ISSUE #75

Good morning,

Happy Easter Monday, everyone! If you’re off today, good for you, enjoy!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter weekend.

In today’s issue, we cover:

• Liberal costed platform announced 🇨🇦

• Daily Poll -Strong agenda or no?

• Alcohol campaign set to launch 🍻

• Last day for advanced voting 🗳️

• Stunt driving charge👮

• Rossport Marina to temporarily close  🚤

• Amalgamated food wholesale opens up shop 

• Things to do this week 🗓️

• House of the day - John St Rd bungalow with attached garage 🏡

- Marcus Luft

Election

Liberals Announce Costed Platform

Now that the parties are announcing their costed platforms for the upcoming election, I’ll do my best to outline them here.

Today, we’ll start with the incumbents, the Liberal Party of Canada.

Mark Carney announced over the weekend that if he were elected, nearly $130 billion in new measures over the next four years would add $225 billion to the federal debt, combined with existing spending.

Detailed spending elements of his plan include:

• Reducing by 1% the lowest marginal tax rate from 15% to 14%

  • That would cost the treasury $22 billion over the next 4 years

• Increase the defence budget by $18 billion to meet the NATO 2% spending target

• Double the pace of home building by creating the Build Canada Homes (BCH), which will cost $3 billion annually over the next 4 years

• Infrastructure spending for projects such as high-speed rail, digital, community, and health infrastructure, adding up to $20 billion over 4 years

• $4 billion in response to tariffs

• $1.7 billion for the RCMP to hire and train 1,000 more personnel

• $3.5 billion over 4 years for health care initiatives, which include creating more residency medical school programs, youth mental health, and reducing paperwork requirements for IVF programs

In terms of cost savings and revenue, Carney pledged:

• $20 billion in tariff money in 2025-2026

• $3.8 billion in tax penalties and fines via the CRA

• Increased governmental efficiency, saving $6 billion in 2026-26, rising to $9 billion in 2028-29

• Carney predicts reducing the budget deficit from $9 billion a year currently, to $220 million by 2028-29

Let us all know what you think about this in the poll below.

Daily Poll

Today’s question is:

Friday’s Results:

You can download the full results (including comments) here in an Excel file (email addresses have been removed for anonymity).

Healthcare

Alcohol Campaign Set to Launch

The Thunder Bay District Health Unit is launching another campaign this year about the dangers of drinking too much.

Set to launch in the fall, the campaign will focus on 19- to 24-year-olds.

The goal is to educate younger people on the dangers of binge drinking.

Binge drinking, as defined by the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction, is five-plus drinks for men (😳), and four-plus drinks for women on one occasion.

It’s an interesting age cohort. While they are the most likely not to drink at all, they are also just as likely to be the age group that over-drinks when they do partake.

Thunder Bay and the surrounding area have a significantly higher rate of alcohol-related emergency department visits compared to the provincial average.

Voting

Advanced Polls are Open

By now, we should all have our voting cards, and if you’re looking to vote in advance of the April 28 election date, the advanced polls are now open.

Advanced polls in Thunder Bay are open from April 18 to the 21st, making today the last day you can vote ahead of election day.

Over the weekend, Thunder Bay was experiencing up to 30-minute wait times at some advanced poll locations.

Across the country, advanced polls saw wait times in some locations of 2 or more hours.

Elections Canada is predicting a large turnout for this election. Turnout could be as high as 75%, which would be a modern record.

Participating in the last election was in the low 60s.

Crime

Stunt Driving Charge for Donuts

OPP have charged a 25-year-old male driver with stunt driving after he was recently spotted doing donuts in a community hall parking lot.

The male was also charged with operating a motor vehicle without insurance.

The incident occurred last month when the male was seen doing donuts in the Blake Hall Community Centre, damaging the parking lot.

The driver in question was known to the police, who have not released his name, for a variety of vehicle-related reasons, including having lost his license several times for DUI.

North Shore

Rossport Marina Temporarily Closed

The Rossport marina will be closed for approximately 10 weeks this summer.

The dock, which is decades old and in need of repair, is finally getting some love.

It’s part of a larger project that will include removing the east-west section, stabilizing the north-south part (currently leaning to the north), underpinning the marina building, repairing the boat launch area, and installing a new foundation for the boat launch dock.

The construction should extend the life of the dock by another 5 to 7 years.

The marina is slated to be closed from July 2 to September 15. Basically, the entire summer.

Indigenous News

Bay Meats & Cav-Tal Grand Opening

Last year, Marten Falls First Nation and Bay Meats finalized the purchase of Cav-Tal, another food distributor.

They have finally completed the amalgamation and opened their new facility at 701 Norah Cres.

The location has a retail space up front and uses the back for their wholesale business, which sees them shipping food to remote northern communities.

The Bay St location is closed to the public. That is now the production facility, where the smokehouse is located and the Bay Meats products are produced.

