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tuesday, september 29th, 2020
Council Meeting
Municipal council met last week, via a Zoom meeting, for their regular meeting. It was a normal meeting, with several items of interest, however one of the most important items, was a discussion of arena operations. The municipality had gathered info from residents via a survey, as well individual counsellors also discussed options with residents.
Of significant concern, are the restrictions around gatherings and how they will affect arena use. Council expressed concerns around how to operate the arena while at the same time, balancing safety and costs. The issue will continue to be studied, with staff determining what other municipalities are doing, as well as creating potential options for council to consider.
October 3rd is Hornepayne's official Hazardous Waste day. Citizens can contact the municipality or the township website here, for details. As well, with the closing of the share shack, due to COVID-19, the municipal plan for the fall clean up week, has been changed to some degree. This year, ahead of the clean up week, citizens can put items at the roadside that they do not want, and citizens can take items that might be of interest to them. At the end of the week, municipal Public Works staff, will gather what remains.
Another note of particular interest, is the municipality's relationship with ARDN, the Alberta Rural Development Network. ARDN, who's vision is " A strong sustainable network that empowers rural communities by facilitating and providing access to trusted rural development expertise, information and services" is interested in working with the municipality to help direct its efforts to create growth in our community. While nothing formal is in place, ARDN is quite interested to potentially work with our community to help develop our town, moving forward.
Remember, all council meetings can be viewed online, and also viewed on the municipal youtube channel.
The next meeting is October 21st! Stay tuned to www.hornepayne.com for coverage!
Monday, September 14th, 2020
Ontario Hydro Outage
Ontario Hydro outage, will occur in Hornepayne on Sunday, September 20th, from 7 AM until 2 PM.
Monday, september 7th, 2020
A wonderful summer gives way to fall
At hornepayne.com, we took a break through the summer months. As our province began to regain control of the caseload during the pandemic, a challenging school year wrapped up, and a beautiful summer breezed in, we felt is was worth taking a break from it all
At www.hornepayne.com, we had a wonderful summer, full of warm weather, good friends and family time. It has blown by, very quickly, and tomorrow, we are back at the regular swing of things for the fall.
We are very excited to move this site forward, heading into the fall. We will endeavour to continue to bring you local news that is important, as our community continues to rebound from COVID-19 as well as move forward with many projects and plans.
We also hope to bring our own unique perspective on events, not only in our community, but in our world, through our editorials, and we encourage others to join us in the conversation. I hope more of you become producers and leave us with some thoughts as we continue to build this community as well as region.
So, 'twas a great summer, but we are ready for an exciting fall, bringing to our readers, local coverage and unique thoughts about the world around us! Please join us for this journey!
WEdnesday, may 27
Council Meeting
Despite COVID-19 measures, municipal business continues. The Township of Hornepayne's Special Council meeting took place tonight, at 6 PM.
Council meetings are now available for viewing online, in livestream. Www.hornepayne.com posted a story with information about how to connect, and it can be found here.
You can read our summary of the meeting here, in Municipal News
Friday, March 27th, 2020
Local COVID-19 Information
***Cindy's LCO (Liquor and Beer Store) update***
New hours: Sunday and Monday closed. Tuesday to Friday, 12-5.
Stay safe and healthy everyone.
****Canada Post update****
As of March 31st, Post Office hours will be reduced to 10 AM to 4 PM. The same limits as listed below remain in effect.
Canada Post is limiting customers in the building:
1. Only one person at the counter at a time
2. Only one person in the mailbox area at a time.
Please respect these safety measure, to keep Canada Post employees as well as customers safe. Canada Post is a crucial service to keeping our county going during these difficult times.
****Please see the update from McKinnon's Fresh Mart, below.
McKinnon's freshmart- Effective March 25, 2020.
Dear Valued Customers:
We will only be allowing 10 customers in the store at a time to allow for proper social distancing and encouraging only 1 family member to do shopping-please let's not expose the children if we don't have to!
