Ontario Morning

Wasaga Beach car rallies- A new play from the archives in Trent Valley- Bayfield books remembers Alice Munro- Lennox & Addington bus tours for local residents

The Canadian Canoe Museum re-opens in Peterborough and Pembroke retiree Jenny Croft shares her personal experience with 'inflation isolation'

Pickleball court pushback in Peterborough, three minute thesis champion from Queen's University and efforts to bring back programs cut from Flemming College.

How Kingston is handling its population growth, A new app that may save lives and Belleville's head of the transit committee on their new bus routes.

Kingston city council is considering a new approach to planning, transportation, and infrastructure.

It's to prepare for the city's expected growth in the coming decades... toward a population that's expected to reach more than 220,000 by 2051.

A new report is calling for a visionary and strategic approach to that future growth. 

Laura Flaherty is the Planning Services project manager for City of Kingston and one of the authors of the report.

While the province wants more affordable childcare spaces for families, local counties are struggling to make this vision happen.

Samantha Zuercher is Simcoe County's director of children services.

She tells us what happens if space isn't made.

Midwives in Ontario are getting more powers from the province.

Leda McDonald is midwife from Midland.

She explains what this means for the hundreds of parents- to- be in need of health care. 

Ontario's wild turtles are already an endangered species.

Recently their existence seems to be threatened by pet turtles.

We hear more about the domestic invasion of turtles into natural habitats from Johanna Rumney is the animal care co-ordinator at Wye Marsh Wildlife Centre in Midland.

As of July 12th, you'll be able to drive some 400 series highways at the new speed limit of 110 km/h.

Lewis Smith is a member of the Canada Safety Council. 

He shares his perspective on this decision...and what it could mean for road safety. 

Libraries are not just a place to borrow books, but a place where communities gather. 

So the Barrie Public Library hired a community navigator to help the city's vulnerable individuals using the institution. 

We spoke to social worker Ayesha Karim-Mian about her new position.

Deborah Howe is a homicide detective from Barrie Police who also wears a different hat - as a family liaison officer.

She tells us about her role entering a family's life when their world has turned upside down. 

Author Nicola Ross takes us to the Bruce Trail, in which she walks from Niagara to Tobermory in her own creative way in her newly released book: 40 Days & 40 Hikes

She talked to us about how she covered 900 kilometers and why she decided to write a book about it.

Last January Port Hope's council decided to look for a twin city among Ukrainian municipalities. It found Nadvirna,  a town on the western side of the country, not far from the Carpathian Mountains. We spoke to the Mayor of Port Hope, Olena Hankivsky, about this budding relationship.

The  Theatre of Orangeville is playing an original play called The Darktown Strutters' Ball. The play takes the audience on a musical journey, honoring artists from Nat King Cole to Bob Marley. Playwright Leslie McCurdy was overjoyed to chat with us about the show.

After 30 years of volunteering, Joanne Langlois has become the new United Way campaign chair for Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox and Addington. We spoke to her about her plans for the role, and where she sees the greatest needs right now. 

Huron County is hoping to keep its residents close to home. It launched a campaign to retain its working age residents, starting with two billboards. We spoke to Clara Leney,  a workforce coordinator for Huron County, about how the campaign is going.

Innisfil resident Ninko Pangilinan was recently seen on season two of Canada's Ultimate Challenge. The reality TV competition features twenty players, divided into five teams, facing incredible physical challenges in obstacle races all across the country. We spoke to Ninko about his experience.

The Youth Haven Centre in Barrie is set to be demolished next month to make way for a bigger facility. The new space will have increased capacity and access to services like healthcare. We spoke with Lucy Gowers, the executive director at Youth Haven, about the renovations.

Each year, hundreds of people die in workplace accidents in Canada. Tragically, many were preventable. This weekend, Johanna LeRoux, mother of Michael LeRoux, will be sharing her son’s story at an event to mark the annual National Day of Mourning on Sunday. 

For almost 20 years the international event has been inviting all lovers of rivers, lakes and oceans to connect with the paddling world through film.Now the festival makes a Stop in Orillia this weekend. We spoke to Dave Mitchell, Director for Associate Members, about the event.

Local news highlights from April 25, 2024 edition of ONTARIO MORNING:

KINCARDINE PIER SAFETY

​After two decades of fatal and near-fatal drowning incidents, Kincardine is looking at pier safety upgrades. City councillor and chair of the Ad-hoc Pier Safety Committee Rory Cavanagh described what is coming to improve water safety in the area.

TINY TOWNSHIP, BIGGER BUILDING

Tiny Township is growing -- and so are the needs of its council. But a $27 million dollar new municipal office building is too much for some residents, who have been protesting the project. Mayor David Evans explains why bigger spaces are becoming necessary for small communities like his.

