Owen Sound Sun Times

A workshop, barn and several vehicles went up in flames Monday night in a massive fire near Christie Beach, east of Meaford. Close to 50 firefighters from both the Meaford and The Blue Mountains fire departments battled the blaze throughout the night, enduring a driving wind and frigid -15 C cold. No injuries have been […]

Owen Sound is set to launch a committee to create a new expansion plan for the Tom Thomson Art Gallery. City council directed staff Monday to present a bylaw to establish the facility expansion ad hoc committee after gallery director and chief curator Aidan Ware made a presentation on the long list of “critical challenges” […]

The Grey Bruce Health Unit declared an active COVID-19 outbreak at Brucelea Haven in Walkerton Monday after a staff member tested positive for the virus. According to the health unit’s website, the outbreak affects the 3 South and 2 West units at the home. Dr. Ian Arra, Grey-Bruce’s medical officer of health, said a single […]

Grey County is planning to do some major projects on county roads in the Georgian Bluffs and Chatsworth areas this summer. On Thursday, county council approved tenders for rehabilitation projects on Grey Road 17, 17B and 170 in the areas of Springmount, Shallow Lake, Copper Kettle and Wolseley, and Grey Roads 3, 5 and 16 […]

The Grey Bruce Health Unit issued a news release Sunday to reassure people 80 years and older worried they’ll be missed for the COVID-19 vaccine that they will receive a call. “Please do not call your health-care provider to book an appointment. Please do not call the health unit to book an appointment,” the health […]

Grey-Bruce added one new confirmed case of COVID-19 Sunday, this one in Saugeen Shores. The Grey Bruce Health Unit’s daily update reported testing and case counts as of midnight Saturday. The twin counties now have 703 cumulative, confirmed cases of the pandemic virus. Twelve cases are active and there are 30 more active, high-risk contacts. […]

Pool players come out to play as much for the talking as the chalking. But despite the isolation imposed to slow the spread of COVID-19, fear of the virus kept many people out of Harvey’s Billiards even after the first wave ended and the Owen Sound pool hall reopened in July. The first virus wave […]

A once-contentious limestone quarry north of Owen Sound has received a quarry industry association community relations award. Walker Aggregates’ Keppel Quarry, which the company acquired when it bought Harold Sutherland Construction in 2019, received the award from the Ontario Stone, Sand & Gravel Association, the association announced in a news release. This is the first […]

Grey-Bruce will move to the least restrictive of the province’s five COVID-19 stages Monday but little may change in everyday life, the local medical officer of health said Saturday. “Not much changes (is) my understanding,” Dr. Ian Arra said Saturday in an interview. On Friday, Grey Bruce Health Unit received provincial confirmation of the area’s […]

A Canadian Coast Guard icebreaker is expected in the harbour on Wednesday. By Wednesday, it’s recommended all recreational users of the ice, including walkers, anglers, snowmobilers and all-terrain vehicle users, leave the ice during ice-breaking operations, a Coast Guard news release said. “The ice may move, creating a real danger for anyone on the ice. […]

Public health officials are warning people of a potential communicable disease risk associated with unlicensed tattoo services in Owen Sound. If anyone has been tattooed either in an uninspected place of business or in your or someone else’s home in Owen Sound or the surrounding area, the Grey Bruce Health Unit strongly urges you to […]

The Grey Bruce Health Unit announced Friday it would adopt the province’s new stricter single-symptom screening protocols for schools and childcare centres with two modifications. The two modifications are a 24-hour symptom-monitoring period and the ability for some household members of a symptomatic person to self-monitor for symptoms rather than automatic self-isolation. Late last week […]

Grey County council may soon apply for provincial funding and hire a consulting firm to conduct a comprehensive feasibility study assessing a potential county-wide waste collection and disposal service. A notice of motion made by Meaford Mayor Barb Clumpus to consider the merits of delivering waste collection and disposal services at the county level and […]

Georgian College’s Owen Sound campus will be among the sites to deliver a new accelerated training program for personal support workers. The program, announced Wednesday by the provincial government, will allow participants to graduate with full PSW credentials within six months, instead of eight months. Provincial funding will cover students’ tuition and other expenses. Georgian […]

Owen Sound’s plaid PJ pants turned out to be a hot commodity. Within a week of the city announcing that people could claim a free pair of pyjama bottoms – as part of its recently launched Work from Home Capital of Canada recruitment and marketing campaign – all 200 pairs of the flannel “rockin’ jammies” […]

More frontline health-care workers in Grey-Bruce are receiving their first doses of the COVID-19 vaccines this week. Both Bruce County and Grey County confirmed paramedics are now receiving vaccines as the health unit continues to work through its COVID-19 vaccination plan. In a news release, Bruce County said 100 county paramedics received the vaccine earlier […]

