THUNDER BAY – Thunder Bay Mayor Bill Mauro answered questions on a variety of questions from the public on Wednesday night during a virtual town hall.
The mayor provided an update on the state of the city’s finances and debt in the wake of COVID-19, hypothesized that the retirement of debentures over the next few years could allow council to borrow more money without raising taxes.
Mauro was also adamant the city has no plans to sell off municipally-owned Tbaytel and reiterated council is still weighing its options for an indoor turf facility.
Mauro was also pressed on the city’s response to COVID-19, in particular asked what council and administration are doing to push for regional reopening, with daily case counts in Thunder Bay in single digits since April 29.
“I think absolutely most of us believe regional approaches should be considered by the province of Ontario,” said Mauro, who a month ago successfully brought a motion to council asking the city to send a letter to Premier Doug Ford seeking looser restrictions on outdoor recreational activities, which have been paused until June 2.
“At the time, my perspective was on a regional reopening, there was still a concern that I felt was legitimate, and that was that the variants of concern, in other words the new strains of the COVID virus that were in Canada and in Ontario, were still around that time four weeks ago just beginning to become present in Thunder Bay and in the District of Thunder Bay.
However, since that time, case counts have actually dropped. On Wednesday there were 24 active cases, the fewest since Remembrance Day.
“Having said that, we’re now at least four weeks along and the variants have been in the community and we’ve all seen our numbers stabilize and certainly decline,” the mayor said.
“We’re all doing what’s right. There’s lots to celebrate here. The variants are here and our numbers are going down. I think certainly now for me that underscores the support for a regional approach.”
Mauro stopped short of encouraging businesses to defy provincial orders should the Ford government choose to extend restrictions beyond June 2. At least one local business has threatened to open on June 3 if that’s the path Ford takes.
“If you’re asking me if I’m going to encourage people to break the law, the answer is no,” the mayor said, in response to a question posed by a Thunder Bay resident.
Mauro suggested it sounds like there is hope on the horizon, with the province saying it will eliminate the colour-coded framework and promises of a reopening plan to be announced soon, according to Health Minister Christine Elliott.
“It looks like we’re getting closer to seeing some significant changes,” he said.
The news wasn’t all good for the question posers. Asked if the city will provide tax relief to small businesses forced to close due to COVID-19 restrictions, Mauro said it’s not possible, noting the city still has to collect taxes. He did note the full commercial rate did drop in 2021 by 2.3 per cent and encouraged business owners to seek out provincial and federal aid programs.
Mauro said Tbaytel, which in 2021 provided dividends totalling more than $21 million to city coffers, is not on the market.
“There is no consideration at this present time from the corporation of selling Tbaytel.”
Asked about the Thunder Bay Police Service Board’s approval of a $56-million police headquarters replacement, Mauro suggested council could vote against it, but the board could appeal to the province and take the decision out of council’s hands.