All bulks foods will be prepackaged and be minimal on the shelves to limit unnecessary handling, if there is something you require and do not see it on the shelf, PLEASE ask!
Hours will be as follows: Tuesday: 8AM - 6PM,
Wednesday: 8AM - 9AM Seniors only; 9AM - 6PM regular hours,
Thursday: 8AM - 6PM,
Friday: 8AM - 9AM Seniors only; 9AM - 8PM regular hours,
Saturday: 8AM - 5:30PM until further notice.
We are doing the best, we can at trying to keep our community and those around us safe, so we ask that everyone adheres to these changes.
Keeping yourselves, your families, and our staff safe should be everyone’s priority. Thank you for your continuous support, and we are look forward to the opportunity to serve you.
*******Update to the story originally published. Please see information about the Northern Credit Union's Services**********************
Update on Northern Credit Union
Northern Credit Union is currently operating under reduced hours and screening and and landmarks for social distancing are in place.
On Friday March 27, we are expecting an influx of members as pensions are deposited. As a result, we will be limiting the number of people that will be allowed in the building at one time as we deem necessary, to protect the employees.
We are currently operating on very limited staff and appreciate everyone's patience. We are available by phone,on line banking and ATM.
If you are not signed for these services, please call us for assistance. If no one answers please leave a message as the the call volume is extremely high and we will get back to you.
Citizens of Ontario, yesterday, were greeted by the news that Ontario was closing more non-essential facilities and many citizens were left wondering what was to be closed and what was to be open. The province left everyone hanging, indicating they would announce the list today, however by the late evening, they had released the list.
In terms of Hornepayne, due to our limited retail sector, the community will see little change with this newest set of restrictions, however there may be some changes.
To date, some retail outlets have adjusted their hours. The LCO store at Cindy's is open 12-6. Home Hardware is also limited in hours, open from 11-5. The Post Office, which operates under Federal jurisdiction, is open regular hours.
As you go to the Freshmart, you will notice they have installed reminders to keep social distance in the form of lines on the floor, and reminders in text on the floor, to social distance. This is a key move by our new Freshmart owners, Jeff and Sherri McKinnon! A great way to keep their service open, while helping us to keep healthy and safe.
Hornepayne.com is committed to helping our community see its way through this crisis. Please respect the guidelines released by health professionals, especially the social distancing. Just because you have not felt any symptoms, does not mean you have not contracted it, and you can easily spread it. Social distancing is so important. While we are not confined to our homes, let's keep our distance, even from family and friends. Walks should still feature the 2 metre spacing....even with children. We have such a small community and while our hospital staff is phenomenally professional, an outbreak in Hornepayne would be devastating, so let's all do, all we can to prevent the spread of the virus!
sunday, march 15th, 2020
Local COVID-19 Update
What a few days, in the world! Even since we last updated the big local news in regards to the spread of COVID-19, things have been moving quickly.
Further below, you will see the announcement from Hornepayne Community Hospital and their response to the situation, from a medical point of view. As well, the municipality has closed the arena, curling club and library, and will reconsider the operation of the town hall, in the near future. The Anglican church has cancelled future services, until further notice.
Mayor Cheryl Fort, has posted an interview with Dr. Joannou, outlining the basics around the pandemic, as well as how to approach it from a personal, as well as from a larger societal perspective.
Many people are questioning the extreme measures that our country is taking, however on an international scale, there have been two examples of dealing with the pandemic, that clearly indicate our approach is the best way. In particular, South Korea, a country of about 50 million people, and obviously close to the original epicentre of the outbreak, China, treated the situation very aggressively and they were able to slow the growth, which is the goal. Spain, Italy and Iran, did not aggressively deal with the spread of the virus, and as a result, they are dealing with a real crisis. If, as a country, we want to limit the spread, or at least slow it, so that the health care system is not overburdened.
