A home in Peterborough suffered major damage on Sunday evening (May 19) after a barbeque caught on fire.

Just before 6 p.m., Peterborough Fire Services responded to a report of a barbeque fire at a Glenforest Boulevard home.

The report was upgraded to a structure fire while fire crews were en route to the home.

Fire crews were able to extinguish the fire, which had spread through the entire attic area.

The cause of the fire was a barbeque located on a covered porch. After the barbeque caught on fire, the flames spread to the house, resulting in an estimated $450,000 damage.

There were no injuries, as all occupants had vacated the home before fire crews arrived.

Hiawatha First Nation, the Peterborough Victoria Northumberland and Clarington (PVNC) Catholic District School Board, and Ontario Power Generation (OPG) are coming together to host a skilled trades fair for Indigenous students.

Taking place Thursday (May 23) at the Hiawatha Life and Culture Centre, located at 431 Hiawatha Line on Hiawatha First Nation, the event is geared towards Indigenous students in grades 7 through 12 and their families and aims to raise awareness about opportunities in the skilled trades sector.

Students and their families will be able to connect with highly skilled journeypersons and tradespeople from many of Ontario’s skilled trades, including Indigenous tradespeople and business owners, said PVNC Catholic District School Board in a media release.

The Hiawatha First Nation Skilled Trades Fair runs from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. for students. and will then be open to the public between 2 and 5 p.m. The event will begin with drumming from the Michiisaagig Minomin Drum group and opening remarks from Hiawatha First Nation Chief Laurie Carr.

“Hiawatha is honoured to co-host this skilled trades fair for Indigenous students and their families,” Carr said in a statement. “We know that there are over 360,000 job openings across Ontario, with one in five of these new job openings expected to be in the skilled trades by the year 2025.”

Carr said there are currently more than 140 skilled trades in essential industries such as construction, mechanical, electrical, automotive, and manufacturing.

“Hosting this career fair will ensure our First Nations youth know about in-demand careers that exist in the trades and that skilled tradespeople are vitally important to not only our First Nations, but to the overall economy,” she added. “This is a first step in supporting our youth in their success and journey of being one of the next generation of skilled First Nations tradespeople.”

OPG said it is proud to support the Hiawatha First Nations trades-focused career fair.

“Across Ontario, we are working to strengthen the Indigenous workforce, which will play an important role in electrifying life,” said Kenn Ross, OPG advisor, Indigenous relations. “Right now, many Indigenous skilled trades are helping to build important infrastructure and energy projects, including OPG’s Darlington refurbishment.”

“Many more qualified candidates are starting their journey through OPG’s Indigenous Opportunities Network. We hope this career fair can answer questions and provide rewarding and fulfilling opportunities in the in-demand trades.”

VIDEO: Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program (OYAP)

Indigenous students from all regions of PVNC Catholic District School Board will have the opportunity to attend the trades fair.

“This event signifies a profound collaboration and commitment to the education and empowerment of the Indigenous youth in our schools,” said Jacqueline Gorveatt, the Indigenous education lead for PVNC Catholic District School Board, in the release. “This is a unique opportunity for students to see themselves in the skilled trades and to meet and be inspired by Indigenous tradespeople who have been successful in their field.”

A highlight of the event will be a hands-on demonstration by Anishinaabe chef, restaurateur, and entrepreneur Shawn Adler, who will cook and speak to his own experience in the skilled trades.

Students in grades 11 and 12 can participate in the Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program (OYAP). OYAP is a co-operative education experience in a skilled trades placement. Students are able to earn credits while gaining valuable work experience and competencies. The Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development provides funding for this opportunity.

A skilled trade is a career path that requires a particular skill set, specialty knowledge and training and is usually hands-on, OYAP noted on its website. Some skilled trades require an apprenticeship.

There were 91,634 apprentices active in the province as of April 3, 2023, according to the Ontario government. The province announced in December 2023 a substantial investment in key programs to prepare young people for in-demand jobs in the skilled trades.

A Quebec couple suffered serious injuries after their vehicle collided with a moose in southern Algonquin Park early Sunday morning (May 19).

At around 1 a.m., the Killaloe Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) responded to a report of the collision, which happened on Highway 60 near Tea Lake, around 48 kilometres northeast of Huntsville.

