the Thanksgiving long weekend, joining a national campaign.
Superior East Ontario Provincial Police Constable Ashley Nickle explains the detachment's participating in Operation Impact, which will mean a focus on road safety.
Constable Nickle notes that means a focus on "The Big Four" driving behaviours.
Nickle says the enforcement will see patrols on roads and trails - when officers aren't responding to calls for service - urging everyone to "share our roads safely" so everyone can have a safe and happy Thanksgiving.
OPP are reporting 268 fatalities on OPP-patrolled roads headings into October, a 24 percent increase over the same time last year, with the majority of the deaths attributed to "motorists consciously making bad decisions behind the wheel and failing to take seriously their enormous responsibility to drive and share the road safely" - that includes 69 speed-related fatalities, 57 inattentive-related fatalities, 40 alcohol or drug-related fatalities, and 40 associated with a lack of seatbelt use.
Algoma Public Health's surpassed an unfortunate milestone in the COVID-19 pandemic: 10,000 cases.
The health unit's reporting 79 since Tuesday - 67 in the Sault Ste. Marie area, twelve in the Elliot Lake area, six in Central and East Algoma, and four in North Algoma (which includes Wawa, Dubreuilville, White River, and the Michipicoten and Missinabie Cree First Nations) - bringing the total number of cases reported since the pandemic began to 10,007.
It's also pushed known "high risk active" cases up to 229, with 22 in hospital, two in ICUs.
A trio of local First Nations are taking legal action, accusing the Ontario government of mismanaging forests and the environment.
A release from the three Ontario Treaty 9 First Nations - Chapleau Cree, Missanabie Cree, and Brunswick House - notes Treaty 9 "stretches across two-thirds of Ontario", and their action "aims to force Ontario to make meaningful changes now before harms are irreversible to the detriment of the boreal forest, all Treaty 9 First Nations, and all Ontarians".
They emphasize that the Supreme Court's made it clear the Crown "must act honourably when implementing its treaties with First Nations" but that honour "is not upheld when First Nations' concerns about environmental protection and forest management and the safety of the foods and waters on their territories are not addressed", specifically citing the widespread spraying of glyphosate herbicide as an issue, adding "the result [of extensive industrial and forestry activities authorized by Ontario without the full participation of the First Nations] has been rampant landscape fragmentation, degradation, and contamination of traditional territories over time."
The First Nations also warn "the pace of degradation has been increasing, resulting in decreasing forest cover and lower forest resilience", noting "these are known contributors to climate change".
More COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in the region.
Public Health Sudbury and Districts is reporting 99 across its region since Monday - 82 in Greater Sudbury, fifteen in the Sudbury District, and two in the Manitoulin District - pushing known "active" cases up to 308, with 38 in hospital, one in an ICU.
The "active" cases include one in the northern Sudbury District - the same as Monday - the communities aren't specified, but the region includes Chapleau, Cartier, Foleyet, Gogama, and neighbouring First Nations.
The neighbouring Porcupine Health Unit's reporting 115 cases over the last two weeks - it didn't issue an update last week - it no longer breaks it down by region nor reports "active" case counts, but is reporting 26 in hospital.
Wawa Municipal Council's cleared a key roadblock for Superior Aggregates.
In meetings last night, Council heard a presentation from Robert Lehman of Lehman & Associates, who noted he wrote the community's first official plan four decades ago and also served as the municipality's planner for Superior Aggregates, which was seeking the removal of a "hold" for its wharf lands with a new site plan agreement - both requests were accepted in the regular meeting, along with a road use agreement.
Lehman assured conditions set when the hold was placed have now been met, but he'd also met with regulators to clarify what efforts would be necessary, with Superior Aggregates to be required to meet conditions set by any government agency with authority over the project, including obtaining a certificate of environmental compliance, along with noise monitors already required in the Ontario Municipal Board's decision on the project - he also recommended a committee including the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry to look at the impacts.
Councillor - and incoming mayor - Melanie Pilon thanked Lehman for his work on a "very complicated matter", while outgoing Mayor Pat Tait said he was in a "similar seat" - Council made no other comments or asked any other questions before passing the by-laws.
More COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in the region - including North Algoma.
Algoma Public Health's reporting 106 since Thursday - 84 in the Sault Ste. Marie area, thirteen in Central and East Algoma, eight in the Elliot Lake area, and two in North Algoma (which includes Wawa, Dubreuilville, White River, and the Michipicoten and Missinabie Cree First Nations) - with known "high risk active" cases up to 190, including 22 in hospital, two in ICUs.
A Wawa driver's facing impaired driving charges after a collision on Harbour Road.
Superior East Ontario Provincial Police say they responded to the single vehicle collision last Tuesday morning, with investigation leading to the arrest of a 20-year-old on charges of operation while impaired - alcohol and drugs and operation while impaired - blood alcohol concentration (80 plus).
They've been released from custody, set to appear in Wawa's Ontario Court of Justice next month.
Assault and other charges have been laid after a Wawa incident last week.
Superior East Ontario Provincial Police say they responded to a report of an assault on Second Avenue early last Monday morning, with investigation leading to the arrest of a 39-year-old from Wawa, a 27-year-old from Grand Prairie, Alberta, and a 29-year-old from Fraser Lake, British Columbia - all three have been charged with aggravated assault and break, enter dwelling house while the Wawa man's also charged with failure to comply with release order and the other two were charged with disguise with intent.
All three were remanded into custody, pending bail hearings.
More COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in the region - but fewer in the northern Sudbury District.
Public Health Sudbury and Districts is reporting 165 across its region since Wednesday - 148 in Greater Sudbury, seven in the Sudbury District, and ten in the Manitoulin District - pushing known "active" cases up slightly, to 269, with 35 in hospital, one in an ICU.
The "active" cases include one in the northern Sudbury District - down from the three reported Wednesday - the communities aren't specified, but the region includes Chapleau, Cartier, Foleyet, Gogama, and neighbouring First Nations.
The health unit has ten "active" outbreaks across its region: one in Espanola, the rest in Greater Sudbury.
Chapleau's opening up its landfill site for local residents free of charge.
Mayor Michael Levesque explains this week's the annual "Fall Clean-Up".
The initiative runs during regular hours at the landfill - 10 am to 2 pm Tuesday to Friday, and 10 am to 4 pm this Saturday - though residents are reminded to sort the materials "in the way of steel, wood, building products, and other household waste", with certain waste not accepted - details are on the Township's website.
Wawa Municipal Council's set to discuss removing a hold - with a site plan agreement - for Superior Aggregates in meetings tonight.
First up is a Corporate Planning Committee meeting, which includes a delegation on the request, which will be followed by discussion about a memo on Water Treatment Plant water filters, a draft new policy on electronic monitoring, and a health and safety policy recommendation.
The Superior Aggregates item will come back up in tonight's regular meeting, which includes by-laws to implement it.
The meetings will be held back-to-back, starting at 6:30 pm tonight, in Council Chambers - they'll also be livestreamed through the Municipality's YouTube channel.
Ontario Provincial Police are investigating a fatal multi-vehicle collision that closed Highway 17 north of the Sault over the weekend.
Sault Ste. Marie OPP say emergency services responded to the collision involving three vehicles on Highway 17 near Haviland Shores Road in Goulais Township around 3 o'clock Saturday afternoon, with investigation determining a northbound vehicle failed to negotiate a curve, continuing into the southbound lane where it made contact with one vehicle who narrowly avoided a head-on collision but continued on and collided with a second vehicle.
A passenger of the second vehicle was pronounced dead at the scene, identified as 81-year-old Richard Harrison of Sault Ste. Marie, while the two drivers of the head-on collision were taken to hospital with "serious injuries".
The investigation's ongoing with the OPP Technical Collision Investigator and reconstructionist while the Office of the Chief Coroner of Ontario-Ontario Forensic Pathology Service is assisting, with a post-mortem examination planned.
A Wawa car dealership is looking to "scare hunger" this month.
Today marks the start of Northern Lights Ford's annual "Together Let's Scare Hunger" campaign to support the Wawa Food Bank, and Danette Mathias from the dealership says everyone's encouraged to join in.
Mathias notes there are a few items that are especially wanted.
Northern Lights Ford's "Together Let's Scare Hunger" campaign runs through to Halloween, October 31st.
Paving work's getting underway for a Chapleau road.
The Township's warning existing asphalt will be removed and new asphalt pavement will be put down on Monk Street - between Water Plant Road and Teak Street - over the next two weeks, reducing traffic to one lane controlled by flag people.
Mayor Michael Levesque noted last month that the contract had been awarded to a Hearst-based company.
In addition to paving that section of Monk, asphalt patching's planned for various parts of town, including Maple, Teak, Pine, and Grey and Cherry Streets.
Chapleau Council's hoping the community can benefit from a proposed power line in the region.
Mayor Michael Levesque says Town Council's approved a resolution seeking for the "corridor" to be located closer to the community.
While Chapleau PUC raised questions about the new double circuit 230 kilovolt transmission line with the Independent Electricity System Operator back in spring, the IESO - which is responsible for operating the electricity market and directing the operation of the bulk electrical system in Ontario - said at the time that a connection between the new line and the existing system at the Chapleau Transmission Station was not considered for the project.
More COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in the region - including North Algoma.
Algoma Public Health's reporting 48 since Tuesday - 39 in the Sault Ste. Marie area, six in Central and East Algoma, one in the Elliot Lake area, one in North Algoma (which includes Wawa, Dubreuilville, White River, and the Michipicoten and Missinabie Cree First Nations), and another not attributed to a region - with known "high risk active" cases up to 174, including 19 in hospital, three in ICUs.
Work on some local snowmobile trails is getting provincial support.
Northern Development Minister Greg Rickford's announced nearly $835,000 through the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation to assist the Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Clubs with improving trails, including rerouting 60 kilometres of trail D108A between Dubreuilville and Hornepayne, as well as 36 kilometres of Top C trail in the Municipality of Gogama, and the refurbishment of the bridge over Sheppard Creek in Searchmont.
The Municipality of Wawa's encouraging residents and businesses to "have your say" in the community's new five-year tourism plan.
A release from the Municipality says it has launched an online survey to assist with creation of the plan, inviting residents and businesses to share views on "what makes Wawa a great place for visitors and tourists" by filling out the short survey by October 14th.
A link can be found on the municipal website, though a paper copy or assistance is available at the Town Hall, Tourist Information Centre, and Michipicoten Memorial Community Centre.
The Municipality's receiving $90,000 from FedNor for the plan - which is being developed by Bannakin Tourism Consultants - part of $9.7-million announced for "key tourism projects" in Northern Ontario.
Also getting support: Naturally Superior Adventures is receiving $38,011 to "modernize and expand its tourism offerings, including water and food safety, accommodations, and developing a new sailing instruction program".
