News

By Sandi Krasowski, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Source: The Chronicle-Journal

The Thunder Bay Chamber of Commerce is gearing up for the annual Business Excellence Awards, which will be presented by Synergy North.

This year, judges will assess 78 nominations of businesses that will compete in one of 12 categories that recognize business excellence.

Charla Robinson, chamber president, said the annual business award occasion is the chamber’s premier annual event and an opportunity for the business community to come together to honour and celebrate the many achievements of the past year.

“This event recognizes the amazing people and incredible organizations that are essential to the growth and success of our city,” Robinson said.

She added that recognizing outstanding businesses in the community is important.

“Being acknowledged by your peers validates the hard work, innovation and dedication that goes into building a successful organization, and it provides a powerful boost of motivation for business owners and their teams,” she said.

Robinson pointed out that an award nomination brings meaningful exposure in the lead-up to the event.

“It elevates a business’s profile, builds credibility and creates an opportunity for staff, management and customers to come together and celebrate shared accomplishments,” she said.

“Ultimately, these awards don’t just recognize excellence, they inspire it across our entire business community.”

Winners will be announced at the award ceremony, themed Honouring Strong Foundations and Flourishing Businesses, on May 14 at the Canadian Lakehead Exhibition Coliseum.

Organizer Nancy Milani, the chamber’s director of special events, says this year’s celebration embraces the enchanting theme of a spring garden party.

“Guests will be welcomed into the CLE Coliseum that is beautifully transformed into a vibrant garden oasis bursting with colour, lush greenery, and fragrant blooms,” Milani said. “They will feel the joyful spirit of renewal in the air, a perfect setting to celebrate achievement, connection, and the promise of new beginnings.”

Event information and registration are available online at www.tbchamber.ca/events.

The nominees in the 2026 Business Excellence Awards are:

Looking Good

• Kelly Mental Health.
• NorWest Community Health Centres.
• Regional Food Distribution Association of Northwestern Ontario.
• The Centennial Botanical Conservatory.

Customer Service Excellence

• 807 Cards and Collectibles.
• Apple Self Storage – Redwood.
• Giorg Cucina e Barra.
• Jones Insurance.
• Kelly Mental Health.

Not For Profit Excellence

• Centre for Research and Innovation in the Bio-Economy (CRIBE).
• Evergreen A United Neighbourhood.
• Food Action Network of Northwestern Ontario.
• George Jeffrey Children’s Foundation.
• Kinna-aweya Legal Clinic.
• Magnus Theatre.
• Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association.
• NorWest Community Health Centres.
• NOSM University.
• OSPCA Northwest Animal Centre.
• Our Kids Count.
• Thunder Bay Art Gallery.

New Business Excellence

• 807 Cards and Collectibles.
• Crush Coffee Co.
• Dough Bagel Co.
• La Sur Wellness & Co.
• Modern Medical.
• Salesmen Consulting.
• Superior Inn Hotel and Conference Centre.

Equity Diversity and Inclusion

• Afrogourmets.
• Confederation College.
• Firedog Communications.
• Jason Veltri, Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association.
• Nature’s Nest Early Learning Centre.

Quality of Life

• Bash Bays.
• Habitat for Humanity Thunder Bay.
• Hospice Northwest.
• United Way of Thunder Bay.

Small Business Excellence

• Firedog Communications.
• Generator Insights Strategy Creative.
• Happy Pooch.
• Rose N Crantz Roasting Co.
• Swag Events.
• Thunder Bay Orthopaedic.

Medium Business Excellence

• Impact Promotions.
• Memorial Home Hardware.
• Oak Medical Arts.
• REP Security / REP Giwaydin Security.
• Superior Foods.
• Teleco.
• Triad Contracting.
• Uride.

Large Business Excellence

• Bayside Geoscience Inc.
• Doane Grant Thornton LLP.
• Dougall Media.
• IG Wealth Management.
• LH North Ltd.
• Orla Musselwhite Mine.
• Thunder Bay Truck Centre Inc.

Gamechanger

• Bash Bays.
• Karen Hill, The Hill Real Estate Group with eXp Realty.
• Lakehead Region Conservation Authority – Seeds for Conservation.
• MS Filter Systems Inc.
• Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association.
• Secure Orbit Inc.
• Tecky Brains Canada Social Impact and the Thunder Bay Public Library.
• Triple Threat Talent.