BIRD BARN SWANS

The Harrison Park bird barn in Owen Sound has long been a haven for feathered friends, but now a biologist is recommending to council that some of the majestic royal swans may be allowed to die off. We hear why, from Environment and Climate Change Canada's Christopher Sharp, a population management biologist .

Prince Edward County has recruited six new physicians and introduced a pilot project that included significant funding for the overwhelming paperwork doctors have to deal with. Now current doctors are taking on new clients and the county has renewed the project. We spoke with Adam Hambly, the head of Physician Recruitment with Prince Edward County Family Health Team, about it.

Trent University and Fleming College are now partnering with SpacesShared to tackle affordable housing for students. SpacesShared matches students with older hosts for a home sharing arrangement. We spoke to Jen Coulter, the director of student housing and residence life at Trent University, about how it works.

Richard Peddie's life is a journey filled with curiosity. Now this curiosity has taken him to small towns across Ontario like Picton and Huntsville to find out how they are preserving their history and what makes them so resilient. We spoke to him about his chronicles.

The Keep Refillery in Kingston is tackling plastics in a big way. They've diverted hundreds of thousands of bottles from landfills in just 4 short years. We spoke with the owner, Jacquie Rushlow, about her war against plastics.

Bradford West Gwillimbury Library is celebrating Sikh Heritage Month with the works of Canadian artist Kanwar Singh. Singh's Art of Punjab exhibit allows people to view his art with a lens towards sikh culture and history. It's meant to recognize the important contributions that Sikh Canadians have made to the province's cultural fabric. We spoke to Kanwar Singh themselves for details.

The City of Kawartha Lakes has confirmed cases of pertussis, which is also known as the whooping cough. The Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit is now warning parents about the illness that touches the most vulnerable among us. We spoke with Marianne Rock, the manager of communicable disease prevention and control, about the rising danger.

The Mayor of Haldimand County is rejecting the accusations from the Minister of Municipal Affairs about their failure to reach housing targets. The Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Paul Callandra sent a letter to the County accusing them of failing to meet the target and The county has demanded a recount. We spoke to Mayor Shelley Ann Bentley, about the accusations. 

A small group in Merrickville-Wolford Township celebrated a huge victory against the town council vote to ban the pride flag. It came after a motion to prohibit the flag from being flown at Town Hall which was meant to declare June as Pride Month. We spoke to Carlson Card, an advocate who spoke up at the council meeting against the ban, about the celebration.

Many local business owners expressed their fears and frustrations about a budding homeless tent encampment  showing up in the heart of downtown Peterborough core. Now the Trinity Center decided to respond to those fears. Christian Harvey, the executive director, gave us his perspective.

Recently, Peterborough finished building a complex of  tiny homes for 50  homeless people after shutting down an contentious tent encampment on Wolfe Street. But now there are renewed fears and frustrations of another tent city popping up at Trinity Centre, a social agency site run by One City Peterborough.  We spoke to Joel Wieba, Vice President of the Peterborough and Kawartha Chamber of Commerce, about these echoed frustrations.

A mini forest project is developing in Smiths Falls as 300 trees will be planted in Corbett Park across from its new play structure. The project is driven by the Rideau Environmental Action League with the help of the town and local volunteers. We spoke with Lead Project Organizer, David Thornley, about the project.

The Kingston Symphony is holding their annual vinyl sale all this weekend. 

Longtime volunteer Dan Murphy went 'on the record' to highlight some of the musical gems in the massive record collection. 

Feeling the pain when you pay for your grocery bills ? 

You're not alone.

A Reddit post that encourages customers to boycott Loblaws has over 52 thousand signatures.....including that of Lisa Peterson, an Innisfil pig farmer. 

She talks about what the boycott it could mean to her and other farmers.

Swifties will soon have their 'wildest dreams' come true at Queen's University thanks to a new course being offered in the fall. 

We spoke to Swiftie professor Mohamed Khimji, who told us all about Law (Taylor's Version).

Yesterday morning, we told you about the Cornwall council's decision NOT to look at a local developer's proposal to build what they believe to be a big , affordable housing complex in the city. 

We hear from the developer, JC Godard, on the rejection and what's next. 

A 19th century fur trader and former British Indian Department employee will be removed from the Orillia Hall of Fame after it was discovered that he had controversial views towards indigenous people, AND wasn't actually from Orillia. 

Chuck Penny is the chair of the hall of fame's commemorative award committee.

He broke down this decision and what this means for other figures of the hall of fame.

If you're in the Barrie area and have been struggling to find a family doctor, some relief is on the way: a new pharmacist walk-in clinic is opening in the city.  

We check in with pharmacist on call, Qaiser Hassan. 

While everyone's rushing to put shovels on the ground for affordable housing, the Town of Cornwall is turning down a housing project from a local developer to build an affordable apartment complex with 400 units. We spoke with Cornwall Mayor Justin Towndale to explain the decision. 

