Owen Sound Sun Times

A driver whose foot slipped off the brake and onto the gas pedal while parking caused “considerable damage” to an Owen Sound building in the 1000 block of 2nd Avenue East Tuesday morning. Just before 8 a.m., the botched braking caused the car to drive over a low curb and into the building, according to […]

Two Owen Sound residents have been charged as the result of the Owen Sound Police and Grey-Bruce OPP collaborating in a property crime investigation. Search warrants were executed at two west-side apartments in the city. Police recovered a stolen motor vehicle, licence plates, BMW tires, keys for multiple pieces of heavy equipment and a mitre […]

Bruce Power will provide 1.2 million pieces of personal protective equipment to over 100 front-line organizations by the end of the month to support health-care workers fighting against the COVID-19 pandemic. The announcement made Wednesday morning more than doubles the nuclear power operator’s previous commitment of 600,000 pieces of PPE, and is the largest announced […]

An application has been made to bring a cannabis retail store to Southampton. The application for the store, called Cannabis Grey Bruce, at 17 Albert St. is currently in the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario’s 15-day public notice phase, which runs until May 5. The application is one of three in Grey-Bruce currently before […]

Only one new lab-confirmed case of COVID-19 was reported to the Grey Bruce Health Unit Tuesday, according to public health’s daily situation report. The lone positive test result comes after a full day that saw no new cases in the region. So far, there have been a total of 64 confirmed cases of the novel […]

The Georgian Bay Symphony isn’t letting the COVID-19 pandemic stop it from moving ahead with its final two concerts of the season. It is just going to require a change in venue, from the auditorium at East Ridge Community School to the living rooms and kitchens of its patrons as the GBS plans to present […]

With work underway to drive piles into the ground for the new 10th Street bridge’s foundation, the city has encountered an unexpected issue with a nearby building on 1st Avenue East. “Late last week, we noticed movement in the remaining building – some foundation settlement – and we had to take some precautionary measures and […]

Owen Sound officials are scratching their heads trying to figure out what caused hundreds of fish to go belly-up in the Pottawatomi River in Owen Sound earlier this month. Public Works director Dennis Kefalas said city staff inspected storm drains twice last week for any substance “paint thinner, paints, oils” that could have caused the […]

A Waterloo man has been charged after a vehicle collided with a hydro pole at Saugeen First Nation on Saturday night. Just before 8 p.m., Grey Bruce OPP were dispatched to the collision on Bruce Road 13 south of Keewaydin Road. A white sport utility vehicle had left the roadway and struck a hydro pole, […]

Over-age and undrafted Owen Sound Attack defenceman Brady Lyle has signed a two-year professional contract with the Providence Bruins of the American Hockey League. The North Bay native had a record-setting final Ontario Hockey League campaign. He was second on the team in scoring behind only Segey Popov with 22 goals and 43 assists in […]

Northern Bruce Peninsula has a new chief administrative officer. Peggy Van Mierlo-West began her new role Monday, replacing former CAO Bill Jones who resigned after 10 years as the municipality’s top staffer and became CAO/clerk of Arran-Elderslie on March 2. “On behalf of council and staff, we are pleased to welcome Peggy to Northern Bruce […]

The Owen Sound Garb and Gear Junior Attack minor peewee club haa been crowned OMHA co-champions after their season was cut short amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Just minutes after winning Game 1 of the OMHA Minor Peewee A championship series in Orillia on March 11 Hockey Canada announced that all sanctioned activities were postponed. Later, […]

April 18, 2020

The Zone 8 Minor Lacrosse Association – home to 10 minor associations and 90 regional teams including those in Owen Sound – cancelled their 2020 minor box lacrosse regular season this week. The cancellation covers all regular-season games and tournaments and comes amid a COVID-19 pandemic that has turned arenas, like the Bayshore in Owen […]

There were no new lab-test confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Grey-Bruce Monday, according to the public health unit’s daily situation report. It’s the first day since March 24 in which no new local cases of the disease were reported by the public health unit and comes just two days after the region’s biggest spike. There […]

Two applications to operate retail cannabis stores in Owen Sound are currently before the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario. While the Capturing Eden location at 973 2nd Ave. W. is currently in the AGCO’s 15-day public notice phase, a store called Cannabis Grey Bruce at 236 8th St. E. has moved through the public […]

This could be a tough season for piping plovers at Sauble Beach. Not only will the endangered shorebirds – expected to start arriving at the South Bruce Peninsula shoreline within a couple weeks – have to contend with extraordinarily high water levels, but COVID-19 restrictions mean all volunteer efforts to monitor and protect the plovers […]

