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Vol. 31, Issue 3, September 17, 2026
Roll-over closed highway on Monday
Long Term Forecast Thursday High 19 Low 4 Friday High 14 Low 4 Saturday High 18 Low 6 Sunday High 15 Low 3 Monday High 14 Low 4 Tuesday High 16 Low 8
H
ighway 101 was fully closed in both directions between Foleyet and Chapleau on Monday, September 14, following a vehicle rollover involving a transport truck carrying a load of rocks. The driver sustained non-life-threatening
injuries. Clean-up efforts continued throughout the afternoon and the highway was reopened at around 6:30 p.m. The number of accidents on Highway 101 seem to have increased in the last two years.
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Ontario Funding 40,000 New Postsecondary Seats to Prepare Students for In-Demand Careers
Investment is part of the province’s $1.7 billion investment to fund more than 70,000 additional seats in publicly assisted colleges and universities will ensure more students have the opportunity to train for good-paying careers that protect and strengthen our communities, industries and province.” The most recent allocation is part of the government’s historic $6.4 billion investment in the postsecondary sector, which includes $1.7 billion to fund a total of more than 70,000 additional postsecondary seats in high-demand sectors at publicly assisted colleges and universities. This seat expansion is the largest postsecondary seat expansion in more than a decade and is aimed at helping the province stand up to tariffs and economic uncertainty by building a highly skilled workforce to support the most competitive economy in the G7. The allocation of the first 30,000 seats was announced in May 2026, at which time a call for proposals was launched for the remaining 40,000 new seats that are being announced today. Colleges and universities worked with their local communities and industries to identify programs that will prepare students for in-demand jobs and meet regional labour market needs. Ontario evaluated proposals based on institutional capacity, local industry needs and student demand to ensure the greatest impact on workforce development and economic growth. Today’s announcement was made at McMaster University in Hamilton, which is Take advantage of our BOOST receiving a total of $90 million to fund 2,769 seats starting this in online traffic! a c a d e m i c y e a r. F u n d i n g Since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, people have announcements for the other increasingly turned to their local newspapers for reliable recipient colleges and universiinformation. In just a few weeks, the number of readers of our digital version of the newspaper has increased by 55%. ties will be made in the coming WE ARE REACHING MORE PEOPLE weeks. THAN EVER BEFORE! “McMaster is grateful to have If you want to benefit from this this opportunity to match more surge in web traffic, graduates to areas that are critical NOW’S THE TIME TO ADVERTISE. to the prosperity of Ontario and Canada,” said Susan Tighe, President and Vice-Chancellor, McMaster University. “The Email us with your needs at province’s welcome affirmation chaexpress@sympatico.ca of our programs helps us to serve or call us at 705-864-4376 students and employers alike, THANK YOU FOR YOUR and to meet our mandate as CONTINUED SUPPORT! partners in economic develop-
The Ontario government has allocated 40,000 new funded seats at publicly assisted colleges and universities to connect more students to good-paying, in-demand careers. This allocation, which is part of a broader $1.7 billion investment to support a total of 70,000 new seats, supports the province’s plan to protect Ontario and build a more competitive economy by continuing to develop a world-class workforce. The high-demand areas that are receiving additional seats include programs in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), health care, education and trades, with seats available for student enrollment as early as the fall 2026 academic year. “Our province’s greatest strength is our highly skilled workforce – and those workers are trained at our world-class colleges and universities,” said Nolan Quinn, Minister of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security. “This investment is supporting the largest seat expansion in Ontario in more than a decade and
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ment.”