Georgian Bluffs council has postponed a decision on whether to ban motorized vehicles on the Cole’s Sideroad trail. At its regular meeting on Wednesday, council chose to defer a decision on the proposed ban pending further investigation by staff, which will then provide more information to council. The decision to defer came after council went […]

The West Grey Public Library is closing up shop in Elmwood as of March 30. The public library was running a small resource centre in the basement of St. John’s Lutheran Church after the town’s local library branch closed in 2015. Library programs and services will still be available at West Grey Public Library branches […]

Owen Sound Little Theatre officials have been overwhelmed by offers of support received after city council rejected a request to waive rental fees for staging performances at Kelso Beach Park, the organization’s president says. Cathie Locke said within days of the Feb. 8 vote, OSLT heard from at least five business owners and individuals who […]

More than $20,000 in cash and drugs was seized and two people were arrested from a rental vehicle in the parking lot of a downtown Owen Sound business on Tuesday. Police seized more than 1,000 methamphetamine pills stamped with the word “ICE” that had an estimated street value of between $10,500 and $16,000 after the […]

A not-for-profit cooperative working to develop a “net-zero eco-village” has secured a 46-acre plot of undeveloped land in east Owen Sound. The Glassworks Cooperative held a virtual ribbon-cutting event Wednesday. The land between 23rd Street East and 26th Street East, near the rail trail, will be placed in a trust. Glassworks’ goal is to create […]

It was 1 a.m. in Slovakia when Attack defenceman Andrew Perrott started calling around to his teammates back home. Playing on loan with HK Martin while the Ontario Hockey League is shut down, he was unable to sleep and frustrated. It was closer to dinner time for those he spoke with, fellow OHL players who […]

There has been a second death related to COVID-19 in Grey-Bruce. The woman in her 70s died Wednesday afternoon, according to a news release issued by the Grey Bruce Health Unit. The woman, who the health unit said was a resident of Grey-Bruce, had been in isolation in hospital. “I offer my sincere condolences to […]

All proceeds from tickets purchased locally for Big Brothers Big Sisters Ontario’s “BiggerTogether” 50/50 raffle will go to the Grey-Bruce agency. Tickets can be purchased until March 15. “This program is being supported by over 35 participating BBBSO agencies across the province. Your support will go a long way to help us provide positive and […]

A one-hour virtual event to celebrate International Women’s Day will feature yoga, networking opportunities and a keynote address by Ashleigh Weeden on the effects the pandemic has had on rural women. The event, put on by The Women’s Centre Grey Bruce, is set to take place March 8 from 8 to 9 a.m. Registration is […]

Owen Sound has restarted its public skating program nearly a year after it was put on ice due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Skating will be free for all ages Wednesdays from noon to 1 p.m. and Fridays from 1 to 2:30 p.m. at the Julie McArthur Regional Recreation Centre. A maximum of 20 skaters can […]

Bruce Power says its multi-year major component replacement project remains on schedule a year after it began, despite a challenging 2020 which saw the work pause for 50 days last spring after the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic. The project – which will involve the replacement of key reactor components, including steam generators and pressure, […]

The Owen Sound Police Service is reminding residents phone scams are a common occurrence after a man pretending to be a local police sergeant tried to take money from an Owen Sound resident in a sophisticated ploy. The scam call came from a local phone number and played an automated message at first, according to […]

The Grey Bruce Health Unit is awaiting further direction from the Ministry of Health in regard to new provincial COVID-19 screening protocols and may soon adopt a less stringent approach locally. Dr. Ian Arra, Grey-Bruce’s medical officer of health, said Tuesday the health unit has been in communication with the ministry and plans to distribute […]

A Mississauga-based real estate investment company has purchased the landmark Coach Inn building, which contains emergency accommodations for people experiencing homelessness as well as multiple affordable residential units. BG Wealth Properties, which says on its website that its investment strategy allows the company to renovate properties and increase rents to create “attractive cash distributions and […]

Police have made arrests in connection with a number of break-ins at businesses throughout Southwestern Ontario, including some in Grey-Bruce. Two men were arrested following a traffic stop in Listowel on Friday, and after investigating, police determined that they were responsible for seven break-ins and thefts since October at businesses in Hanover and Walkerton, as […]

An Owen Sound teen has been named a finalist in a prestigious scholarship program. Magnus Roland Marun, a Grade 12 student at St. Mary’s High School, has been named a finalists for a 2021 Loran Award from the Loran Scholars Foundation. “It is an honour even to get to the semifinals,” Roland Marun said Monday. […]

The Port Elgin Curling Club has been selected as the hosts of the 2022 Ontario Tankard. The top men’s curling rinks in southern Ontario will meet at The Plex and vie for a chance to represent Team Ontario at the 2022 Tim Hortons Brier in Lethbridge. The tankard is scheduled to run from Feb. 9 […]