Young Entrepreneur of the Year

• Anton Demetrakopoulos, Nurse Next Door.
• Cody Myshok, Superior Soft Wash.
• Dylan Uurainen, Digital Mammoth and InsideOut Services.
• Sam Leon, SRL Contracting Corp.

Business Person of The Year

• Andrea Barnes, Las Sur Wellness & Co.
• Angie Maltese, Angela Maltese Professional Corporation/ LCPS Chartered Professional Accountants.
• Hector Dougall, Dougall Media.
• Jackie Knough, Our Kids Count.
• Jamie Crozier, Thunder Bay Hydraulics Inc.
• Jeff Jones, Jones Insurance.
• Karen Hill, The Hill Real Estate Group with eXp Realty.
• Les Perrault, Digital Engineering, Inc.

By Matt Prokopchuk, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Source: NWOnewswatch.com

Health care officials in Dryden are celebrating the latest doctor to start up their practice as the city sees an influx of new physicians.

Dr. Skylar Arpin recently joined the Dryden Regional Health Centre and Dingwall Medical Clinic after signing a return-of-service agreement with the hospital during her residency, Zoe Brenner, the physician recruitment, retention and relations coordinator with the health centre, said.

Arpin is the third new doctor to graduate from the Northern Ontario School of Medicine University to start practicing in Dryden since August, 2025, with another — Dr. Joclyn Hron — slated to start either in late summer or early fall.

“Like most rural communities in northern Ontario, physician recruitment is an ongoing conversation,” Brenner said. “It’s created part-time and full-time jobs across the region, including here in Dryden.”

“Not only do these four new physicians mean more people in the Dryden area have access to a family doctor, it also alleviates a lot of the pressure on the rest of the existing physician team.”

Dr. Alison Lewis started August 2025, with Dr. Abeera Hassan coming on board three months later.

Brenner gave credit to her predecessor Chuck Schmitt who was the longstanding physician recruiter for the Dryden health centre.

The physicians are and will be practicing family medicine, Brenner said, but will also help out elsewhere in the hospital, such as in the emergency department, the maternity ward and assisting with operations.

“That also alleviates the existing team from having to fill all of those gaps,” she said. “They can more equally split the workload, which also helps with retention and work-life balance for the whole team.”

The four doctors are already known in the community, Brenner said, as they did most of their residencies in Dryden.

“They get to settle into the community and make connections, they get to know our hospital environment,” she said of the time they’ve already spent in the city during schooling. “They get to know the physician team, they get to know the staff in the hospital and develop those relationships.”

“I think that plays a really, really big role in recruitment and retention for our organization.”

In a social media post, the Dryden Regional Health Centre said that Arpin first came to Dryden as a third-year medical student, and spent eight months training before returning to do most of her two-year family medicine residency through NOSM University.

“Dr. Arpin has joined the Dingwall Medical Clinic as a family physician and will also support patient care throughout the hospital, including inpatient services, the emergency department and the fracture clinic,” the hospital’s post said.

“She will also help train the next generation of physicians as an engaged preceptor, educator and NOSM U faculty member.”

By Carrie Ivardi, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Source: TBnewswatch.com

At an information session on Wednesday local staff learned about the government’s plan for both the Thunder Bay jail and the Thunder Bay Correctional Centre to remain operational once a new complex is complete.

Members of the provincial leadership, including Kevin Sawicki, executive director of corrections and institutional services for the Ministry of the Solicitor General were at the information session to discuss the realities of opening the new correctional facility and the plans for the two existing facilities.
“Work is underway to determine the most effective integration of these existing institutions with the new facility, including required infrastructure repairs and upgrades,” said Solicitor General’s office spokesperson Saddam Khussain in an written statement to Newswatch.

With a goal of opening the new complex in June 2027, staffing, training and facility upgrades are the biggest challenges, according to Shawn Bradshaw.

Bradshaw, president of the OPSEU union local that represents workers at the Thunder Bay Correctional Centre, was at the session and said, “The new building will require nearly 300 uniformed staff and probably another 150 non-uniformed support staff, plus a management compliment that we do not currently have.”

Bradshaw said that once work on the new structure is substantially complete this November, and while there will be finishing touches applied to the building, the ministry will take control of it. “At that point we will start trying to integrate our staff and work to make it operational, because currently we’re not in there. So we have to see how the building actually flows and train staff to be comfortable working in that environment.”

He said that training officers on the new site within 14 months is going to be a huge endeavour.

