All Business News

The long-awaited project to stabilize the power grid in Central Lambton is about to start. Hydro One has hired a contractor who will begin building a new transformer at the Wanstead Substation. The project is expected to cost up to $35 million. The Wanstead substation has been the main power source in Central Lambton since the 1950s. In the last

Brooke-Alvinston Mayor Don McGugan says rapid increases to the minimum wage will hurt businesses in his community and he’s urging the province to slow down. The provincial government wants to increase the current minimum wage of $11.40 to $15 in the next 18 months. McGugan recently appeared before the all-party committee reviewing Bill 148 when it was in London. He

Geoff Greening thinks the cost of providing a new fibre optic network in southwest Ontario will be a lot higher than expected. The new general manager of Brooke Telecom, which has provided fibre optic Internet to a number of communities including Watford and Alvinston, told Lambton County politicians he believes the project being touted by the Western Warden’s Conference is

Jenna Simpson had a first hand look at how the Ontario government works. The 30 year-old Petrolia woman represented Sarnia-Lambton at the “A Remarkable Assembly – Celebrating 100 Years of Women’s Right to Vote in Ontario. And she says in some ways, it was a real eye-opener. On April 12, 1917, women officially gained the right to vote in Ontario’s provincial

  After years of work and lots of scandals, the Greenfield South Energy project is ready to produce power for Ontario. But the energy isn’t flowing yet. That from officials from the Independent Electricity System Operator. Chuck Farmer, director of stakeholder and public affairs with the IESO, says the gas-fired power plant  in St. Clair Township “met all the technical

  A Wyoming business is voicing concern after learning all sports wear for local public schools will be supplied by companies in Ottawa and Toronto. Tracey Cameron of Sewlutions Embroidery in Wyoming recently heard from one of the teachers of a local school that local schools would now have to work with the Lambton-Kent District School Board’s purchasing department to

  Brooke-Alvinston is cutting its spending by three per cent this year, but taxpayers are still likely to see their taxes jump in the double digits. Councillors got their first look at the proposed 2017 budget and were stunned see the amount of money coming into the municipality dropped by over $717,000. If councillors would approve the budget as it

  Brooke-Alvinston will hire a part-time fire chief. Council approved the move at an in camera session Feb. 23. Administrator/Clerk Janet Denkers will work with a retired investigator from the Ontario Fire Marshal’s office to set out the guidelines for the new chief and recruit the right person for the job. Council has set aside $10,000 to find the new

  Dave Hext says there may be a need for another apartment building in Petrolia but it shouldn’t be next to Sunnyside. The home, also known as Fairbank House, is owned by David Burnie who wants to build a 16-unit apartment building right beside the iconic home. Burnie’s plan was slated to be heard by the Committee of Adjustment Wednesday.

Inwood farmer Don McCabe is pondering his future after losing the presidency of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture. McCabe, who had held the position for two years was defeated Monday. Keith Currie, a Collingwood-area hay and sweet corn farmer and OFA vice-president was chosen by the delegates. McCabe says he had hoped to serve one more year to help form

  Gillian Boere wants to have a celebration of local food in Alvinston. The Brooke-Alvinston teacher is part of a committee hoping to organize a street festival in November which would feature some of the best food and beverages the area has to offer. Boere went to Brooke-Alvinston Council recently to talk about the idea. She says the group has

It’s that time of the year again. Rural municipalities are once again facing funding cuts from the provincial government. The Ontario Municipal Partnership Fund grants, which have been cut by the province for the past four years in rural Ontario, are once again being reduced. Enniskillen Township Mayor Kevin Marriott says this year his municipality will lose $89,300 in funding