The INVISTA Centre will keep it’s name for another two year term after Kingston City Council approved the extension of the naming rights agreement with INVISTA Canada until 2025.

Site Manager with INVISTA Kingston Dennis McAllister says,“INVISTA considers the City of Kingston a preferred partner, and we’re honoured to be able to extend our naming rights partnership with the City. The two years we lost due to the pandemic was a challenging time for us all, but we’re moving forward, and we take great pride in being able to support the Kingston community.”

The City of Kingston has announced that Sadiqa de Meijer has been appointed as Kingston’s new Poet Laureate. The honorary four-year term position celebrates the contribution of poetry and literary arts to life in Kingston. Mayor Bryan Paterson welcomed the new poet laureate at Tuesday night’s council meeting.

She has received a Governor General’s Literary Award and and recently received a 2022 Mayor’s arts award.

De Meijer says, “Over the past twenty years, I have watched Kingston/Katarokwi unfold into new forms… I’m looking forward to translating this shifting place into poetry, to creating collaborative projects with local residents, and to bringing poems to the city’s landscape.

Her first official event as Poet Laureate will be at the Mayor’s Levee on January 10, where she will read a new, original poem created for the occasion. 

That’s all for your daily news brief. I’m Karim Mosna, if you have any news tips email me: news@cfrc.ca

With the United Nations Biodiversity Conference or COP15 beginning in Montreal today and the UN’s COP27 having recently wrapped up, Just Recovery Kingston and Kingston Youth Climate Action are sponsoring a City and Climate Town Hall online tonight at 7, with three panelists discussing opportunities and obstacles for climate justice at the local level.

The panelists will discuss: How Kingston can meet the 50% by 2030 target required by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and what can be done in response to the climate crisis at the municipal level. The panelists include:-Mary Jane Philp of 350 Kingston Ian Borsuk of Environment Hamilton and Burnaby city councillor Alison Gu.

To register visit the Just Recovery Kingston Website, and join me at 5 on The Scoop for an exclusive interview with Mary Jane Philp of 350 Kingston.

A new museum telling the story of local Holocaust survivors has opened. L’dor Vador: From Generation to Generation, the Holocaust Museum and Educated Centre is located within Kingston synagogue Beth Israel Congregation. The museum is comprised of a permanent exhibit of Family Trees that illustrate the stories of ten children who survived the Nazi genocide of Jews during World War 2, and how they built their lives in Kingston. The trees were created by students of the former Queen Elizabeth Collegiate and Vocational Institute.

Teacher Pam Simon who spearheaded the project says, “The goal of creating this museum space is to not only educate students, but also to educate History and English teachers on how to teach the Holocaust.”

The exhibit also includes a surviving Torah Scroll from the destruction of European Jewry.

That’s all for your daily news brief. I’m Karim Mosna, if you have any news tips email: news@cfrc.ca

Education workers in Ontario have voted to accept the four year deal offered by the provincial government. The ratification vote brings lengthy, and at times contentious, negotiations between the two sides to a close after strike action saw schools across Ontario close in early November.

CUPE 1480 Local President Erin Provost says  “They had concessions for a lot of things and we didn’t end up losing anything. We kept everything basically as status quo and we ended up with a dollar an hour raise. It isn’t nearly enough, but it’s more than we’ve seen in over a decade.”

76% of 55,000 education workers participated in the ratification vote between November 24 and December 4, with 73% of those voting in favour of the agreement.

Provost said that the recent court decision to overturn the public sector wage-suppressing Bill 124 didn’t really have any bearing on members’ willingness to go back to the table,  however the Ford government’s intent to appeal that decision demonstrates the contempt the government has for its’ school children, as the money that will be spent on an expectedly lengthy and rigorous legal challenge could have gone towards supports for students.

This story courtesy of Owen Fullerton, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter with YGK NEWS.

International Day of Persons with Disabilities was this past Saturday and just ahead of that, The City of Kingston  presented its 2022 Accessibility Awards.One of the award recipients was Associate professor of mechanical and materials engineering at Queen’s University, Dr. Claire Davies who teaches the interdisciplinary Building Better Together program for 3rd year biomedical students and 2nd year occupational therapy students. Davies and her students design assistive technology to increase independence for persons with disabilities. She says she tries to put her engineering students into an accessibility mindset.

Other recipients include: Owner of Signable Vi5ion, Leah Riddell, Bailey Daniels for her work with Motion Kingston and Polson Park Public School. Catch my full conversation with Dr. Davies and Leah Riddel this afternoon at 5 on Citizen K.

