businesses and an underground parking garage could go up on the long-vacant downtown lot that formerly housed Dailey’s Leather Goods and Sporting Goods Brockville council’s planning and development committee will hold a public meeting Tuesday evening to discuss the proposal were long a fixture of King Street West before a fire destroyed the business on March 20 The lot has sat vacant for the ensuing quarter-century While city staff noted that several proposals have come forward over the years for the redevelopment of the site “nothing has been formally presented in many years,” and the property remains a parking lot rented by the city and containing 40 paved and 20 gravel parking spaces A report to the planning committee by city chief planning officer Andrew McGinnis notes that acting on behalf of the property’s current owners filed applications for amendments to both the official plan and zoning bylaw for the site known municipally as 107-119 King Street West Your weekday digest of the top stories from our newsrooms in Cornwall By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc The next issue of Eastern Ontario Midday Roundup will soon be in your inbox Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. would permit the property to be developed as a six-storey mixed use building containing approximately 615 square metres of leasable commercial space interior and rooftop courtyards and 113 underground parking spaces accessed from Home Street and/or Apple Street The EFI report identifies the owners as King Hill Properties and adds the proposed building “integrates street-level commercial uses with 140 residential units along with extensive indoor and outdoor amenity spaces “The design reflects Brockville’s architectural character while supporting the city’s growth management and downtown revitalization objectives,” the report adds The proposed design includes rooftop and courtyard amenity areas and “heritage-compatible façades,” the report continues “This redevelopment represents a strategic investment in Brockville’s urban future and inclusive mixed-use community at the heart of the city,” the consultants say If council proceeds with the zoning amendments the stage could be set for another significant development in the main core at a time when the city has prioritized the creation of new housing Encouraging more residential development downtown has also long been a city objective City officials are now awaiting a site plan application for that project The Dailey’s site project has the support of at least one city resident who provided feedback to planning staff saying the “current parking lot is an underutilization of the property’s potential.” “A mural should be considered along the large concrete wall on Home Street,” the feedback continues Brockville council’s planning committee will hear opinions As with all public meetings of the planning committee but gather opinions and await recommendations from staff transmission or republication strictly prohibited This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. 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By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. and soggy skiesVendors optimistic despite economic uncertainty Not even the rain could wash away the excitement Saturday morning as the Brockville Farmers’ Market officially opened for another season in the heart of the downtown core A bagpiper led the way as Mayor Matt Wren helped kick off the 2025 season on Market Street West continuing a tradition that dates back to 1832 More than 30 vendors lined the street despite the damp weather offering everything from fresh produce and flowers to handmade crafts and locally distilled spirits “It was great to see all the incredible local vendors back Wishing them all a successful season and looking forward to enjoying their amazing local produce and goods.” While opening day was met with grey skies and bursts of rain the mood was upbeat and hopeful as shoppers weaved between stalls Leeds-Grenville-Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes MPP Steve Clark praised the long-running market and those who keep it going “A little rain couldn’t dampen the excitement,” said Clark “Kudos to the market’s leadership team and here’s to another successful season.” One of the key people behind that leadership is market chairman Greg Stainton Alongside his wife Kate and their children Stainton is a fixture at the market every weekend The Harmony Farms team offers organic seasonal vegetables and freshly grilled sausage and peameal bacon It’s also a pickup point for farm share members Greg is hard at work in the fields or tending to livestock with his sons helping out on the farm and at the market pitches in after work and joins her family downtown on weekends Despite economic uncertainty facing many small businesses this year The Brockville market community is known for its support and newer vendors continue to be welcomed with advice and encouragement from longtime participants offering a blend of old-fashioned charm and modern local goods that have kept visitors coming back This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. 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By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy Brockville police have arrested one man following a number of physical and verbal altercations early Friday morning police were called to Broad Street Billiards regarding a fight that took place between a 25-year-old man and another person at the establishment three of the person’s friends tried to break up the fight and the 25-year-old man threatened to shoot them all The fight ended and the suspect left the bar the 25-year-old male was observed driving around looking for the group he was involved in an altercation with,” said Brockville police in a press release “Police began receiving multiple 911 calls regarding a disturbance in the area of Perth Street and Front Avenue involving the 25-year-old subject and two of the males from the previous altercation.” Police say the suspect drove his car at the two men, got out and assaulted one of them, and threatened to shoot him again. The man who was assaulted was transported to hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Police found the suspect nearby and discovered that he had been drinking alcohol and confirmed he had been driving his vehicle impaired. The 25-year-old man was charged with impaired operation, impaired operation with blood alcohol of over 80mg, four counts of uttering threats and two counts of assault. He was held in police custody pending a bail hearing. At about 10:30 p.m. on Wednesday, police located a woman who they believed was driving while impaired at Blockhouse Island. Police say a roadside breath test was taken, which resulted in a fail. The 21-year-old woman was arrested and taken to police headquarters for further testing, where it was deemed that she was impaired. “Further investigation revealed that during this incident, police had spoken to the female subject’s 23-year-old boyfriend,” said Brockville police in a press release. “It was determined that he was speaking to police while at an address in the area of Parkedale Avenue, while on conditions to abstain from attending there due to a previous intimate partner violence incident. He was arrested as well.” The woman’s driver’s licence was suspended, her vehicle impounded, and she was charged with operation while impaired, operation while impaired with a blood-alcohol concentration of over 80mg and having care or control of a vehicle with open liquor. She was released with a future court date, and the man was charged with failing to comply with undertaking and held in custody for a bail hearing. During the month of April, Brockville Police received 1,656 calls for service. As a result, officers made over 90 arrests and laid 405 charges. 147 of those charges were under the Criminal Code, 241 were traffic-related and 17 were for various provincial offences, including trespassing and liquor charges. The United Way Leeds Grenville (UWLG) launched its 2025 campaign with a volunteer breakfast at the Brockville Country Club on Thursday Present at the sold-out event were over 100 supporters UWLG executive director and Melissa Hindman and Rideau Valley Conservation Foundation provided a glimpse into the high level of community commitment all 17 partners provide “Girls Inc does prevention services through outreach for girls between six and 18 across Leeds Grenville,” said Lesley Hubbard “We go to where the girls and their families are “During the summer months we provide nine weeks of summer programming in seven different communities across L-G and we assist approximately 350 girls every year with after school and evening programming We also provide ‘wraparound’ family support If families are struggling to meet their child’s basic needs we provide a monthly food basket in partnership with the Brockville Food Bank We also have a subsidy plan for our STEAM programs with no questions asked to make sure girls get to our programming.” “United Way Leeds Grenville supports our social-recreation program our wellness program and our vocational program,” said Chris Curry of Addictions and Mental Health which included presentations from David Beatty and Jordi Willis “UWLG provides funding for activities for our clients A large range of programs that also includes job skills training,” said Curry and treatment hub in Brockville and in Lanark It will provide 66 beds across the tri-county region for people who are experiencing homelessness problems with substances and mental health,” he said which removes financial barriers for priority schools so all children can access curriculum-connected outdoor education programs The grant will cover tuition and bussing for 15 classes to learn and explore Foley Mountain Conservation Area over the coming year “All students deserve a chance to learn and explore the great outdoors We support outdoor education subsidies such as bussing to get students to the programming We get kids out in nature teaching them outdoor education growing that experience of the natural world and understanding our environment building confidence while breathing fresh air.” the site supervisor who oversees the program at Foley Mountain “We’re excited to offer this through the watershed so that kids can access our programs We’re super excited to have some financial support from United Way to help cover actual costs of the program as well as the bussing allowing us to get more kids into the forest learning and connecting with nature which will help students grow in so many ways.” UWLG presented the Chair Cup awards to its 2024 partners. The Chair Cup is presented to organizations that led the way in their sectors through successful United Way campaigns. Special Volunteer Awards included the Gord Brown Memorial Award to Darren Gallacher and the Unsung Hero Award to Barb Geggie. “We were proud to present funding to local programs and honour the incredible individuals and workplaces who went above and beyond in 2024 with awards,” said Jack. An investigation into an alleged sexual assault involving at least four hockey players who have connections to the Brockville Braves Junior A team is raising questions from the team’s owner about Hockey Canada’s jurisdiction to investigate such incidents Braves co-owner Dustin Traylen told TSN in a series of recent interviews that the allegations are connected to an incident that took place at Queen’s University in Kingston following the conclusion of the team’s 2023-24 season Brockville is an hour drive north of Kingston and the Braves play in the eight-team Central Canada Hockey League When Hockey Canada became a full signatory to the Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner (OSIC) in 2022 the federation agreed to cede oversight of complaints related to incidents on national teams to the OSIC and to establish a new Independent Third Party (ITP) to handle maltreatment complaints including serious allegations of abuse when they arise Traylen said he was notified by the ITP on Dec 6 that two players on his roster would be suspended pending the results of its investigation of the incident (Two other players facing allegations did not return to Brockville this season One player retired from hockey and another is now playing in the U.S.) as the complainant and respondents await the investigation findings Traylen is raising questions about the ITP’s jurisdiction He says police have the proper expertise to investigate such matters and that the ITP should have referred the case to police since the alleged assault did not occur during the hockey season There is no police investigation into the incident a person familiar with the matter told TSN Anthony Colangeli wrote in an email to TSN Wednesday that “Without further information or details regarding the exact date of the incident or the involved parties I can’t be certain that our organization has any knowledge of this incident or that it was reported to us in any fashion." Colangeli wrote that Kingston police take all allegations of criminal offences seriously and he encouraged the complainant to report the incident "The players are under our care and control during the season, and we have codes of conduct to try to keep kids on the straight and narrow, but this happened after the season,” Traylen said Hockey Canada is looking at what kids are doing during summers Traylen says the players who have been accused have been refused proper mental health support and that he is concerned for their well-being “One of these boys has dropped 30 pounds and is gaunt and pale,” Traylen said “It has taken a physical and emotional toll on him wrote that while it would not comment on individual cases “a jurisdiction assessment is conducted on all files and some complaints pertaining to allegations of conduct that occur outside of Hockey Canada-sanctioned activities can fall within our jurisdiction particularly where they bring the sport or the organization into disrepute.” Ferdinand-Hodkin wrote that in cases where complaints contain allegations that could be subject to criminal investigation the ITP contacts local police to ensure it is not interfering with their investigation “The ITP and all professionals involved in complaint processes comply with their reporting obligations to law enforcement as appropriate,” she wrote Traylen said that that he also took issue with the uneven way Hockey Canada’s ITP has handled the players’ suspensions.  