Opening a small-town restaurant can be stressful at the best of times. But how about doing it during a global pandemic when strict physical and social distancing measures are in place? For Jen Christie and Chris Shaw, the pandemic hit just as they were about to see their dream become a reality. But while they […]

Owen Sound is temporarily laying off 40 employees and will not be calling in 20 seasonal workers and summer students as a result of the COVID-19 situation. Mayor Ian Boddy said the layoffs will impact workers who deal directly with the public or who maintain facilities or parks that are not open or operating as […]

Local OPP charged three drivers with stunt driving on the weekend. An 18-year-old driver from Kincardine was spotted by South Bruce OPP on Bruce County Road 19 in Brant Township driving at more than 140 km/h in a posted 80 km/h zone Saturday. The driver was charged with stunt driving – driving more than 50 […]

Arrangements are being made for more local COVID-19 testing of people where they are, rather than having them come to an assessment centre, “with the potential risk of exposure there,” said Dr. Ian Arra, the medical officer of health in Grey-Bruce. Nurses at long-term care homes and retirement homes can swab patients for COVID-19 but […]

Saturday’s 14-case spike in COVID-19 cases all came from Maple View Long Term Care home in Owen Sound. As of Sunday, 22 of the home’s 29 residents had had it, including two frail residents who have recovered. A further 15 staff have tested positive but not all have been tested yet. The discovery of the […]

As many as hundreds of dead fish in the Pottawatomi River have neighbours in Owen Sound’s west end concerned. Allegra Connor noticed the dead fish on Easter Monday in the river behind her home, beside the bridge in the gully where 14thStreet West briefly becomes 7thAvenue West. She’s been walking her dog daily along the […]

About 40 firefighters responded to a grassfire at the former Grew Boat factory site south of Rockford in Georgian Bluffs Saturday afternoon. Winds blew heavy, black smoke across Highway 6/10, which led to a portion of the highway being closed for a while, Inter Township Fire Chief Jeff Gautreau said after returning to the fire […]

Saturday saw a spike in COVID-19 cases, all in Owen Sound. Since more testing is being done, it’s hard to know the significance of this, but Dr. Ian Arra, the Grey-Bruce medical officer of health, said he takes the conservative view and “my bias is we’re not peaking.” By Saturday afternoon there were 14 more […]

COVID-19 pandemic uncertainty made it too risky to run the Chantry Chinook Classic Salmon Derby in Lake Huron in July, so organizers cancelled it Friday. This was to have been the 37thannual derby, with four weigh stations and the prospect of 50 to 120 people visiting each daily. That’s too many people if the respiratory […]

Owen Sound police charged a 38-year-old man on Friday within about 12 hours of being notified three chainsaws were stolen from a locked compound. Police began investigating about 7:20 a.m. and shortly after 8 p.m. they arrested the suspect during a traffic stop, a police news release said. The chainsaws worth more than $3,000 and […]

A 45th case of COVID-19 in Grey-Bruce was announced as of 3:30 p.m. Friday. A man in his 80s, who is isolated, was added to the list of people testing positive for the pandemic respiratory infection, the Grey Bruce Health Unit reported. Medical officer of health Dr. Ian Arra tried to temper his relief concerning […]

With its offices closed due to COVID-19, YMCA Employment Services’ advisors are working from their homes to continue helping people who are trying to land a job during the pandemic or are seeking assistance because they have stopped working. Program director Linda Alexander said the organization, which has offices in Owen Sound and Hanover, has […]

An Owen Sound store has applied to become Grey-Bruce’s first authorized cannabis retail store. Capturing Eden has made an application to the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario to operate the retail outlet at 973 2nd Ave. W. The application is currently in the the AGCO’s 15-day public notice phase, with the public able to […]

Life at the farm moves on. Local growers continue to fill the labour gaps left by delayed seasonal and temporary foreign worker arrival as a result of border shutdowns, travel restrictions and measures taken to slow the spread of COVID-19. And while seasonal workers have been added to the list of those exempt from travel […]

The Eat Local Grey Bruce co-operative has seen interest in its local food service skyrocket due to the COVID-19 pandemic. And in order to meet the increased demand, and to ensure they don’t take on too much too fast, the not-for-profit cooperative of over 30 local producers has put a moratorium on accepting new memberships. […]

West Grey police ask people in the former Bentinck Township of West Grey to check their properties and report anything stolen over the past few days. Police investigated an April 9 break-in, during which numerous tools and a .22-cal. rifle and ammunition were stolen from a residence and detached garage. They arrested a 29-year-old Walkerton […]

