Owen Sound Sun Times

For places that are all about students making the grade, Ontario’s colleges and universities will soon be held by the province to some important measurements themselves. Most of their provincial operating funding — 60 per cent of it by 2024, up from under two per cent now — will depend on how well they perform. […]

Growing up with four siblings in a single-parent home, Cindy Tran said there was plenty of affection to go around. Money to go on to university? Not so much. Finances were tight in the Ottawa household. Hard work – she finished in the top 10 per cent of her high school class — helped Tran […]

As two million Ontario kids return to school for a new year, we asked some of them – and education insiders – to share their thoughts about the sweeping changes Ontario’s Progressive Conservative government plans to the education system: KIDS IN THE HALL: Grade 9 students going into high school for the first time: “A […]

A 54-year-old employee of a Port Elgin vehicle repair business has died after being gravely injured while working on a car. The Southampton resident was rushed to hospital after the workplace incident Thursday. Attempts to save his life were not successful and he was pronounced dead, according to a Saugeen Shores Police Service news release. […]

Derby people say the fish in the bay are getting bigger, as the leader board clearly suggests. The reasons aren’t as obvious but people point to possibly more plentiful smelt offering a more nutritious meal for our bigger, finned friends. It was Day 7 of the Owen Sound Salmon Spectacular fishing derby Thursday and by […]

Ontario fish farms that use net pens in lakes will be allowed longer licences, which will enable businesses to make long-term investments in the sector, the province’s environment minister said Thursday in Hanover. Jeff Yurek announced a final provincial policy paper focused on lake-based cage fish farming that provides directions for how fish farms are […]

They are the North Stars turned Northmen turned national champions. Four lacrosse players who grew up in Owen Sound recently won a Minto Cup in Langley B.C. with the Orangeville Northmen. Brothers Jordan and Brody Caskenette along with friends Mike Fiegehen and Logan Swanton were all part of the Northmen team that went undefeated at […]

A hotel developer’s plan to build a six-storey, 100-room TownPlace Suites by Marriott in Owen Sound remains on track for construction to begin this year, the company’s president said after city council approved planning applications for the project this week. “We have the site plan approved, so now it’s all a matter of making sure […]

Concerns about a highly contagious equine respiratory disease has prompted fall fairs in some parts of Ontario to cancel horse events this year. The organizers of many fairs in Grey-Bruce and elsewhere in Southwestern Ontario have taken the preventative action because of strangles, including the Owen Sound Agricultural Society, which has cancelled its Sept. 7 […]

The Allenford Astros won their second Owen Sound Men’s Fastball League championship over the Shallow Lake Sting midget club Wednesday night at Duncan McLellan Park. The first game pitted Owen Torrie versus Mackenzie Pringle in the pitcher’s circle with the Sting needing a win to force a second and deciding game. Shallow Lake jumped out […]

A passing neighbour stopped at the scene of a tractor mishap involving a three-year-old boy in Chatsworth Township and called for help Saturday, Chatsworth Fire Chief Mike Givens said. The initial page to firefighters, which came in about noon, said a boy “apparently fell off the tractor and went under, got run over,” Givens said […]

Earlier this month the Tara Greig Precision Reno’s Twins under-10 squad brought home a fourth-place finish from the OASA “A” provincials in Springbrook. The Twins went 2-3 in the weekend tournament. They kicked off the weekend with a 16-5 win over Napanee Blue. Nathan Miller pitched the win throwing five innings. Miller and Zak Hamilton […]

“Nothing really changes. I change. The kids stay the same age and I get older.” Attack general manager Dale DeGray sounded like Matthew McConaughey on the phone after the start of his 13th training camp with the Attack inside the Bayshore Wednesday. The players today might not understand that movie reference. That’s the new world […]

A three-year-old who was hurt in a mishap involving a tractor in Chatsworth Township Saturday is recovering from serious injuries, police said Wednesday. Grey Bruce OPP Const. Adam Belanger said in a news release that police responded to a call about noon Saturday to a rural property on Sideroad 3 in the township. A three-year-old […]

City hall is warning drivers to expect several traffic disruptions in Owen Sound’s downtown over the next month as workers wrap up projects ahead of the planned closure of the 10th Street bridge. Ten projects are scheduled to be finished before the $8.7-million replacement project begins Sept. 23. “It’s minor stuff that just needs to […]

Federal environmental clean-up work over the past two years at the Cabot Head Light Station has inadvertently left the popular Bruce Peninsula tourist attraction with an uncertain future. By prohibiting visits to the site while work was being done, including removal of soil containing mercury and lead paint coated siding, the non-profit organization that runs […]