“They would require time to acclimate and be trained,” said Bradshaw. “It’s like any trade, you kind of start as an apprentice, you work your way up, you get comfortable with the tools.”

Bradshaw emphasized that “it takes time for staff to navigate and understand how to work with the inmates and their needs and their struggles in order to be effective.”

“They need senior staff to help them, all while basically doubling the officer complement in Thunder Bay.”

The real staffing challenge, said Bradshaw, is the need to operate the existing facilities as well as the new one.

“My understanding is that they intend to suspend the existing operations, operationalize the new building then slowly reopening the older infrastructure,” he said.

Upgrades to the century-old jail will need to be facilitated.

“The jail needs an overhaul to its heating and air circulation systems,” said Bradshaw.

He confirmed that there really is a need for all three facilities. “In 2015 the inmate population in Ontario was between 8,000 and 8,500. It is currently over 12,000,” said Bradshaw.

As well, “one of the things that the government has pledged is bail reform, which we anticipate will bring more bodies back into custody, which is, for the safety of Ontarians, probably not the worst thing for sure, but we need a place to put them.”

By Liam Oliver Neilson, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Source: Fort Frances Times

The Township of Emo will increase the maximum fee for building permits, implement additional user rates at the local landfill and collaborate with Chapple and Rainy River First Nation on water services, the township’s council decided at its Tuesday meeting.

Building permit fees in Emo are based on the estimated dollar value of construction, which remains at $8 per $1,000. The minimum building permit fee for Emo was unchanged at $50; however, the maximum fee was increased to $2,500 from the prior $2000.

That still sits below the average permit costs for projects within Ontario towns. The Town of Fort Frances, for example, has a minimum of $65 on building permits and uses a rate of $13 per $1000 of estimated value without a fee cap.

A memorandum of understanding (MOU) was put forward at the meeting to establish a framework to explore opportunities to work with the Township of Chapple and Rainy River First Nation on drinking water services.

Under the MOU, such collaboration would seek to improve efficiency in infrastructure while potentially lowering the costs to operate independent water systems. It also states that should a party to the MOU determine a service project to be feasible, they may enter into additional agreements for equipment ownership, operational governance, cost sharing and service arrangements.

The memorandum does affect any of the three parties’ ability to work independently, as it is non-binding and allows for each to back out at any time by providing a written notice.

Another significant discussion point during the meeting was landfill user rates. Emo’s landfill will be adding the following rates for residential users:

Dump trailer or standard-size bin/roll off: $35

Oversized construction bin/roll off: $100

Full-size garbage truck or gravel truck load: $300

Preexisting items in Schedule 5 of By-law 2025-16, viewable as the “Landfill Site – User Fees” link on the Township of Emo website at https://emo.ca/landfillrecycling are unchanged for the time being.

By Sandi Krasowski, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Source: The Chronicle-Journal

An Ontario government five-year, $1.3-billion contract extension with Alstom to continue operating and maintaining GO Transit and Union Pearson Express fleets will help protect Ontario workers but will not have a direct effect on Thunder Bay’s Alstom facility.

Lindsay Fenton, managing director for the Thunder Bay Alstom plant, said the extension will support jobs across the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area over the next five years.

“It has no direct impact and provides no further work for the Thunder Bay plant,” she confirmed. “However, it is good news for this plant as this agreement further cements our strong partnership with Metrolinx.”

Fenton said the extended agreement will help maintain service while key infrastructure and signalling work continues under the GO Expansion program, which will support current rail operations through 2031.

“The GO Transit coaches that are currently being refurbished in Thunder Bay will be returning to the (Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area) where our Alstom colleagues will maintain and operate them,” she said.

“We build, run, take care of and renew GO trains, which shows our top Canadian client’s faith in our wide-ranging skills and expertise.”

Fenton added, “Our partnership with Metrolinx will benefit Alstom workers in Thunder Bay and elsewhere in Canada well into the future.”

In January, the province awarded the Thunder Bay Alstom plant a $2.3-billion Toronto Transit Commission new subway train contract to replace the fleet on Toronto’s Line 2, and to serve on subway extension projects. The contract includes 70, six-car Metropolis metro trains and the opportunity to produce up to 150 additional train sets as needed.

(File photo)

By Clint Fleury, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Source: TBnewswatch.com

Local elementary teachers’ unions are skeptical about the Ford government’s recent announcement of the Classroom Supplies Fund.

Starting in September, elementary teachers will receive $750 each year for classroom supplies.