The more than 70,000 newly funded seats include: • 40,200 more seats in STEM programs • 16,100 more seats in health care programs • 7,900 more seats in education programs • 3,800 more seats in trades programs • 3,000 more seats in other, labour-market driven programs “At the Ontario Chamber, we hear every day from businesses facing skills shortages,” said Daniel Tisch, President and CEO, Ontario Chamber of Commerce. “Strengthening Ontario's talent pipeline is critical to our competitiveness and today's investment will help ensure employers can find the skilled workers they need to grow.” This expansion will ensure students across Ontario can access the education they need to launch rewarding, in-demand careers, while ensuring Ontario’s world-class institutions can continue producing one of the most competitive workforces in the G7 for generations to come. Through the call for proposals, publicly assisted colleges and universities submitted a Priority Growth Plan to the government that reflects their school’s strengths, regional economic trends, local labour market needs, and student demand. The ministry received over 1,000 letters of support from employers who endorse the expansion of seats across in-demand programs at their local institution.
Attention: Are you a Small Business Owner? Do you require financing? Thinking of starting a business? The staff of the Superior East Community Futures Development Corporation will be in Chapleau on Tuesday, September 22, 2026. The CFDC offers small business loans and counselling to current small business owners or individuals looking at starting a business. Services are available in both official languages. To make an appointment to discuss financing options, please call (705) 856-1105 or 1-800-387-5776, ext. 221 or email davidson@ superioreastcfdc.ca. Attention: Êtes-vous propriétaire d'une petite entreprise? Êtes-vous en besoin d'aide financière? Vous-voulez vous partir en affaires? Le personnel de la Société d'aide au développement des collectivités Supérieur Est sera à Chapleau mardi le 22 septembre, 2026. La SADC offre des prêts financiers et des services-conseils aux propriétaires actuel(le)s de petites entreprises et aux individu(e)s intéressé(e)s à se partir en affaire. Nos services sont disponibles dans les deux langues officielles. Pour prendre rendez-vous et discuter de vos besoins d'aide financière ou pour obtenir des services-conseils, communiquez avec nous au (705) 856-1105 or 1-800-387-5776, poste 221 ou par courriel à davidson@ superioreastcfdc.ca.
CHAPLEAU EXPRESS, September 17, 2026 - Page 3
Ian Macdonald argues 'thinking out of the box' required Chapleau to save Chapleau's remaining heritage buildings.
Moments
Michael J. Morris
From the archives of
Michael J. Morris September 3, 2015
Here is part two of Ian Macdonald's thoughts on Chapleau's heritage buildings. I appreciate so much the time and hours of research Ian did to write these two articles. In the beginning, I thought I might just ask him a few questions. Ian has a sincere interest in the community , like so many of us who are Chapleau "boys and girls" but no longer live there. Ian is retired head of the department of architecture at the University of Manitoba and Professor Emeritus. Thanks Ian.... MJM Buildings are an important part of
completely different occupancy than the original. One example of imaginative adaptive reuse is the Rotary Club facility in Stirling Ontario ( population 2139 ). This building was originally one of the first T-1 type railway depots in Canada very similar to the first CPR depot built in Chapleau. A new foundation was built for the old Stirling Grand Trunk depot on a more central site in the community and the building was literally picked up and relocated there. A barrier free ramp was constructed to meet present day building code requirements . The restored Stirling facility includes a tourist information centre and an antiques and collectibles shop. Downstairs is the Rotary Hall, where the Stirling Rotary Club meets every week. The hall is rented out for parties, business events and meetings. This was part of the business plan that was developed to make the facility economically sustainable.
Franz station 1940
Completed Dubreuilville project 2015
Original CPR station at Chapleau Chapleau’s cultural heritage including the original CPR depot opened in 1886 that was described in a previous article and presently located on Monk Street. In most instances, historically important buildings like this can be given a second or third life through adaptive-use or adaptive re-use. Adaptive re-use is an approach where the original major elements ( window types, door types, finishes etc.) of the original building are maintained but modifications are made to accommodate a
Stirling Ontario Rotary Club Another example of adaptive re-use closer to home was carried out by an ambitious group in the small town of Dubreuilville, Ontario (population 635 ). The former CPR/ ACR depot at Franz was acquired and moved approximately twelve miles from Franz to Dubreuilville where it was placed on a new foundation, restored and is now a fully functional tourist information/ souvenir shop.
