The Chatham Daily News
Lightning sparked Chatham ethanol plant fire: officials
A lightning strike caused Wednesday's fire at Chatham's Greenfield Global plant, company officials say. “Lightning struck a corn-based ethanol storage tank” at the 275 Bloomfield Rd. facility in the early morning, a company release said. “The...
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EXPO EXCITEMENT
Const. Kain Hopkins of the Moraviantown Police Service is seen here with the Akram family of Chatham checking out one of the ATVs the First Nation police service uses during the Children's Safety Expo held Saturday at St. Clair College in Chatham. The...
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Mayoral hopefuls discuss taxation, consultation and spending at open house
A candidate open house featuring numerous mayoral and council candidates, organized by the newly created Chatham-Kent Growth Alliance, attracted more than 250 people. Five of the seven mayoral candidates running in Chatham-Kent took part in a fireside...
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WORK CONTINUES
Crews are shown recently at the site of the ongoing road project, which includes underground and rehabilitative work, along King Street West in Chatham
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CELEBRATING 103 YEARS
The 103rd Buxton Homecoming capped off the long weekend with its annual Labour Day parade. Numerous organizations and community groups took part, with the route wrapping up at Buxton National Historic Site and Museum. Here, kids wave from one of the...
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As summer fades, fall fairs are just getting warmed up
Southwestern Ontario has a long-standing fair tradition. In September and October, communities celebrate with unique food, livestock competitions, derbies, and midway rides. Many date back to before Confederation and evolve with new entertainment...
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STAYING COOL
Five-year-old Brielle Parry and her 10-monthold brother, Tatum, cool off in the Kingston Park splash pad during this week's heat wave, which saw humidex values over 40 C. Temperatures in the mid-20s are expected through this coming week.
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`The fight for our lives'
After ratifying agreements with Ford Motor Co. and General Motors, Unifor began talks this week with Stellantis, an auto giant already considering moving thousands of jobs south of the border amid the Canada-U.S. trade war. “There's a reason...
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CK CAN JAM
Toronto artist Blaze Wiradharma, known as Blazeworks, is seen here Wednesday working on a giant mural he is painting behind the Paragon Property Management building at 41 Fourth St. in Chatham. He is one of a dozen artists taking part in the third...
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LOUD AND PROUD
Despite threatening weather in the forecast, the rain held off for the annual CK Pride Parade, which made its way through downtown Chatham on Saturday. First responders, local businesses and community organizations were among the many groups taking...
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THROWING IN FOR CHARITY
Alyson Deboer, left, tosses a bag during Come Together Chatham-Kent's cornhole tournament fundraiser, held Thursday at Sons of Kent Brewing Co. Shown at right is Kandy Robinson. It was the fourth year the friendly competition has taken place.
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Three charged after $1.28M SW Ontario drug seizure: OPP
Three London residents face dozens of charges following a drug-trafficking investigation in Southwestern Ontario that led to the seizure of $1.28 million worth of drugs, guns and stolen vehicles, police say. Lambton OPP launched the probe in April...
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Mahayagya spiritual event's social benefits help build community
Singing, dancing, worshipping and sharing meals are all part of a weeklong spiritual event happening in Chatham organized by the Bhutanese Nepali Community of Chatham-Kent. The grand Shrimad Bhagwat Saptaha Gyan Mahayagya taking place at the Everest...
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A CANADIAN FIRST
The local Bhutanese Nepali community launches Canada's first grand Shrimad Bhagwat Saptaha Gyan Mahayagya, a week-long spiritual event organizers hope will bring 10,000 devotees, international visitors and families to Chatham's Everest Convention...
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Ricco Cash & Carry grocery opens in Chatham
The latest wholesale-style grocery store that has spun off from a food distributor has opened in Chatham. Ricco Cash & Carry Chatham, at 496 Riverview Dr., had a soft opening July 18, but is gearing up for its grand opening Aug. 22, retail manager...