The Grey Bruce Health Unit reported a single new case of COVID-19 Monday. The new case was found in an Owen Sound resident and raises the region’s cumulative case count to 692 including 80 health care workers. Of those, 678 cases are now considered resolved. There are now 13 active confirmed cases in the two […]

Two hikers were plucked by helicopter from a large piece of ice that broke away from shore at Bruce Peninsula National Park near Tobermory on Sunday. The ice the two people were on drifted almost three kilometres from shore when an OPP helicopter was able to hover above them and make the rescue, Grey Bruce […]

Forget the pot of gold. Participants of a St. Paddy’s Day fundraiser for the Billy Bishop Museum will instead be after a pot of wine and beer. Emily Jolliffe, the museum’s director and chief curator, said the event is a way for people to have some fun with friends in a safe way during the […]

It took just over a week for area employers to snatch up all 125 “virtual booths” available for next month’s online Grey Bruce Regional Job Fair. The 125 employers will be looking to fill a combined 800 full-time, 250 part-time and 400 seasonal positions during the March 10 event, according to Jacinda Rudolph, economic development […]

A 21-year-old man faces several charges after a loaded prohibited firearm was found at a residence in Owen Sound on Sunday. Owen Sound police found that the man had threatened a female and destroyed some of her property, they said in a news release. When police arrived at the residence they noticed a firearm in […]

The Grey Bruce Health Unit reported one new case of COVID-19 on Sunday. The lone case reported was a resident of Owen Sound, bringing the total number of cases confirmed in Grey-Bruce since the pandemic began to 691. A total of 14 cases remain active, while 676 cases were resolved as of 11:59 p.m. on […]

The Community Foundation Grey Bruce has partnered with Georgian College to provide funding to nine organizations that are working to create jobs, strengthen the charitable and non-profit sector and address social challenges. The organizations, which will share more than $340,000 in funding through the initiative, are spread out across central Ontario, but include four in […]

A passing motorist’s awareness and quick thinking is being credited with preventing a small fire from becoming more serious in Owen Sound on Saturday. Just before 3 p.m., the motorist was about a block from the Owen Sound Fire Station when he noticed smoke coming from the roof vents of a home at 1302 3rd […]

A snowmobiler sustained a broken wrist after striking a tree on the trail on the east side of Owen Sound on Saturday. At about 1:30 p.m., Owen Sound police were dispatched to the trail running between Superior Street and 8th Street East about a snowmobile hitting a tree. A 43-year-old Shelburne resident failed to negotiate […]

When emergency COVID-19 funding dries up, officials with the Safe ‘n Sound Grey Bruce drop-in centre in Owen Sound want to ensure they continue to be able to deliver the services that have become so important to those in need. That is why continued community support and fundraisers like the annual Coldest Night of the […]

The Grey Bruce Health Unit added two cases to its total on Saturday after they were referred to Grey-Bruce from another health unit. According to the health unit’s daily Situation Report, the cases referred from another region were residents of Hanover and West Grey. One case from Grey-Bruce was also referred to another health unit […]

The federal government’s proposed new firearm control legislation is all “smoke and mirrors” that will do nothing to reduce gun violence, says MP Alex Ruff. The Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound Conservative politician said the Liberals’ Bill C-21 targets the wrong people – going after law-abiding firearm owners instead of containing measures to get guns out of the […]

The Grey Bruce Health Unit reported one new case of COVID-19 in its situation report Friday, in Southgate, as vaccinations continue across the region. The health unit received 3,510 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine Wednesday. By Thursday night, 507 of those doses had been administered at eight different long-term care homes and retirement homes as […]

A Chesley-area farmer and veterinarian has been honoured for his commitment to soil health and environmental stewardship. Dr. Peter Kotzeff received the Innovative Farmer of the Year award during this week’s online Innovative Farmers Association of Ontario annual conference. “I was astounded and honoured,” Kotzeff said Thursday, two days after officially accepting the award. “Just […]

A snowmobile operator sustained serious injuries after a collision in Northern Bruce Peninsula on Thursday afternoon. Just after 1:30 p.m., Grey Bruce OPP responded to a trail near Tobermory, where a 61-year-old operator had lost control of a snowmobile and collided with a tree, police said in a news release. OPP officers were assisted at […]

A Brockton man has been arrested in connection with a violent assault of another man earlier in the week. On Monday at 6:30 a.m., members of the Hanover Police Service responded to the reports of an assault in the 300 block of 10th Street in Hanover. The investigation determined that a dispute had occurred inside […]

The South Bruce Peninsula Physician Recruitment and Retention Committee held its first meeting as an independent group in March last year. “Then the world changed,” said committee co-chair Cory Dobbin. Prior to the March meeting, the citizen-led group was an official Town of South Bruce Peninsula committee before some town reshuffling. Committee co-chair Linda Isbester […]