The town of Collingwood is now being urged to drop animal control service from the Bylaw. Instead, they plan to lean on the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry to take over. We spoke with Collingwood Mayor Yvonne Hamlin about the change in structure.

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Fairy Day Games is a children's imaginative story that allows readers to enter the wonderful and magical world of fairies. This comes after the success of her first book: A Fairy On My Sleeve. Grey Highlands author Mari Sherkin gave us the scoop.

The future needs of policing in Northumberland County will be discussed later today at county council. With expected population growth, increasing social challenges, and public scrutiny towards public safety services, County Council members will hear a presentation from a consulting firm about potential scenarios for policing in the area for the next 15 years. Brian Ostrander, the Warden for Northumberland County and the Mayor of Brighton, spoke to us before the meeting.

Orillia has recently installed drilling accommodations from northern Alberta  as a new housing area for the homeless population in their city. This comes just after the new Tiny homes development project out in peterborough has come with a lot of success. They too think this will be a helpful way to appease the growing unhoused population in the city. General Manager of Social and Community Services for Simcoe County, Mina Fayez-Bahgat, told us more on this development.

Earlier this month Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced $1 billion-dollar of funding over the next 5 years.  However, no specifics have been released as of yet. Brenda Moore  is the Board Chair of the Kingston Food Sharing Project, who is watching to see what the budget will be for the national food program that feeds 16 000 students. We spoke to her about the situation.

Rising Basketball star, Aaliyah Edwards, was officially drafted as the 6th pick for the Washington Mystics as a forward for the team. The Kingston native is a two-time all-American with the NCAA, with a number of accolades in her career. We were elated to celebrate with her and this achievement.

The City of Kingston has been awarded $3.2 million dollars for blowing past the province's housing targets. Mayor Bryan Paterson joined us to talk about the strategy and how they’ll be using this extra cash. 

The City of Kingston and the downtown B-I-A have decided to install a synthetic ice surface in the downtown core of ice rinks. We spoke with Marijo Cuerrier,  the executive Director of the BIA, about the reason behind the change from traditional to synthetic.

The Erie Street Community Church in Collingwood will soon have to scale back its hours after the site was found unhygienic and food contaminated. We spoke to Rhonda Day,  head of the Mobile Soup Kitchen ,which stocks the pantry, about this decision.

The Young Town Museum in Omemee,later Lindsay, was Trevor Hosier’s love letter to Rock N Roll from the 50s, 60s and 70s. The museum, named after Neil Young, featured items from Young as well as personally owned and worn items from the likes of John Lennon,Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Knicks, just to name a few. We spoke to Trevor Hosier about the timeless museum.

This Week, House Leader Paul Calandra said Ontario will support the NDP’s Intimate Partner Violence Epidemic Act. The decision is an about-face for the Progressive Conservative government who rejected the recommendation last year. We spoke with Kirsten Mercer, counsel for the group 'End Violence Against Women Renfrew County', about the inquest.

Gothic Huron: Heroes, Rogues, Murders, Daring, Bawdy Houses and Other Tales is a book about the death cult period of Huron county. It speaks of tales of heroic and villainous deeds while diving into the county’s fascination with death and tragedy of the Victorian Era. We spoke to Author David Yates about this gothic revelation.

Students at Lakehead University are learning the skills required to build a successful business from the Ingenuity incubator. To find out more about the program, we spoke to Sidney Howlet, a recent graduate successfully launched her climate change business, about how it helped build her business. 

A new bylaw in Coburg that puts conditions on local homeless shelter operation had put many shelters and transitional housing in jeopardy with its restrictions and conditions. This has spurred much discourse that has echoed on the show from Ike Nwibe, the Executive Director of Transitional House. That being said, Coburg Mayor Lucas Cleveland spoke with us to give his perspective.

Kelley Ward, the founder of Lost Boys Hope, runs an animal rescue organization based in Barrie that's been saving cats and dogs from Ontario to Manitoba. We spoke to her about her business.

The goal of Green Bowl Foods is to take leftovers and create something nutritious and good for the environment. That could mean taking the pulp from carrots or the barley from brewed beer and “upcycling” the ingredients into a wholesome meal. We spoke with owner Max Jamshidian, about their business.

Three Orillia women embark on a journey of help from mother to mother

 The Mom Collective is a volunteer organization powered by social media, and created by 3 local women. It was created as a space for women in Orillia to find support during or after a crisis strikes. We spoke to Amy Scully, one of the founders, about her organization.

Irrepressible: Yukon's Martha Black is a book chronicling the journey of the second congresswoman elected to the house of Commons, Marth Black. From her unconventional life as a businesswoman to  congress woman, Author Enid Mallory tells all.

Recently, the city of Kingston enacted a ban on daytime camping in their effort to manage the homeless encampment at city parks. Now the town of Cobourg has introduced a new bylaw that puts conditions on shelters and transitional housing. It's called the Emergency Care Establishment By-law. We spoke to Ike Nwibe, the Executive Director of the Transition House Coalition of Northumberland, about the effects of this new law.