That’s all for your daily news brief. I’m Karim Mosna, if you have any news tips email: news@cfrc.ca

The United Way of Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington has announced a new Youth Peer Support Program for youth in the region. The program will work with youth aged 16- 24 on a referral basis. Youth seeking support will then be matched with trained peers  with lived experience over the age of 18.

This past summer, Resolve Counseling hired a Youth Program Facilitator with the financial support from United Way. Director of Community Services at Resolve, Tara Everitt says,

“The Facilitator is working with youth and agencies to really develop a model that works for our community, we want young people to know they are not alone. We want to help support them to build hope. It is youth supporting youth.”

The community-driven initiative was identified through a special youth mental health committee spearheaded by Kingston Health Sciences Centre and United Way KFL&A.

The committee discussed multiple challenges youth often face when they are in crisis, or discharged from hospital. Youth indicated that having a peer walk with them through this experience would be a tremendous help during the transition.

According to a release from United Way, following the initial development of the program and pilot period over the next year, the program hopes to expand further to include more youth and agencies in the community.

As of January 6, 2023, Pascan Aviation will be pausing air service at YGK Airport  Aron Winterstein, YGK Airport Manager says, Forward bookings on Pascan are not where they need to be, this is not an issue with safety or support from our partners and residents.. Currently, travellers cannot book directly on the Air Canada website, use Aeroplan points for bookings or speak with an Air Canada booking agent. and we are pausing service until those levels of customer service can be met.” 

Travellers can book travel from YGK/Kingston to YUL/Montreal through January 6 by visiting the Pascan Aviation website. Travellers currently holding tickets on Pascan Aviation will be honoured through January 6th.

That’s all for your daily news brief. I’m Karim Mosna, if you have any news tips email: news@cfrc.ca

The Kingston Community Climate Action Fund have announced three projects to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the community. the City of Kingston’s Community Climate Action Fund is seeking to raise $112,308 to support the projects. The projects include the Frontenac Club Day Care Integration Programme to build retrofits to create 20 new licensed daycare spaces in Kingston and a new wheelchair-accessible preschool and infant rooms. The retrofits will improve energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Ongwanada is looking to purchase an electric wheelchair transport bike that can be used to help residents maintain their mental and physical health and Sustainable Kingston is looking to purchase an electric vehicle that will replace gas-powered vehicle use. 

Donations to the fund are accepted at all Kingston Community Credit Union branches, the KCCU will match donations made through the bank up to $5,000. 

This afternoon, more than 11,000 students and staff from 40 schools in Kingston, Frontenac, and Lennox & Addington will take part in the 21st annual Jingle Bell Run. 

Students will be donating a non-perishable food in exchange for a jingle bell, and then participating in a one kilometre festive fit break where they will walk, run or skip around their school or community “with bells on”. This is a partnership between KFL&A Public Health, local school boards, and local food banks to help gather food donations for families in need. The run will start at 2:30 at both Bayridge Public School and Southview Public School.

That’s all for your daily news brief. I’m Karim Mosna, if you have any news tips email: news@cfrc.ca

The Kingston Humane Society has launched Home For The Holidays today, as adoptable cat numbers soar to over 90. As part of the campaign, all adult cats can be adopted for $50, while all senior, VIP or special needs cats can be adopted for $25. Executive Director Gord Hunter says, “Our goal is to get at least half of these cats into loving homes before January,” “We’ve had another year of operating well over capacity and one of the consequences of being over capacity is that many of our cats have longer stays.”Many of them have been through hell before they end up at our door and we want the remainder of their lives to be the absolute best.”

According to a release from the KHS,During the holiday season, animal shelters can find themselves bursting at the seams. Foster volunteers are frequently not able to care for animals over the holidays and the public is more concerned about strays due to weather conditions. This combination can bring even more animals into an already overcrowded shelter. The regular adoption process still applies and more information can be found on the KHS website.

Your parking ticket can help children in need. Today, tomorrow and Monday from 8:30 until 4:30 this afternoon, you can donate a toy instead of paying for a parking ticket. According to a release from the city, The value of the toy should be equal to, or greater than, the value of the ticket. Receipts must be provided when making the donation. Only new and unopened toys will be accepted. Recommended items include games, cars, dolls and stuffed toys that are suitable for children up to the age of 12. Anything requiring batteries or promoting violence will not be accepted. Toys can be dropped off either at City Hall Payment Centre or at 1211 John Counter Boulevard.

