UPDATE: Monday's council meeting has now been cancelled. Mayor Boshcoff is expected to give the state of the city address at a later date.
Read the original story below:
THUNDER BAY – Council’s second meeting of the year is scheduled for Monday evening, and at the top of the agenda is the state of the city address, which outlines municipal body's priorities for 2024.
Mayor Ken Boshcoff titled this year's address “All roads lead to Thunder Bay”, stating that it emphasizes the city's strategic location and the vast opportunities it offers.
“There's a reason we're in the centre of the country, so we might as well make that blessing an opportunity,” he said.
“So, whether it's transportation, education, industry, recreation, we want to be the centre of Canada.”
Boshcoff said he's concerned there may be a duplication of services offered by the city and by local social service agencies. He pointed out that reducing duplicated services could not only cut costs, but also help in organizing the available support more efficiently.
“Here we also have a city operation, so we're kind of duplicating services there. So, we'll try and get that simplified,” he said.
“We really have to get it more coordinated as opposed to spending more money than we have to, and let the money get focused to where it's going to help.”
Boshcoff also highlighted the significant growth of the mining industry in the region and how it will have a positive impact on the economy and the construction industry. He went on to say that this growth will lead to an increased demand for housing in the area.
“The opportunities from the mining industry and the housing, we have already been recognized for our housing commitment and that is going to be a construction bonanza,” he said.
“And the mining is going to benefit because we're going to have houses for them to live. So, between those two things, mark my words: we're on a growth pattern.”