Lakehead Elementary Teachers of Ontario president Dave Paddington says the recent announcement is a declaration from Doug Ford that he has dramatically underfunded schools for a long time.

“It’s common knowledge that teachers spend a lot of their own money in classrooms, and he thinks that throwing a band-aid on this is going to give him some good press. I don’t think that’s the case. I think people see through it right away, that they understand that this is a drop in the bucket from what’s been removed from education,” he said.

Paddington said he is still not sure how the province is going to roll out the new funding, but he is skeptical about who’s benefiting from this at the other end.

According to the province’s press release, teachers will have access to the funding through a new provincial website, allowing them to order classroom supplies directly from a supplier.

“Who owns the company that we’re going to be mandated to spend the money,” he said, “so whose pockets are getting lined?”

Paddington says right now, he is on a “fact finding mission” because there are still too many unknowns with how the program will work.

“We’ve heard it’s a gift card. We’ve heard it’s going to a specific company. We’ve heard that teachers will be in charge of it. So, does that mean that teachers don’t walk into their classroom at the beginning of the year with pencils to give their students? Are they required to be bringing them with them for their students? How does this roll out?”

Michelle Pero, president of the Ontario English Catholic Teachers Association with Thunder Bay elementary unit, says the new funding does not “address the $6.3 million of under-funding that has been happening over the last eight years.”

“Teachers already have a massive workload, and now they’re going to be expected to use their own time with this expensive card to try and order supplies,” she said.

She said the announcement leaves too many unanswered questions, like where the money is going to come from.

“Is that money that’s coming from somewhere else within the education budget? Will the funding to school boards that normally cover these supplies be cut? That’s going to remain to be seen until we see the budget,” Pero said.

Thunder Bay-Atikokan MPP Kevin Holland says his government has listened to educators, and the $750 card is on top of substantial investments the Ford government has made in education.

“We recognize that there are some areas of the province, I’m not speaking specifically to Thunder Bay, that we’re hearing back that maybe some of the funding wasn’t directly coming to the classrooms. So, this was another way that we could support the teachers in the important work they’re doing with our children and provide them with additional funding to meet their supply needs for their education,” he said.

By Sandi Krasowski, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Source: The Chronicle-Journal

Final Drives Canada, a Thunder Bay-based international distribution company, is expanding and relocating to Dawson Road thanks to $78,000 given from the Ontario government.

The funds, which are made possible through the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC), are part of the province’s spending aimed at providing northern businesses the tools to grow, become more competitive and create jobs.

Allen Powell, the chief operating officer of Final Drive Canada, said this investment is important to the growth of the company and will allow them to bring in new team members, invest in additional equipment and continue growing product offerings and the markets that they serve. The three-year-old company originated in its sister business, Itec-2000.

“Thunder Bay is uniquely positioned for this kind of growth,” he said.

“Being centrally located in Canada allows us to distribute heavy equipment components and products efficiently across all industries, including forestry, mining and construction, to both Eastern and Western Canada. As we continue to grow, we’re also expanding our global supply chain networks and are working with partners in the U.K., China, Germany, Japan, Italy and South Korea.”

Powell added that Final Drives has exclusive agreements with these partners outside Canada to distribute their products in the Canadian market.

“All of our shipments come into us via containers, and this is something that we’d actually like to work with the City of Thunder Bay and the Port of Thunder Bay on to try to expand our options for importing directly here,” he said.

“The containers typically arrive in Montreal, and they get put on a rail car, which then goes to Winnipeg. From Winnipeg, it’s put on a truck and comes back to Thunder Bay, so it’s really not the most efficient form of transportation. We’d love to have an opportunity to bring ships directly into the Port of Thunder Bay, or have a rail port.”

Powell explained how the U.S.-imposed tariffs have actually had a positive effect on his company.

“The tariffs have taken our U.S. competitor out of the marketplace,” he said. “If a company is bringing in products into the U.S. market, they’ve had to pay tariffs on them. If we’re bringing products directly from other countries into Canada without tariffs, we have a more competitive price.”

Kevin Holland, MPP for Thunder Bay-Atikokan, said the province “got a clear mandate” last year from Ontarians to protect Ontario.

“Part of that is really building the opportunities that are here in Ontario,” Holland said. “Being able to build the economy in Ontario, drive innovation and build businesses and opportunities here is what’s going to protect Ontario from some of the challenges we’re facing from the global market.”