That’s all for your daily news brief, I’m Karim Mosna. If you have any news tips email: news@cfrc.ca

Kingston Police have arrested and charged a 14 year old with making death threats. Police received a call on Friday in regards to an allegation of a potential threat made towards Kingston Secondary School by an unknown individual on social media. Later Friday afternoon, police arrested a youth in Kingston’s north end, they were released on conditions and with a court date. 

The Agnes Etherington Art Gallery won 5 Ontario Galleries Awards.

Agnes Director and Curator Emelie Chhangur says, “The awards are an important moment to reflect on the social and civic impact that public galleries have on our communities and to celebrate the extraordinary work we undertake—work that often goes unnoticed because it is so seamless, I am mega proud of Agnes this year, whose activities, hard work and innovative practices have rightfully been acknowledged by our peers across the province.”

Agnes was recognized with two exhibition awards, one curatorial award and two design awards. The 2022 Ontario Galleries Award winners were announced at the Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema in Toronto on Monday.

That’s all for your daily news brief. If you have any news tips email me: news@cfrc.ca

A “Stop Bill 23” protest took place outside Kingston City Hall on Sunday morning. Environmental groups including: 350 Kingston, River First YGK, Seniors for Climate Action Now and Kingston Youth Climate Action were at the rally.

This comes as local environmental groups and Cataraqui Conservation are expressing concern over the proposed bill.  Queen’s University environmental sciences master’s student and member of Kingston Youth Climate Action Mary Anne Schoenhardt says, “It reduces the authority that Conservation Authorities have in the development process and their ability to enter into partnerships with municipalities, it will prevent how they are able to assign or give permits for development…they won’t be able to consider species at risk as well as consider pollution.”

The bill, also referred to as the More Homes Built Faster Act, aims to build 1.5 million homes over the next decade. CFRC reached out to Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Steve Clark, who proposed Bill 23, but did not receive comment. My conversation with Mary Anne Shoenhardt as well as with Cataraqui Conservation General Manager Katrina Furlanetto on the environmental concerns regarding Bill 23 coming up this afternoon at 5 on Citizen K.

The Canadian Frailty Network and MP Mark Gerretsen announced a federal investment of $950,000 at an “Aging Well Together” event at Kingston City Hall. The free, online program will help seniors to assess and adjust their lifestyle to mitigate the effects of frailty, connecting to local resources.

Dr. John Muscedere, CFN Scientific Director and a professor at Queen’s, says the program should enhance the level of personalization people receive in their health advice, and point them in the right direction to get it.

The centres will promote five main categories of healthy aging including: activity, vaccination, optimization of medication, reduction of social isolation, and diet.

Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington is the first region with a health aging centre, but the program will expand to cities throughout the country.

This story courtesy of Owen Fullerton, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter with YGK News.

That’s all for your daily news brief. If you have any news tips email me: news@cfrc.ca

The City of Kingston has announced the Waabaan Crossing Bridge will officially open on Tuesday December 13th officially marking the transition to the bridge’s community-selected name. The Waaban Crossing is the largest infrastructure project taken on by the City to date, with the City of Kingston and the Governments of Canada and Ontario each contributing $60 million toward the project. 

According to a release from the city, “The new crossing will support ongoing growth and development in the Kingston community, enhance access for emergency services and advance the City’s active transportation network.”

Mayor Bryan Paterson says, “As we move forward with the new name Waaban Crossing, the bridge offers each of us a chance to reflect on the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Peoples in Kingston, encouraging us to continue to work together to build a thriving community.” 

The official ribbon cutting will take place between 2 and 2:30, while the bridge will open officially to the public early in the evening.

Tourism Kingston has been named Tourism Employer of the Year at Canadian Tourism Awards.

Executive Director of Tourism Kingston Megan Knott says, “The Canadian Tourism Awards recognize the best of the best across Canada – this award is a testament to the amazing team we have at Tourism Kingston. It’s an honour to work alongside them each day and to build a workplace culture that supports their success and wellbeing.”

The Tourism Employer of the Year Award recognizes a business leader and organization that have made a commitment to foster equity, diversity, inclusion, and belonging and that embrace innovative ideas to move the company forward while supporting and encouraging workplace and personal life balance.

