Roger Brooks returns to talk Tourism

He's baaack.

Roger Brooks is making a return visit to Kenora.

Brooks was in town this past summer and talked about making Kenora a tourist destination and how to better brand the city.

Brooks will be holding a public forum on Thursday morning talking about how to better market Kenora and designing the city's future.

The breakfast meeting will start at 8:00 at the Best Western Lakeside Inn.

Brooks will also be meeting with city council on Friday.

More Ice Candles expected at Cemetary this Christmas Eve

Lake of the Woods Cemetary will be ablaze with ice candles once again this Christmas.

Barb Manson organizes the annual Ice Candle Festival and expects more than five thousand will be in place by Christmas Eve.

Ice Candles will be on sale until this Friday.

Proceeds will go toward the completion of the Enchanted Memory Park in the Lakeside area.

Attawapiskat

Aboriginal Affairs Minister John Duncan says a third-party manager is in the troubled northern Ontario native
community of Attawapiskat. In Parliament during Question Period, he says that manager is working to address the residents' urgent health and safety needs, but hinted at a lack of co-operation.

Duncan's spokeswoman says the minister is trying to arrange a meeting today in Ottawa with band Chief Theresa Spence.

Sioux Narrows/Nestor Falls

The Town of Sioux Narrows/Nestor Falls is hoping to spruce up some of

the storefronts in the community.

The Municipality has launched a community improvement plan.

Jeff Port is the town planner and says the CIP is part of an overall upgrade

being worked on in the community.

Port says they have also recently completed an update of their official plan

and expanded their business directory.

Lake of the Woods District Hospital

Lake of the Woods District Hospital says its likely going to have to tighten its

belt even further next year.

At a recent conference in Toronto, Chief Executive Officer, Marc Belcaen says they
were told the budget for the Ministry of Health would increase by one percent in 2012.

He says there's no guarantee hospital budgets will actually increase by the same amount.

Belcaen says with wages going up, along with the cost of living, its going to be challenging to live with just a one percent increase.

Sewer and Water Rates

Kenora residents seem pretty indifferent about how high their sewer and water rates

are going up.

Less than a handful of people attended a public meeting last night on the issue.

Chair of the Operations committee Rod McKay while he was disappointed in the turn
out, the issues they are dealing with are important to the city's finances.


Former city councilor Andrew Poirier was one of two people who attended the meeting
and says a proposed 10 percent rate increase over the next six years will effectively
double out sewer and water bills.