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Police seize cocaine, loaded handgun during early morning raid at Springwater home

Sep 21, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Police seized $75,000 in drugs and a loaded handgun after officers searched a Springwater home Oct. 29.

Huronia West OPP officers executed an early morning search warrant in connection with an ongoing investigation.

About 500 grams of cocaine and 7,000 Percocet pills were found in the house along with a “large” amount of cash.

Three Springwater Township men and two Barrie women, all in their 20s, are charged with numerous firearm and drug trafficking offences. 

The three male suspects were held for bail court in Barrie.  

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Erin O’Toole dodges questions about Tory MP who supports anti-vaxxers

Sep 21, 2021 , , , , by shlf

OTTAWA—Conservative Leaderblamed government “secrecy” for fuelling concern about a future Thursday as he dodged questions about one of his MPs flirting with vaccine skeptics.

Responding to questions at a morning press conference, O’Toole declined to denounce Conservative MP Derek Sloan, who sponsored a in Parliament that questions the safety of COVID vaccines and likens their speedy rollout to “human experimentation.”

Instead, O’Toole called on the government to lift the veil on its planned vaccination campaign, including by releasing details for how it intends to roll out doses to the Canadian Armed Forces, veterans and Indigenous communities that fall under federal health jurisdiction. That would “help bring certainty” to people about the pandemic response and “the efficacy of the vaccine,” O’Toole said.

“More important than petitions sent in from Canadians across the country is a plan for the 38 million Canadians seeing a government with no information heading into Christmas,” O’Toole said.

“You wonder why Canadians are worried? It’s the secrecy and incompetence of the Trudeau government.”

Sloan, an Ontario MP who lost to O’Toole in the Conservative leadership race this year, told reporters Wednesday that he typically tables all petitions signed by his constituents unless he is “adamantly opposed” to what they contain. The petition was written by a director of a group called that argues for “informed consent” about vaccines and their risks, benefits and alternatives.

“I’m not an expert on this subject matter so I can’t say one way or other whether certain protocols are being followed. But I believe, you know, these people seem to have concerns and I have no problem allowing them to raise those through a petition in the House of Commons,” Sloan said.

Responding to questions from Conservatives about the vaccine plan in the House on Thursday, Health Minister Patty Hajdu accused the opposition of doubting health officials. “Unlike the opposition party, we have confidence in public health officials, we have confidence in public health guidance and we certainly have confidence in vaccination,” she said.

Prof. Timothy Caulfield, who holds the Canada Research Chair in health law and policy at the University of Alberta, said everyone should be concerned about petitions like the one Sloan is sponsoring, which he said “seems to be more about fear-mongering than rational oversight.”

“These claims are frustrating and do nothing to help Canadians get through the pandemic,” he said.

“These vaccines have been studied. There have been clinical trials involving thousands of individuals.” Of course, the science must be reviewed by regulators “who independently assess the available evidence,” he said, adding post-market surveillance will “help identify rare adverse events.”

But Caulfield said research shows the anti-vaccine community, including Vaccine Choice Canada, uses “ideologically or intuitively appealing concepts like choice, freedom, liberty, consent … to sidestep the scientifically implausible nature of the myths and the misinformation they push.”

It fuels mistrust.

Caulfield said research shows that anywhere from 20 to 40 per cent of people — depending on the survey — are worried and are “taking a wait-and-see perspective.”

What’s driving the hesitancy, Caulfield said, is a “breakdown in trust in the process” due to misinformation generally about vaccines, and more specifically about the speed of the COVID-19 vaccine development process.

“You’re seeing individuals that aren’t the hardcore anti-vaxxers but rather those sort of hesitant groups — that group in the middle — and they’re worried about the speed, they’re worried about political interference and I think that’s largely emanating from the United States.”

Conservative health critic Michelle Rempel told the Star’s Kieran Leavitt that Sloan’s petition does not represent the party’s position, and said Canada “has one of the most rigorous review processes for health products, including vaccines, in the world.”