After the vehicle struck the moose, it left the roadway and hit a tree. The two occupants of the car, a 45-year-old man and 40-year-old woman from Quebec, were transported to a hospital in Huntsville.

The woman, who received life-threatening injuries, was later transported to a Toronto trauma centre. The man, who received non-life-threatening injuries, remains in the Huntsville hospital in stable condition.

The OPP officers who responded to the scene had just finished investigating another collision between a vehicle and a moose. There were no serious injuries in that collision.

When responding to the scene, one of two Muskoka Paramedic Service ambulances also struck another moose. While the ambulance was extensively damaged in the collision, no injuries were reported.

The OPP are warning motorists that an increasing number of moose have been coming out of the forest and onto roads, particularly in the area of Algonquin Park, in an effort to escape from swarms of insects such as black flies.

They are asking drivers to keep theirs eyes on the road and ditches ahead while driving in the area and to observe posted speed limits so they have adequate time to react should a moose appear on the road.

Highway 60 was closed in the area while police documented the scene.

Students from both Fleming College and Trent University set aside any academic rivalry to represent Peterborough at the Enactus Canada post-secondary sustainable entrepreneurship competition this past week.

Enactus — an acronym for “entrepreneurial,” “action,” and “us” — is a global platform encouraging universities and colleges to start social enterprises and do community work to address the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals. Originally founded in 1975 as a U.S. non-profit organization, Enactus expanded in 1995 and now operates across 33 countries and more than 1,000 post-secondary campuses.

“We’re training the leaders of tomorrow to do business in a way that is sustainable and doesn’t harm the environment,” says Raymond Yip Choy, School of Business professor at Fleming College and faculty member for Enactus Fleming College. “We’re looking at the triple bottom line, which is not only profit, but people and planet.”

Enactus Fleming College was launched in 2017 and now makes up one of the larger teams to have competed against 66 other schools in Canada in the Enactus Canada National Exposition in Toronto from May 14 to 16.

Having won the regional championships in the youth empowerment competition earlier this year, the team competed at the national level in Toronto this week with a presentation on their project called “Keys to Me.” Through community partnerships, the project teaches high school and post-secondary students about life skills through a set of modules surrounding financial literacy, mental health and well-being, entrepreneurship, and other skills for success.

Enactus Fleming College held three pitch competitions for budding entrepreneurs and gave away thousands of dollars in prizes and opportunities for community grants. Reaching out to five different cities, the project has impacted more than 1,600 youth.

“We are teaching students they can be entrepreneurs because most of our employment in the Canadian economy comes from small and medium businesses,” says Yip Choy. “We need these students to be starting businesses and many of them don’t know they can, so we’re teaching them through this project.”

The Fleming team finished third place in the competition, won the 2024 RBC Future Launch Project Accelerator Best Project, and was named the top school in Canada for student engagement.

This year has built on the school’s success as, in the past few competition seasons, Yip Choy was awarded top faculty advisor and the team was the first recipient of a collaboration award from Enactus Canada.

“We are an award-winning team,” says Yip Choy, noting that Enactus Trent University also showed great progress from last year’s nationals. “Peterborough absolutely punches above its weight category.”

In the main competition, Enactus Fleming College shared a 12-minute presentation speaking to both the “Keys to Me” and “Paper Planet” projects. The latter extends the life of used office paper by turning it into compostable planting plots, and planter kits (consisting of 25 planters, seeds, soil, instructions, and lesson plans) are then sold to classrooms.

“What we’re doing is stopping stuff from going into landfills, and we’re making something that is commercially viable,” says Yip Choy, noting that if they secure a stable production facility, they would offer employment for people who are differently abled. “It checks all the boxes on environmental sustainability, business practices, teaching youth how to live better, and providing employment.”

Enactus Trent University spoke on their current project, which preserves food waste like orange peels which are often not discarded properly to convert into organic products like a protein.

“Their next step is partnering with the businesses who showed some interest and figuring out how to collect the orange peels in a way that’s going to work and be sustainable,” says Melanie Buddle, the faculty advisor for Enactus Trent University.

“They’re working on checking in with other departments on our campus like chemistry to see that they’re getting the right formulation. So, they’ve already done test runs, but their next step is to actually get it to go bigger and bring it out into the community.”

Though they were in competition with one another, both Fleming College and Trent University teams were proud to have represented Peterborough together.