The Hudson’s Bay Company played an important role in the early days of Chapleau. The Chapleau post was, for a brief time, the headquarters of the Michipicoten district of the HBC. However, the first building constructed by the HBC was in 1884 as CPR construction was approaching what is now Chapleau. It was a small log sub-post (post with two outbuildings) on the Nebskwashi River approximately a mile south of the community on what is now IR 61 of the Chapleau Ojibwe First Nation. The next buildings, which were built in 1886, were a retail store on the southwest corner of Birch and Young Streets (site of the old Algoma Hotel) and a residence for their post manager at the west end of Pine Street. The log sub post south of town was abandoned in 1889 and the retail store apparently burned in 1895. The residence was sold by the HBC shortly thereafter and still exists to the present day. P.6
Plan to Travel within Canada
CHAPLEAU EXPRESS, September 17, 2026 - Page 4 Chapleau in the early days of 1885 and 1886. The location of this house adjacent to one of Chapleau’s main intersections obviously provides the potential for restoration as a tourist information centre or other similar function. Many Important Chapleau buildings have been demolished but those remaining include St.John’s Anglican Church completed in 1908, the Legion Hall opened in 1920 and the Post Office building completed in 1950. Each of these buildings has historical significance. There is no established formula as to how to breathe life into an older building but one has to accept that the task is never easy. Church restorations in particular are complicated. HBC house 1886 St.John’s Church, for instance, obviously has to be saved despite not having a large enough Cont’d from P.3 The style of the HBC house isn’t particu- congregation to support it. In this case, sentimenlarly unique and is similar to the majority of the tal association with former times and traditions first homes built in Chapleau in the late nine- has to be abandoned to ensure that a wide range teenth century. It is, however, significant because of development possibilities is revealed regardof its relationship to the Hudson’s Bay Company less of the discomfort that this might first create. era and was one of the first houses built in A good measure of thinking “outside the box”
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HBC house 2015 will be required to sustain the social usefulness of this building for future generations. The good news is that many churches in Canada have had to deal with the same challenge and developed a wide variety of innovative, practical and successful solutions. One can only hope that the people on Council, CDEC and other positions of influence in the community recognize that older buildings can offer opportunities a for a community’s future.
Provincial Report Highlights Homelessness Crisis in Northern Ontario New NOSDA Research Shows a Path Forward communities. per 100,000. S U D B U R Y, O N — H o m e l e s s n e s s i s disproportionately affecting the North, according to a new report by the Financial Accountability Office of Ontario, which shows that four of the top ten areas with the highest rates of homelessness are located in Northern Ontario. That includes the Cochrane District, which has the highest rate of homelessness in the province, with 1,097 of homeless people per 100,000 population. The other three districts among the top ten are: ! Rainy River District with a rate of 834
Nipissing District with a rate of 804 per 100,000. ! Thunder Bay District with a rate of 604 per 100,000. The average rate across the remaining 37 service managers was 374 homeless people per 100,000. For the Northern Ontario Service Deliverers Association (NOSDA), the FAO findings reinforce the urgency of investing in solutions that recognize the unique housing, health and service-delivery realities of Northern !
"These numbers make it clear that Northern Ontario's homeless problem has unique circumstances," said Fern Dominelli, Executive Director of NOSDA. "Our communities face higher construction and operating costs, limited rental markets, long distances between communities and services, aging housing stock and significant gaps in affordable and supportive housing. We need solutions designed for the North." The findings of the FAO report follow a separate NOSDA report, that found homelessness in northern Ontario increased 37.3 per cent in one year, from 5,930 people in 2024 to 8,142 people in 2025. NOSDA is calling on government to develop an integrated Northern Ontario investment scenario combining housing capital, operating funding, mental health and substance use supports totalling $435.7 million annually over ten years. That is approximately 1.3 cents for every dollar of Northern Ontario's $34.6-billion annual GDP. "For Northern Ontario, reducing homelessness while reducing the investment available to address it is not a sustainable strategy," said Dominelli. "We need to move from managing the consequences of homelessness to making the investments that prevent homelessness. That starts with building housing and connecting people to the health and social supports they need to remain housed."