In January of 2024, snowboarder Liam Brearley took home his first gold medal in the slopestyle event at the International Ski and Snowboard Federation World Cup in Switzerland. Now the 21 year old recently took home Canada’s first Crystal Globe Trophy in a slopestyle competition. We've reached him in Whistler, BC where he's training.

Dr. Andrew Tennenztap recently found a new and more reliable method for fresh water testing. This new method is said to break down the molecular DNA of a water source to make it easy to track changes right to their origin. We spoke with him about this amazing discovery.

An influx of churches in Bracebridge have relinquished ownership of local cemeteries. That in turn has created financial pressure for the town which is more than the town can bear. The council is asking the province to step in with a financial boost to ease the burden. We spoke to Mayor Rick Maloney about his plight about the situation.

Six years ago Jodi McDaniel signed up for the AncestryDNA test program for health reasons. What she didn't expect was that it would lead her on a journey towards a family member she never met before, her biological father. McDaniel joined us to tell the story.

The students at Georgian College are hosting a special Royal Tea party to support kids who have lost a loved one. They’ve partnered with the Seasons Centre for Grieving Children for this event. We spoke to one of the college students, Kendra Siebert, and a guest, Honestie Slessor, about the upcoming event.

For the first time in over 70 years, the Napanee Beaver is no longer a family-owned paper. Managing Editor Adam Prudhomme assumed ownership of the local paper which has been serving the local community since 1870. We spoke to him about this momentous achievement. 

Superior Court Judge Robert Centa ruled that the Safe Streets Act violates the presumption of innocence and prohibits panhandling in certain locations which violates freedom of expression rights. Barrie Councillor, Keenan Aylwin, spoke to us about the ruling.

Councilors in the Town of Renfrew are calling for the mayor to resign over mismanagement of a big project. It came after a scathing report exposed a lack of oversight and improper handling of contracts for a recreation facility expansion. However, Mayor Tom Sidney is adamant he's not going anywhere. We spoke to him this morning

If you're scrambling to find a pair of solar eclipse glasses for the upcoming eclipse, then look no further as you can build an eclipse projector at home for the event. Vice Principal Jim Dewey of Minesing Central Public School has built homemade solar eclipse projectors with his students and he was happy to share how to make it with us. 

Yesterday was the first day of a bylaw that bans daytime camping in Kingston city parks. 

Temporary shelters must be set up no earlier than one hour before sunset and dismantled no later than one hour after sunrise. For some insight of the aftermath, we spoke to Pamela Gray, a volunteer with the Integrated Care Hub, who was on site yesterday.

School boards have reported a drastic increase of students vaping on school property since the pandemic. But one board has managed to bring that number down recently by installing vape detectors in the washrooms. We spoke to Emily Samuel, the Principal of Safe Schools with the Near North District School Board, about the results of this pilot project. 

A bylaw prohibiting daytime sheltering officially comes into effect for the City of Kingston was put into effect today. Over a dozen homeless tenants at Kingstons’ Belle Park encampment will have to vacate the park, their home. We spoke to Paige Agnew, the Commissioner of Growth & Development Services, for the City, about the sudden migration.

To The Graves' tells a story of a Private School trying to separate itself from the murder of a student and a Detective-Sergeant on the case who firmly believes that a member of the school's community is responsible. We spoke to Coburg Author Paul Nicholas Mason about this crime thriller.

A once-in-a-generation event, the Solar Eclipse, is coming up soon and the city of Kingston is a prime location to catch the entire moon move in front of the sun. Thousands of viewers are expected to descend on the Limestone city. We spoke to Brad Joyce, the  Commissioner of Transportation, Emergency Services and Infrastructure for the City, about the plan to handle this rapidly growing influx.

Local restaurant helps those in need with free meals

A local Barrie restaurant called Tikka Fusion is looking to help those struggling with inflation by post dating some food orders. We spoke with the owner Hassan Muhammad about his new and exciting project.

Recently, we spoke with a Barrie councilor who questioned the city's motion to replace key members of the poet laureate selection committee with councilors. Now the city has voted for the reshuffle. We spoke to a former poet laureate Victoria Butler about results.

With only 5 diagnostic hubs in Ontario, the number of children waiting to get assessed for autism has reached crisis levels. According to local media more than 6,000 kids are sitting on a waitlist. We spoke with Alina Cameron,the President of the Ontario Autism Coalition, about the cause behind these skyrocketing numbers.

While other municipalities are struggling to recruit new family physicians, Belleville has just snagged their 44th doctor-to-be. This is amidst the heavy doctor crisis going on throughout Ontario. We spoke to Karen Poste who is Manager of Physician Recruitment and Retention, for the City of Belleville and Mike Ding, the very doctor-to-be.