one of the Brockville players had his suspension lifted for three days so he could participate in training camp before a high-level tournament But when the ITP was asked by another player’s mother in March to temporarily lift her son’s suspension so he could watch the Braves’ final regular-season game “At this time I am unable to vary the interim suspension as you request (for a day to watch the game with his teammates) as I have not received an interim report or other information from the independent investigator indicating that interim measures should be revisited,” ITP investigator Krista Thompson wrote in a March 12 email to the parent “The investigator advises that they have very few witnesses left to interview and then will prepare and provide their final report,” Thompson wrote “I cannot estimate the timing in that regard.” Ferdinand-Hodkin wrote that the ITP has the discretion to impose interim sanctions based on the severity of the allegations “Determinations regarding implementing or varying sanctions are made based on severity of allegations and risk of harm to participants and not based on requests to participate in specific events or tournaments,” she wrote Traylen says even though he has been told that the players are not allowed any contact with the organization he has made it clear to both of them that they are welcome to attend Brockville games Traylen said the families of the two suspended players are now considering a lawsuit against Hockey Canada OttawaNewsVoters in Brockville, Ont. react to Liberal election winBy Jack RichardsonUpdated: April 29, 2025 at 4:58PM EDT Twitter feed ©2025 BellMedia All Rights Reserved For the second consecutive year, Store 3006 in Brockville, Ontario was named Walmart Canada’s Sustainability Store of the Year at Walmart Canada’s annual Year Beginning Meeting held in March 2025 The Brockville store does an excellent job at managing waste and making the most of our Customer Value Program (CVP). This program involves marking down perishable items that are imperfect and nearing their sell-by date. The store also remains a strong supporter of their local food bank, donating 91,000 pounds of safe, surplus food and products to the Brockville and Area Food Bank last year “I’m so incredibly proud our store won this prestigious award again This recognition reflects our hard work and dedication towards making our operations more sustainable,” said Greg Payne Every associate contributed to this achievement It represents our shared values and our unwavering commitment to sustainability Our associates are passionate about making a difference and hearing the impact of our donations inspires us to do even more.” Walmart Canada's 2024 Sustainability Success Walmart Canada celebrated many sustainability wins our distribution centres and home office for their support with these initiatives and for all they do to protect the environment and help us create a more sustainable future And congratulations again to our Brockville store for their environmental stewardship and leadership OttawaNewsHistoric Sabre Jet monument in Brockville, Ont. needs $80k restorationBy Jack RichardsonPublished: April 15, 2025 at 12:26PM EDT Brockville police on Tuesday arrested a woman in connection with a shoplifting incident at the Real Canadian Superstore they got a call about a man and a woman leaving the grocery store with the woman allegedly smuggling out merchandise from the store in her bag Police say that when she was approached by security she was cooperative and handed the items over without an issue But once security said they were calling the police Officers arrived and were able to locate the pair near the store they discovered that she also had a bench warrant for failing to attend court The 31-year-old woman was charged with theft under $5,000 and two counts of failing to comply with probation A man faces a stunt driving charge after city police stopped a speeder on Sunday night Brockville police officers witnessed a vehicle being driven at a high rate of speed on Stewart Boulevard the vehicle was going 47 km/h over the speed limit Police pulled the car over and arrested the driver Police released the man pending a court appearance OttawaNewsBrockville, Ont. voters flock to advance polls on Easter SundayBy Jack RichardsonPublished: April 20, 2025 at 3:20PM EDT Barrett keeps absolute majorityLiberals place strongest second in recent history (Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to include results from all polls in Leeds-Grenville—Thousand Islands—Rideau Lakes.) reading the room at the Brockville Memorial Centre would have left the wrong impression then progressively thinned out in the span of an hour when it was clear the hoped-for Conservative government would not come to be of what could be the largest blown lead in Canadian electoral history as the Conservatives entered this volatile year with polling numbers suggesting they were assured a crushing victory returning to Ottawa to join an expanded Conservative caucus Those who did remain made up for the empty seats with their enthusiasm while Barrett pointed to television screens indicating a strong showing for his party and delivered a victory speech that seemed to anticipate the next electoral battle “This is a massive commentary from Canadians a huge message after a lost Liberal decade,” Barrett told supporters “It’s never been more important to have a powerful strong Opposition led by principled Conservatives under the leadership of Pierre Poilievre Look at that massive seat count for Conservatives.” With all 240 polls reporting early Tuesday morning While Elections Canada rounded that off to 50 per cent of the vote Barrett did in fact secure an absolute majority by a hair’s breadth crossing that halfway mark with a result of 50.05 per cent Coming in second – and a much stronger second than any Liberal runner-up in recent history – was the Grits’ Lorna Jean Edmonds with 29,656 votes One of the stories of the night across Canada was the erosion of support for the smaller parties as New Democrat Paul Lancione placed a distant third at 2,338 votes (3.5 per cent) followed by the Green Party’s Randi Ramdeen at 783 (1.2 per cent) and People’s Party candidate Hailey Simpson at 597 (0.9 per cent) “There’s a real story in the numbers if you take a look at what happened here in Leeds-Grenville The third and the fourth parties basically disappeared and why?” Barrett told the crowd as earlier results were posted “It’s that we need to restore affordability Barrett then returned to his campaign themes attacking the Liberals on the housing and homelessness crisis and addictions and mental health challenges concluded by bringing his photogenic children on stage and pledging to fight for their future while the Liberals didn’t pull off a win in Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands—Rideau Lakes candidate Lorna Jean Edmonds was pleased with the final results but these results show that many people in this riding are not looking at the Conservatives anymore,” said Edmonds “I want to thank my amazing team for all the incredible work they’ve done throughout the campaign.” With the Liberals forming a minority government it wasn’t the runaway election that some polls may have indicated But Edmonds is happy with a Liberal win nonetheless “This means the Liberals are going to have to work together with other parties in order to make change.” Edmonds hinted that she isn’t done with politics just yet – she said she would interested in running again if the opportunity presents itself results for the local riding pointed to a voter turnout of 73.78 per cent with 66,811 of 90,557 registered electors heading to the polls although the numbers did not include voters who registered on election day After nearly 50 years of being the Brockville Tikis the city’s Junior B hockey club will be changing to a new name Article contentThe team will now be known as the Brockville Bulldogs and the name change will be going into effect immediately Officials for the team said the logo would be unveiled at a later date but the Wikipedia page for the Brockville Tikis has been updated with the new logo The Brockville Junior B team has been known as the Tikis since 1967 but the new ownership felt it was time for a change the City of Brockville ordered both the Braves and the Tikis to cover up their logos which were deemed offensive depictions of Indigenous peoples as per a ruling of the Ontario Human Rights Commission there’s a 50-year tradition there,” said Brockville Bulldogs managing director Angus Miron “But when you can’t have the logo at centre ice – it’s 2025 and it’s culturally indifferent.” The Brockville Bulldogs are now owned by local entrepreneur Scott Murray “This is more than a name change,” said Murray “It’s about bringing fresh energy and a renewed sense of community to Brockville hockey We want the Bulldogs to be a symbol of pride and resilience — both on and off the ice.” The Brockville Junior B club took a two-year hiatus from the league but will be returning and assembling a team this season the newly-formed Bulldogs will have no direct ties with the Brockville Braves The only ties the Bulldogs will have with the Braves is the ability to affiliate players between the two teams with the Bulldogs acting as a sort of farm team for the Braves the Bulldogs drafted the first seven players to their roster and are eager to sign the remaining players to the team Among the new talent are two local players: Drake Sled of Brockville and Rylan Vincent of Kemptville The remaining five players drafted are from the Ottawa area “The Bulldogs’ selections reflect a strong mix of local and regional talent “Additional signings are expected in the coming weeks as the team prepares for its debut season.” The Bulldogs will still call the Brockville Memorial Centre home and will keep their usual Wednesday night home games during the season This story has been updated to clarify the role of the Ontario Human Rights Commission in decisions regarding the Braves and Tikis logos charged in Brockville high school fightAltercation spilled over to area of William Street Timmy's A 17-year-old girl has been charged after a “feud” at a Brockville high school spilled over to the Tim Hortons on William Street Monday morning Brockville police got a 911 call at about 11:30 a.m about a group of teenagers involved in a fight in the area of the Tim Hortons “The group involved were all students of the same school where the feud initially began It was determined that out of the small group two females were primarily responsible for initiating or escalating the altercation,” police added One of them “was harassing the group of girls and had made threats towards one of the females in the group,” police added “One of the friends in the group responded physically to end the confrontation No one was seriously injured in the incident.” Police charged the first 17-year-old girl with uttering threats and released her pending a future court date while the second girl was diverted from court by way of an extrajudicial measure Brockville police on Saturday charged a woman after she allegedly smashed her boyfriend’s cellphone in a dispute to a complaint involving a couple on Macodrum Drive The investigation determined that a man and his 30-year-old girlfriend were involved in a dispute in which the woman smashed the man’s cellphone “Both involved were making various allegations against one another regarding what had taken place,” said police police arrested the woman and charged her with mischief under $5,000 in connection with the damaged phone She was released on an undertaking with conditions and a future court date A young driver at the wheel without the proper licence was charged in connection with a different matter after a traffic stop in Brockville on Saturday Brockville police officers stopped the vehicle in the area of Perth Street following a Highway Traffic Act infraction Officers found a 16-year-old boy at the wheel and a passenger The driver had a G1 licence and did not have a properly licenced accompanying driver “It was also learned that the driver was on conditions of bail to abstain from communication with the passenger,” police added The 16-year-old was arrested for failing to comply with his release order He was held for a bail hearing and also charged with various traffic offences including being a G1 licence holder unaccompanied by a qualified driver A downtown Brockville loitering call led city police to lay charges against a man and woman for bail and probation violations on Saturday afternoon police responded to a call about a 29-year-old man and a 41-year-old woman who were loitering in the vestibule of a bank on King Street West who already faced charges and bail conditions for multiple other incidents where they were found breaching release and court-ordered conditions “Some of the conditions are that the two not be in communication with one another,” police noted Both were arrested and held for bail hearings The man had a warrant for failing to attend court and was also charged with failing to comply with an undertaking and failing to comply with probation The woman was charged with two counts of failing to comply with an undertaking and two counts of failing to comply with probation Brockville Police have charged a man with impaired driving after a single-vehicle collision Saturday evening police received a call that a driver had veered off the road on Parkedale Avenue and hit a hydro pole Police concluded that a 27-year-old man was driving the car at the time and they found he had been drinking alcohol and the man was arrested and taken to Brockville Police headquarters for further testing his vehicle impounded and he was charged with operation while impaired and operation while impaired with a blood alcohol concentration of over 80 mg Brockville police caught another person driving impaired on the same night officers on patrol noticed a vehicle that was weaving in and out of traffic Police caught up to the vehicle around the intersection of King Street East and Ford Street and identified the driver as a 38-year-old woman “Officers performed a roadside screening test as it was believed that the driver had been consuming alcohol,” police said Monday “The screening device registered a fail and an arrest was made The driver was taken to the Brockville Police Service for additional testing that confirmed the driver was impaired.” The woman had her licence suspended and her vehicle impounded and she was charged with operation while impaired and operation while impaired with a blood alcohol concentration of over 80 mg She was also released with a future court date An early-morning disturbance in midtown Brockville Saturday led police to arrest a man in connection with a breach of conditions police were called to a home on Brighton Crescent about a group of people involved in a shouting match they