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WAMBO WOWS CROWDS
The 38th Wallaceburg Antique Motor and Boat Outing drew large crowds and nearly 250 vehicles downtown this weekend. In addition to checking out classic cars, trucks and motorcycles, and watercraft on the Sydenham River, visitors could enjoy...
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BIG WRECK
Highway 401 West near Tilbury was down to one lane Friday after a single-vehicle collision involving a tractor-trailer. Elgin OPP said the driver was taken to hospital with injuries not believed to be lifethreatening.
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Windsor-Essex cyclosporiasis cases climb to 30, two deaths in Michigan
The number of confirmed cyclosporiasis infections in Windsor-Essex has climbed to 30, while local health officials continue to monitor an outbreak in neighbouring Michigan now linked to two deaths. Michigan's Health and Human Services Department...
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Two Chatham-Kent councillors seek action to address vandalism
Two Chatham-Kent councillors plan to bring motions to the upcoming council meeting to address vandalism in the community. Wallaceburg Coun. Carmen McGregor recently served notice to council she is bringing a motion due to the fact the L.O. Stonehouse...
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FINE WHITTLING
World champion wood carver Mike Winia, left, Tilbury BIA executive director Gloria Mailloux, second left, West Kent Coun. Melissa Harrigan and Chatham-Kent Mayor Darrin Canniff are seen with a wood carving that was unveiled Thursday in downtown Tilbury...
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LASER FOCUS
Maple City's Kassandra Rombouts tees off on the 14th hole in the third round of the Ontario junior girls golf championship Wednesday at Maple City Country Club. Maple City was hosting the tournament for the third time in 13 years.
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BUILT FOR SPEED
There are many fun activities for those of all ages at the Dresden Exhibition this weekend. Hosted by the Dresden Agricultural Society, the annual attraction features exhibits, vendors, entertainment and refreshments.
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COMMUNITY BUILDING
Under sunny skies this past week, work continued on the exterior of the downtown Chatham community hub, located at the former Sears. Here, construction crews are shown on the Fifth Street side of the building.
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TRAIL OF MEMORIES
Nellie Fluker, second from left, widow of the late Bryon Fluker, is joined by friend Darlene Winkworth, left, and Chatham-Kent council members Darrin Canniff and West Kent councillors Melissa Harrigan, second right, and Lauren Anderson as they talk a...
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TASTE OF DIVERSITY
Elsie Oluku is an organizer of the African-Caribbean event held Sunday at the Sons of Kent Brewing Co. as part of the Taste of Chatham-Kent celebration of cultural diversity. She said “no Wahala” is a common Nigerian greeting that means “No worries.”
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TASTE OF CHERRYFEST
There were plenty of tasty treats available at the 43rd annual Blenheim Cherryfest. Vendors and community organizations were selling pies, including the Blenheim Youth Centre. From left are Madisyn Robinson, 17, BYC executive director Jen Acampora, and...
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CHAMBERS MUSIC
Local singer-songwriter Jacklyn Wills performs before Chatham Kent council's recent meeting, as part of the ongoing artist feature in council chambers. A veteran of numerous festivals, she is kicking off her Canadian run of shows for the summer.
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MARKING A MILESTONE
Pet And Wildlife Rescue's Mathew Kirk, volunteer Theresa Thompson and Sam I Am celebrate 100 cat adoptions at The Cat Lounge in The Glasshouse Nursery in Chatham recently. The lounge, opened in July 2024, lets visitors meet adoptable cats in a calm...
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SHORE LOOKS GOOD
Seen from the Third Street bridge, landscaping along the new sidewalk near the Thames River in downtown Chatham is starting to take shape, with workers laying mulch recently. The overall slope stabilization project involved installation of a sheet pile...