Raheleh Saryazdi, an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Trent University's Durham Campus, was recently named the recipient of the University's Early Career Researcher Award. She won the award for her research on the effects of virtual reality on dementia patients. We spoke to her about this incredible career achievement.

Provincial Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy introduced the 2024 budget. The budget provided support for many areas, it deemed miniscule for others, especially the post secondary sector. Maureen Adamson, President Flemming college, spoke to us about her fears.

Liz Robert Young worked more than 40 years in long-term care, but always had dreams of becoming a nurse. It wasn't until a bout with breast cancer a few years ago that made her realize how precious life is. Fast forward to today, she is a few months away from becoming a Registered Practical Nurse with a book of short stories of her journey.

Thousands are expected to flock to the solar eclipse path in Eastern Ontario. the total solar eclipse will cross North America following the St. Lawrence seaway from Belleville to Cornwall before it veers east to the Maritimes. astrophysicist from Queen's University, Nick Arora, gave us the run down to the whole event.

Nestled away along the shores of Lake Simcoe’s Kempenfelt Bay sits a massive Victorian mansion known as The Woodlands estate. It was the home of one of the few survivors of the ill-fated Titanic Lt. Col. Arthur Peuchen. Mary Harris, Director of History and Research for the Barrie Historical Archive knows the stories well of this particular home.

A panel of cannabis industry experts were called in by the government to analyze the potential harms of the plant. 2 years later, they’ve released several recommendations for the Cannabis Act. Trina Fraser ,Partner at Brazeau Seller Law, and specializes in Cannabis law, helped us piece this all together.

He’s got way more than ‘three bags full’ of wool. Todd Payne is a sheep farmer at Asphodel Sheep Company in Peterborough, and recipient of this year's Family Farm of the Year award . 

The Ontario Chamber of Commerce says it's time for the government to relax its restrictions on the cannabis industry and make it easier for retailers to promote products. The head of Independent Retail Cannabis Collective, Shakir Tayabali.

A group out of Grey Highlands says more needs to be done for some special local residents…the turtles! Dave Meslin is part of the leadership team of the Grey Highlands Municipal League. He explains the need and how their program is trying to help.

The government is being sued for suddenly cancelling the provincial basic income pilot project in 2018. We hear from Dana Meslin, one of the plaintiffs from Lindsay.

A big game is coming up this weekend in the Professional women's hockey league, and one superfan from Lindsay will be there. You may not know Debbie Harrison, but you likely have seen her colourful custom-made outfits that went viral!

Renfrew County and District Health Unit recently withdrew from talks on a voluntary merger with the North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit. Joanne King is the chair of Renfrew County and District Health Unit. She explained why the merger didn’t go forward.

More than a year ago, the CBC's Mary Wiens began following the journey of Nathanael Williams through Canada’s prison system. Mary joined us in the studio to share Nathaneal’s story.

Saugeen First Nation is set to create their ‘first’ professional health team. Chief Conrad Ritchie joins us next to share the importance of it and the need for a culturally integrative health care approach for Indigenous people. 

Former US President Richard Nixon was considered a divisive figure in political history. But how familiar are you with his visit to Picton in 1957? That trip is now the focus of a new book being written by Prince Edward County resident Thomas Harrison. 

"THROW IT AWAY? NO WAY!", that's the slogan being echoed by Georgian Bays' Action club on their latest project.

With the warm weather coming early, a lot of reservoirs are worried about the lower than usual levels of water that sits in their water storages. This comes in opposition to the dry season that looms closer to fruition. To explain why that's a problem and the importance of  good water levels we spoke to Ted Spence. He’s the Chair of the  Coalition for Equitable Water Flow. 

Maude Rose Craig was recognized for her work with Millbrook's 4th Line Theatre which is an organization she's been a part of for more than a decade. As one of the youngest to receive this esteemed achievement, we had to speak to her about it. 

Advocates say Caregivers are an indispensable part of our healthcare system, but more are getting burnout. To mitigate that, a new initiative is offering some long-overdue mental health and social support for caregivers. They are calling it Social Prescribing. We spoke to the Executive Director of Canadian Centre for Caregiving Excellence, Liv Mendelson, who was one of the organizations that spearheaded the initiative. We also spoke to Andrea Rovazzi, a long time caregiver of her husband for years.

School boards across the province are increasingly turning to untrained, unqualified teachers to fill in when a professional teacher can’t be found. It’s a practice the unions call a slap in the face to trained teachers. We heard from the Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board Communications Manager, Pauline Stevenson about the disparity going on across the board. We also heard from Elementary Unit President for the Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association, Simcoe Muskoka Unit, Kent Macdonald about why it's so disheartening to current teachers.

Wray Ellis recently discovered a remarkable photo collection of 400 images amongst his late father’s belongings in Peterborough. And a single word in one of the inscriptions led to a profound revelation. We spoke with him about this incredible discovery.