found a 23-year-old man who was involved in the disturbance This man was familiar with police because earlier in the day he was arrested on a bench warrant for failing to attend a previous court date he was outside of his residence failing to comply with his bail conditions,” said police “He was to abide by a curfew to be inside his residence between the hours of 11 p.m the man was held for a bail hearing for failing to comply with undertaking and probation Police have arrested a man on a slew of charges after they say he failed to meet his bail conditions police were called to a home on Central Avenue about a man who was there violating his bail conditions as it was outlined he was not allowed to be at that address found the man and arrested him for failing to comply with a release order and two counts of failing to comply with probation the 31-year-old man was also wanted for a number of other charges including two counts of mischief and six counts of failing to comply with his probation He was held in police custody to await a bail hearing Christians of all denominations will again mark the holiest time in the calendar with the Good Friday Walk of the Cross has participants follow the Cross through the downtown Brockville area stopping at churches and other significant spots to listen to Scripture and reflect on different moments in Christ’s Passion another element of the Passion story is added to the Cross and culminates in an ecumenical service at Wall Street United Church at 11 a.m the Walk of the Cross will start at the Brockville Court House with readings by the Brockville Jail Ministry and Crosstown Impact It will head west down Church Street after a reading at First Presbyterian Church The procession will then stop at the Brockville Public Library where Reunion Church will take up the reading after which it proceeds a short distance west to St The next stop will be the Salvation Army Thrift Store on King Street West where representatives of Bethel Christian Reformed Church will lead prayers and reflection on the theme of remembrance The Pier Christian Church will then take up the reading at City Hall after which the procession will make its way to St Paul’s Anglican Church and First Baptist Church The final reading will then take place at Wall Street United Saturday morning’s Community Wide Clean Up saw a robust response from volunteers despite the rain song sparrows and robins did much to infuse the air with spring which fortunately reined in its humid ways At the north entrance of the Brockville Railway Tunnel Wall Street United Church volunteers fanned out over what they have seen Asked what motivated them to get up and go on a grey morning and I want it to be clean for others,” said Penny Johnston “I rejoice in the beauty of Brockville and in supporting it by helping with the cleanup,” added Lucie Stein and it wants its environment to be clean,” contributed Nancy Nicholson added: “I believe in the beauty of the world and the beauty of people working together to make our community more beautiful To me it’s a way to bring joy in a world that is very uncertain.” Webb passionately added: “Recognizing that our community lacks facilities for our unhoused makes it difficult for them to have a safe place to be Though some would feel that people should clean up after themselves it’s the little bit we can do to help clean up and make the place even better for our unhoused population.” “We have our every Friday morning breakfast that feeds over one hundred people Most of those people are unhoused,” said Webb Amanda Bernard and her two sons Sebastian and Logan were cleaning up on Victoria near James Street The young lads were volunteering to be supportive of their mom and Sebastian said he was getting some volunteer hours in for his school credit “we just moved here a couple of years ago and are happy to help.” High-school student Kaidan Hanna was with his grandmother “I am here to help with the cleanup and to spend time with my grandson,” she said The Brockville Social and Sport Club were fanned out over Blockhouse Island “I didn’t love waking up to the rain but it’s not bad now especially when you’re out for a reason doing something for the community,” said Matt Knight good community and good fellowship,” chimed in Tina Henry The Brockville Social and Sport Club is the creation of Angela Rodgers I started the group in November organizing a euchre group On Sunday we’re having karaoke at Fat Les on King We donate funds raised from these events to the food bank I’m just trying to do what I can to bring people together A lot of people have moved into Brockville in the last five or six years and they are looking for ways to get involved,” she said marketing and advertising manager of the Downtown Brockville Business Improvement Area “We’re hosting the cleanup within our city street bounds minus the parks as the Brockville Community Wide Clean Up is taking care of the parks,” said Gartland-Davey “We’ve had a great turnout with at least 25 to 30 volunteers,” said Brown “We love seeing people coming out to support the community We have a beautiful downtown and so the least we can do is keep it clean,” said Gartland-Davey “This is a great start to our volunteer season,” she added “We’re going to have a lot more opportunities for people to volunteer We love to see the spark of community involvement We suggest that people interested in volunteering keep an eye out for our upcoming events like Shop the Streets and other initiatives with which we could really use help.” After a short federal election campaign that may not have felt so short Voters in Leeds-Grenville—Thousand Islands—Rideau Lakes head to the polls on Monday to elect a new member of Parliament you are one of the 24,962 eligible voters who cast a ballot during the four-day advance voting period over the Easter long weekend With just over 90,000 eligible voters across this riding that means over one-quarter of eligible voters Poll staff members can assist with any other needs In Leeds-Grenville—Thousand Islands—Rideau Lakes five candidates are seeking the job of member of Parliament Voters from Brockville and across Canada cast their ballots in the federal election on Monday. Below are the latest results updated for you in real time. While residents vote for their local members of parliament, it was Liberal Leader Mark Carney and the Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre who were vying to become the next prime minister. The majority of polls closed at 9:30 p.m., in Ontario, and at 10:30 p.m. Postmedia’s decision desk projected a Liberal win. The maps and other graphics below show results as they were counted. Zoom in to find your riding, zoom out to see results from across the country. Refresh your browser for the latest updates. The United Counties of Leeds and Grenville are looking to top up funding for the supportive cabins project to combat homelessness after the initiative came in well over budget According to a report presented to the joint services committee on Tuesday the cabins project has a shortfall of $900,000 in funding bringing the total estimated costs to $1,982,885 staff attributes the overages to “the site creating some challenges.” the cabin purchase and delivery cost $680,000 site preparation came in at just over $1.08 million and over $220,000 went toward the amenities buildings The committee is recommending counties council approve this $900,000 in funding from the community housing amortization reserve which would be paid back in $90,000 installments over the next 10 years “There was a significant push from this group to get the cabins up and running,” said Westport Mayor Robin Jones at Tuesday’s meeting “Staff worked with community partners and did their very best located on County Road 2 on the grounds of Brockville’s former pollution control plant administration building with 23 unhoused people living in the cabins The staff report says two unhoused people are now in talks to fill the two empty cabins there are currently 115 more people on the waitlist Even though the project came in over budget “I am very impressed with how this project is operating with the positive impacts on both the residents and the community of Brockville,” said Wren I would like to support our staff who worked very hard to get people housed as quickly as possible.” But the Brockville mayor wasn’t all praise he wanted it on public record as to why the amenities trailer was needed when the City of Brockville had a building that could have been used when the property was turned over Wren said this was a “costly expense at the intervention of the MP’s staff” that forced the United Counties to buy the trailer for $220,000 instead of using the building “There was a competing priority where the facility was being looked at for another option for supportive housing for addiction treatment,” said staff in response to Wren’s question and the city didn’t want to turn over the building just for it to sit empty Wren added that the city wants to see some form of housing happening with the currently-vacated building “The building has been set aside waiting for something to happen,” said Wren “But here we are a year later and nothing is happening.” the John Howard Society of Kingston and District said that many people in Brockville were very supportive of this project right from the beginning the assistant executive director of the John Howard Society said there have been challenges since they opened the cabins in February but emphasizes the results speak for themselves and we have already had one individual move into long-term secure housing,” said Holmes “This individual was able to move because he was able to secure employment by having an address to use for job applications.” She shared a few personal accounts of what these cabins mean to the people using them and illustrated how having a roof over one’s head can lead to success we had one of our oldest residents move into the cabin and immediately burst into tears,” said Holmes “Another said: ‘I hope you know you gave me my last second chance Counties council will decide whether or not to approve the extra $900,000 in funding at a future meeting potentially during its next meeting on April 24 This story has been updated to add further comments from Mayor Matt Wren A Brockville police officer got help from colleagues when a woman started resisting arrest on Wednesday morning A city police officer on patrol at about 11 a.m noticed a 32-year-old woman wanted on an arrest warrant for failing to comply with her release order of bail and her probation order “The officer approached the female on Buell Street where she began to resist arrest and others nearby began recording the interaction to post on social media,” police added “The officer attempted to de-escalate the situation while assistance from other officers was en route Police eventually took the woman into custody without injury She was arrested on the warrant and held for a bail hearing with a added charges of resisting arrest and failing to comply with probation A man and woman were both arrested after Brockville police responded to a disturbance in the midtown area on Tuesday night police got a 911 call about a disturbance at a residence on Central Avenue They were told a 25-year-old woman was aggressively banging on a door of a neighbouring residence with an object Officers found that the woman and her 31-year-old ex-boyfriend were at the residence involved in a dispute “Officers’ arrived and found that the male subject was leaving the rear of the residence and fled from police The male was pursued and eventually taken into custody,” said police The man had a warrant for his arrest for failing to comply with probation Police arrested a 25-year-old woman and charged her with failing to comply with her conditional sentence order The 31-year-old man was charged with two counts of failing to keep the peace and be of good behaviour according to his probation orders Brockville police on Thursday night arrested a wanted man after a foot pursuit in the downtown area officers were on patrol in the area of King Street West where they noticed a 43-year-old man known to have a warrant for his arrest for two counts of failing to comply with probation he fled on foot jumping fences in an attempt to avoid arrest Officers gave chase and eventually caught the male on the property of a residence nearby,” police added The man was held in custody for a bail hearing on charges of failing to comply with probation and he was also charged with resisting arrest A 39-year-old woman turned herself in to Brockville police on Wednesday night in connection with a drug-impaired driving incident in February who went to the police station to turn herself in at about 8 p.m. was wanted as a result of a single motor vehicle collision on Feb The woman’s vehicle was involved in a rollover where she suffered injuries police found evidence of drug impairment and blood samples were sent to the Centre of Forensic Sciences The accused was released with a future court date charged with driving while impaired by drugs Smiths Falls HART Hub called 'our best opportunity'Locals hail homelessness It’s been called “game-changing” by the local MPP and the head of the region’s mental health and addictions agency says the description of Brockville’s new HART Hub is warranted Leeds and Grenville Addictions and Mental Health (LLGAMH) “I do think that this is our best opportunity to help the people who are living with those very complex mental health and substance use concerns,” Gifford said in an interview earlier this week Leeds-Grenville-Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes MPP Steve Clark on Monday announced that Lanark Leeds and Grenville is one of 18 new HART hub locations selected by the province “This a game-changer to provide the most vulnerable people in our region with the life-changing – and life-saving – help they need,” Clark who is now the Progressive Conservative incumbent in the current provincial election HART Hubs are part of the province’s plan to replace safe drug injection sites located near schools and child-care centres The new hubs are designed to connect people with complex needs to comprehensive treatment and preventative services as well as mental health and social supports LLGAMH was the lead agency in applying for this region’s HART Hub along with the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville The local HART Hub will operate out of Brockville Ontario’s 18 new HART hub locations were chosen as a result of a provincewide call for proposals last summer All HART Hubs will have the goal of being operational by April 1 Brockville Mayor Matt Wren thanked the community partners