October’s municipal election results and rookie candidate Keith Hobbs’ mayoral victory beat out Horizon Wind Inc.’s lawsuit against the city, if only just barely, for tbnewswatch.com’s story of the year.
A combination of web site statistics and the news judgment of tbnewswatch.com’s editorial staff helped draft the following list of the year’s top 10 news stories.
1 Municipal election results
Change wasn’t exactly the theme of 2010’s municipal election, even if it was the result of the mayor’s race.
Rookie politician Keith Hobbs won the city’s top elected job by a landslide over then-incumbent Lynn Peterson, a feat that some predicted late in the campaign but few believed could happen early on. Hobbs utilized social media and door knocking to gain the support he needed to win.
But an election victory doesn’t become the year’s top story because the winning candidate knocked on doors and knew how to use Facebook. What made this election so newsworthy was the polarizing debates any story involving the then-candidate would spark. Every story that featured the mayor’s race would be accompanied by emotional debates within the site’s comment section.
The election results outside the mayor’s race were also interesting because it told such a different story. While the mayor’s race seemed to be about change, the ward and at-large races appeared to be more about keeping everything the same.
2 Horizon Wind Inc.’s lawsuit
Any story that mentioned wind turbines immediately attracted massive attention from tbnewswatch.com readers.
Most of those stories also featured an active comment section. But there is one story that stands above all the others and could even debatably be called the No. 1 story of the year – Horizon Wind Inc.’s $126-million lawsuit.
The southern Ontario-based company filed the suit against the city after council voted to approve the location of 14 of the 18 wind turbines Horizon has planned for the Nor’Wester Mountain range. The lawsuit claims breach of contract, among other things. The city later asked for the dispute to be solved by an arbitrator.
3 Tragedy at the Historical Park
A tragic incident involving a horse-drawn carriage led to the death of four-year-old Willow Scott Hannam at the Fort William Historical Park in May, a story that immediately drew the attention and kindergarten and senior kindergarten class from Hyde Park Public School. During that visit a startled horse collided with the young girl.
Paramedics airlifted the girl to the Winnipeg children's hospital where she died en route. Officials with park said it was the first time a fatal incident took place in 30 years at the park.
PETA later sent out a call to end the practice of horse-drawn carriages at the historical park, calling the practice cruel to the animals that are used. That outcry led to anger and criticism that the group was trying to use the death of the young girl to advance its own cause.
4. Death at a dog park
Few stories were more read in 2010 than the one involving the death of a small dog at a city dog park.
The chihuahua-mix dog died at the Winnipeg Avenue off-leash dog park after allegedly being attacked by a larger dog that many believed was part pit bull, a breed now illegal in this province.
The story sparked major debate in tbnewswatch.com’s comment section. Many argued whether the fault of the incident should be placed on the dog or its owner. Other arguments centered on the size of dogs that were being brought to that park, which is size-restricted. Some even expressed anger toward the city for the perceived quality of the side of the park that is not size restricted, which many said was small and dirty compared to the size-restricted area.
The matter became more complicated when the owners had to prove that Jimi did not have any pit bull lineage. The courts will revisit the matter in the new year.
5 One month, three murders
September 2010 became an infamous month in Thunder Bay as city police were kept busy with three murder investigations.
Two Thunder Bay women were charged with first-degree murder on Sept. 3 after the body of Verna Patricia Sturgeon, 30, was found in a room at Travelodge Airlane Hotel. Thunder Bay Police Service officers charged Joanne Vivier, 33, and Michelle Morris, 28.
Patrick Kanate, 19 was charged with second-degree murder in the Sept.14 stabbing death of Keegan Williams, 25, on High Street. And two teens, aged 14 and 15, were charged with second-degree murder following the beating death of a 16-year-old Sachigo Lake girl whose body was found in the woods near County Park
6. Harmonized Sales Tax
The combination of Ontario’s Provincial Sales Tax and the federal government’s Goods and Services Tax generated anger, debate, and even led to a rally on Thunder Bay’s expressway in May.
The combination of the taxes was made official on Canada Day. Opposition to the tax has still been vocal since then, but the fight against the tax has subsided considerably.
7. Waterfront critic banned
Any story about the ongoing waterfront development construction generated attention and debate in 2010.
But when the city banned outspoken waterfront development critic John Hutt from Marina Park, opponents and proponents alike became more energized than ever before.
Hutt believed his vocal opposition to the project is what led to the ban. However, city officials said Hutt was served with the notice for his own protection and that due to liability and safety issues in a construction zone, the public is not allowed onsite.
Community services general manager Greg Alexander said a ban like the one imposed on Hutt only happens after repeat offences.
8. Shocking murder trial
One of the most shocking trials of the year ended when the defendant pleaded guilty in February in a Thunder Bay courtroom to murdering his common-law girlfriend.
The second-degree murder guilty plea was followed by details of how 31-year-old Michael Shingabis not only murdered his live-in girlfriend but kept the body with him for more than a week and eventually had sex with it. That led to charges and a conviction of indignity to a dead body following the death of Sybil Stoney in January 2009.
Shingabis was sentenced to life in prison on March 22 with no possibility of parole for 14 years.
9 Transit City in limbo
It is still unknown what might happen to a Bombardier contract that was said to create about 250 jobs for nearly a decade in Thunder Bay.
In December, newly elected Toronto Mayor Rob Ford said he wanted to stop Transit City, a project that includes an $8.15 billion light-rail network that utilizes mostly funds from Queen’s Park, and move forward with his subway plans.
Bombardier spokesman Marc Laforge said the company will continue working on the light-rail vehicles until it is told officially by its client to stop. The company was awarded a $1.2 billion contract to manufacture 182 light-rail vehicles for the TTC.
MPP Bill Mauro (Lib., Thunder Bay-Atikokan) said he was definitely concerned about how the scrapping of the contract could affect Thunder Bay.
10. Club 555 burns down
The vacant building on Simpson and Miles Streets that was formerly Club 555 burned to the ground early in the morning Jan. 28.
While several vacant buildings have burned down in city, the club known to many as the Triple Nickel seemed to generate the most attention and debate.
The cause remains unknown and the building collapsed, leaving the lot presently empty. The owner of the building later pleaded guilty in court for not cleaning up the mess the fire left behind.
The owner said he did not have insurance at the time of the fire, and could not afford to pay the $50,000 it would cost to clean up the rubble. The owner settled with the city and accepted a $200 fine.
That’s our list. Disagree with it? Good, we would like to hear what stories you believe we missed, or just let us know what order you would have preferred.
