Members of the local Shrine Club tell council Monday that they will be hosting the biggest parade North Bay has ever had June 13th . Photo by Kate Adams.
Members of the local Shrine Club tell council Monday that they will be hosting the biggest parade North Bay has ever had June 13th . Photo by Kate Adams.
In a quiet night at City Hall on Monday, one of the main issues was the lack of food at the North Bay Food Bank. Dick Dennes, who is on the Board of Directors for the Food Bank said every year they’ll experience a shortage of food in what they call the “Dog days of summer”, however, they seem to be experiencing those times a little earlier this year.
“I appeared in front of Council about this time last year and our shelves were full,” Dennes explained.
He went on to say they had to purchase food on their own in February and March this year; something they haven’t done in previous years.
“Usually it’s the summer time that we have to buy, and this has been a little scary, because, like I said this is unprecedented for us,” Dennes said.
The Food Bank spent a total of $10,000 on food in February and March of this year, something Dennes attributes to the ailing economy, the fact that more people are unemployed and in need of their service.
“It’s a matter of people losing their jobs completely, or being downsized – they’re now part-time instead of full-time. It’s part of the current economy, there are more people out there in real need,” Dennes said. “We experienced a rise of 21% in the month of April from the year before. We served over 1200 people, 650 families.”
As a cost cutting-measure, the Food Bank will be changing locations, just across the street from where they currently are on Hammond Street. This will save them $2400 a year.
Dennes asked residents of North Bay to help out in any way they can.
“We can use pet food, we can use any other food items. If people have dinnerware, things like that, we are always trying to provide that to families leaving the transition house,” Dennes stated.
To help pay for the rent, the Food Bank relies on a dinner and auction help in September. This year’s event will be on Sunday, September 20th and will take place at Churchill’s. Ticket’s are $125 or you can buy a table of ten for $1000. Dennes said he expects to raise anywhere from $8000 to $10,000 from the auction alone.
“We’re looking for unique auction items; we’ve had people donate NHL tickets, sports memorabilia, a day with the mayor is often auctioned off for your children or grand-children,” Dennes explained.
However, Dennes isn’t worried the Food bank will run out of food all together.
“Not with this community. I’m convinced they’ll always be there for us. And we do have reserves, so we’ll be okay,”
Harmonized Sales Tax Issue Goes To Committee
The Province of Ontario has announced a plan to combine the PST and GST for what will be known as the HST or Harmonized Sales Tax. The Government of Canada has exempted all municipalities from paying GST, which has resulted in the City of North Bay receiving approximately $700,000 in 2008; conversely North Bay paid approximately $800,000 in PST in 2008. Under the Harmonized Sales Tax, municipalities would receive a 78% rebate of the Provincial portion of the HST. Councillor, Mike Anthony requested the Province implement a 100% rebate on the Provincial portion, however, Deputy Mayor Peter Chirico opposed the motion and it was sent to committee for further discussion.
Shriners Come To North Bay
Another issue on Monday night’s agenda was the local Shriners will be hosting a parade in North Bay where 1500 Shriners from all over Ontario will be included in the festivities. They expect to have over 50 floats and bands as well as the OPP Golden Shields. The parade will take place on Saturday, June 13th.