and Clark for bringing the facility to the city is “the epicentre of the homelessness struggles in Leeds and Grenville.” “We all know that housing alone is not the answer to the homelessness problem that it’s all the complex underlying issues that resources have been extremely limited to address,” added Wren “The system that the province seems to have built certainly addresses a lot of those needs.” Wren said the Brockville HART Hub will have a total of 49 beds These will be broken down into eight withdrawal management beds the warming centre on the grounds of the Brockville Mental Health Centre which has been unable to service all of the area’s homeless population The location of the Brockville site remains confidential pending a real estate transaction “We’ll be hearing very soon where that facility will be.” Wren is pleased to see the project “moving forward it seems that we have some traction to start solving some problems instead of managing some problems,” said the mayor Smiths Falls Mayor Shawn Pankow also welcomed the contribution of the HART Hub to efforts in the Lanark area to combat homelessness and addiction “Having this facility in place is going to make such an incredible difference in giving people an opportunity to change their lives,” said Pankow The Smiths Falls site will have eight relapse prevention and treatment beds and nine transitional supportive living beds The withdrawal management beds in Brockville will serve the entire tri-county area Officials in Smiths Falls have a “preferred location” for the satellite HART Hub which provides transitional housing to homeless people in Lanark County at the former Willowdale Retirement Residence in Smiths Falls “You start putting these things together and all of a sudden there are a lot more resources in place than there were just a year ago.” The lack of resources for people facing addiction has led people to turn to him as a last resort When someone struggling with substance use makes the decision to seek treatment “It just puts people in a position where there is no hope and this HART Hub will provide hope,” he added Gifford said the province’s health ministry is funding HART Hubs at up to $6.3 million a year through 2028 LLGAMH serves around 4,000 clients each year the number could easily exceed 5,000 through what they call a strategic combination of inpatient and outpatient services expanding the agency’s reach to meet diverse needs “This model will provide an opportunity to meet clients where they’re at,” said Gifford The withdrawal management beds in particular will be “a game-changer,” she added people must travel to Kingston or Cornwall for that option Gifford expects the HART Hub to ramp up gradually to full operations The facility could employ 30 to 35 people in Brockville and an additional nine people in Smiths Falls Brockville police were seeking suspects who reportedly used a firearm to smash a merchandise case during a break-in at The Score earlier this week City police responded to an alarm at the west-end store around 1:30 a.m Officers arrived to find the glass front door smashed Police searched the building and found that any suspects had fled before they arrived “Investigation revealed that two suspects wearing balaclavas had made entry to the building two glass cases were smashed with what appeared to be a handgun by holding the barrel and striking the glass with the grip,” said police The suspects emptied the case’s contents into bookbags These stolen contents are described as jewelry and electronics the exact value of which had yet to be determined Police were still actively investigating the incident Anyone with information is urged to call the Brockville Police Service at 613-342-0127 or anonymously at Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) A woman faces charges after Brockville police helped their Ontario Provincial Police colleagues recover a stolen vehicle on Thursday police located a 46-year-old woman on George Street who was wanted by the OPP for taking a motor vehicle without consent Officers arrested her and the vehicle was recovered a short distance away The vehicle was towed and is to be turned back over to the rightful owner after being charged with taking a motor vehicle without consent and failing to comply with probation A 48-year-old man has been charged after a shoplifting incident in Brockville’s north end on Thursday police received information of a shoplifter at the Real Canadian Superstore on Parkedale Avenue Investigation revealed that the 48-year-old suspect had previously stolen from the Superstore the suspect stole about $60 worth of merchandise then tried to leave the store without paying He was arrested and the merchandise was recovered Police released the accused with a court date City council on Tuesday endorsed the recommendation of its planning and development committee to grant final approval for the conversion of 1-4 Balmoral Place from rental residential apartments to condominium residential apartments Council approved the measure unanimously and without discussion as part of a “consent agenda” of items from the planning committee that were not set apart for further debate council approved the conversion of more than 360 rental units to condominiums Council changed course over concerns about a potential uphill battle before a provincial tribunal and after receiving a report from staff assuring members that the move would not harm the affected tenants Those conversions relate to apartment buildings at 1-4 Balmoral Place; 4 The Balmoral property is made up of four apartment buildings The Balmoral conversion is predicated on a number of conditions including that all tenants of 1-4 Balmoral Place are to be given first right to purchase their unit at a price no higher than the price offered to the general public; and an inspection of each building listing any and all repairs and improvements needed Other conditions include providing tenants with “active physical assistance” in finding new dwellings in Brockville for up to three years from last July if they have to relocate as a result of the conversion Council’s planning committee last week heard that the conditions for approving the conversions have been said Tuesday’s approval now means SIREG must register its condominium plans “Once the plans are registered with the province the city is no longer involved,” said McGinnis SIREG will then have to get approval under the province’s Condominium Act which has requirements including the establishment of a condominium board A recent planning staff report notes the objective of the coming discussion on eligibility rules is “a policy regime that protects the residential rental market at times when the vacancy rate is low would also permit conversions at times when there is a higher vacancy and the conversions could create home ownership options.” SIREG’s condo conversions are contained in 11 separate applications with the remaining ones expected before the planning committee in the coming months Brockville council is to vote next week on spending of just over $89,000 for the final phase of the Sabre Jet Monument restoration a project that would see the Golden Hawks plane lit up at night Council’s general committee on Tuesday recommended the full council back a three-part motion that calls for spending of $89,040 More than half of that total would be covered by funds raised by the Sabre Jet committee would come from the city’s fiscal policy reserve The Golden Hawks Sabre Jet was donated to the city on June 23 in memory of Canadian air crews who lost their lives and has since become a fixture of Brockville’s waterfront the council of the day had to contemplate the idea of taking the plane down because of its level of deterioration prompting community members to band together to keep the monument standing and council ultimately approved the first phase of the restoration project which included a fresh coat of paint for the aging aircraft completed by local artist Dave Sheridan in the summer of 2018 to complete an in-situ restoration and reinforcement of the plane’s concrete pedestal which city officials hope to begin after this June’s Tall Ships Festival approximately 40 feet in diameter; five new decorative benches with plaques recognizing donors; an engraved monument with a dedication to RCAF veterans; and accent lighting and electrical upgrades “The committee envisioned accent lighting though flood lights or other features to illuminate the plane at night provisions have been put in place to power the strobe lights installed at the wingtip of the plane,” notes a report by city staff The recommendation headed to council is that it approve a construction contract with Kehoe Marine Construction “to complete specified scopes of decorative restoration of (the) Sabre Jet Monument,” at a cost of $79,067.52 as well as another contract with Bulldog Commercial Restoration for decorative finishing of the central jet support pedestal There is still $48,855.70 in leftover funds raised by the volunteer Sabre Jet committee which reduces that total cost to $40,184.30 The third part of the motion headed to council for a final vote calls on that amount to be covered by city reserves and Mayor Matt Wren both noted the long-delayed Sabre Jet restoration was postponed by the inundation of Blockhouse Island due to unusually high water levels Wren noted the sharp rise in the cost of construction materials in the intervening years put the final price of this restoration beyond the amount raised by the Sabre Jet committee to start fundraising again,” added the mayor Louise Severson said the Sabre Jet project is “long overdue,” and fits nicely with the “Canada Proud” sentiment now sweeping the country said members of the community are also eager to see the project completed He particularly welcomed the lighting element adding the illuminated Sabre Jet will be an attraction on the river The full council is expected to put the matter to a final vote next Tuesday Six local events are getting a financial boost from the Ontario government’s 2025 Experience Ontario program Leeds-Grenville-Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes MPP Steve Clark last week announced the program will provide $190,000 for the festivals and events The local grants are part of a nearly $20-million investment in festivals and events across Ontario to help organizers expand programming and draw visitors to stay longer in local accommodations Events in Leeds and Grenville getting funding include Brockville’s 1000 Islands Regatta which is receiving $55,000; the Brockville Tall Ships Festival ($55,000); the South Grenville Bluegrass Festival in Spencerville ($20,000; Brockville RibFest ($20,000); Gananoque’s Le FestivILES ($20,000) and next year’s Mermaid March Break at the Aquatarium ($20,000) “Thank you to the volunteers who work so hard in communities across Leeds and Grenville to organize these special events which add so much to our quality of life while also supporting our local businesses,” Clark said in a prepared statement “I’m thrilled our government is providing financial support to help these events grow to add more programs and attractions It will ensure even more visitors are making plans to come to our beautiful corner of Ontario and contribute to our tourism economy.” of the 1000 Islands Regatta organizing committee thanked the province for the financial boost “The committee of the upcoming 2025 1000 Islands Regatta are beyond ecstatic with the news that the Province of Ontario has approved our application for Experience Ontario funding,” said Henderson these funds have been very instrumental in the ability for us to put on a great event along the waterfront of Downtown Brockville Our partnership with the province over the years has helped in growing the event to what it is today and hopefully for many years to come.” treasurer of the South Grenville Bluegrass Festival committee similarly thanked Clark and the province for helping the festival in its 10th year “The South Grenville Bluegrass Festival contributes as much as $185,000 annually to the Spencerville area economy We’re looking forward to an outstanding lineup of entertainment at this year’s festival which we’re anticipating will be our biggest yet,” said Porter Culture and Gaming Minister Stan Cho said festivals and events create jobs benefit local economies and bring communities together it is important that we come together to take part in made-in-Ontario experiences that celebrate our collective identity and support local communities,” he added returns with an exciting agenda featuring the talent of local musicians from April 27 to May 2 Article contentThe festival culminates on Tuesday It’s so good to see,” Brockville Music Festival chair Judy Quick observed with satisfaction “We used to have the bands come to the festival but now the adjudicator will go to the band saving the schools the cost of transportation The students will receive not just a 10-minute adjudication as in the past but now they receive a full hour hands-on workshop of mentorship from the teacher,” said Quick The school bands are from Lyn Public School Brockville Collegiate Institute and Gananoque Secondary School using their own instruments and the kids are ready to go The adjudicators will listen to the pieces and then they get in front of the band rehearse them and help them improve,” added Quick “The other participating bands are the Lions Steel Band and this year for the very first time we have the Salvation Army Brass Band,” she said The concert band workshops are conducted by John Krauss He has been a professional saxophone player and plays with the Electric City Swing Band in Peterborough The other two adjudicators for the festival are Michelyn Wright for voice and Ian Green for piano “They are all top-notch professionals,” said Quick Wright has degrees from the University of Western Ontario and has performed as a soloist for the Kitchener Waterloo Symphony She was a member of the Canadian Opera Chorus and presently has a large private studio and lectures at the University of Toronto Green is from Hamilton and is a graduate from Queen’s University and the Royal Conservatory in Toronto He has a large music studio and travels across Canada as an adjudicator and an examiner “This year we have 54 awards which have been donated by businesses organizations and individuals which attests to the generosity of our community,” said Quick “This is huge for us and represents a grand total in prizes of around $6,700.” “We will give the awards out at the Concert of the Stars on May 6 “It is very important that our Brockville audience understands that our committee has nothing to do with who wins the awards She then selects who