CHAPLEAU EXPRESS, September 17, 2026 - Page 5
Les élèves de l'école Sacré-Cœur amorcent l'année scolaire 2026-2027 L'école Sacré-Cœur à Chapleau a chaleureusement accueilli le retour des élèves de la maternelle à la 6e année le 8 septembre dernier dans le cadre de la rentrée scolaire 2026-2027. Les élèves et les membres du personnel étaient heureux de se retrouver pour amorcer une nouvelle année d'apprentissage inspirante et innovante. Tout au long de l'année, petits et grands seront invités à grandir dans la foi sous le thème : « Devenir des artisans de paix ». D'ailleurs, la première semaine d'école a été marquée par un moment de réflexion en compagnie du père Ben, qui est venu procéder à la bénédiction des sacs à dos de tous les élèves. Cette tradition, ancrée dans les valeurs de l'école Sacré-Cœur, a rappelé à la communauté scolaire que chaque année est une aventure remplie d'apprentissages, de découvertes et de belles réussites. « Nous remercions le père Ben pour sa présence et ses prières, qui nous ont permis de souligner le début de cette nouvelle année scolaire de façon significative, » souligne Rébecca Langelier, directrice de l'école SacréCœur. « Nous souhaitons à tous nos élèves et à leurs familles une année scolaire remplie de bonheur, de persévérance et d'épanouissement. »
Ontario Expanding Eligibility for Tariff Support Programs Province protecting workers and businesses targeted by latest U.S. trade actions In response to the United States government’s most recent actions targeting Ontario workers and businesses, the Ontario government is expanding eligibility under the Protect Ontario Financing Program (POFP) and the Ontario Together Trade Fund (OTTF) to protect jobs in tariff-impacted sectors. On September 8, the U.S. government outlined a range of measures aimed at Canadian exports to the U.S., including additional 50 per cent tariffs that are set to take effect on September 15 and import bans on certain Canadian goods including alcohol, dairy products and motorcycles set to take effect on September 29. Ontario’s expansion of eligibility will provide businesses with critical capital support so they can keep their doors open, keep workers on the job and reshore their supply chains. “Ontario will not back down in our fight to protect our workers and businesses from tariffs and economic uncertainty,” said Vic Fedeli, Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade. “In the face of President Trump’s latest economic attacks, we are helping businesses keep workers on the job and building an economy that can stand up to anything that comes our way for decades to come.” The $1 billion POFP provides immediate relief for Ontario businesses impacted by tariffs and trade disruptions by providing loans that can be used for costs such as payroll, lease payments and utilities. The $150 million OTTF provides grants
or loans to small and medium-sized Ontario businesses to help them expand interprovincial trade and reshore supply chains away from the United States. “Our government is delivering nearly $30 billion in support for tariff-impacted workers and businesses, providing critical support so we can protect workers and communities,” said Peter Bethlenfalvy, Minister of Finance. “We’ll do whatever it takes to protect Ontario jobs as we continue delivering on our plan to build the most competitive economy in the G7.” Eligibility for tariff-impacted businesses under both programs will be expanded as U.S. trade actions against Canadian products take effect. While Ontario continues to make every effort to protect workers and businesses impacted by the ongoing uncertainty and rising costs caused by the U.S. administration, the government is also delivering on its plan to build the most competitive, resilient and self-reliant economy in the G7. This includes: • Unlocking Ontario’s vast supply of critical minerals, including in the Ring of Fire, which can add 70,000 jobs and $22 billion to Ontario’s economy. This past summer, construction work began on the Marten Falls Community Access Road, the Webequie Supply Road and the Anaconda and Painter Lake Roads, which are
critical links in the Ring of Fire road network. Working in partnership with First Nations, Ontario is on track to build the Ring of Fire road network five years ahead of schedule. • Building and expanding nuclear energy, including construction of the first small modular reactor in the G7; refurbishment of the Darlington Nuclear Generating Station, the Pickering Nuclear Generating Station and the Bruce Nuclear Generating Station; and planning for new nuclear generation, including at the Wesleyville site in Port Hope. Collectively, Ontario’s plan to expand and build new nuclear power generation could add 150,000 jobs and $800 billion in GDP to the province’s economy, providing a long-term supply of reliable and affordable clean energy to power the province’s homes and businesses. • Delivering the Northern Shield Energy Corridor from Hardisty, Alberta to Sarnia along an all-Canadian route, built by Canadian workers using Canadian steel. • Keeping hundreds of thousands of workers on the job through Ontario’s $236 billion infrastructure plan, which includes new highways, hospitals and housing-enabling infrastructure as well as the largest transit expansion plan in North America. Ontario will continue doing whatever it takes to protect workers, businesses and communities from tariffs.