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30th anniversary Freedom Walk swings through Chatham-Kent
Maryland-based historian Tony Cohen admits his reasons for walking are different from when he first made the journey three decades ago. The Tony Cohen Freedom Walk 2026 was in Chatham-Kent this week as part of the 30th anniversary of his historic...
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`It was pretty crazy'
The powerful weekend storm that swept through Chatham-Kent, leaving a trail of damage on Communication Road between Blenheim and Shrewsbury, packed heavy winds but no tornadoes, area twister tracker say. “It kind of seems like a tornado touched down...
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PADDLE-BOARD PALS
Seventeen-year-old Rylan Romanick, front, of Chatham was giving a stand-up paddle board lesson to his friend Roen Duquette, 17, of Tilbury while at the beach in Erieau on Thursday.
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Heat wave continues in Chatham-Kent
A heat warning in place for Chatham-Kent and many parts of Ontario this week remains ongoing. Environment Canada expects scorching temperatures to continue through Friday, and possibly into the weekend. Highs of 35 to 37 C are expected, with humidex...
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TARTS OF GOLD
Zule Ankamah, owner of Windsor's Zule Eats, displays butter tart pies and tart buns at the second annual Tart and Soul Butter Tart Festival on Saturday at Sons of Kent Brewing Co. Featuring over a dozen bakers from across Ontario, there was a wide...
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Model search attracts young Chatham-Kent people hoping to be discovered
Plenty of young people took the opportunity to see if they have that special look at a model search held in Chatham on Friday. Toronto-based ANM Management was set up in the One Hundred King mall taking photographs and doing interviews people. The...
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Maple City Climbing offers fun, challenge for all skill levels
A rock climbing enthusiast turned his passion into a business by opening Maple City Climbing in Chatham. Owner Jacob Singleton was travelling to Windsor or London to rock climb, but after children came along he joked his wife “put the kibosh to me...
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PULLING THEIR WEIGHT
When you've got frogs, babies, music and the chance to milk a simulated cow, a good time is sure to be had. These were among the many fun family activities at the 2026 Thamesville Threshing Festival on Saturday. There were plenty of contestants in...
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TIME TO KICK IT!
Chatham's Mike Kolstein, 23, had the Chatham Skate Park to himself over a recent noon hour as he made the most of a bright sunny day to hone his skateboarding skills.
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HABITAT'S GARDEN GROWS
The six new raised garden beds, located on the property of Habitat for Humanity Chatham-Kent's ReStore site, were made possible thanks to the Hydro One Councillor Ward funding program. Seen here, from left, are Coun. Brock McGregor, Habitat volunteer...
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Helping hands in the backyard
Rachel Smale and her husband, Nick, were overwhelmed by the generosity they saw this past weekend, as about 30 people helped give their property a facelift. The Chatham couple, who have six children at their Semenyn Avenue home, were the beneficiaries...
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Chatham's Morton celebrates century of taking life in stride
Vivian Morton has lived to be 100 years old, but the Chatham woman doesn't have any big revelation about reaching this milestone in life. “I haven't got any secrets,” she said when asked about reaching to the century mark. Morton, who turned 100 June...
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STUDY IN SUCCESS
Lambton-Kent's Sophia Metcalfe, left, Chatham-Kent's Ian Costello and McGregor's Noah Brinkman are this year's top local graduating high school academic athletes. They received Dr. Jack Parry Awards and a $1,000 scholarship at a ceremony at the...
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Howe bridge ribbon-cutting expected this week: source
Prime Minister Mark Carney says the $6.4-billion Gordie Howe International Bridge linking Windsor and Detroit will open “at the end of the week.” Carney made the comments while speaking to reporters Tuesday morning on his way to a cabinet meeting on...
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Med students receive hands-on learning at CKHA
Chatham-Kent Health Alliance set the scene this week, providing an up close and interactive experience for students from the Schulich school of medicine and dentistry at Western University. Discovery week, now in its 28th year, places first-year...