For years we've been hearing about the backlog issues surrounding Ontario's Landlord Tenant Board. In a recent report, Tribunal Watch Ontario says there were 53,000 unresolved cases at the LTB as of March 2023 impacting at least one million Ontarians. Simcoe County council put forward a motion that asks staff to determine the best way to engage the province with the backlog. They hoped that the province would address the hardships being felt locally amongst landlords and renters. We spoke to Wasaga Deputy Mayor Tanya Snell who was the one behind this motion.

Many in the Huron county area might be in for a surprise as their free water testing may end soon. This comes after the Auditor-General's Office made a recommendation to the Public Health Office to gradually phase it out across the province. We spoke to Matt Pearson, the Chair of the Ausable Bayfield Maitland Valley Source Protection Committee, about the situation.

A pair of Trent University students have created a real gift for horse owners by bringing science to the farm. It's called Metaboly, a veterinary diagnostics company that focuses on the equine market. Daniel Palberg is a Co-founder of Metaboly Research Group. He spoke to us about this new and unexplored business.

The city boasts one of the largest Irish populations in Ontario with 62 % of residents having Irish ancestry. This comes from a mass migration from Ireland in 1832. Brendan Moher, a member of the Peterborough Canadian Irish Club, is a descendent from one of the first mass Irish migrations. He was more than happy to give us a riveting history lesson on Peterborough’s origins.

The Township of Tiny now has become the first in Simcoe County to bring in a private investigator to root out illegal rentals in the area. This comes as a response to towns across the province that are finding ways to deal with illegal operators from the height of the pandemic. We spoke to Mayor David Evans about the situation.

Rebecca Diem was appointed by the Board of the Owen Sound and North Grey Union Public Library with the honor a few weeks ago. It's a role that helps highlight the literary arts in the area. We talked to Diem about her tremendous achievement.

The reaction to the news of the Grad Club at Queen’s University may have to shut down  has been swift from the community. After the interview, we received a number of emails including one from Chris Eckert. He’s a Professor & Associate Head, of the Department of Biology at Queen's and had a lot to say about the revelation.

Previously we heard from Certified Restorative Justice Facilitator, Amber McAuley, that Ontario put out a report stating that 3 out of 5 areas, that have a growing area of at-risk youth getting into gang-related activities, are centered in Barrie. To shed some light on the concerning situation, we spoke to Tim Hodgins, an executive officer for the Ontario Gangs Investigators Association.

The South Bruce OPP has opened a Safe Trade Zone at their Walkerton detachment. 

They are looking to curb online market scams and provide a safe place for buyers and sellers in real life to hand off products safely. Constable Kevin Martin spoke to us on the new development.

These are just a handful of recipes early immigrants to Canada would have been whipping up in their mid-19th century kitchens. So Holly Benison, the creator and host of The Backwoods Kitchen on YouTube decided to put them to a taste test and sprinkled in a bit of history. We had a fun time talking about the “decadent” dishes.

Home renters aren’t the only ones struggling with jacked up rent prices. A local Kingston student hub is now at risk of closing after Queens University is set to increase rent by 400%. Astrid Hobill, the Director of Operations at The Grad Club, gave us the story.

Frontenac County implemented a new cardiac arrest training program called Neighbours Saving Neighbours. This program is aimed at training volunteers in treating people with cardiac arrest who are out of hospital. We spoke with Emergency Physician Dr. Steven Brooks who is looking to expand the program and Mark Sherwin, the volunteer who save a person's life, about it.

People in Barrie are getting mullet haircuts at The Mullets for Simcoe fundraiser. It is a fundraiser that is looking to fund collaborative mental health support programs for youth at risk of gang-related behavior. Certified Restorative Justice Fighter and CYW, 

Amber McAuley spoke to us about the retro event.

We've looked at this transitional housing program before on the show. We’ve even recently got an update on the situation from the Elizabeth Fry Society. But now CBC reporter Lorenda Reddekopp was offered a tour of the establishment and brought us an in person view of the situation.

The town council recently voted to implement an additional $460 fee for street light post banners. The abrupt change in policy has community groups and non-profit organizations baffled and blindsided by the decision. We spoke to Tiffany Llyod, Vice-Chair with Greater Napanee Pride, about this sudden shift in policy.

Speed skating sensation Stephen Graham comes home with 3 bronze medals and 1 silver medal at the National Championships for Speed Skating put on by the Special Olympics. We spoke to him about his amazing achievements.

The Bradford West Gwillimbury council unanimously voted to terminate the patio program on Holland St. Some towns have decided to shut down their streetside porches due to the decline of interest from the pandemic. Mayor James Leduc spoke with us about the motion.

Elmvale District High School in Springwater, they’ve been sitting on two hundred and forty thousand dollars from a fundraiser they launched 8 years ago. Councillor Matt Garwood spoke with us about why it needs to start being used.