All retail businesses in Owen Sound can now opt to stay open on four statutory holidays – Family Day, Victoria Day, Canada Day and Labour Day. The change comes after city council approved a bylaw that includes a blanket exemption to the Retail Business Holidays Act for those occasions. Opening on Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s […]

Police are seeking the public’s help identifying those responsible for stealing a pick-up from a residence in Chatsworth, as well as banking cards that were used before the owner could cancel them. Between Aug. 8 at 10 p.m. and Aug. 9 at 8 a.m., someone stole a white pick-up, along with identification from a second […]

The OPP have confirmed that drugs seized in South Bruce last month are carfentanil. The drugs were tested by Health Canada, and came back positive as carfentanil, leading the South Bruce OPP to issue a public warning about the dangers of the deadly opioid in a news release. Carfentanil is 100 times more toxic than […]

Police are looking for the public’s help identifying the driver a vehicle involved in a collision with a pedestrian in Owen Sound on Monday afternoon. At about 4:30 p.m. a local woman was walking in the parking lot of a convenience store at the corner of 6th Street East and 2nd Avenue East when she […]

Since he was 13-years-old Josh Samanski has been chasing his hockey dreams miles away from home. The German national first moved four hours away from his hometown to play in the Mannheim junior system. He lived in a dorm building with the other transplanted players. He then moved to Brantford last year at 16 and […]

Owen Sound intends to hold a new, one-day community festival after work wraps up on the Downtown River Precinct project, which city officials say will be about two weeks later than originally planned. The $3 million project to revitalize part of 1st Avenue East next to the Sydenham River is now expected to be finished […]

Georgian College is calling on Owen Sound residents to offer rooms to international students who start school next week. The college expects about 65 international students to attend the Owen Sound campus, both new and returning students to the city. The college partners with Canada Homestay Nework for students who are looking for more than […]

When 13-year-old Logan King got his lake trout into the boat after a 20-minute fight on Monday evening, those onboard knew he had a contender for the lead in the trout category at the 32nd annual Owen Sound Salmon Spectacular. But they were in a race against time as the 10 p.m. closing of the […]

Owen Sound’s police service is set to launch a mobile crisis response team this fall as the department continues to grapple with an “exponential increase” in mental health-related calls for service and associated costs, says Chief Craig Ambrose. “We can’t continue to do business the way we have been, especially when it comes to mental […]

Hancock begins life as a Badger Former Owen Sound Attack and London Knights centre Kevin Hancock will join the Brock Badgers varsity hockey team for the 2019-20 U SPORTS season. Hancock joins fellow former OHLer Jordan Sambrook in the Badgers’ most recent recruiting class. The Mississauga native finished fifth in OHL scoring with 52 goals […]

A fire that destroyed a building at the former Sauble Beach Fun World on the weekend has been deemed suspicious and police continue to investigate. Grey Bruce OPP were patrolling the community at 1:30 a.m. Saturday when they saw the building at 701 Main St. fully engulfed by fire, with flames estimated to be 50 […]

The “best-case scenario” start date for an Owen Sound-to-Guelph bus service won’t be realized after the city received no compliant bids from transit operators. But Dennis Kefalas, director of public works and engineering, said the city is still hoping to launch the provincially funded daily service this year. “We’re doing what we can to get […]

Family of a young couple killed south of Tobermory exactly two years ago returned to the crash scene Monday to mark their deaths at a roadside memorial and remind speeders how lives are devastated by their recklessness. A memorial cross and flowers have been placed where the couple’s SUV burned up, leaving virtually no remains. […]

Fresh ice, wide eyes, and clashing equipment colours. Rookie camp was back at the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre Monday. The first of a few soft starts to the Owen Sound Attack’s 2019-20 campaign began with the team’s complement of prospects vying for a spot on the main camp roster. It’s a bit of a log jam. […]

Tara takes GBLFL title On a beautiful night for fastball in Allenford, with the stands packed, the Tara Ladies went toe-to-toe against the Desboro Bulldogs and came out on top 6-4 to take the Grey Bruce Ladies Fastball League title. Tara’s Christie Goudy matched the Bulldogs’ LeeAnn Cochrane in the circle. Both pitchers had nine […]

When Wayne Hollett arrived at the Georgian Shores Marina around noon on Friday, he figured there wasn’t much point heading out on the water to fish, since it was the middle of the day. After getting the boat in the water, Hollett’s seven-year-old grandson Lukas asked if they could go out for a ride around […]