will perform in the Concert of the Stars The Brockville Music Festival committee is made up of ten people who work all year planning “When the actual week arrives there are at least 25 to 30 volunteers who step up and help us run all the sessions at all of the three venues,” she said “We are very lucky to have such great support from the community who know how important the Brockville Music Festival is for our young musicians.” “The homeless population is a community unto itself,” Robyn Holmes told a group of local dignitaries Wednesday morning members of that population are demonstrating it again assistant executive director of the John Howard Society of Kingston and District located on the grounds of Brockville’s former pollution control plant administration building accompanied by officials from the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville The county government has partnered with the John Howard Society Clients from across the Leeds and Grenville area get the support they need to emerge from the noxious cycles that result in homelessness Counties officials say the cabins initiative “aims to provide a stable and secure environment for individuals experiencing homelessness offering comprehensive support to help them transition to long-term housing.” The proliferation of homelessness across the region has led to encampments of homeless people and Holmes explained that these micro-communities have given the unhoused a vital network of support leading to a sense of being a community within the broader community program manager for the Supportive Cabins program has seen this first-hand since the facility opened and faced its first major snowstorm “They all went together and started shovelling the site to make sure everybody was safe,” MacMillan recalled Safety comes from the networks these individuals built of necessity while out in the rough but also from the many steps taken to ensure the Supportive Cabins site is secure As local mayors got a look inside one of the cabins Holmes laid out the different structural measures each of those cabins includes to keep occupants safe She also described a security booth at the entrance to the site adding “higher-acuity” clients are housed closer to it “The staff monitoring the gate track who comes in so we are aware of any residents on site that leave for a given period of time and their anticipated time of return,” she said All 25 of the cabins are expected to be occupied in the coming weeks The age range of the residents at the site runs from 18 to 74 The gender balance is roughly 70 per cent male to 30 female mirroring the estimated ratio in the overall homeless population The current population includes one couple Occupants are chosen from the county’s By Name List the upper-tier municipality’s attempt to count the number of homeless individuals in the area clients must sign a participation agreement with the John Howard Society they must be engaged and working on a plan to advance themselves,” said Holmes “We have a multitude of other agencies that come on site,” she added Along with this multi-agency collaboration the program provides the occupants with one meal a day prepared by The Sweet Life Café in Brockville The meals are large enough that some residents save half of it to warm later with the microwave ovens in their cabins The cabins are supplied with multiple electrical outlets and a mini-fridge along with the microwave oven The cabins have individual locks with passcodes Especially for many of our residents who have lived rough for a couple of years The Supportive Cabins Initiative is currently funded by the Ontario government’s Homelessness Prevention Program “Some of them will need that (long) just to stabilize themselves,” said Holmes Three of the site’s residents could move on but the cost of rental accommodations in the area remains a barrier Leeds-Grenville-Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes MP Michael Barrett joined locals in celebrating the facility’s opening at a reception held at the John Howard Society’s Brockville office later Wednesday “It took an awful lot of collaboration from the community to initiate this project.” and the anticipation of a major overnight snowstorm were apt illustrations of what the homeless face daily in the region “There are people who are trying to figure out how and where they’re going to sleep,” said Barrett “could be the start of something really transformational” for many individuals United Counties Warden Corinna Smith-Gatcke said the cabin project is one step in a broader regional effort to combat homelessness “It is a beacon of hope in our community,” she added who chairs the joint services committee that brings together the United Counties and the region’s three separated municipalities said the greater hope is that all levels of government work together the ensure there is no longer a need for programs such as this one And Brockville Mayor Matt Wren recalled how rapidly homelessness has emerged as a dominant issue in the region since he first entered municipal politics in 2018 Efforts to combat it have included the Cooperative Care Centre an overnight warming facility across the road from the cabins project “We can now start to move from getting people through the night to getting them back on their feet,” said Wren Neighbours of a proposed affordable housing project at First Presbyterian Church say the building would take away their privacy and exacerbate existing parking problems A public meeting into the downtown-area proposal by city council’s planning and development committee drew a packed gallery on Wednesday evening an existing storage building in the interior of the site 12-unit affordable housing apartment building the demolition of 16 Church Street is proposed to accommodate access to this new development,” the report adds A planning rationale submitted by consulting firm EFI Engineering states: “The goal of the redevelopment is to intensify the use of the church lands in response to Brockville’s growing need for affordable housing particularly within the central urban area The project will retain the church as a place of worship while maintaining existing residential uses at 12 and 14 Church Street The design has been carefully planned to align with sustainable development practices and affordable housing initiatives while integrating seamlessly with the surrounding community.” Among the community feedback the city has received the staff report quotes the Brockville Heritage Committee as welcoming the development “The committee appreciates the owner’s efforts to address the need within the community for affordable housing without compromising any of the heritage attributes of the church,” the heritage group is quoted as saying “It’s going to take away my privacy and everybody with me,” Paul Salmon told the planning committee Wednesday “If I want to go out and sit in my back yard in a lawn chair and soak up the sun in the summer because this humungous building will be right in the sightline of the sun,” he added Salmon told the committee there are already parking problems in the neighbourhood just crazy from Monday to Friday,” he said “We don’t have the space,” he said of the parking situation there Bradley wondered about the impact of the development on property taxes and whether the apartment building will remain affordable housing or be subject to change “I bought my house thinking that the area would be the way it’s going to stay forever and ever; it’s my forever home,” he added worried not only about her own impending loss of privacy but also about the potential resale value of her home “A lot of people don’t want an apartment building looking down into their backyard,” she said “I appreciate the church wanting to make good things happen … but not at the detriment of my own home.” said the project’s proponents will take into account the residents’ privacy concerns “We’re not really changing much to what’s already there,” she said “We’re trying to use what’s already there and create affordable housing which is severely needed in this province and in Brockville.” There will still be 17 parking spots on the church property which will be enough for the 12 units in the new apartment building acknowledging those spots will be shared with the church “The church is really trying to do something good for the community,” she said In keeping with the regular public meeting process It will now await a recommendation from city staff at which point it will decide whether to recommend the full council approve the project A man and woman face drug trafficking and other charges after Brockville police carried out a search warrant last Thursday officers carried out the search at a home on Macodrum Drive with members of the city police Detective Branch and Emergency Response Team also working the case Officers seized nearly 500 grams of methamphetamine A subsequent search on a vehicle owned by one of the suspects led to the seizure of additional methamphetamine and a loaded restricted handgun Officers arrested a 41-year-old man and 32-year-old woman Both were held for bail hearings after being charged with various offences but are not limited to: careless storage of a firearm; possession of a prohibited device (brass knuckles); possession of ammunition contrary to prohibition; possession for the purposes of trafficking of the drugs listed above; and failing to comply with probation Brockville police on Saturday charged a man in connection with an intimate partner violence case police received a report of a domestic dispute in the area of Glengarry Road Investigation revealed that a woman and her 28-year-old boyfriend had been arguing throughout the day “The altercation became physical resulting in the male headbutting the female and causing damage to her television,” police added The suspect had left the residence after taking some of her prescription medication Officers located the man in the nearby area and arrested him Brockville police were investigating the second break-in this month at the north-end Shoppers Drug Mart of a glass break alarm at the Parkedale Avenue store “Investigation revealed that two suspects had broken a window to gain entry and then loaded large quantities of high-end fragrances into bags and fled in a white BMW,” said police “The suspects were in the store less than two minutes.” in which suspects broke the glass and stole jewelry and electronics Anyone with any information about the latest break-in is urged to report it to the Brockville Police Service at 613-342-0127 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) Brockville police on Sunday arrested a man after a family altercation in the downtown area about an altercation at a residence on Buell Street “It was described that a 31-year-old male was assaulting his girlfriend’s brother,” police said Monday they concluded the fight started when the 31-year-old suspect shoved his girlfriend to the ground during a dispute “The female’s younger brother stepped in to prevent any further assault The 31-year-old man was arrested and charged with assault He was released with conditions and a future court date Brockville police have arrested a man in connection with a break-in at a mechanic shop in the city’s east end police received a call about a break-in at Hall’s Automotive at the corner of Oxford Avenue and King Street East Police say the man climbed the fenced area of the property where items were stored Officers arrived at the scene to search for the suspect police found the man nearby and arrested him A 45-year-old local man has been charged with breaking and entering along with three counts of failing to comply with probation He was released on new conditions and will appear in court at a later date A man faces a stunt driving charge after police stopped a vehicle downtown on Saturday morning officers on general patrol witnessed a vehicle drifting around a corner at Broad Street and King Street West The officers observed the driver squealing the car’s tires and sliding around the corner Officers stopped the vehicle and charged a 20-year-old local man with stunt driving The man’s vehicle was impounded and his licence was suspended Brockville police have charged a woman in connection with a domestic dispute in the south end on Sunday police received a call about a couple fighting in the area of Orchard Street their investigation found that a 40-year-old woman and her boyfriend were involved in a heated argument “It was described that the male was attempting to walk away while being followed by the female continuing the argument,” police said Monday “The female caught up to the male and struck him causing the male to push her away to defend himself.” Officers arrested the woman and charged her with assault She was released on conditions and will appear in court at a later date You may have already seen a number of lawn signs displaying the names of the different candidates running in this riding but they weren’t officially confirmed until today with five hopefuls submitting their names to run to be the next Member of Parliament in the riding of Leeds-Grenville—Thousand Islands—Rideau Lakes The incumbent Michael Barrett is running again for the Conservative Party looking to stay in office after spending nearly seven years as the local MP There are four candidates gunning for Barrett’s seat: Lorna Jean Edmonds of the Liberal Party and the People’s Party of Canada’s Hailey Simpson Lancione is a 25-year-old first-time candidate for the New Democrats with a degree in English literature and a minor in anthropology and professional writing Ramdeen has worked as a political organizer for the Green Party for two years and has experience as a campaign manager Simpson has a background in real estate and is currently the president of the PPC’s youth wing The Recorder and Times will publish in-depth profiles on each of the candidates regarding their backgrounds with advance voting taking place from April 18-21 A drug raid in Brockville has led to the arrest of four people.  On Thursday, March 6, several police forces executed a search warrant at a home on Kincaid Street in Brockville.  As a result of the bust, the Ontario Provincial Police, with the assistance of Brockville Police, said they seized nearly three grams of suspected fentanyl, over four grams of suspected crystal methamphetamine and nearly 14 grams of suspected cocaine.   Police said a variety of weapons were also seized, along with a loaded syringe, just under $2,300 in cash, and items typically associated with drug trafficking.   