The Simcoe County Museum is hosting the Tales of Fantasy Museum for the rest of this month. The interactive exhibit touches on a collection of historical folklore from Quebec, Canadian, and Indigenous people's cultures. Forest Patenaude, Education Supervisor of Simcoe Museum, gave us a sneak peak about it.

According to Stats Can, about one in nine of all Canadian adults have experienced long-term symptoms from Covid. Now a group of medical professionals have launched the Canadian Covid Society to address the ongoing support needed to help them. One of the founding members of the non-profit is Chris Houston from Bancroft. He spoke to us about the issue. 

According to the local BIA, 50% of its businesses are owned and operated by women in Port Perry. Sharon Runnalls is a board member, with the Port Perry BIA and co-owner of Branching Out Florists, was elated to talk to us about it.

Hundreds of residents in Kingston queued up in a freezing morning , desperate to snag a family physician after the CDK Family Medicine and Walk-In Clinic announced four physicians would take on around 4,000 new patients. Local Councillor Brandon Tozzo says it's time for the Province to make Kingston a high-needs area for doctors. He spoke to us about his city's concerns.

Measles cases are on the rise while public health officials in Kingston are expressing great concerns over another disease, meningitis. This rare but potentially life-threatening bacterial infection has been confirmed in 3 cases recently. Dr. Piotr Oglaza, the Medical Officer of Health for Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox and Addington Public Health spoke to us on the matter.

Keystone Links Golf and Country Club near Peterborough opened its courses this week. Due to higher temperatures,this is the earliest it has done so since it first opened 29 years ago. Natalie Wood is the Club Manager at Keystone Links Golf and Country Club near Peterborough. She spoke to us about the opening days.

The Bradford public library launched a clothing-like store specifically for transgender or non-binary youth. It's the first of its kind in the province. David Di Giovanni,  Manager of Cultural Services with the library, talked to us about the upcoming pop-up shop for the store.

50 modular homes turned the empty site into a make-shift village for the unhoused in Peterborough. This was after the removal of the contentious Wolfe Street encampment.

The Elizabeth Fry Society of Peterborough has stepped in to make a new colorful encampment for them at the Rehill Parking Lot. We spoke to Jen Turtscher, the site coordinator, about the helpful initiative.

 A Barrie author has taken her own child's experience with anxiety and turned it into a new children's book. The focus of the new children's book is hoping to inspire youth on how they can deal with anxious feelings, in a fun and relatable way. Leslie Hughes, the book's author, was excited to speak with us about it.

Cornwall council plans to convert the former school into transitory housing for the homeless. But some local residents are not happy with the idea, specifically the location.

Cornwall Mayor Justin Towndale joined us to talk about the discourse.

Bears are beginning to wake out of their dens earlier than usual due to the warm weather. Added with a lack of food due to timing, this may lead to common bear sightings in rural areas and camping trips as they sniff out bird feeders and garbage to eat from. We spoke to mike Mcintosh, Founder of Bear With us Centre, about what to do should you run into one at any time.

A new survey from the “Our Care” project at St Michael's Hospital asked approximately 10 thousand Canadians for their impressions about the state of our health-care system. It found frustration and dissatisfaction with primary care, particularly when it comes to access to family doctors. Dr. Tara Kiran, the national lead for the "Our Care Initiative”spoke to us about the findings.

Universities are in the news headlines a lot these days, for the wrong reason: financial challenges, lack of government funding, and the impact of international student permits' cap. Amid all these, Cathy Bruce is ready to step up as the new president of Trent University. She joined us to share her vision for the institution and what the future holds. 

In Bradford West Gwillimbury, Their council recently approved preliminary changes to the town’s zoning bylaw to increase the number of ADU’s that residents can build on their property. But according to Joseph Giordano, the Ward 4 councilor,  the town needs to be more critical of the options. He joined us to share his thoughts on accessory dwelling units. 

A new hockey team is coming to Peterborough, although it is not ice hockey but volt hockey! It's a more accessible form of the sport that originated in Denmark in the 1990s. Cindy Mytruk, Manager of Partnerships and Inclusion for the YMCA of Central East Ontario, has been involved in bringing this sport to Peterborough and is looking to begin during March break. She discussed it in more detail with us over the phone.

A decision by Owen Sound City Council to dissolve a task force that reviews councillor pay has one councillor concerned ... could it affect people's decision to participate in Municipal politics in the future? 

Councillor Jon Farmer shares his thoughts.

Need a prescription but don't have a family doctor, and can't get to a nurse practitioner in your local walk-in clinic in time ? 

Well, good news is you will soon have another option: see a registered nurse. 

We spoke with the first RN in Ontario who's able to write prescriptions. 

With the warmer than usual weather , snowmobiling can be particularly dangerous ... so, before you jump on your snowmobile, the OPP want you to take a pause and take your foot off the pedal. 

