THE
Vol. 116 – No. 43
Wednesday, December 22, 2021
TEMISKAMING
SPEAKER
www.northernontario.ca
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2021
TEMISKAMING SPEAKER
Page 1a
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! Inside Greetings edition $1.75 per single copy (H.S.T. included)
“Game changer” Omicron propels preChristmas push for boosters
Diane Johnston Speaker Reporter
LET IT SNOW, LET IT SNOW
The Dénis family – Jose and Caroline, with daughters Dominique, second from left, and Joline, far right – hit the trails at their Hudson Township farm. CAJO Sleigh Rides, with Belgians Jacob and Bud in harness and COVID-19 protocols in place, is preparing for another season. And what would they like for Christmas? “More snow,” said Caroline, to improve trail conditions and enable visitors to try the sledding and tubing run in the bush. (Staff photo by Diane Johnston)
A one and a two City �inalizing 2022 budget with small increases
Diane Johnston Speaker Reporter
TEMISKAMING SHORES – A one per cent increase in the municipal tax levy and a two per cent increase in water and sewer rates will be incorporated into Temiskaming Shores’ 2022 budget. City council was scheduled to adopt the budget in principle last night (December 21). For the average ratepayer with a house assessed at $206,000, the property tax bill will increase by $24 and water and sewer rates by $19. Councillors spent a little over an hour at a special meeting last week reviewing the latest
draft of the city’s spending plans. “That’s probably the quickest that we’ve ever looked at (the) budget and completed it,” commented Mayor Carman Kidd. But he said staff have been working on it since August, and committees have also discussed spending plans in detail. OPERATIONS The operations budget – which covers the day-to-day staffing, utilities and other expenses needed to run the municipality – tallies $13.1 million. That’s up about $276,000, or
two per cent, from 2021. The budget includes an additional $68,300 to cover expected increases in levies that the city pays to the district’s social services administration board and the Timiskaming Health Unit. Together they make up a projected $2.89 million. Policing costs are another $2.23 million, which is actually down five per cent from 2021. The budget also takes into account rising liability insurance costs, building in an additional $125,000, or 24 per cent. On the revenue side, the city will receive a little more – $16,100 – from the Ontario
Municipal Partnership Fund. Its funding under the Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund is increasing by about $500,000. It will also receive $225,000 over each of the next five years under a new Northern Ontario Resource Development Support Fund. Much of the funding from the two programs will be used for capital projects and financing costs. (See “City capital plans top $16 million,” page 3a) Staff recommended a one per cent increase in the total tax levy. Continued on 3a
Bumps in the road Transit suffering pandemic side effects
Diane Johnston Speaker Reporter
TEMISKAMING SHORES – COVID-19 continues to take its toll on Temiskaming Transit. “We’re about 65 per cent of our ridership prior to COVID hitting,” said Chris Oslund, Temiskaming Shores city manager and administrative support to the transit committee. Oslund said there’s still some hesitancy to use public transit, in part because some users refuse to wear a mask. “We can’t refuse service, because transit is deemed an essential service,” he said. “But that does cause rider hesitancy as well.” He said the third phase of
Safe Restart funding under the federal-provincial initiative will be “very important” for the local bus service. His comments came at a December 7 council meeting, which included consideration of a recent Ontario Public Transit Association report. Thirty-five transit providers responded to a survey on the impact of the pandemic on transit service use. Respondents included 11 from communities with populations under 50,000 and four from Northern Ontario. “Over the next year, ridership is expected to rise to about 70 per cent of pre-Covid levels from about 55 per cent today,” it concluded.
“Without extended operating support, most systems are also considering the need to cut service – likely pushing riders away at the very moment demand is rising.” Respondents took note of the decline in rider numbers caused by the suspension of in-person learning at colleges and universities. Oslund said that was a factor for Temiskaming Transit, which is used by some of the 450 students attending Northern College’s Haileybury campus. “We didn’t have that for a year. That had a significant impact,” he said. Ridership has increased since students returned to campus in the fall, he said.
Despite the ongoing challenges, he said the transit service is continuing to work on “a lot of positive things.” But without the Safe Restart funding, “we would have a significant problem,” he said. He foresees lower ridership and the related decrease in revenue “spilling into 2022.” The transit service also relies on funding from provincial gas tax revenue. That revenue overall dropped, because fewer people were driving as a result of the pandemic, he said. However, he said the province has indicated that it will maintain current funding for transit, even though its gas tax revenue has dropped.
TEMISKAMING SHORES – “Omicron’s a game changer,” says the district’s acting medical officer of health. Omicron, the new variant of the virus that causes COVID-19, had not yet been confirmed in Temiskaming, but is “definitely suspected,” said Dr. Glenn Corneil in an interview earlier this week. “I have no doubt that it’s already in our district,” Corneil said. Detected in Ontario less than a month ago, health officials say the more infectious Omicron variant is poised to quickly become the dominant strain in the province. “We know with Omicron there will be larger outbreaks, and we’re starting to see more early signs of that,” Corneil said. Based on what’s known to date, he said vaccination – including a third booster dose, particularly for people aged 50 and older – is even more important. In Temiskaming so far, he said, people who are not vaccinated or only partially vaccinated have been seven times more likely to get COVID-19 than their fully vaccinated counterparts. “We know that’s going to shift with Omicron,” he said. While two doses are performing “very well” in preventing serious outcomes, he said they’re “not enough to prevent infection with Omicron.” And because vaccination alone is not enough, “that’s why more public health measures have been brought in,” he said. New restrictions across Ontario took effect earlier this week. They include limiting informal social gatherings to 10 people indoors and 25 people outdoors. Capacity limits have been reinstated at businesses, as have limits on the number of people permitted to sit together in restaurants. Operating hours at restaurants and bars have also been reduced. Corneil’s message to the public as Christmas approaches? “Just be careful over the holidays, folks. I know we’re all tired and it’s another COVID Christmas, but the modelling from Omicron is very concerning,” he said. “Limit your gatherings, limit your social contacts.” He stressed the need to wear medical masks and to wear them properly, describing proper masking as an “important defence” against the new Continued on 3a