That’s all for your daily news brief. If you have any news tips email me: news@cfrc.ca

The City of Kingston has announced the 2022 Accessibility Award Recipients. The Community Organization award will go to Polson Park Public School for it’;s continued upgrades to their playground. Nominator Stacy Watson says.” By reducing the physical barriers and rethinking the playground, the school created spaces where all children can play together and engage in a variety of activities. 3 Community Members will also be receiving awards. Bailey Daniels who works with Motion Kingston will be recognized for helping others gain independence and confidence by providing clients and their families with mobility and accessibility equipment. Associate professor of mechanical and materials engineering at Queen’s University, Claire Davies for designing assistive technology to increase independence for persons with disabilities, and owner of SignAble Vi5ion Leah Riddell, who educates individuals, businesses and corporations on how to create work environments centred around inclusive communication. She is also a past member of the City’s Municipal Accessibility Advisory Committee, where she used her training and lived experience to advance accessibility for persons with disabilities in Kingston.

There will be a free ceremony next Friday December 2nd from 1 to 3 at Memorial Hall in City Hall featuring keynote speaker Desirée Walsh known for her standup comedy using her sense of humour to shine a perspective on her experience as a person with cerebral palsy.

Kingston Economic Development Corporation and St. Lawrence College announced they have launched the first upskilling hair stylist training of its kind in the region. The free training is available for local industry stylists and apprentices who are seeking to advance their skills on all hair textures. The training will focus on diversity and inclusion in the hair styling industry.

According to a release from Economic Developmnent, 

“As the international community grows within the Kingston region, individuals are finding that stylists don’t feel confident enough to work with all hair types. These training sessions will position Kingston as a city with dozens of stylists who are able to cater to any one person who sits in their chair.

 All training sessions will be available free of charge to interested stylists and apprentices seeking to advance their skills working with multiple textures of hair. The next round of training sessions is currently slated to begin on January 22, 2023.

That’s all for your daily news brief, I’m Karim Mosna. If you have any news tips email: news@cfrc.ca

A Homelessness Forum hosted by Lawson Health Research institute showcasing findings from across Canada was held at the INVISTA Centre yesterday. 

Assistant Scientific Director at Lawson Dr. Cheryl Forchuk says, “We have been to every province and territory in Canada to collect data. We have interviewed more than 400 people experiencing homelessness in each community and have had focus groups with 190 service providers, Our ultimate goal is to gather the most accurate numbers of people experiencing homelessness across the country so we can collectively work together towards solutions such as an increase of services that are targeted to address specific concerns and vulnerable populations in each unique community.”

My conversation with Dr. Forchuk is coming up this afternoon at 5 on The Scoop

Groups and individuals will gather on River Street this Saturday to remember Indigenous Grandmother Laurel Claus-Johnson who died at the end of September. Speakers will cover her various contributions to Kingston and celebrate love of trees, including her efforts to save over 1800 mature Tannery trees threatened with clearcutting. The event will begin at 2pm on Saturday on River Street, in front of the Grandmother White Oak.

That’s all for your daily news brief. If you have any news tips email: news@cfrc.ca

A new facility in Kingston is looking to bring healing and growth through community and psychedelics, Neuma which opened its doors in September is hosting two events this week. Today, Neuma is holding a dedicated sampler class for frontline workers, hoping that healthcare staff who especially in the last few years have been overwhelmed and stressed, can access tools that can help bring relief.

Neuma Co-founder Cory Firth says “Psychedelics have the potential of not being this constant pill we pop,”“It has a tool to be able to teach people how to take some sovereignty back into their health and wellness practices and allows them to build skills for themselves to help sort of manage and improve on their symptoms of mental health.” 

 Neuma has paired up with the Kingston Economic Development Corporation for a Psychedelic Culture Connection event happening at Mitchell Hall on Queen’s campus tomorrow, with the intent of growing this learning series in the next year.

At this time Neuma is only using what is legally available to them primarily through psychedelic sampler classes that combine mindfulness, music, and breathwork with the intentional use of cannabis.

Firth says especially since its legalization cannabis has come to be seen as a recreational drug, but through more deliberate use it can be a transformational and medicinal tool. Through 3 hour classes, participants are introduced to a psychedelic experience in a safe space and in a group setting.

This story courtesy of Owen Fullerton, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter with YGK News.

Queen’s University music collective QWave is encouraging everyone to make music. QWave recently hosted a Sound Play event at Union Gallery. QWave founder Adam Ben David says “ it was an opportunity for people to come and create their own music using sounds that already exist, you can come in here with no instruments and create something totally different than what someone else might do two minutes afterword,” says Ben David.

He says the club’s mission statement is anyone can make music and that they try to break down barriers.

Catch my full conversation with Adam Ben David this afternoon at 5 on CITIZEN K.