Police arrested Alexandra Daoust, 25, of Edwardsburgh Cardinal Township, David Hannah, 56, of Brockville, Marc McIntosh, 51, of Gananoque and Joanne Ryan, 59, of Leeds and the Thousand Islands Township have each been charged with three counts of possession of a Schedule 1 substance for the purpose of trafficking.  McIntosh has also been charged with possession of a prohibited device, possession of a prohibited device contrary to a prohibition order and failing to comply with a probation order.  None of the allegations have been proven in court.   Hannah and Ryan were released and are scheduled to appear in court on April 4. Daoust remains in custody and attended a bail hearing on March 7.   McIntosh also remains in custody and is scheduled to appear in Belleville court on March 12.  Brockville police got help from an Ontario Provincial Police tactical team Monday to arrest an “agitated” suspect who reportedly threatened on social media to kill his health care provider 3 about a 46-year-old man who was posting specific threatening messages “These messages were indicating that the male was upset with his health care professional,” police added “He expressed a desire to cause harm to the victim by killing him Police had a heightened concern for safety.” Officers located the suspect at his home in the area of Macodrum Drive and unwilling to turn himself over to police peacefully,” said police The Brockville Police Service’s Emergency Response Team quickly got to the scene and ensured the man was contained while police also got a warrant to enter the residence the subject became more agitated and began making other threatening comments alluding to acts of violence,” police added City police got help from the OPP’s East Region Tactics and Rescue Unit whose members assessed the situation and executed the warrant The subject was taken to Brockville General Hospital for a health assessment after which he was charged with uttering threats and held for a bail hearing Woman who fled police charged with driving on drugs A driver who fled from police last week is charged with driving while impaired by drugs police got a 911 call about a 35-year-old woman driving her vehicle in the area of 25 Central Avenue “The vehicle was stopped in the area and the witness had a concern with the way the driver appeared The driver was described as ‘out of it,'” police added Police then found the suspect vehicle in the area of Stewart Boulevard and Central Avenue The officer noticed a quantity of methamphetamine in the vehicle beside the driver “Based on the officer’s observations of the driver’s state the driver was arrested for further testing Testing was performed by a drug recognition expert which determined that the female driver was impaired by drugs,” police added Police suspended the accused’s driver’s licence impounded her vehicle and charged her with operation while impaired by drugs and possession of methamphetamine Brockville police teamed up with the RCMP to arrest a man with an illegal handgun in a downtown incident early Sunday morning officers with the Kingston RCMP Border Integrity Detachment were on patrol in the Brockville area when they monitored the area of The Bar on King Street West they observed a male being removed from the establishment due to an altercation that took place inside The RCMP officers were ready to assist in de-escalating the altercation when they observed the 31-year-old male pull a handgun from his waistband,” police added he attempted to move around the corner to discard the firearm on the corner of King Street West and John Street.” The RCMP officers quickly arrested the suspect and held the crime scene for further investigation Officers from the Brockville Police Service then continued with the investigation and ultimately charged the man with possession of a weapon for dangerous purpose and possession of a firearm knowing the serial number has been tampered with City police thanked the Kingston RCMP officers for their help BrockvilleNewsAn inside look at the new supportive housing cabins in Brockville, Ont. to combat homelessnessBy Jack RichardsonPublished: February 12, 2025 at 4:00AM EST education still top Sunshine ListArea's top earners at BGH Management and staff in the health and education sectors dominate the latest provincial Sunshine List with Brockville General Hospital employing the region’s top two earners in 2024 The Ontario government recently released the 2024 public sector salary disclosure list the so-called “Sunshine List” of people on the provincial payroll earning more than $100,000 The top earner in the region for 2024 was a registered nurse That number is not typical of a registered nurse’s salary so other factors likely contribute to the figure Officials at BGH could not immediately be reached for clarification Monday the hospital’s president and chief executive officer for most of last year was the region’s top earner among people listed as management Rounding out the region’s top three earners of 2024 was St who served as medical officer of health at the Leeds Grenville and Lanark District Health Unit before that entity merged with two others to form the South East Health Unit at the start of this year Some observers suggest the $100,000 threshold and local results do point to a tally that has increased as six-digit salaries a large public board that covers a vast stretch of Eastern Ontario and employs approximately 4,200 staff The smaller Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario Exceptional circumstances had the Upper Canada board’s director of education as the region’s top Sunshine Lister of 2023 Vlacholias’s successor as top BGH administrator chief nursing and health professionals executive There are 201 Brockville General Hospital employees on the latest Sunshine List The City of Brockville has 20 municipal staffers on the 2024 Sunshine List with city manager Sandra MacDonald topping the tally at $199,351.88 ($2,604.55) followed on the salary line item by director of engineering and infrastructure Peter Raabe at $166,327.13 ($1,770.13) and finance director Lynda Ferguson at $165,711 ($2,268.61) The Brockville Police Service has 37 names on the list Leading them is Police Chief Mark Noonan with $196,308.52 ($3,841.59) and Deputy Chief Andrew Harvie at $181,105.06 ($1,906.54) And the Brockville Fire Department has 23 names on the Sunshine List led by Fire Chief Melanie Jones at $177,406.76 ($970.59) and Captain Craig Mason at $172,558.10 ($1,427.04) The United Counties of Leeds and Grenville counts 59 people on the 2024 list Interim chief administrative officer Alison Tutak tops the list at $182,721.85 ($3,946.52) Leeds-Grenville-Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes MPP Steve Clark last year earned $130,094.95 The retail sector in Brockville will take another hit as Peavey Mart closes its Brockville store there will be 22 store closures in Ontario and Nova Scotia They include the Peavey Marty at 160 Broome Road in Brockville will be closing their doors permanently before the end of April 2025 “The Canadian retail environment has faced significant disruption over recent years and Peavey has not been immune to these challenges,” said Peavey Industries LP president Doug Anderson “We recognize that difficult decisions like these are necessary to create a more stable foundation for the long-term success of our business it’s part of an ongoing process to adapt and rebuild in response to changing market dynamics.” Peavey Industries LP purchased TSC (Tractor Supply Co.) in 2016 and converted its stores to the Peavey brand by 2020 The company says the current slate of closures is intended to mark their first steps towards addressing current challenges they do not go into detail about the specifics of those challenges we aim to build a more resilient business that can foster stronger partnerships and better meet the needs of our customers and communities,” said chief financial officer Karen Dilon with warnings the higher fees would harm the city’s economy amid a housing crisis mostly from the development and real estate community were on hand at a public meeting earlier this week held by city council’s planning and development committee and are not expected to decide on the issue until April 8 at the earliest Development charges are fees the city charges developers to cover the extra costs new developments are expected to place on the city While some communities do not have any development charges proponents argue the charges ensure that “growth pays for growth,” rather than placing the burden of such growth on all property taxpayers Brockville’s existing development charge bylaw was originally set to expire on Jan council approved another measure removing that expiration date allowing the city to continue collecting the charges until a new development charge background study is completed That study was the basis of Tuesday’s public meeting in the main city council chamber of Mississauga-based consulting firm Watson and Associates outlined the long series of calculations used to determine what an updated schedule of development charges would be for Brockville factors such as how much a new development would increase the cost of police and fire protection services highway-related services and even library services the study recommends increasing the development charge from the current $5,275 to $26,091 – a jump of nearly 500 per cent Mayor Matt Wren said Thursday such increases are based on the consultants’ calculations but the final decision on how much to increase development charges whether to phase in those increases – or even whether to keep the charges at all – rests with city council the mayor does not believe the political will exists for a 500-per-cent increase council is scheduled to decide on the issue on April 8 the planning committee recommended to the full council that a second consultation meeting be organized to get further feedback from developers Those present at Tuesday’s public meeting roundly criticized the proposed increase “A levy is no more that a tariff on somebody that wants to live in your community,” said John Armitage Alban’s development while unaware of the prospect of such a steep development charge increase a situation he called fundamentally unfair The increase would force his company to pass on as much as it could of that increase to the selling price we wouldn’t have built in Brockville,” said Armitage president of Talos Custom Homes which is building the expansive Stirling Meadows residential development on Windsor Drive said he was attracted to Brockville as a place to develop because of the relatively low development charges The proposed increase would put the dream of home ownership out of reach for potential first-time home-buyers Toscano warned the resulting increase in home prices will have a ripple effect on the local economy “We’re on the right track; let’s not spoil it,” he said the rental price for the eventual residents will rise by five to seven per cent He said his company’s costs for the 54-unit first phase currently exceed the units’ estimated market value by 10 per cent a margin that would rise to 15 per cent with the higher charges “I’m not opposed to contributing to infrastructure costs whatsoever because we benefit from it and we’re quite committed to investing in it but we must ensure that the costs don’t halt development before it even begins,” said Madhani and yet the proposed increase doesn’t feel fair.” head of Brockville-based manufacturer Northern Cables Northern Cables has benefited from new Canadians who have come here from other communities in Ontario in search of work But the rent increases resulting from the development charge hike will price them out of the local market “We will lose the ability for these new people to come and find places to live which means we will then have to slow down criticized city officials for considering this measure during a time of economic uncertainty driven by tariffs imposed earlier Tuesday by U.S with what we’ve all been through today,” Cooper said wryly “What the world doesn’t need is more taxes Brockville’s 2025 tax levy increase could nearly double under the weight of the city’s capital requirements – but then there are the asterisks City council on Thursday took an exhaustive look at more than 100 capital projects proposed for the 2025 budget spending on everything from a new fire truck to toilets on Market Street which taken all together could drive up the tax levy increase from 4.64 per cent to 8.12 per cent But the lengthy presentation from staff had many of those projects marked with asterisks While councillors made no decisions on the budget at Thursday’s marathon session there was no appetite in the chamber for a levy increase in the eight-per-cent range Staff is expected to return at the next budget meeting with scenarios for reducing the capital total The first draft of Brockville’s 2025 operating budget called for an increase in the tax levy (the total amount required to cover the city’s net expenses) of $1,977,624 That would result in a jump of $131.95 in property taxes for the average Brockville residential homeowner ($250,000) Tuesday’s meeting saw council add $30,000 to the 2025 levy resulting in a negligible impact on the increase dealing with outside boards and agencies the city funds saw no further decisions driving up the levy Discussion included setting up two different reserve funds one for the Brockville Police Service and another to fund requests by community groups the total requirement for 2025 sat at $15,494,878 at the outset of Thursday’s meeting The city planned to cover just over half that amount while other funding sources include grants City finance director Lynda Ferguson said the complete capital projects and purchases list left some $2.5 million to be funded by the tax levy Cutting all the asterisked projects from the 2025 list would lead to a reduction of $601,599 from the capital levy funded by the tax rates The resulting effect would be an overall tax levy hike of 6.74 per cent or an impact of $214.27 on the average homeowner Mayor Matt Wren said at the outset of the meeting it was clear council would not approve a levy increase of 8.12 per cent we’re going to have to pare this down,” he said we’re going to force a citizen to make a hard decision,” said Earle “I’m going to find myself saying ‘No’ more than I want to.” is that there’s no luxury projects in here,” the mayor responded “These things will all need to be done eventually and that’s the conundrum we find ourselves in.” some did stand out as getting early council support Staff have marked an asterisk on an $810,470 project for the Brockville Railway Tunnel’s north gorge work slated to be funded by donations and borrowing rather than the tax levy The plan is to connect the north gorge to the Brock Trail with a pedestrian trail that