THUNDER BAY — The City of Thunder Bay says its delegation to the Association of Municipalities of Ontario virtual conference had an opportunity to discuss local priorities with half a dozen members of Premier Doug Ford's cabinet.
The three-day conference, which concluded Wednesday, was conducted entirely online.
Thunder Bay was represented by Mayor Bill Mauro, City Manager Norm Gale, Councillor Kristen Oliver, and Councillor Brian McKinnon, who chairs the city's intergovernmental affairs committee.
In a statement, the city said its delegation brought forward a dozen community issues to lobby for government action and/or funding.
Priority topics included:
- Bombardier
- Crisis centre
- Non-urgent patient transport
- RegenMed
- Thunder Bay Expressway
- Shelter House
- Provincial Offences Act
- Joint and several liability
- Multi-sport complex
- Multi-purpose correctional facility
- Next Gen 911 service
- Police services funding
The Thunder Bay delegation met with the ministers of economic development and job creation, health, transportation, and community and social services, as well as the attorney general, the solicitor general and the parliamentary assistant to the minister of infrastructure.
"We were fortunate to have secured some important virtual meetings to discuss critical community issues," Mayor Mauro said.
However, the city's statement did not indicate what, if any, commitments were obtained for followup action by ministers.