That’s all for your daily news brief. If you have any news tips email: news@cfrc.ca

Effective December 21st, 2023, after 38 years of service, Kingston Police Chief Antje McNeely announced her upcoming retirement from Kingston Police.

In an announcement McNeely said, “Throughout my tenure as Chief, I have been committed to the promotion of equity, diversity and inclusion as well as member wellness within our organization.”

Chair of the Kingston Police Services Board Jarrod Stearns says, “She has loyally served the people of Kingston and has been a champion of diversity and equality, both internally and externally. She has been a strong advocate for disadvantaged persons and underrepresented groups. Chief McNeely will be remembered for reaching out and collaborating with external agencies and initiatives, like Kingston Speaks Inclusion, to address inequities and the root causes of crime.”

McNeely was Deputy Chief for 7 years, and served as Chief of Police for 5 years.

Utilities Kingston says that R.W. Tomlinson Limited is expected to start restoration works on the water and sewer project on Front Road and King Street West today, with scheduled completion by December. The project will restart in the spring of 2023. The plans will include feedback received from community members at an information that took place in September. A second information session will be held following resumption of the project to provide community members with an update and timelines. According to a release from Utilities Kingston, this project will redirect sewage from the Portsmouth Pumping Station and interconnect a trunk water main. It is expected to save energy, reduce sewer overflows, create capacity to support downtown development, and improve operations and system performance.

That’s all for your daily news brief. If you have any news tips email me: news@cfrc.ca

55 thousand education workers across the province could once again be on strike as of Monday, just shy of two weeks after their initial strike action ended. The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) gave five day strike notice yesterday morning, saying bargaining talks with the province had broken down just a week after employees returned to work in schools. The Conservative government has increased their offer when it comes to wages, by roughly a dollar per hour , however President of CUPE-OBSCU Laura Walton said it’s not enough, and maintained that improving supports for students is an important part of negotiations that has been largely ignored.

She said, the Ford government came back with an offer that still was “without a single cent for students” and has left the union no choice. At this time, the Limestone District school board has yet to release an official board statement and it’s unclear if schools would again flip to remote learning in the wake of a strike. If a deal is not reached, education workers could hit the picket lines as of Monday November 21st and schools across Ontario could likely be forced to close their doors again.

This story courtesy of Owen Fullerton, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter with YGK NEWS.

Pianist, composer and vocalist Michael Kaeshammer’s coast-to-coast tour is set to make a stop at The Grand Theatre in Kingston next Friday November 25th.  Kaeshammer’s music draws from several different genres including: jazz, boogie-woogie, classical, rock and more.

He is currently on a tour across Canada to promote his upcoming album Turn It Up, which is set to be released in March.

He says, “There’s a whole bunch of new songs from this Turn It Up record that we’re previewing on tour and trying out in front of an audience.” 

His Kingston show at The Grand Theatre on November 25th will be his final Ontario stop before heading west.

That’s all for your daily news brief, I’m Karim Mosna. If you have any news tips email: news@cfrc.ca Please Stay tuned Cyndy is in next with your Indie Wake Up Call, don’t miss her interview with Paul Langlois of The Tragically Hip.

Next Thursday November 24th and Saturday November 26th are the final drop-off days this year at the Household Hazardous Waste Facility at the Kingston Area Recycling Centre. The City asks that prior to heading to the Household Hazardous Waste facility to check your residence for hazardous waste items like pesticides, batteries, pool chemicals, removers or strippers, paint thinners, bleach motor oil antifreeze, propane cylinders and compact fluorescent light bulbs. Proof of residency is also required. After the facility closes for the season, batteries can still be dropped off at City Hall, the INVISTA Centre, or at the main office at The Recycling Centre, and compact fluorescent bulbs can also still be dropped off at The Recycling Centre. The City says to never put hazardous waste in the garbage or down the drain.

This Saturday afternoon, Right Livelihood Award recipient, and founder of the research organization ETC Group, Pat Mooney will be at Kingston City Hall to talk about the group’s report A Long Food Movement: Transforming Food Systems by 2045. Director of the National farmers union Local 316, and event organizer Kathy Rothermel says we have reached a turning point.

Mooney has been writing, and speaking about food issues since the 70’s. The event runs this Saturday from 2 to 4 in Memorial Hall at City Hall. Please join me this afternoon at 5 for my conversation with Kathy Rothermel for more information on the event.

That’s all for your daily news brief, I’m Karim Mosna. If you have any news tips email: news@cfrc.ca