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Artist Studio Tour draws crowds throughout Chatham-Kent
With more artists and venues this time around, the Artist Studio Tour continues to grow in Chatham-Kent. Presented by the CK Arts Council on Saturday and Sunday, the event featured 57 artists exhibiting solo or in 25 artist hubs, two galleries and one...
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Public sounds off on proposed ARTspace relocation
Participants at an open house on the proposed relocation of ARTspace from downtown to the Chatham Cultural Centre voiced their concerns to municipal staff about the idea Wednesday. Held in Studio One, and attended by approximately 40 people, staff...
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HIS HANDS MAKE LIGHT WORK
Dave Wellman, a technician with Chatham-based Field Electrical Contractors, performs maintenance work on a traffic light at the corner of McNaughton Avenue West and Sandys Street on Tuesday afternoon.
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Cool cars reign, despite the weather
Rain may have drastically limited the number of vehicles on display Saturday during RetroFest in downtown Chatham, but some cool vehicles with great stories were still to be found. At first glance, Frank Burggraff's 1989 Dodge Ramcharger may not seem...
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CKHA lands $1M to cut CT scan waits, to seek second scanner
The CT scanner at Chatham's hospital will be logging more hours to reduce patient waits thanks to $1 million from the Ontario government. But there could be more good news to come. In announcing the money Thursday, MPP Trevor Jones (PC-...
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Ontario's $1.6M to help more C-Kers get primary care
Ontario is putting up nearly $1.6 million to help more than 3,200 Chatham-Kent residents connect with a family doctor or nurse practitioner. But, given Chatham-Kent Ontario Health Team success using similar funding, even more could get access,...
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PLAYING COOL
Four-year-old Blake Longbottom cools off at the Kingston Park splash pad, followed by three-year-old Ethan Hallinan, on a hot and humid Tuesday afternoon. However, temperatures are expected to drop to the mid-teens later this week.
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SPRING POWWOW
With thunderstorms and heavy rain rolling through the region, organizers of Walpole Island First Nation's 32nd spring powwow weren't about to pull up the stakes and head inside. Saturday's three-hour delay ended up being the right call, as the clouds...
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MAY FLOWERS
With spring hopefully here for good, local garden centres are keeping busy. Emma McKinlay, staff member at DeGoey's Flowers in Chatham, arranges a dahlia display on Thursday afternoon. Temperatures in the mid-20s are expected this weekend, rising to...
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WRESTLING CHAMP
Canadian arm wrestling champion Sam Knowler of Ridgetown battles with ChathamKent Mayor Darrin Canniff on Monday night, alongside East Kent councillors John Wright and Morena McDonald. Knowler was recognized at the beginning of the meeting for his...
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MARKET MILESTONE
Downtown Van Zelst's Market owner Lee-Ann Van Zelst, right, joins Trinkets and Treasures owner Randy Aiken, one of the sprawling venue's 40-plus vendors, to mark the market's 10th anniversary Saturday
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FUTURE FOREST
Shown during Wednesday's tree planting are ESPC students Isabella Robson, Callie Root, Abigail Peltier, Ann Elyse Deline and Ava Zondervan.
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`The best feeling ever'
Comedy is not often associated with a play about surviving a residential school, but the Wallaceburg District secondary school drama club has made it work and made history at the same time. The school's drama club has advanced to the provincial...
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HELPING HOSPICE
The Branch 642 Royal Canadian Legion Pipe Band plays as participants hit Mud Creek Trail for the 10th annual Chatham-Kent Hike for Hospice on Sunday.
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OFF THE LEASH
With the sun out on Tuesday, Larry Cartier enjoyed a little game of Frisbee with his three-year-old shepherd-doodle, Brianna, as 13-year-old shih tzu, Levi, looks on, at the John Waddell off-leash park in Chatham.