connects the north entrance of the tunnel to Front Avenue following the original railbed “Staff have worked to design a solution that provides the desired trail connectivity as well as resolve the stormwater drainage issues that currently exist north of the tunnel entrance,” notes the staff report through the generosity of the Sifton and Beatty families has raised approximately $300,000 towards the long-delayed project urged colleagues to back a project aimed at enhancing “our landmark attraction.” Delays in getting the north gorge done have led to frustration among the project donors “I think it’s important at this juncture to show faith to our funder,” she said it’s a swamp at the end of one of our prime tourist attractions,” said Earle who nonetheless wondered whether the project could be done in phases said fixing the north gorge would be one of the projects for which this council would be remembered and slated to be funded by debt rather than the tax levy is a project to install a washroom facility on Market Street West at the now-empty site of the former tourism office “If I had to have one project in the city that went ahead this year this is the one I would like to see go ahead,” said Earle and it’s done something that’s been missing in the city for 50 years.” City manager Sandra MacDonald said staff will return with cost-mitigating scenarios for the capital budget including removing asterisked projects or putting other projects on debt rather than the levy Eight people suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a horse-drawn wagon ride went out of control in Brockville’s midtown area on Thursday afternoon they got multiple 911 calls about a horse-drawn wagon that had gone out of control on Front Avenue Officers responded “and found that there were multiple people injured along Front Avenue,” police said Friday Brockville firefighters and Leeds and Grenville paramedics were also on hand as well as citizens nearby offering their help “Investigation revealed that a gentleman was offering horse-drawn wagon rides to people in the area of Front Avenue and began to run out of control,” said police The horses and wagon struck a parked vehicle and then continued to run westbound on Front Avenue “Some of the passengers were thrown out of the wagon The horses continued running toward Stewart Boulevard The horses were uninjured in this incident.” eight people were taken to hospital for varying levels of injuries all of them considered non-life-threatening Darryl Boyd said the wagon rides were being done for Lanark Leeds and Grenville Addictions and Mental Health out of the Front Avenue Resource Centre at 25 Front Avenue The injured included clients of that agency While the incident was still under investigation Boyd said video from a nearby building shed some light on what might have triggered the horses “There was a large gust of wind and it blew up some sand that hit the horses in the face,” said the inspector “It appears that’s what spooked the horses.” one of the reins had come loose and the operator was trying to regain control right as that gust of wind was happening “It’s just an unfortunate set of circumstances that caused it as police are treating the matter as an accident Some of the eight injured were taken to hospital as a precaution but at least one of them had to be transferred from Brockville General Hospital to Kingston General Hospital Boyd said it was fortunate that the two horses because officers were not immediately sure how else they would have controlled the animals running at large “The Brockville Police Service is thankful for everyone who came to provide assistance in this unfortunate incident,” police added the Lanark Leeds Grenville Addictions and Mental Health team confirmed the incident involved a horse-drawn wagon arranged to take clients and staff for a short ride individuals sustained injuries and are receiving the attention they need we are not able to provide more details,” the statement continued OttawaNewsSenators and Leafs fans in Brockville, Ont. ready for Battle of OntarioBy Jack RichardsonPublished: April 19, 2025 at 6:16PM EDT The provincial government is investing nearly $400,000 of gas tax money in local transit services the MPP for Leeds-Grenville-Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes outlined spending of $399,143 to support public transit through the 2024-25 Gas Tax program Transit services benefiting from the grant include the River Route bus program linking residents of Prescott Augusta and Edwardsburgh Cardinal to Brockville Gas tax funding can be used to expand service hours purchase new vehicles or improve accessibility to increase transit ridership and Edwardsburgh Cardinal will get $122,974 Clark welcomed the investment in local transit South Grenville and North Grenville more ways to connect with work school and the people and places in their community that matter most to them.” The Ontario government is investing more than $380 million in 106 municipalities to improve local transit through the Gas Tax program Prescott Mayor Gauri Shankar welcomed the funding in a statement of his own “The Provincial Gas Tax funding is a crucial component to the sustainability of the River Route Transit Service which is helping the residents of Augusta Edwardsburgh Cardinal and Prescott get to school and enjoying friends and family in our communities,” he said Augusta Mayor Jeff Shaver cited the River Route’s success “Each year our ridership increases and each municipality has received positive comments from their residents,” he said “This funding certainly supports our program needs and gives us confirmation of a successful venture which gives residents a great economical choice for transit between communities.” “These much-needed dollars will enhance services and strengthen connections within our community,” he said municipal gas tax allocations have been maintained at 2023-24 levels The Gas Tax program provides $0.02 per litre of gasoline sold in Ontario to support municipal transit systems Police on Thursday arrested two men and a woman in connection with a robbery and assault in an incident that included an hours-long standoff requiring the closure of a section of Buell Street city police got a call about a woman who had been assaulted with a baseball bat and had personal items taken while at an address on Buell Street “Responding officers arrived and contained the area as the accused parties were still believed to be inside the residence,” police added The victim was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries and later released and on Thursday afternoon put out a social media post advising residents to avoid the area “due to ongoing police activity and we ask for your co-operation in staying clear to ensure everyone’s safety,” the post continued In a message to The Recorder and Times early in the evening Darryl Boyd said: “Our actions are out of an abundance of caution at the moment.” officers in tactical gear stood by two cruisers parked in front of 73 Buell Street One of the vehicles was on the street and the other on the front lawn an officer periodically called out over a loudspeaker for the “occupants” of that address to come out by the front entrance with their hands up The repeated calls referred to three individuals and stressed this was their chance to turn themselves in willingly The standoff persisted as dusk turned to dark with members of the Brockville Police Service Emergency Response Team trying to negotiate the safe surrender of the suspects City police then received help from the Ontario Provincial Police Tactics and Rescue Unit (TRU) “All involved parties were taken into custody without further incident,” said police “Investigators believe this was a targeted incident and as a result there is not believed to be any further risk to public safety.” April Muldoon said Friday that when police entered the residence have been charged in relation to the incident The 36-year-old accused is charged with assault with a weapon and robbery while the other man faces those two charges and an additional charge of breach of probation All three were held in custody pending a bail hearing The allegations have not been proven in Court although due primarily to the suspects’ refusal to come out willingly was also related to the time required for police to get a warrant as well as the time needed for the OPP unit to arrive on scene Police Chief Mark Noonan said city police are required to have the OPP’s TRU team come in “when a particular threat level is reached.” police were operating on information that the suspects might have been armed and they were also refusing to comply with police commands accused of 2021 gruesome Seeley's Bay murder will remain in custody after a Brockville Superior Court Justice found him a danger to the public A man who committed a grisly murder in Seeley’s Bay in the spring of 2021 is not criminally responsible for his actions Jay Slade will remain in custody pending a hearing by the Ontario Review Board Superior Court Justice John Johnston decided after painstakingly outlining and analyzing the facts in the case over three hours in a Brockville courtroom “This case does present many challenges,” said the judge who then turned to a famous quote by Winston Churchill Johnston concluded the conditions were met for Slade to be found not criminally responsible for the murder because of delusions caused by a major mental illness Slade remained silent in the dock throughout the session frequently lowering his head for prolonged periods A family member of Slade’s in the gallery declined to comment to media and two counts of assault causing bodily harm in connection with the killing of Gill Police were called to the Slade family home on Highway 15 at about 4:30 a.m they found Gill dead and two other people – Slade’s mother and sister – with serious injuries Slade had already pleaded guilty to two other charges relating to a police chase in the day leading up to the June 1 incident the judge agreed to a joint submission from the Crown and defence sentencing him to time served on those charges as well as a one-year prohibition on driving Slade has been diagnosed with schizophrenia the defence and Crown presented starkly different versions of the impact of that mental illness on the accused’s capacity to tell right from wrong during the crime He added Slade clearly knew his actions were legally wrong but the matter of criminal responsibility hinges on whether he knew it was morally wrong or whether mental illness truly made him believe he was acting on a divine command Defence lawyer Glenn Sandberg in November argued that Slade’s schizophrenia caused psychosis that made him incapable of distinguishing right from wrong He said the evidence shows that the killing of Colin Gill stemmed from a “command hallucination” Slade experienced was driven by the delusional belief that God had commanded him to kill Colin Gill in order to prevent “World War Three.” Sandberg thus conceded that the murder was premeditated hence meeting the definition of first degree but argued Slade’s mental illness was so acute that he was not criminally responsible but committed indignity to his remains and arranged them in a way suggesting ritual further evidence that he was acting on the dictates of a psychotic delusion He cited one psychiatric expert as concluding “Mr Slade’s moral understanding was significantly compromised by delusional thinking.” Sandberg acknowledged the schizophrenia symptoms were made worse by Slade’s consumption of cannabis but argued the fundamental moral incapacity at the heart of his actions was not caused by it Assistant Crown Attorney Keith Schultz rejected that conclusion at the November hearing and argued Slade should be found guilty as charged He said the defence failed to demonstrate that the accused did not know Schultz argued the evidence points to Slade having been aware at the time that his  actions were illegal that they would have been considered morally wrong by reasonable members of society He read off what he considered a long list discrepancies between Slade’s accounts of his own delusions and hallucinations as told to the court as opposed to what he told medical professionals or his assessors Schultz argued there is enough evidence of “animus” on Slade’s part toward his family and Gill to establish a “reality-based” motive for the crime Schultz argued that Slade should have known his cannabis consumption would cause this psychosis as he had been warned not to continue consuming Johnston noted the two psychiatrists enlisted to determine whether Slade was criminally responsible presented opposing conclusions he agreed with the finding that Slade’s delusions were longstanding before the crime and that he suffered from a major mental illness at the time Johnston also accepted the conclusions of experts who said Slade was not malingering (faking or exaggerating symptoms) though he accepted the accused may have engaged in “impression management.” While the defence argued Slade’s anger at his family presented a reality-based motive would have been directed more at his mother and sister noting that Slade’s mother once told him he was lucky she did not have an abortion The treatment of the victim’s body after the crime also argue in favour of a command hallucination motiving Slade’s actions Johnston said the inconsistencies in Slade’s accounts are “troubling,” adding the accused has been “consistently inconsistent.” He suggested at least some of those inconsistencies could be explained by the impact of drugs on Slade’s memory and added those inconsistencies don’t detract from the finding of a major mental illness and cannot be trusted to continue abstaining from consuming the cannabis that exacerbates his symptoms He is to remain in custody pending the hearing by the Ontario Review Board an independent tribunal which has jurisdiction over people found not criminally responsible Schultz said the hearing is required to take place within 45 days (Catch up on what is happening throughout Eastern Ontario with our Midday Roundup. Click here to sign up for the free newsletter, which will be delivered to your inbox every weekday.) OttawaNewsBrockville, Ont. cafe giving hundreds of Christmas dinners to people in needBy Jack RichardsonPublished: December 23, 2024 at 1:57PM EST City officials are urging the public to be patient as workers struggle with the aftermath of the area’s biggest snowstorm in recent years The massive blast of winter that buried the region over the Family Day long weekend followed a smaller but still significant snowfall last week residents emerged into the sun to find the relentless assault of snow had transformed into a knife-edge