CHAPLEAU EXPRESS, September 17, 2026 - Page 6
Last weeks solutions MOMENTS IN TIME On Oct. 3, 1997, 69-year-old Hall of Famer Gordie Howe, who was known as "Mr. Hockey" and played his first NHL game when Harry Truman was president, skated the first shift with the Detroit Vipers in their International Hockey League opener for a total of just 40 seconds but became the only professional in the sport to compete in six decades. Afterward, he thanked the Vipers for "putting up with me."
CHAPLEAU EXPRESS, September 17, 2026 - Page 7
Vince Rutter says under-harvesting is adding fuel to the fire Thunder Bay forester, entrepreneur and bio-energy advocate urges new thinking as wildfire risks rise in northwestern Ontario fossil fuels as an energy source” according to his website. Unlocking energy from biomass is an obvious choice given that we live in a province of 66 to 85 billion trees, depending on which estimates you believe. The majority of those trees are in Northern Ontario. “It doesn’t make sense to live in the middle of the forest and not rely upon that forest for your energy Vince Rutter at Cascades Conservation Area in Thunder Bay (Graham needs,” he said. “We Strong photo) can extract benefit from it without By Graham Strong for Northern Ontario harming the resource.” Business In other words, the forest is a renewable Vince Rutter wants to get people thinking resource, and we should use it, Rutter said. about forests. Not only are there energy and economic That’s not hard in Northern Ontario on benefits, harvesting mature trees reduces the any given day, but our active forest fire season accumulation of dead trees that feed forest fires. this summer ratcheted it up a few notches. Forest “This will burn eventually,” Rutter said, fires are the result of a complex, intertwined set gesturing to the forest around him at Cascades of issues. Conservation Area in Thunder Bay. Rutter believes the solutions are “That accumulation isn’t balanced by intertwined, too, including sourcing energy from decomposition like it might be in a rainforest. our forests and changing our negative attitudes It doesn’t decompose fast enough. about cutting down trees. Whether it’s every 20 years or 50 years or 200 Rutter has been deeply connected with years, there will be a lightning strike, and it’s forests in northwestern Ontario for about 30 going to burn, guaranteed. This is what has years. A self-described escapee from southern happened (in the boreal forest) again and again Ontario, he moved from Hamilton to Thunder and again for millennia.” Bay in 1996 to take the forestry program at Rutter said that harvesting and burning Lakehead University. wood for energy doesn’t release any more CO2 After graduation, he launched Rutter than would be released after the tree died Urban Forestry in the city in 2000. anyway. Besides, filters and controlled burning ‘Urban forestry’ wasn’t a very wellknown concept at the time. “I didn’t coin the phrase, but it wasn’t publicly used,” Rutter said. The name fit, though, and ever since his growing company has provided a range of services in Thunder Bay and PETER J. BERLINGIERI CHRISTOPHER P. COCCIMIGLIO area including tree and shrub pruning, tree W: www.algomalawyers.ca removal, and arboriculture consultation. E: info@algomalawyers.ca In 2024, he branched out into bio-energy to consult on projects that promote “low-value Wawa Office Sault Ste. Marie Office forest biomass up the value chain to replace T: (705) 253-3800