Hannah Woodhouse’s name is becoming a common sight in the record books for the Subaru Bayshore Race. The 22-year-old from Clarksburg set the women’s 10-kilometre record in the 10th annual installment of the race, which started and finished at the Owen Sound hospital on Sunday, crossing the finish line in 35 minutes, nine seconds. The […]

Heather Clark has fished in the Owen Sound Salmon Spectacular for 31 of its 32 years. On Sunday, the 61-year-old Haliburton woman landed by far the biggest fish she had caught in the event, a 24.34-pound fish that was the third largest fish caught at the event since it opened at 12:01 a.m. on Friday […]

The big fish at Queen’s Park made an appearance at the Owen Sound Salmon Spectacular late Saturday afternoon. Ontario Premier Doug Ford made an unannounced visit to the derby headquarters under the big tent at the Georgian Shores Marina where he met with derby officials, posed for photographs and even served up some fish during […]

They boarded their flights mostly nervous and quiet, but by the time they landed about a half an hour later, many of the youngsters at the Wiarton Keppel International Airport on Saturday were happy and chatty. Close to 100 children and youth took part in the Canadian Owners and Pilots Association Flight 68’s COPA for […]

The biggest salmon seen in years at the Owen Sound Salmon Spectacular has taken the lead after the first day of the 2019 event. Wayne Hollett of Wroxeter’s 29.5-pound catch replaced Kevin Delano’s fish in the display freezer at the derby headquarters later Friday, after Delano weighed in a 25-lb. fish at about noon on […]

Shawn Manarey said his life took an unexpectedly happy turn when he was sent to prison after he robbed a pharmacy in Hanover two years ago. He was 35 and of no fixed address when police charged him with robbery and wearing a disguise to rob a Pharma Plus store, for which he received at […]

Hundreds of rare and unique vehicles are just weeks away from rolling into the area for the Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance. This year’s event, being presented by Porsche, will mark its seventh year on Sept. 14 and 15 with 19 classes and a total of 112 classic, vintage and rare vehicles gracing the 18th fairway […]

Bruce Power professional workers’ union members “overwhelmingly” voted in favour of a new collective agreement. A tentative agreement was reached Aug. 12 to avert what would have been the first strike involving the Society of United Professionals at Bruce Power. “We wouldn’t have been able to reach this agreement without our members’ deep involvement in […]

Engine trouble out on the water early Friday morning meant Chris Carr, his daughter Hannah, 6, and Kevin Delano didn’t get nearly as far out on Georgian Bay as they wanted to. But it worked out for the anglers, as Delano is the early leader at the 32nd annual Owen Sound Salmon Spectacular after weighing […]

A 37-year-old Owen Sound man with a recent conviction for distributing child pornography was sentenced Thursday to 3 ½ years in custody after he pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography and making it available online. Jeffrey Allen Ricketts admitted the charges laid after an OPP child exploitation unit investigation for offences between Aug. 29 and […]

The province’s decision to freeze Ontario Works program funding at 2018 levels has forced Grey County to postpone the planned launch this year of a pilot project aimed at helping to lift people out of poverty, according to county officials. Warden Selwyn Hicks said the county had hoped to initiate Circles – a poverty alleviation […]

Owen Sound now has a firmer timeline for the 10th Street bridge replacement project. Dennis Kefalas, director of public works and engineering, said contractor Looby Builders will begin mobilizing equipment and workers for the $8.68-million project in just over two weeks and will be closing the bridge to traffic starting the week of Sept. 23. […]

A country music duo whose lives have been a whirlwind the past couple of years are looking forward to slowing things down during an intimate and exclusive show in Southampton. Siblings Jenna and Stuart Walker, who make up the award-winning Canadian country music act The Reklaws, will be performing a set on Friday evening for […]

West Grey Police are investigating an incident of arson that damaged a washroom at the Durham Conservation Area. Police were dispatched to the conservation area on Wednesday after the overnight fire caused severe damage to the women’s washroom. The fire was already out when police arrived, but it appears someone lit the paper towel dispenser […]

The Attack logo was painted Wednesday at centre ice at the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre, signalling the OHL season is fast approaching.

The Grey Bruce Health Unit expects it will lose $1.1 million in provincial funding next year under the Progressive Conservative government’s plan to change the funding formula for public health services, including for those now covered exclusively by the province. But medical officer of health Dr. Ian Arra said the health unit will be able […]

A 37-year-old man charged after a standoff near Sauble Beach Tuesday told court Wednesday morning that he wants to take all of his charges to trial. James Robert Scott Walker participated in the court process by speakerphone in an Owen Sound courtroom, while he remained in custody in the Grey Bruce OPP detachment in Wiarton. […]