“Having two Enactus teams at the two post-secondary institutions in Peterborough provides a really great opportunity for some mentorship and collaboration,” says Buddle. “Fleming has been very generous in helping our team.”

The two teams have also collaborated on Project Tikinaagan, which assists First Nations communities by offering training, resources, and support — inspiring Enactus Canada to encourage more Indigenous work in nation-wide projects.

“Every project is not just a business, it’s almost an innovative idea or something that can help another group or help support a community,” says Buddle.

Despite the success of Fleming College’s team and the role they play as mentors to Trent students, Yip Choy acknowledges they may have to make changes given the uncertainty of the faculty’s future due to the recent suspension of 29 programs at the college — including business courses that some of the faculty teach.

“I don’t know if we’re going to have a business school in a few months,” he says. “Our passion is these students, and we need them to continue, so we may have to consolidate our projects and scale down a bit.”

While the future of the local platform is uncertain, Yip Choy is certain it would pose a major loss to the students involved.

“Students come in and they get to work with other passionate students who are high performing,” Yip Choy says. “They learn entrepreneurship, they learn teamwork, they learn to present, they learn how to talk to investors, they learn customer service.”

“It’s real-life stuff and what happens with these students is enough for students to get jobs. It’s really important that this continues at Fleming College because the benefit to our local community and even the communities overseas is significant and life changing.”

To learn more about Enactus Fleming College’s projects, visit enactusfleming.ca.

Seven was indeed a lucky number for Peterborough, with its recent ranking of seventh place in the national City Nature Challenge held in celebration of Earth Day in April.

Peterborough exceeded last year’s numbers when it came to higher public participation, more species sighted, and greater total observations logged.

From amphibians and insects to trees and fungus, the annual nature challenge encourages people to spot and record their wildlife observations. The City of Peterborough helped residents identify local species during a weekend “bio-blitz” from April 26 to 29.

In total, there were 2,076 observations that recorded 577 species within the community during the four days of citizen science for the second annual community bio-blitz to record wildlife.

Of the 40 participating Canadian communities, Peterborough ranked 13th in the total number of observations made, 12th in total number of species observed, and 11th in the number of participants making observations.

However, Peterborough ranked seventh per capita for the total number of observations made during the bio-blitz, outperforming larger cities including Kingston and Toronto.

On May 6, wildlife experts completed their identification and verification of recorded nature observations gathered during the bio-blitz and submitted it to the event organizers.

“Community events like the City Nature Challenge showcase how truly alive our city is, with wildlife in every nook and cranny waiting to be discovered,” said City of Peterborough Councillor Joy Lachica in a media release. “Residents should celebrate that they share their homes with so many plants and animals, which makes Peterborough an extra-special place to live for all.”

The City of Peterborough partnered with the Peterborough Field Naturalists to curate guided nature walks led by volunteers at GreenUP Ecology Park and Beavermead Park on April 26 and 27.

In addition, organizers offered nature-focused children’s programming during the two days that was intended “to excite kids about the beauty of nature found in Peterborough.”

Peterborough’s most observed species from April 26 to 29 were as follows:

• Plant species: 31 Yellow Trout Lilies (Erythronium americanum)
• Bird species: 25 Mallards (Anas platyrhynchos)
• Tree species: 23 Eastern White Cedars (Thuja occidentalis)
• Fungus species: 16 Black Knot (Apiosporina morbosa)
• Mammal species: 12 Eastern Grey Squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis)
• Insect species: Seven Asian Lady Beetles (Harmonia axyridis)
• Amphibian species: Seven Green Frogs (Lithobates clamitans)

Retired botanist Michael Oldham made the most observations at 300 and also recorded the most species at 181.

The full list of local observations is available on the Peterborough iNaturalist project page, with national results also available on the iNaturalist website.

The next City Nature Challenge is slated to run from April 25 to 28, 2025.

Always observed on the Monday preceding May 25, Victoria Day is both a federal and a provincial statutory holiday, so all government offices and services are closed. All liquor stores and all beer stores are closed, except for two beer stores in Peterborough and one in Lindsay. Many grocery stores and big box stores are open, except in Peterborough where most are closed. Most drug stores and pharmacies are open.

For your convenience, we provide this list of holiday hours for 297 selected businesses, services, and organizations across the Kawarthas. This information comes from their websites and social media accounts, which may or may not be up to date, so please always call them first to confirm their hours (we’ve included phone numbers), especially where you see “call to confirm” (which means the business did not indicate specific holiday hours) or if you are travelling any distance.

