Good morning!
No money: The federal and provincial governments are empathetic but don’t have any ready solutions for the community of The Pas, which is reeling at the fact that the town’s paper mill will close in December, throwing more than 300 people out of work. READ MORE
Your forecast: Sun will give way to clouds and a 60 per cent chance of showers late this afternoon, with the risk of a thunderstorm. The wind will become west at 20 km/h this morning. High 22 C. This evening, there is a risk of a thunderstorm extending until after midnight. The low will be 11. On Thursday, there’s a 60 per cent chance of showers early in the morning and a high of 22.
In case you missed it
MIKE DEAL / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILESCalli Vanderaa, 17, has taken up boxing since she was shot last year.
No charges: No criminal charges will be laid against an RCMP officer whose service weapon was used to shoot a teen girl last fall. The Winnipeg Police Service was asked to investigate whether charges such as improper storage of a firearm should be laid. It concluded there wasn’t enough evidence to support charges against the Mountie. READ MORE
Olympic glow: The familiar grin and magnificent accessory barely got to the bottom of the escalator before disappearing into a swarm of happy huggers at James A. Richardson International Airport Tuesday. Fans were delirious to see soccer star Desiree Scott — and her Olympic bronze medal — arrive at the Richardson International Airport Tuesday. Also receiving cheers was local Olympic men’s volleyball player Justin Duff. The scene in Winnipeg played out across the country as Canadian athletes returned home from a successful Games in Rio. READ MORE
Cash for highways: Ottawa and the province are splitting the cost of $53 million worth of improvements to two stretches of Highway 1 East, and one stretch of Highway 6. Manitoba Infrastructure Minister Blaine Pedersen said that work on Highway 6 and one Trans-Canada Highway project starts mid-September, while tenders closed on the third project at noon Tuesday. READ MORE
Up next
Doer to speak: Former Manitoba premier Gary Doer will give the keynote address this morning in Winnipeg as the University of Manitoba’s Class of 2020 in medicine participate in the traditional White Coat Ceremony.
Around the water cooler
PHIL HOSSACK / WINNIPEG FREE PRESSA fee proposed to city council would add $20,000 to $30,000 to the cost of a new residential lot.
Homeowners may gain: Owners of existing homes could see the value of their properties rise if the City of Winnipeg imposes a new growth-development fee on builders. A fee of up to $30,000 is being considered on new homes. Some real estate experts say if new houses become too expensive for some buyers, they’ll either stay in their current residence or purchase a resale home instead. That will create more demand for these homes. READ MORE
Gas tax: It’s time for a national, gradually increasing tax on gasoline, writes Gregory Mason. Other approaches to curbing greenhouse gas emissions do not have the same effectiveness, he argues, and if introduced properly, a gas tax could stem automobile use while providing funds for renewable energy initiatives. READ MORE
The cost of prevention: The City of Winnipeg says it could prevent untreated sewage from overflowing into the Red and Assiniboine rivers due to power outages, but any solution would cost “millions and millions” of dollars. Only a few city lift stations in combined sewage and storm water lines have generators, the manager of the city’s waste and water services says. READ MORE
Trending now
#AWordIcantStandIs: Is there a term you hate? Many are chiming in on Twitter: “Decaffeinated.” Or: “Indecisive. Actually I love it.” Or, emphatically: “Bird. It’s definitely not the word. Despite what everybody may have heard.”
On this date
On Aug. 24, 1991: The Winnipeg Free Press reported that in Moscow, thousands of supporters for Boris Yeltsin stood against the forces of the rightist rulers in the Kremlin; Russian soldiers shot two people and two others were crushed beneath armoured personnel carriers. Tens of thousands protested against the military coup that had seized power in the former Soviet Union. In Winnipeg, six residents of St. Amant Centre, including a baby, had died due to a virus that spread through the residence. READ MORE
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