Arson-detecting dog commended for cracking first case

Daycare grapples with five-year-old’s outbursts, choking incidents

A Windsor Park child-care facility is weighing a five-year-old’s right to care versus the safety of other children who have been choked.

Little People’s Place expelled a pre-schooler in the spring in response to his aggressive behaviour toward other children and staff.

The child’s family has appealed to the province for him to be reinstated.

The case is raising concerns about inclusion support resources and measures to protect everyone at the Cottonwood Road daycare.

Visitors from across Canada make Somerset restaurant’s social media challenge a success

There may not be another restaurant in Manitoba that can say it has welcomed visitors from as many communities across the province and beyond as the Somerset Food Bar & Lounge has this summer.

In just over a two week span, visitors from more than 100 towns have come out to the family-owned restaurant tucked away in Somerset, a community of roughly 450 people in the Pembina Valley 130 kilometres southwest of Winnipeg.

It started as a challenge, “60 Towns in 60 Days,” where the restaurant wanted to document how many different places they could reach, as it often sees people travelling across Canada stop at the restaurant. The goal was also to encourage people to make a drive they normally wouldn’t.

“The more we started sharing, the more people really started getting behind it, and it turned into this really big thing fairly quickly,” said Jay Friesen, restaurant manager.

City has plenty of frozen dessert oases to discover

No matter the weather, ice cream is always a welcome addition to the day.

It’s a rite of passage as, at the slightest hint of a thaw, Winnipeggers descend in droves, heeding the siren call of institutions such as Sargent Sundae (2053 Portage Ave.) and Bridge Drive-In (766 Jubilee Ave. and 1680 Main St.) that slide open their shutters any time from late March to early April, ready to welcome dedicated connoisseurs seeking their first taste of the season.

We’re blessed with an abundance of ice-cream joints in this city, ranging from brick-and-mortar storefronts to mobile carts and pop-up stalls, all serving generous scoops of childhood faves alongside rather more innovative flavours.

With so many dairy bars and frozen dessert parlours dotted around, there’s no need to choose just one spot to satisfy your sweet tooth.

CMHR ‘fans flames of antisemitism,’ Asper says, ending support from family that led effort to create it

The Winnipeg family that led the effort to build the Canadian Museum for Human Rights will not provide support going forward, philanthropist and honorary board member Gail Asper says.

Temporary foreign workers rally to stay

Close to 100 temporary foreign workers, mainly from China, whose time in Canada is running out, rallied on the steps of the Manitoba legislature Tuesday to raise awareness of their situation.

They arrived in Manitoba before the federal government cut immigration levels — when international students and temporary foreign workers had a shot at becoming permanent residents if they met the requirements to stay, said Ruby Lu.

“We come here for a few years and we work for a few years, pay taxes. Some of us are already bought a house,” said Lu, whose work permit expires at the end of the year.

“So if our (permit) expires, we don’t know what to do,” she said in front of demonstrators holding signs with messages including “we love Manitoba” and “bring back TPP” — the temporary public policy used by the Manitoba provincial nominee program to support open work permits and prioritize permanent residency for select candidates.

$129-M segregation-lawsuit deal good for Manitoba: judge

A judge has said the $129-million class-action settlement that must be paid by the Manitoba government over the use of segregation in provincial jails is a good deal for taxpayers.

Court of King’s Bench Justice Theodor Bock approved the settlement — in which the province didn’t admit liability — in June, before issuing his full written decision July 22.

“Although Manitoba is responsible to fund a significant settlement, it benefits considerably from the certainty created by capping its total liability to the class, the release of all claims, costs saved or avoided altogether as a result of the appointment of Proactio as the claims administrator and the development of the agreed-upon claims process, and the discontinuance of all litigation concerning this matter,” he wrote.

The judge said class members “comprise a group of vulnerable and marginalized people who endured significant periods of segregation, some under very severe conditions.”