Things to do This Week

Events In and Around the City

April 21

Louis CK | Ridiculous
Live comedy show - 18+
Thunder Bay Community Auditorium - 1 Paul Shaffer Dr
7:30pm
$49-$74

Sea Shanty Mondays
An evening of east cost tunes
The Foundry - 242 Red River Rd
8:30pm
$ FREE

Women of the Fur Trade
Live theatre
Magnus Theatre - 10 Algoma St S
7:30pm
$25-$50

April 22

Women of the Fur Trade
Live theatre
Magnus Theatre - 10 Algoma St S
7:30pm
$25-$50

Karaoke Sing-Along Party
Live karaoke
The Foundry - 242 Red River Rd
8:30pm
$ FREE

Name That Tune - Earth Day Theme!
Live music trivia
Sleeping Giant Brewing Co - 712 Macdonell St
7pm-9pm
$ FREE

April 23

Women of the Fur Trade
Live theatre
Magnus Theatre - 10 Algoma St S
7:30pm
$25-$50

Danny Johnson’s Piano Bar
Live piano music - requests welcome!
Shooter’s Tavern - 377 Memorial Ave
8pm
$ FREE

April 24

Women of the Fur Trade
Live theatre
Magnus Theatre - 10 Algoma St S
7:30pm
$25-$50

Open Mic Comedy
Amateur live comedy
The Foundry - 242 Red River Rd
8pm-11pm
$ FREE

Karaoke

• Royal Canadian Legion - Branch 5 - 229 Van Norman St
  7pm-10pm

• Howl at the Moon - Sober Karaoke - 8 Cumberland St S
  9pm

• Norteños Cantina - 235 Red River Rd
  9pm

• Polish Combatants’ Association - Branch 1 - 209 Cumberland St N
  9pm

• The Waterhouse - 9 Cumberland St S
  10pm

• The Alley - 236 Cumming St
  10pm

April 25

Mark Potvin and Mike Carson Live at Monty’s Joint
Live blues/jazz music
Monty’s Joint - 513 Victoria Ave E
6pm-9pm
$ FREE

Women of the Fur Trade
Live theatre
Magnus Theatre - 10 Algoma St S
7:30pm
$25-$50

Acoustic Night
Live acoustic music
Norteños Taqueria
7pm-10pm
$ FREE

Cambrian Players Improv Show
Live improv show - comedy improv troupe (18+ recommended)
Cambrian Players - 818 Spring St
7:30pm-9:30pm
$10

Emo Night: Warped Tour Tribute Show
Live musical performance of all your favourite emo music
Black Pirates Pub - 215 Red River Rd Suite 101
9pm
$10 at the door

Blood Red Moon
Live metal/rock musical performance
The Foundry - 242 Red River Rd
10pm
$5 at the door

Coyote Switchblade and Psycho Therapy
Live hard rock/punk music (Ramons tribute band)
Wayland Bar & Grill
10pm
$5 at the door

School’s Out White Out Party - 19+
White attire event featuring DJ SUPA in support of LUNA and FOBSA Lakehead Organizations
NV Music Hall - 228 Red River Rd
10pm
$10 

Karaoke

• The Hodder - 481 Hodder Ave
  9pm

• The Social - 1047 Dawson Rd
  9:30pm

• The Bar - 863 Red River Rd
  10pm

• The Waterhouse - 9 Cumberland St S
  10pm

April 26

Vinyl Saturdays
Come listen to your favourite tunes on vinyl
Red Lion Smokehouse - 16 Cumberland St S
3pm-9pm
$ FREE

Women of the Fur Trade
Live theatre
Magnus Theatre - 10 Algoma St S
7:30pm
$25-$50

Blacklight Paint Party: Aries-Taurus Edition
Paint party under black light on an 8X10 canvas, with DJ Copic taking over after 9pm when the paintbrushes are put down
Pocketchange - 234 Red River Rd
6pm-9pm (Paint Party - all ages welcome)
9pm (Afterparty starts 19+)
$30

Candlelight Concerts: Queen vs ABBA
Listeso string quarter play your favourites from Queen & ABBA
St. Paul’s United Church - 349 Waverley St
7pm
$35-$53

TBSO Pops - A Trip to Broad with Badanai Theatre Co.
Experience Broadway with the TBSO and Badanai Theatre’s production of “The Music Man” inspired by the grandeur of Kennedy Centre performances
Thunder Bay Community Auditorium - 1 Paul Shaffer Dr
7:30pm
$25-$50

Daniel Moroz Memoriał Scholarship Fundraiser
3 bands, plus prizes & funds raised go to SCVI student scholarships
eVents - 201 South Syndicate Ave
8pm
$10 at the door

Rum Ragged
JUNO award nominees Rum Ragged, live folk music performance
Italian Cultural Centre - 132 Algoma St S
8pm-10pm
$40

Candlelight Concerts: Coldplay & Imagine Dragons
Listeso string quarter play your favourites from Coldplay & Imagine Dragons
St. Paul’s United Church - 349 Waverley St
9pm
$35-$53

Iconica 2 Drag Show
Live drag queen & king performance
Black Pirates Pub - 215 Red River Rd Suite 101
9pm
$15-$20

StripperMania 3: All Stars
Live adult performance 19+
Centrefolds Showbar - 802 Memorial Ave
10pm
$ FREE

Karaoke

• Westfort Prosvita - 721 Gore St W
  8pm-12am

• Howl at the Moon - Sober Karaoke - 8 Cumberland St S
  9pm
  $5

• The Hodder - 481 Hodder Ave
  9pm

• The Social - 1047 Dawson Rd

• Red Lion Smokehouse - Live Band Karaoke - 16 Cumberland St S
  9:30pm-11:30pm

• The Bar - 863 Red River Rd
  10pm

Home of the Day

389 Riveria Dr.

(Realtors if you want your home featured - send us an email: [email protected])

3+1 bedrooms
3 bathrooms
1,490 sqft

$525,000

Bungalow in the original River Terrace with fully finished basement