Lori Wilder will become director of education at the Bluewater District School Board in all but name as of June 27 and officially as of Oct. 1. The long-time school administrator is currently a superintendent of education. She will replace Alana Murray, who is retiring Sept. 30. Wilder will become “director designate” on June 27 […]

After two weeks of e-learning, how are kids finding this substitute for classroom learning? If the Walpole family’s experience with online learning in the public school system is representative, with kids eager to learn and supportive parents who are also working amid the COVID-19 lockdown, the new system gets a passing grade but there’s room […]

Two new lab-test confirmed cases of COVID-19 were reported in Grey-Bruce the past 24 hours according to the health unit’s daily situation report. A female in her 60s and a female in her 50s are the latest residents to contract the disease. Both are isolated. There have been a total of 44 confirmed COVID-19 cases […]

The Owen Sound Salvation Army food bank has received several large food donations in recent days, including 9,000 eggs and 731 pounds of calzones. Meanwhile, both the Salvation Army’s Bruce Peninsula Community Food Bank in Wiarton and Owen Sound Hunger and Relief Effort (OSHaRE) have received thousands of pounds of food from Gordon Food Service […]

A new online tool has been launched to help keep the region’s residents informed and in touch through the COVID-19 pandemic. The Grey Bruce Huron Strong app and accompanying website aim to keep people connected, provide a trustworthy curation of relevant local information, and grow into a powerful regional platform to help navigate through the […]

Grey-Bruce livestock producers were facing some major challenges, and then along came COVID-19. Even before the pandemic hit, plant closures and a lack of packing capacity, oversupply concerns and a disconnect between what farmers get for their product and what it sells for to consumers have been weighing on producers’ bottom lines. But now producers […]

On the arena floor, under the Owen Sound Attack score clock, Grey Bruce Health Services’ 75-bed field hospital is now ready for use at the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre, should the region experience a surge in COVID-19 cases. GBHS president and CEO Gary Sims said the temporary medical facility is one of two field […]

The loss of Tenneco and its jobs follows a familiar trend of auto parts plants moving to lower-cost southern jurisdictions. Production is to cease about May 1, throwing the remaining 140 employees out of work. How readily jobs will be available will depend on the economic rebound following the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, said Steve Furness, […]

Lori Carder got a job at Tenneco when she was 24 and recently out of school. She studied early childhood education but daycare jobs were scarce in 1998. She had two small children to support, so she got work at the auto parts-maker through a temp agency. “It was kind of exciting, seeing how everything […]

Bruce Peninsula National Park will be off-limits to visitors until at least May 31 and until further notice after that. Parks Canada is suspending all camping, group activities and events at national parks across the country until at least that date. Parks staff previously closed the Bruce Peninsula National Park to visitors, closed visitor facilities […]

Grey-Bruce’s medical officer of health says he doesn’t believe the region has “even felt the wave” of the COVID-19 pandemic yet. “I hope I am wrong,” Dr. Ian Arra said in an interview. “People are talking about based on different modelling, we might be approaching the peak or maybe we’re even past it. But all […]

With the COVID-19 pandemic now in its second month, local emergency personnel paid tribute Wednesday to front-line medical workers in Owen Sound. Sirens blared and emergency lights flashed as more than two dozen police cruisers, fire trucks, ambulances and other vehicles slowly drove past the front entrance of the Owen Sound hospital as well as […]

At shift change Tuesday night, well-wishers honked horns, rang bells and cheered their support for healthcare workers outside Owen Sound hospital for their efforts during the tense and ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. People waited in cars or stood outside their vehicles along the road leading to the back of the hospital. They cheered for those coming […]

As the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Grey-Bruce hit 40 Tuesday, the local public health unit announced it’s expanding the eligibility criteria for novel coronavirus testing beyond the updated provincial recommendations. Medical officer of health Dr. Ian Arra said along with the province’s expanded list, testing will also be available at local assessment centres […]

Grey-Bruce residents mostly stayed home for Easter, according to local officials who say they’re happy with the quiet long weekend. Easter weekend was the first major holiday under emergency orders, closures, and physical distancing measures aimed at slowing the spread of COVID-19. And while a few people were warned about following the new rules, most […]

Work to transform the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre’s arena floor into a 75-bed field hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic is expected to wrap up by early next week. But the hope continues to be that the temporary medical facility in Owen Sound will not be needed, Gary Sims, president and CEO of Grey Bruce […]

A single new lab-test confirmed case of COVID-19 was reported in Grey-Bruce Monday bringing the total for the region to 39. One case is currently hospitalized, 10 cases have recovered and 12 cases have been reported in health-care workers working in Grey-Bruce. Maple View Long-Term Residence is the only long-term care facility currently experiencing a […]