If your business or organization is listed and the hours are incorrect, please let us know by using our content feedback form. We do not have the hours for restaurants in this list as there are far too many to include.

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Those protesting the planned $4.4 million redevelopment of Peterborough’s Bonnerworth Park are hopeful that divine intervention will help them in their effort.

On Saturday (May 18) at 1 p.m., a rally organized by retired priest Father Leo Coughlin will be held at the central Peterborough park, where city council has approved 16 pickleball courts, an expanded skate park, a bike pump track, and an 80-vehicle parking lot scheduled for construction in 2025.

A resident of the Marycrest at Inglewood seniors’ complex on Monaghan Road directly across from the park, Father Coughlin’s involvement comes as a concerted effort by the park’s neighbouring residents to see the redevelopment halted continues.

Organized as Save Bonnerworth Park, their concerns number three: the noise impact that the pickleball complex will have on their quality of life, the loss of their neighbourhood greenspace, and what they claim was a flawed process in terms of notification that the park was being considered for redevelopment and what the scope of the plan was.

As of Friday (May 17), an online petition that can be accessed at savebonnerworthpark.ptbo.org had garnered more than 3,500 signatures. The vast majority of signees are from across the city.

Just this past Monday during a Peterborough city council general committee meeting, Town Ward councillor Joy Lachica put forward a motion that council be granted final approval authority for the redevelopment plan.

Her motion read “The redevelopment project for Bonnerworth Park has generated significant concern over the loss of greenspace, its impacts on current park users, and its compatibility with surrounding residential neighbourhoods,” adding “the city has acknowledged that the public engagement process for the redevelopment of Bonnerworth Park could have been improved and been more inclusive of park neighbours.”

However, her motion was shut down by committee chair Andrew Beamer, who ruled it out of order. That was supported by a 6-5 vote. Mayor Jeff Leal and councillors Beamer, Gary Baldwin, Don Vassiliadis, Kevin Duguay, and Lesley Parnell voted in favour of the chair’s ruling, while councillors Lachica, Alex Bierk, Keith Riel, Dave Haacke, and Matt Crowley voted against it.

Despite the denial to pause the park’s redevelopment plan for another council discussion and ultimately a re-vote, Father Coughlin is optimistic that the rally can and will make a difference.

“The focus here is to bring forward, again, that there is energy and motion to stop this thing from happening,” he says. “I know everybody’s saying it’s a done deal. It doesn’t have to be a done deal. The voice of the power of the people should be able to stop this thing.”

“Look at the green belt and (Ontario Premier Doug) Ford. He was going to allow development there and the people’s voices stopped it. Now, I know it’s not the same thing, but it’s somewhat similar.”

Particularly troubling for Father Coughlin is the impact the pending pickleball complex is having on Marycrest at Inglewood residents.

“Every one of them has made their contribution to this city,” he says. “They’ve worked here and they’ve raised families here. Their families are still here. They’ve paid their taxes and they’ve volunteered.”

“Now they’re seniors. There’s both fear and anxiety over the noise (from the pickleball complex) that will disturb their final years. The level of disrespect is tremendous.”

The bottom line, says Father Coughlin, is “the common good is not being served.”

“This park has been available to, and welcomed, everybody. Now it’s going to be an exclusive park, excluding people unless you’re a pickleball player. The park has moved from inclusion to exclusion. Anybody should be able to see that’s wrong.”

Father Coughlin says a friend of his, who is a professional videographer, will video Saturday’s rally as well as interview some of the participants. The video will be subsequently posted online, shared with local media outlets, and emailed to each member of city council.

A 39-year-old Hamilton Township man is facing multiple charges in connection to a collision on Highway 115 south of Peterborough in December that resulted in the death of a 34-year-old woman.

On December 6, a pickup truck came into contact with a commercial motor vehicle on Highway 115 at Highway 7A before striking the guardrail and leaving the roadway, crashing into the centre median between the northbound and southbound lanes.

The guardrail ripped off the passenger side door and an occupant was thrown from the pickup truck before it came to rest a short distance further in the centre median.

A 34-year-old woman was pronounced dead at the scene, with a second occupant of the vehicle transported to Peterborough Regional Health Centre for treatment.

