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Good morning, Thunder Bay — and welcome to issue one hundred and fifty-three. Sunny with a high of 10°C. It's Saturday, Halloween, and clocks fall back an hour tonight, so you get a bonus hour of sleep. In today's issue: a Thunder Bay man wins a $3-million 50/50 jackpot, the full list of newly elected school board trustees, and who won the mayor's chair in Terrace Bay, Schreiber and Nipigon. Plus Scrollback, your Halloween weekend things to do, and a question about city hall.
In this Harbour Beat Issue…
Trivia: The QWERTY keyboard layout was first designed for which machine — typewriter, telegraph, or adding machine? (Answer at the bottom!)
Ask Harbour Beat: How many people sit around the Thunder Bay city council table?
Answer: 13 — the mayor, five councillors at large and seven ward councillors, according to the City's council page.
Got a Thunder Bay question? Hit reply. We answer one here every Saturday.
Why Overseas Producers Can't Undercut Atlas Salt, Even for Free
Cities are already running short on road salt, and winter hasn't even started. Some supply bids are going unanswered, prices have nearly doubled in parts of the market, and the backup plan is two weeks away by boat. Here's why Atlas Salt (TSXV: SALT | OTCQX: SALQF) can get salt to the people who need it most, faster and cheaper than anyone shipping from overseas:
• Three days by ship to Boston, not fourteen
• Shallow deposit that's cheaper and faster to mine
• Projected C$188M a year in free cash flow
• Export Development Canada interested in lending C$150M
• Early supply deal with top U.S. salt distributor
Thunder Bay Events
Happy Halloween! Here's what's on tonight and through Monday, from a kids' symphony concert to the Pumpkin Parade at Hillcrest Park. Clocks fall back an hour at 2 a.m. Sunday, so enjoy the extra sleep.
Saturday, October 31
OCT 31 · Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra Halloween concert — 2 to 3:30 p.m. · 📍 St. Paul United Church, 349 Waverley St. · Halloween tunes and mysterious melodies for young listeners, with costumes encouraged. · 📅 Add to Calendar
OCT 31 · Dagwood's Slightly Batty Halloween — 2 to 8 p.m., with a sensory-friendly time · 📍 Dagwood's Bakery and Deli, 290 Brock St. E. · Halloween treats in Westfort. · 📅 Add to Calendar
OCT 31 · Downtown PA Halloween Festival (19+) — 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. · 📍 Downtown Port Arthur · A nine-venue Halloween festival for the 19-and-over crowd. · 📅 Add to Calendar
Sunday, November 1
NOV 1 · Family Art Days — 1 to 4 p.m., free · 📍 Thunder Bay Art Gallery, 1080 Keewatin St. · Free all-ages activities to explore the exhibitions and get creative. · 📅 Add to Calendar
NOV 1 · Stepping Out For Foot Health — 2 to 4 p.m. · 📍 Intercity Shopping Centre, 1000 Fort William Rd. · St. Joseph's Foundation's awareness and fundraising walk to prevent diabetic foot complications. · 📅 Add to Calendar
NOV 1 · Pumpkin Parade — 3:30 to 8:30 p.m., free · 📍 Hillcrest Park · Drop off your carved pumpkin and see them all lit up for the evening; the pumpkins are composted afterwards. · 📅 Add to Calendar
Monday, November 2
NOV 2 · Chat With the Chief (check before you go — city listing also mentions Nov. 18) — 5 to 7:15 p.m., free · 📍 Waverley Resource Library, 285 Red River Rd. · A public meeting with the police chief; questions can be submitted beforehand. · 📅 Add to Calendar
✅ NO WEATHER ALERTS IN EFFECT
Environment Canada has no alerts posted for Thunder Bay at the time of this update. Halloween Saturday looks bright once the morning fog clears.
☀️ Saturday, October 31 — Thunder Bay
10°C
Overnight low +5°C
Sunny, with morning fog patches dissipating and wind up to 15 km/h. The high is 10°C, with a wind chill of −5 in the morning, and the UV index is low at 2. Becoming cloudy in the evening, with a 40 per cent chance of drizzle overnight, fog patches near midnight and a low of +5°C.
Sunday is cloudy with a 30 per cent chance of showers and a high of 14°C, and clocks fall back an hour at 2 a.m. Monday is cloudy with a 30 per cent chance of showers and a high of 14°C, and Tuesday brings a 60 per cent chance of showers and a high of 11°C. Forecast from Environment Canada.
A Thunder Bay man wins the hospital foundation's $3-million 50/50 jackpot
Chad Samuelson of Thunder Bay got the call Friday morning that he had won the October Thunder Bay 50/50 grand prize of $3,083,790, the largest the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Foundation has awarded outside its December draws. He says he has bought tickets since the very first draw in February 2021 and plans to buy the home his wife has always wanted. The foundation has now paid out more than $116 million in prizes since the lottery began. The November draw is already on sale at thunderbay5050.ca, with the first early-bird draw on Nov. 5 and the grand prize on Nov. 27, and you need to be in Ontario when you buy.
🗳️ Your call: How often do you buy Thunder Bay 50/50 tickets?
How often do you buy Thunder Bay 50/50 tickets?
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The city names its new school board trustees
The city released the official list of school board trustees on Friday. The English public Lakehead District School Board elected eight: Kathleen Heikkinen, Trudy Tuchenhagen, Deborah Massaro, Susan Frattaroli, George Saarinen, Patricia Johansen, Ian Morgan and Lex MacArthur, with Tuchenhagen topping the vote at 12,813. The Thunder Bay Catholic District School Board elected six: Leanne Fonso, Tony Romeo, Lawrence Badanai, Eleanor Ashe, Anthony Foglia and Olivia Kembel, led by Fonso at 5,521 votes. Trustees sit on the boards that oversee local schools, so these are the names to know if you have a question for either board.
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Terrace Bay re-elects its mayor while Schreiber and Nipigon choose new leaders
Now that the campaigns are over, mayors in three communities east of Thunder Bay are preparing to start new terms: Terrace Bay re-elected Mayor Malashewski, while Schreiber and Nipigon each chose a new leader. In Nipigon, a recount decided a council seat by a single vote, with Kathy Stitt winning. New terms are about to begin in all three towns, so expect fresh faces at the table.
📊 SCROLLBACK
Roads and public safety top readers' list for Thunder Bay's new council
The question: What should Thunder Bay's new council tackle first? (14 responses)
🥇 🚌 Roads, transit and the infrastructure deficit — 43% (6)
🛡️ Public safety — 36% (5)
🏠 Housing and homelessness — 14% (2)
💰 Keeping taxes down — 7% (1)
Takeaway
Roads and public safety together drew 11 of the 14 votes, well ahead of housing and taxes. With a sample this small, treat it as a fun temperature check rather than a definitive verdict.
💬 What Readers Are Saying
One reader wrote that repeated shoplifting is wearing on shoppers and wants a firmer response before it gets worse.
Final Thoughts
Potholes and public safety: the two things you notice before you ever read a budget. Thanks to everyone who voted.
Meme of the Day
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What's faster than word of mouth? The Harbour Beat Spotlight! Keeps you updated on what's going on locally and connects businesses to our vibrant community.
Trivia answer: A typewriter. Inventor Christopher Latham Sholes laid out the QWERTY keyboard for his typewriter, and Remington began selling the machines in 1873.
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