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Right to refuse unsafe work prevents tragedies; day of mourning held
It's been more than 12 years since Donna and Ken Wall lost their son in a workplace accident and the pain remains. Tears well in the eyes of the Chatham couple when asked about their son Christopher Crawford, who was killed when a roof collapsed at a...
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Chatham-Kent Expo continues to draw a large crowd
It was a packed house for the 12th annual Chatham-Kent Expo at the John D. Bradley Centre in Chatham. Rob Bellamy, an organizer of the 2026 Chatham-Kent Expo, said pre-sales were the highest they've ever been on Saturday and it seemed there were more...
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`A GOOD STORY TO TELL'
Chatham-Kent secondary school students were busy Saturday rehearing for their upcoming production of the musical The Prom on May 8 and 9. Here Mazzelyn Galbraith, 17, front right, who plays Dee Dee Allen, is seen taking a selfie with Micaela Holt, 18,...
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C-K's wasteto-energy plan goes to council Monday
After preliminary reports and approvals in recent years, Chatham-Kent council soon will make its final decision on a proposed waste-to-energy project. The proposed partnership between Chatham-Kent and Greenfield Global would see an anaerobic digestion...
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Black Excellence Awards recognize leadership, impact
Chatham-Kent's rich Black history is a story that continues to be written, with award recipients having a chance to share their own experiences on Saturday night. The third-annual Black Excellence Awards, held at the Everest Convention Centre,...
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SAD FAREWELL
Pallbearers wearing jerseys with the name Dane on the front and Nisbet and the number 15 on the back wait to carry the casket of Dane Nisbet Friday into the funeral service at Temple Baptist Church in Sarnia.
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Strings are his thing
It's been 20 years since Jordan Clayton competed at the Chatham Kiwanis Music Festival and the nerves were still there when he returned as an adjudicator for the 80th festival this week. “I was more nervous than the kids in the first class,” said...
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`Turn yourself in,' police chief tells accused killer
Sarnia's top cop had this advice for a Londoner charged in a Sarnia student pub shooting that killed a 20-year-old Sarnia junior hockey player dead and injured two former teammates: “Turn yourself in.” “To Mr. Doe directly, I say that every time you...
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Former junior hockey player, 20, killed in Lambton College shooting: Police
The perpetrators remain at large after gunfire erupted early Friday at a campus bar at Lambton College in Sarnia, leaving one man dead and two others – all three played junior hockey together – injured, sources say. A 20-year-old Sarnia man died in...
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U.S. and Israel's war with Iran another blow to Canadian steel industry
More than a year after United States President Donald Trump decided to slap tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum, the trade uncertainty continues due to his unpredictable actions. When news of the tariffs being imposed by Trump came early last year,...
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EGG-CITING FUN
Despite rain in the forecast, local Easter egg hunts went off without a hitch this past weekend, with various events held throughout Chatham-Kent. Here, four-year-old Noah Zimoch shows off his haul during Saturday's hunt at the Dover Rod and Gun Club....
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FINISHING TOUCHES
Many area retailers were putting the finishing touches on their Easter displays this past week. Here, Sherrie Piens, a designer at Stan's Flowers, arranges flowers and eggs on the Easter tree in the Chatham shop on Thursday.
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`It's amazing them being able to help'
The charitable organization FreeHelpCK joined forces with many of its community partners to ensure 100 families can enjoy a great meal this Easter. A steady stream of people arrived at the parking lot of Chatham's Quo Vadis restaurant Wednesday to...
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Ontario's BYOB event plan spurs local concerns
Ontario's new plan to loosen rules to allow people to bring their own alcohol to designated outdoor events has some Chatham-Kent event organizers concerned. The changes, slated for this spring, mean event-goers could bring their own alcohol to consume...
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Calls grow for Ontario to slow overhaul plan
Calls are growing for the Ontario government to slow down its plan to overhaul the province's conservation authority system. The plan is to consolidate Ontario's 36 conservation authorities into nine, overseen by the newly created Ontario Provincial...
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