For further information from Health Canada, follow this link: https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/2019-novel-coronavirus-infection.html
march 12, 202
COVID-19 UPDATE
As of about 4:15 this afternoon, the Ministry of Education announced the closure of all publicly funded schools in Ontario, for a two week period, after March break. Schools will re-open on Monday, April 6th. For more information, please see the CBC story here: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-government-closing-schools-1.5495736
Just to clarify, "publicly funded" does not refer only to what we call "public schools". It refers to all schools that are funded by the province. All elementary and secondary schools, all Francophone schools and all Catholic schools will be closed. The only schools not closing, are private schools, that parents pay for. They too may choose to close, but are not being closed by the Ministry of Education.
Schools expect to receive more information tomorrow, and they will share it with their families, as best as they can as tomorrow is the last day of school. Please also check with your various school board websites.
WEdnesday, march 11th, 2020
Important message from Hornepayne Community Hospital
Please see the important message from Hornepayne Community Hospital, regarding Coronavirus Precautions. .
February 7th, 2020
Junior Kindergarten Registration for September 2020!
Is your child eligible to go to school in September of 2020? If so, the staff at Hornepayne Public School would be thrilled to be part of your child's learning journey! JK registration is ongoing and goes right up until September. For more info on our program, you can click the link below, or give us a call at 868-2503
Junior Kindergarten Registration in Hornepayne
Sunday, february 23rd, 2020
School Labour update
Coming off an historic education strike on Friday, where all schools in Ontario were closed, labour challenges continue to percolate, with a touch of faint hope.
Earlier last week, the Ontario English Catholic Teachers' Association announced rotating strikes for this upcoming week, with Holy Name of Jesus in Hornepayne, being slated for a strike on Monday. However, the mediator has called both sides back to the table, and OECTA have suspended their strikes for this week, pending the outcome of negotiations. It is possible, that if some progress is made, that the season of labour discontent will see a ray of sunshine.
In relation to the other three teacher unions, ETFO, representing the public elementary teachers, has not announced strike action, but will be making an announcement tomorrow, about increased sanctions to start on Wednesday.
The union representing Francophone teachers has called a province wide strike for Thursday, the Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation has announced a rotating strike for next Friday, February 28th, but Algoma District School Board will not be affected, meaning for Hornepayne High School, there will be no disruption to classes for this upcoming week.
Tuesday, February 18th, 2020
This week's news
2020 continues to be a newsworthy year, not yet 2 months into the new year! Several stories of importance to residents of Hornepayne are transpiring before our very eyes.
1. School labour strikes continue to bring uncertainty to a new session of the Legislature in Ontario. This week's labour disruptions are set for Friday, February 21st, as all 4 teacher unions will be staging a one day strike, closing all publicly funded schools in the province. Stay tuned to www.hornepayne.com for updated information on any strike announcements for next week. Unions will have to announce, by Thursday, February 20th, any strike action for the following Monday. All 4 schools in Hornepayne, will be closed on Friday, February 21st, 2020.
2. In local sports news, HHS Senior Hawks will compete in Marathon on Wednesday, for a chance to win the NSSSAA championship! JR girls, depending on their results today, may also complete.
3. Protests over a proposed gas pipeline in BC continue to affect Hornepayne and region, as rail and road blockades are preventing CN Rail and VIA Rail from operating as normal, and there is also the possibility of local trucking disruption too. As of this morning, there will be a slowdown of highway 17 near Blind River, as local First Nations groups protest, in support of the Wet'suwet'en people. For a full-fledged background and better understanding issues around the We'suwet'en nation and its opposition to the pipeline, please refer to your favourite national news website.
january 26th, 2020
Sunday evening updates!
In tonight's updates, we provide you information about a school strike date for Hornepayne Public School, some legion news and municipal council news regarding this week's council meeting, to be held at Hornepayne Elementary and Secondary School!