of cold Brockville got 31 centimetres of snow over the long weekend alone The total since the city declared a significant weather event last Wednesday is 38 centimetres drivers contended with snowbanks along the streets high enough to block sightlines while pedestrians had precious few clear sidewalks to navigate off the city’s major arteries snow removal was taking longer than expected who chairs city council’s general committee said in her opening remarks at Tuesday’s monthly committee meeting City Hall stated: “The significant weather event declared Wednesday February 12th is now over.” “We’ve had in the last week more snowfall than we’ve had and certainly it’s been challenging for our staff We understand it’s challenging for the residents,” Fullarton at the previous day’s meeting “Contrary to what you might be reading on social media the city is very much still carting away snow as we always have been,” she added It costs the city $20,000 a night to send out its snow removal equipment to clear the white stuff from city streets and take it to the disposal site City crews work around the clock to clear away a snowstorm “We appreciate everything that the residents are doing and can continue to do regarding keeping your cars off the streets as much as possible so the trucks can get through and do what they need to do.” Fullarton praised the city crews for their hard work “When you have that much snow fall in a few days’ time it’s going to take some time to get it cleared away While some on social media may have grumbled the Brockville Fire Department used social media to appeal to city residents for help should they see a yellow marker sticking out of the snow “If you see a buried fire hydrant in your neighborhood please help us this winter by keeping fire hydrants clear of snow and ice every second counts,” fire officials wrote Fire officials urge residents to clear a path wide enough to walk around the hydrant and clear a path from the hydrant to the street They also reminded residents to check their vents and gas meters to make sure they’re clear of snow and ice too “Not clearing your vents could cause a dangerous build-up of carbon monoxide in your home The only way to know if you have CO in your home is by having a working carbon monoxide alarm,” the fire department added While Environment Canada was not issuing any more weather warnings for the days ahead it was calling for some flurries later in the week and into the weekend A packed Memorial Centre enjoyed some high-speed high-octane hockey Friday as Brockville enjoyed its first World Junior moment in more than a decade and a half The Latvia-Czechia exhibition matchup was a mostly fast-paced affair with the favoured Czechs dominating their Eastern European rivals to a 5-1 victory which has been hosting the Swiss team for a training camp since Dec The Swiss team has been preparing at the Memorial Centre rink for its IIHF World Junior Championship play and Friday was the young crew’s first day off The Swiss team used part of their day to visit the YMCA of Eastern Ontario’s Brockville facility Brockville last hosted a World Junior game and training camp the last time the tournament was played in Ottawa, in 2009. The city hosted Latvia’s team in December 2008, as well as a Latvia-Germany matchup. “The YMCA was very happy to be able to host team Switzerland at the Y during their stay,” CEO Rob Adams said in a message to The Recorder and Times. “It was wonderful for us as an organization to showcase what a wonderful community asset the Brockville YMCA is.” The Y believes in partnerships, “both locally and internationally,” added Adams. “I believe when the team eventually heads home, they will leave feeling that they were welcomed with open arms.” The Czechs and Latvians, meanwhile, also got a warm welcome, with the crowd applauding high-quality play, though many were pulling for the Baltic squad given its underdog status. The exhibition game also drew fans from further afield. Stéphane Lajoie, of Hawkesbury, sported a Team Latvia jersey as he stood by the stands during the first intermission. “It’s a small country, they had it rough over the last few centuries,” said Lajoie, 42, about his favourite team, whose homeland suffered for decades under the Soviet yoke. “They’re always the underdogs, and they always show up.” On the opposite side, Andrew Roudny, wearing a Czechia jersey while draped in the Czech flag, came down from Peterborough to catch the game. Roudny, 48, was born in Prague, and his family fled what was then Czechoslovakia while it was behind the Iron Curtain. “I came here to cheer the team on,” said Roudny. He has been cheering on the Czech team through hard times, and what are now better times. “It was always fun to see them, but now it’s great to see them succeed,” he said. Repairs to Brockville’s water tower will begin in the coming weeks with city officials assuring residents there should be no disruption to their usual water services City council on Tuesday approved a bid by Landmark Municipal Services for the rehabilitation of the Perth Street tower Council also agreed to cover a shortfall of $773,204 with funds from the water rate working capital operations reserve Workers will remove the existing protective paint and apply a fresh coat to the hulking structure as well as other repairs to the interior portion of the massive bowl and the updating of safety rails to meet current standards the city’s director of engineering and infrastructure services and supervisor of water systems Clay Sluytman notes the elevated water tower was built in 1953 and was last coated in 2002 The eight-legged welded steel tower is 40 metres high and has a bowl diameter of 20 metres A condition assessment in the summer of 2022 concluded the tower’s current coating thickness is very heavy and so recommended another overcoat not be applied but rather that all exterior coats be removed to bare metal and a primer and new coating system be applied “The interior coating of the tower is still in relatively good condition and only requires some minor spot repairs,” the report adds the city hired Mulder Inspection Services Company Ltd for engineering and technical design services and other work including construction administration and inspection services with Landmark chosen over two other bidders and the timing of available senior government funding was not in the city’s favour the city applied for and received funding through the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program’s Green Infrastructure Stream the total cost of the project was estimated at $2,409,000 “Because of when the funding program was announced … we were rushed into doing cost estimates without all the necessary information,” Raabe told council the city was approved for up to $1,766,519 or roughly 73 per cent of funding from the provincial and federal governments adding the city’s portion of the funding was approved in the 2022 and 2023 capital budgets Brockville was approved for the federal-provincial funding when it was available but the project’s cost turned out to be higher “The condition assessment that followed the funding application identified the need for full coating removal and the presence of lead,” the staff report notes “This information significantly changed the scope of the work and the cost as compared to what was originally anticipated during the preparation of the funding application.” The chosen bid left the city short by $898,204 but the job includes two smaller projects that were approved in the 2019 and 2023 capital budgets That reduced the city’s shortfall to $773,204 water will have to be drained from the tower The potential energy in the water in the elevated tower creates pressure in the city’s water system that pressure will have to come from the pumps at the main water treatment plant Those pumps should keep the city’s taps running as usual “We are actually going to be manning the water treatment plant on a 24-hour shift,” said Raabe that’s our reservoir that we can draw upon.” Raabe said the city has three water reservoirs in case of a system breakdown: the tower a large reservoir at the water treatment plant Jeff Earle had only one concern: “Just tell me you don’t have to shut down Perth Street.” Raabe provided reassurance such a closure won’t be necessary Wren drew one parallel to the William Street project noting how in that case the inflationary pressures during the COVID-19 pandemic caused a “drastic escalation of construction prices” after the city got its senior government funding leaving the city with a larger share to cover “I suspect that’s partly at play here as well with the revised figures we’re looking at,” added the mayor A local business owner is charged with sexually assaulting a teenaged employee and making child pornography – and Brockville police believe there may be other victims 65 whom police identified as the owner of a frozen food retailer in town the Brockville Police Service reported on Wednesday He is charged with four counts of sexual assault on a person under 16 He was released from custody on bail with conditions pending his next court appearance on April 15 “Investigators believe that there may be more victims,” police added Darryl Boyd said Wednesday no further information about the victim would be released in an effort to protect the victim’s identity The case came to light when “it was brought forward by the victim,” added Boyd Police were not sure how many other victims might be out there witness or anyone with information is asked to contact Det OttawaNewsBrockville, Ont. busy as people enjoy warm temperatures SaturdayBy Jack RichardsonPublished: March 15, 2025 at 3:07PM EDT Brockville’s warming centre for homeless people has been given an advance on its 2025-26 budget allowing it to cover a year-end shortfall that would have forced it to lay off staff or even close its doors The joint services committee of the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville agreed on Tuesday to provide the Cooperative Care Centre with $176,000 to cover the shortfall allowing it to remain open for the remainder of its fiscal year The joint services committee agreed to stretch the centre’s funding for the next fiscal year That means the centre and the municipal body will have to talk further about how to manage the facility’s budget in the months ahead which brings together the United Counties mayors and those of Brockville “to make sure that the Cooperative Care Centre doesn’t reach the cliff the middle of this January,” said committee chairman Brant Burrow Burrow is the mayor of Elizabethtown-Kitley Township where the centre is located on the grounds of the Brockville Mental Health Centre which is now entering its fifth year of operation food and safety for people struggling with homelessness It is funded by the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville which funnels money it receives from the province’s Homelessness Prevention Program who chairs the Brockville Housing Partnership that runs the centre and also chairs the centre’s board of management told the joint services committee Tuesday the 20-bed facility saw 9,227 visits in 2023 a total that rose by 20 per cent to nearly 11,200 in 2024 an increase in the number of people who are in circumstances where they need to come to us for shelter and for assistance,” Reid told the committee There are currently not enough beds to meet the homeless population’s needs we turned away almost a thousand people at the door once we’d reached capacity and there’s nothing more heartbreaking to us than that … especially when you get a day like today where that wind is minus-17 and you can’t take somebody in for the night,” added Read as the current fiscal year approaches its end meant centre management faced the prospect of either laying off staffers or closing the shelter’s doors entirely Joint services committee members agreed this had to be avoided we cannot be without this facility in the middle of winter,” said Brockville Mayor Matt Wren “We don’t want to see layoffs at the centre and people turned away more than what’s already being turned away,” agreed Rideau Lakes Mayor Arie Hoogenboom “I would hope that you would give us a bit of time before you take that drastic step of closing the doors or laying people off.” Read said staff would put off such measures for as long as possible He also pointed to other steps the Cooperative Care Centre is taking including moves to incorporate as a charitable organization which would make it eligible for other grants Centre management also hopes to move operations away from the current spot onto another property where it could erect a prefabricated structure that would not only expand the number of beds to 40 “The idea is to build a building that we know will fit the work that we’re doing rather than trying to fit our work into a building which doesn’t work for us,” Read told the committee said the current shortfall is due entirely to staffing and so we are forced to hire more staff to handle the people that are staying there,” said Barnes Read said the predicted annual savings from the new building would be $110,000 But before management can plan ahead for that option the centre needs to get through the current financial crunch The urgency of the situation prompted committee members to hold a closed-door meeting so the committee and staff could discuss negotiations with centre management who basically operate on a contract with the county the committee returned to its public session to pass a motion calling for the $176,000 shortfall to be covered by advancing part of next fiscal year’s Homelessness Prevention Program funding to this fiscal year’s operations The total funding for next fiscal year is $692,000 The motion also called for “a significant follow-up” with centre management in order to address the financial challenges of the fiscal year ahead Wren reiterated calls for the public to step forward and support the centre with charitable donations “This motion doesn’t truly solve the problem,” said Wren “I don’t think the public truly understands that this is a charity and that there is a need for community support here as part of this puzzle as well,” he added “Tax dollars alone will not keep this facility running We really need those that are able to help in the community to do so.” Read had earlier noted the centre has been trying to fundraise and various community donors have brought in a total of about $40,000 in community fundraising Read acknowledged there are long-term financial challenges ahead but expressed satisfaction with the immediate relief “We’re very pleased with the outcome and look forward to continuing with the work that we’re doing,” he said