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Sioux Lookout high school hosting fireside chat on AI

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The next fireside chat of the Keewatin-Patricia District School Board is scheduled for February 19 at Sioux North High School.

The board’s Director of Education Christy Radbourne will be leading a Q&A primarily focused on artificial intelligence in schools. Other topics include kindergarten registration, parent engagement opportunities, math initiatives and math education, and attendance campaigns geared toward student success.

Attendees are invited to ask questions and provide comments on any programs, initiatives, or concerns they may have. A livestream of the Fireside Chat will also be provided on the KPDSB Facebook page.

The event will be hosted from 6:30-7:30 pm. Registration is not required and all parents, caregivers or interested community members are encouraged to attend.

Dryden City Hall

Dryden expects to add extra holiday time for municipal staff

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The City of Dryden plans to close non-essential facilities for an additional two and a half days during this year’s winter break.

City Council recommends closures on December 27 and 30, plus a half day on the 31st, for municipal staff. Employees are expected to take those two and a half days out of their allotted vacation time.

City Council cites a decline in customer service levels and reduced staff due to employees taking time off for their families. It references other Ontario municipalities with a similar holiday schedule.

It says the closure will have minimal impact on essential services like fire, snow removal and cemetery. Other booked recreational programming like hockey tournaments will still be provided as required.

Dryden City Hall

High-profile interim Integrity Commissioner named for Dryden

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The City of Dryden is appointing a new high-profile interim Integrity Commissioner after the resignation of previous officeholder Guy Giorno.

Kingston lawyer Tony Fleming will be city council’s integrity watchdog for the next nine months while they look for Giorno’s permanent replacement. He charges $325 an hour for his services, a hefty raise from Giorno’s $60. The position is billed hourly on a per‑commission basis, with no retainer.

Fleming is a supervising partner for Cunningham Swan Lawyers and has been the Integrity Commissioner for over 80 municipalities in his career. He holds an L.L.B. from Osgoode Hall at York University and an L.L.M. in Environmental Law from Queen’s University.

Guy Giorno resigned in January, citing draining political disputes.

“To be clear, as a municipal Integrity Commissioner, I have never allowed and will never allow the identity of a complainant or respondent to affect the fair, impartial and independent discharge of my duties,” Giorno said in his letter of resignation. “I am concerned, however, by the perception that might arise when frequently senior City officials and the entire City Council are parties to Integrity Commissioner complaints.”

“Second, I am increasingly concerned by the potential for the Code of Conduct to be weaponized in the political arena (…) I take scrupulous care not to be dragged into disputes over politics and personalities. To maintain detachment and neutrality is vital but draining. After more than eight years of doing so in Dryden, I believe it is best that someone new pick up the torch.”

two paddles and three balls on a tennis court

Fundraising opens for new Dryden pickleball court

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The City of Dryden will pledge over $12,500 for the construction of a new permanent pickleball court.

City council expects the total cost to be $650,000. The rest of the funding will be collected via community donation by the Dryden Pickleball Club, who will start it’s fundraising campaign soon. Any cost overrun will also be covered by the city.

In it’s application, the club cited the growth of the sport within the community and the need to replace current courts at Milestone Park.

Council voted to move the application forward at their meeting Monday night.

Director of Community Services Joel Allen says potential concerns of light or noise will be mitigated by the city and the club to the best of their ability.

dryden public library

Dryden Public Library Chief Librarian honoured at provincial convention

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Dryden Public Library’s Chief Librarian Caroline Goulding is the newest recipient of the Larry Moore Distinguished Service Award, presented by the Ontario Library Association at their annual super conference in Toronto last week.

Goulding is being recognized for her contributions to library development and service.

“Through everything I was doing with the OLA, I found it incredibly rewarding to feel like I was doing something in the face of these society-wide challenges or sector challenges,” Goulding said. “I was contributing to the collective actions of the sector.”

Goulding was a prominent advocate for a number of different library initiatives, including the Save Our School Libraries campaign and the First Nations Public Library Operating Grant. She also shared webinars and online resources during the pandemic.

“(Libraries) are vital community institutions,” Goulding said. “We’re one of the last remaining third spaces in a community, somewhere you can go and be that is not your home or work and where you don’t have to pay.”

“Get out and visit your public library. Especially in the cold weather. Check out a book, get a DVD, curl up inside. It’ll be wonderful.”

Shaffer snowmobile

Dryden snowmobiler building off X-Games run

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Dryden local Daniel Shaffer is back home after competing in this year’s X-Games in Aspen.

Shaffer finished 7th in both the snowmobile freestyle and speed & style competitions despite taking a crash in warmups.

“I managed to still ride the show, but I had to hold back a little because of a minor neck injury. I still got it done,” Shaffer said.

Daniel Shaffer poses next to his snowmobile (via Daniel Shaffer)

During the winter season, Shaffer tours trails across North America doing demos, jumps and tricks.

“I’ve got probably a dozen upright tricks,” Shaffer said. “Seat grabs, no hands, no feet. You name it.”

“The more I can ride, the less I have to work.”

Shaffer says he expects to return to the X-Games next year.

“When you put your helmet on and you get on your machine, you’re not worried about life, you’re not worried about politics,” Shaffer said. “You’re just focused on what you’re doing, and it’s fun.”

Daniel Shaffer hits a trick at the X-Games in Aspen (via Daniel Shaffer)

Dryden Snow Removal

Repairs, snow removal causing traffic delays in Dryden

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Dryden motorists can expect some delays and disruptions around town on Friday.

Public Works crews will be busy in a couple of areas on various projects.