As a result of the police investigation into the collision, a warrant was later issued for the arrest of the second occupant of the pickup truck, who had initially claimed to be a passenger rather than the driver.

On Wednesday (May 15), Peterborough County Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) became aware that the wanted person was driving a vehicle in the city of Peterborough. Officers located the vehicle and observed the driver and passenger switch seats. Officers spoke with the driver, who was now located in the passenger seat, and identified him as the wanted person.

Corey Neil, 39, of Hamilton Township, was arrested and is facing multiple charges related to the December 6th collision. He has been charged with dangerous operation causing death, operation while impaired – blood drug concentration, obstructing a peace officer, 10 counts of operation of a vehicle while prohibited, operation of a vehicle causing death, and two counts of driving while under suspension.

As a result of the May 15th incident, Neil has also been charged with obstructing a peace officer, 10 counts of operation of a vehicle while prohibited, and driving while under suspension.

The accused man was held in custody for a bail hearing before the Ontario Court of Justice in Peterborough.

Patients, staff, and the planet are expected to benefit from recent upgrades to Campbellford Memorial Hospital’s (CMH) heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system.

The Municipality of Trent Hills hospital announced it recently completed its HVAC project, “marking a significant milestone” in CMH’s journey to provide safe and high-quality care to the community.

The improvements include the replacement of air handling units, enhancements to ductwork, the installation of advanced air filtration and ventilation systems, and the implementation of an automated building control system.

“We are thrilled to celebrate the successful completion of our HVAC project, which represents a significant investment in the infrastructure of (CMH),” said Jeff Hohenkerk, CMH CEO, in a statement.

“This project ensures that our hospital maintains optimal indoor air quality, which is crucial for the health and well-being of our patients, staff, and visitors.”

Air quality becomes particularly important if the hospital encounters another pandemic or an outbreak of infectious disease, Peter Mitchell, CMH’s communications manager, told kawarthaNOW when asked how the new infrastructure would fare during those instances.

“Our HVAC upgrades include an advanced air filtration system, which helps to reduce the risk of airborne transmission within the hospital,” Mitchell said.

“Additionally, the system provides enhanced ventilation rates, ensuring a higher turnover of fresh air, which helps to dilute the concentration of airborne contaminants, thus helping to reduce the likelihood of viral spread,” the communications manager explained.

The hospital said the HVAC upgrades also contribute to its environmental sustainability efforts. Expected to reduce CMH’s yearly natural gas consumption by 10,000 cubic meters and lower greenhouse gas emissions by more than 19 tons annually, these improvements align with the hospital’s commitment to environmental stewardship, the media release noted.

CMH received more than $6 million in one-time capital funding from the provincial government for the HVAC project. There were extensive upgrades to the hospital’s heating, ventilation, and air conditioning infrastructure.

The completion of this project is the result of a collaborative effort between CMH and TRANE, the company that upgraded the hospital’s HVAC system.

“We are proud to have partnered with (CMH) on this important project,” said Luis Rodrigues, TRANE’s general manager of comprehensive energy and infrastructure solutions. “The upgrades implemented will not only enhance the operational efficiency of the hospital but also contribute to creating a healthier and more comfortable environment for patients and staff.”

CMH said the completion of the HVAC project represents a significant step forward towards ensuring the current building can effectively meet the needs of the community.

“As CMH continues towards redevelopment as part of a campus of care, we remain committed to investing in the infrastructure and technology our current facility requires in order to meet the evolving needs of our patients, staff and community,” Hohenkerk said.

Campuses of care offer a continuum of community support programs, health care services, housing options and long-term care home beds in one location. CMH’s proposed site will include a new hospital, a long-term care home, a community mental health clinic, the Geriatric Assessment and Intervention Network (GAIN) program, and supportive senior housing.

A 19-year-old Lindsay man is dead following a single-vehicle collision near Lindsay on Thursday afternoon (May 16).

The collision happened at around 5:40 p.m. on Cheese Factory Road between Post Road and Settlers Road just east of Lindsay.

Police, fire, and emergency services responded to the scene. The driver of the vehicle was pronounced dead at the scene.

Cheese Factory Road was closed between Post Road and Settlers Road while police documented the scene.

The cause of the collision remains under investigation.

Anyone who witnessed or has video or dash camera footage of the collision and who has not yet spoken to police is asked to contact the Kawartha Lakes Police Service at 705-324-5252.