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means the process can be more environmentally friendly. So why don’t we rely upon wood energy more? Right now, less than one per cent of the electricity generated today comes from biofuels. It comes down to economics. “(Natural) gas is cheap here,” Rutter said. “Heating with wood is about double the cost, so it doesn’t happen in places where you have natural gas.” Generating electricity from wood is more efficient, but can still cost more than what consumers in Ontario pay per kilowatt-hour, he said. Europe is ahead in the bio-energy game because natural gas is so much more expensive there — roughly $30 per gigajoule (GJ) vs. $1.35 per GJ in Canada. That makes using wood energy for heating, electricity generation, or both much more economical in comparison. However, there can be economic cases for bio-fuel, even in Ontario. Three bio-fuel generators like the one at the Atikokan Generating Station in northwestern Ontario, already contribute to the Ontario grid. Many communities across Northern Ontario do not have access to natural gas for heating, reducing comparative costs. Some, including remote First Nations, aren’t connected to the power grid and rely on diesel generators instead Cont’d on P.8
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CHAPLEAU EXPRESS, September 17, 2026 - Page 8
Vince Rutter says under-harvesting is adding fuel to the fire Cont’d from P.7 that require expensive, sometimes fly-in, fuel. Plus, biomass facilities are more sustainable than burning hydrocarbons like natural gas. Rutter is thinking in the biomass facility direction, but on a smaller, municipal scale. In his report, Thunder Bay Wood Energy Roadmap, released in March 2026, Rutter lays out in depth how wood energy could work. A Combined Heat and Power (CHP) biomass facility located near the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre and Lakehead University could heat and power both institutions using wood energy. This facility would also be close to a Hydro One distribution point on the power grid. According to Rutter’s numbers, this CHP
biomass facility could generate 5 megawatts down trees is a dirty word in the 21st century after (MW) in electricity, 15.75 MWt (thermal heat), years of over-logging and logging of old-growth and cost about $68 million to build and connect forests. That, combined with the collapse of the pulp and paper industry, means that we are to 16 non-residential buildings. Generating similar electricity — but no actually under-logging now, to the point where it heat — with solar, wind, and batteries would cost is unhealthy for our forests. “Canadians are scared to work the $114 million to build, take more land, and still not guarantee 100 per cent uptime, especially in forests,” Rutter said. “We’re harvesting about half of our annual allowable cut. The other half is the winter months when solar generation is low. Those are the simple numbers; Rutter accumulating — dying and rotting, or catching goes into more detail in his report, which is in the on fire.” Bio-energy may not be the silver bullet. hands of the City of Thunder Bay right now for But taking a closer look at bio-fuels could be a consideration. single stone that helps meet Ontario’s energy However, there are hurdles. Like any major innovation, it would needs and helps keep our forests healthier. require a large shift in thinking; The man who stops advertising not least of all is the fact that to save money municipalities are not generally in the power generation business. is like the man who stops the clock Private sector partners to save time. would be skittish to take the risk themselves without up-front - Thomas Jeferson incentives and guarantees. Provincially, the focus for future electricity is on nuclear, such as the recently announced Start advertising your products and services this week nuclear power plant near Sarnia. to reach over 1700 readers. These are all just for starters. On the other hand, Contact your media representative today! Ontario’s electricity needs are 705-864-4376 projected to triple in the next 10 years. Rutter stressed that he isn’t proposing bio-energy as the sole or even main solution to meet future demand. It can be part of the mix, though. “Nuclear, solar, wind, district heating networks, thermal energy networks: it’s an all-ofthe-above answer to solve our (energy) problems,” Rutter said. “Not everybody (in the public) is behind bio-energy, though. It’s an emotional debate.” That’s because cutting
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