Duke Street will be closed to vehicles between Van Horn Avenue and Whyte Avenue from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The closure is necessary while workers complete emergency repairs to the wastewater collection system.

An alternate route for commercial vehicles will be available on Gordon Road.

Elsewhere, workers will be removing snowbanks on Memorial Avenue until 2:30 p.m. Friday.

Drivers should expect temporary road closures or minor disruptions. There will also be increased noise levels in the area.

Anyone with questions or concerns can contact the Public Works department at 223-2367.

Cold

Update: Environment Canada issues cold warnings across the northwest

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Residents of northwestern Ontario are in for an exceptionally cold few days as a pocket of Arctic air has blown into the region.

Environment Canada has issued high-level alerts warning locals of windchill temperatures as low as minus 40 or even minus 45 degrees Celsius.

The Arctic airmass is expected to persist through the weekend.

Those in affected locations should cover up all exposed skin, as frostbite can take hold in a matter of minutes.

Drivers should keep emergency supplies such as blankets and jumper cables.

Anyone experiencing colour changes in their extremities, pain, numbness, tingling, or swelling should head inside and warm up immediately.

Workers who must be outside should make a conscious effort to go inside for regular warming breaks.

Other cold-related symptoms such as shortness of breath, chest pain, muscle pain and weakness are also good indicators of a need to stay inside and keep warm.

Environment Canada’s multi-day orange-level cold warning is in place for the following locations:

  • Red Lake – Ear Falls
  • Sioux Lookout – Savant Lake
  • Kenora – Nestor Falls
  • Dryden – Ignace
  • Fort Frances – Rainy Lake
  • Armstrong – Auden – Wabakimi Park
  • Gull Bay – Black Sturgeon Lake
  • Atikokan – Upsala – Quetico

The agency has now also issued a yellow-level warning, with slightly less severity, to locations east of the orange warning:

  • The City of Thunder Bay
  • Beardmore – Jellicoe – Macdiarmid
  • Superior West
  • Nipigon – Rossport

Locations under the yellow-level warning may experience windchill lows of minus 40 degrees Celsius.

Remo Knecht _ Crop

Show us your NWO: Winter Edition

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There’s a certain magic to Northwestern Ontario that reveals itself the moment the snowpack settles deep into the forests and lakes. Early mornings hum with the sound of a snowmobile engine warming up, sending echoes through the frosted pines. Riders follow winding white trails that weave through endless evergreens, each turn offering a fresh breath of crisp, cold air.

“Nature’s Beauty” Photographed by Remo Knecht

By afternoon, the cold settles in with its familiar bite, the kind that stings your fingertips. Out on the open stretches, the landscape feels vast and untouched, frozen lakes shimmering faintly under the pale sky, and spruce trees dusted with fresh snow. It’s the kind of cold that demands respect but rewards adventure, turning a simple ride into a journey through an untouched northern world.

“Fresh snow on trees on a crisp morning” Photographed by Wayne Morrison

And when night comes, the real magic happens. The sky erupts in sweeping curtains of green and red, dancing across the darkness like something alive. The aurora borealis paints the horizon above quiet towns and frozen shorelines, reflecting softly off the ice below. Under those lights, with engines quiet and the world hushed, Northwest Ontario reveals its soul, wild, beautiful, and unforgettable.

“Beautiful Grassy Narrows” Photographed by Robert Williamson

📸We would love to see what you see. Grab your Phone or Camera and send me your best shots.

Email in your photos:

Kenora – info@yourkenora.ca

Dryden – info@yoursunsetcountry.ca

Fort Frances/Rainy River – info@yourborderland.ca

jack harrison

Dryden Mayor says big year for capital projects

Dryden City Council meets tonight to vote on its proposed 2026 municipal budget, which includes a property tax levy increase of approximately $538,000, or 2.82%. This is down from the initial draft’s 3.34% increase, thanks to several cost-saving adjustments.

Key Savings and Adjustments

  • The Kenora District Services Board (KDSB) levy increase was reduced from 2.67% to 1.64%, saving about $33,000.
  • The Kenora District Home for the Aged levy dropped from an anticipated 4% increase to just 0.1%, saving $14,000.
  • A new $30,000 allocation was added for an updated engineering report on landfill closure costs.

Mayor Jack Harrison says inflation is impacting the operating budget including higher costs for insurance and labour.

Operating Budget Highlights

  • No major service level changes are planned.
  • OPP policing costs are projected at $4.18 million, down significantly from $5.65 million in 2025.
  • Labour costs will rise by about 3% for unionized staff, with similar increases for non-union employees.
  • Insurance premiums are expected to climb 7%.
  • Social services levies include a 1.64% increase for KDSB and 4% for the Northwestern Health Unit.
  • The city will allocate $982,000 to reserves, including $500,000 to the General Operating Reserve from Domtar Value Add funds and $294,000 to Waterfront Development from MAT revenue.
  • Debt servicing costs remain around $950,000.
  • The Dryden Public Library grant will increase 1.92% to $635,000.

The mayor notes the city is looking at over $20 million in capital expenditures which is one of the larger investments in a number of years but adds provincial funding will help with those projects.

Capital Plan
The 2026 capital budget totals approximately $20.9 million, with $15.5 million funded by external sources such as NOHFC, OCIF, and MTO. Key projects include:

  • Van Horne Property Land Purchase: $300,000 funded by land sale reserves.
  • Duke Street Underground Work: $1.6 million funded through waterworks reserves and user fees.
  • About $1.22 million will come from taxation, and $2.1 million from water and sewer revenues.

If approved, the budget will maintain service levels while investing in infrastructure and reserves, balancing modest tax increases with strategic savings.

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