This morning on the show, we spoke with Carly Williams, a Queen’s grad who returned to Kingston, this time to premiere her short film City Thots, at the Kingston Canadian Film Festival. 

Peterborough council approved a massive overhaul of their portfolio system, but not all the councilors are pleased with the decision. We heard both sides of the argument.

After two years on the show, and four years at the CBC, our very own Jared Hillel is taking a leave of absence, to and moveing to London. He shared his parting words with us this morning.

Food4Kids Muskoka sends a food bag home with kids in need every friday. The non-profit wants to make sure no child goes hungry over the weekend.  With demand growing, they will soon offer their program to Gravenhurst and Bracebridge. Kristie Shaver, the marketing and communications manager at Food4Kids Muskoka, joined us to talk all about it. 

Birthdays..Graduations... These are events we think of as milestones in a child's life worthy of throwing a party. But, on social media, some parents are finding smaller victories to celebrate in a big way. They are calling these "inch-stones". Sara Dimerman, a psychologist and author of "How to Influence our Kids for Good", joined us to share her thoughts on this trendy celebration.

The sandhill crane is a bird that was almost wiped out by hunters decades ago. But now that its numbers have made a comeback in the province, the federal government might allow it to be hunted again. Some biologists argue this is a bad idea, while others think the bird's population can sustain hunting. We spoke to Matthew Robbins, a wildlife biologist with the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters, about the situation.

Amidst dwindling labor shortages and high production costs, many small-time farmers are looking into other ways to keep up with the economic turn. Some have looked towards offshore help, while others have begun to adopt a more robotic approach. Adrian is a dairy and cash crop farmer who has transformed his aging animal barn into a Robotic Cow Barn. We spoke to him in Cochrane, Ontario. 

As the family doctor shortage crisis continues in the province, health units are finding new ways to get the care patients need.  The Prince Edward Family Health Team will be opening a new community clinic for those without a family physician, by using a staggered operational model. This comes as a response to the family doctor shortage crisis that continues across the province. Barinder Gill, the Executive Director for the Health Team, spoke to us about the new initiative.

The Progressive Conservative government introduced the Get it Done Act. Political watchers say, there’s not a lot of surprises in the so-called omnibus bill. Robert Benzie, the Queen's Park Bureau Chief for the Toronto Star, joined us to discuss the new bill. 

At the end of this week, Ukraine marks its second anniversary at war. Two years since Russia launched its full scale invasion, tens of thousands of civilians and soldiers have died. The war now appears to be a stalemate and the future looks uncertain. Andrew Rasiulis, a Fellow with the Canadian Global Affairs Institute, spoke with us about the grim situation.

A pair of local farmers are now using an ancient Japanese farming technique to boost their produce. The couple, Ava Richardson and Kiyotami Owatari, run an organically grown market garden called Hello Farm. They recently received the Peterborough Agricultural Innovation Award for their work in the county. Ava Richardson spoke to us over the phone.

David Scott's desire to document local legends led to his first book: Huron County Hockey Heroes. Now he has put out a sequel: First Overtime. The book discusses the legacies of small town hockey rinks that have survived through generations of hockey players. It's a book that celebrates the preservation of these ice rinks. We spoke to David at length about his newest addition.

10,000 people is the number of Ontarians with developmental disabilities currently waiting for a spot in a group home. Advocates say they’ve had to bunch more people together just to keep up with the demand. Larry Palmer, Executive Director of Camphill Communities Ontario, and Skylar Charlebois, a client of Larry’s,  spoke to us about the scope of the situation.

Housing and mental health issues are rising across the province, and they are being felt in many communities for the first time. Downtown Kingston B-I-A introduced their new Welcoming Streets Steward, Josh Morgan, to help provide support in that area. We spoke to him over the phone.

In response to the lack of access to a family physician or nurse practitioner, the federal government announced this month that it's increasing student loan forgiveness for rural doctors and nurses. Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault says the change will expand healthcare access where it's needed most. Pallavi Dutta, a second-year medical student at Queen's University, is optimistic about its effects but says the new program is only a first step.

She spoke more about her concerns over the phone.

Sugar Season for a lot of maple shacks in Ontario are in full production as we reach the midpoint of this weird winter. One of the first Sugar shacks  opened in the Vanier neighborhood of the capital which is one of only a few urban sugar bushes in Canada. CBC's Halima Sogbesan ventured out into the Richelieu Forest to find out what sugar season is all about.

As snow finally blankets our region, we caught up with the president of the Kinkardine cross country ski club to see what they have planned for the weekend ahead.

Residents in the Quinte Region are grappling with the news that the paper manufacturer, Cascades , will be shutting down after decades in business. The Mayor of Quinte West joined us to discuss what this means to the entire region. 

If you're driving along any rural road in Ontario you’ve likely seen those big, black portable sign boards with colorful letters advertising a local business. This morning, we went to Petawawa where a signage battle between the town and a local business could head to court.