“I mean, seriously. So, there’s no question within our party of the need to have a COVID vaccine that has been approved by health regulators widely available to the Canadian public to combat the spread of COVID-19.”

“I do think that it’s incumbent upon the government, however, in collaboration with the provinces, to give Canadians information on where they can receive it, what it means in terms of potential immunity and efficacy.”

For Jason Lietaer, president of the strategic communications firm Enterprise and a former adviser to prime minister Stephen Harper, all political leaders should make it clear that a vaccine is expected to be a key tool to get out of the pandemic.

“You should be tough on the issue, not on the person. Mr. O’Toole and all political leaders should send a very quick and very clear message that our vaccines are safe,” he said.

Tonda MacCharles is an Ottawa-based reporter covering federal politics for the Star. Follow her on Twitter:

Alex Ballingall is an Ottawa-based reporter covering national politics for the Star. Follow him on Twitter:

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‘An existential threat’: Collingwood throws support behind conservation authority

Sep 15, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Collingwood has joined a growing chorus of municipalities calling on the Ontario government to consult the public on changes to legislation affecting conservation authorities.

Updates to the Conservation Authorities Act and Planning Act have been buried within the government’s budget bill, released in early November, and critics have said the changes will limit the ability of conservation authorities to assess the environmental impact of developments.

In a news release issued earlier in November by the Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority, which includes Collingwood among its 18-member municipalities, the NVCA raises the concern that the minister of natural resources and forestry can issue an order to take over and decide a development permit application in place of a conservation authority.

The proposed changes also remove the potential ability of a conservation authority to issue a stop work order on someone who may be doing harm to an environmentally-protected area.

Coun. Mariane McLeod, who is also vice-chair of the NVCA, said the changes have been hidden in a bill that is being expedited in the Ontario legislature.

“Such wide-ranging changes to an entity that we in Collingwood fund to the tune of $270,000 a year should get some input from us,” she said, adding the changes are “seen as an existential threat to conservation authorities.”

Similar motions of support for conservation authorities have already been passed by a number of municipalities, including Essa Township, and several municipalities in Halton Region, she said.

Locally, Clearview Township declined to pass a similar motion at its Nov. 23 meeting. At its Nov. 25 meeting, Wasaga Beach council referred the matter to planning staff for a recommendation.

Collingwood’s chief administrative officer Sonya Skinner, who was previously the CAO for the Grey-Sauble Conservation Authority, said that at a minimum, the provincial government should provide opportunities for municipalities to comment on the changes.

One of the changes proposed include directing conservation authority board members to act only on the behalf of the municipality they represent, rather than the watershed. Skinner noted there is value in a shared approach to managing and monitoring water in a watershed.

“You can’t work on the hydraulics of a river when that river is just passing through Collingwood or just passing through Clearview — you need to look at the whole thing. We can’t really do that on our own,” she said. In an era of development and climate change, “it’s going to weaken our ability to address these types of issues if we don’t have a board that’s truly looking at the full watershed.”

Skinner said that while the development industry might have legitimate concerns about conservation authorities, be they fees or the time it takes to process an application, “these are items that need to be worked on in that specific area of concern, and not by weakening a water-related authority.

“If conservation authorities don’t do that work, we may end up accountable for it at the municipal level — and I don’t see that as in the best interest of Collingwood,” she said.

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‘It’s going to be a little different’: Alliston families not scared to stray from Halloween traditions during pandemic

Aug 30, 2021 , , , , by shlf

After the province asked Ontarians to avoid having extended family over for Thanksgiving dinner, many started questioning what will happen with other upcoming holidays, and the one that’s top of mind for everyone right now is Halloween.

The province’s top doctor has recommended against trick or treating in hot spots where cases of COVID-19 have been sharply rising, including Toronto, York and Peel Region and Ottawa.

Alliston resident Nehya Fawx, a mother of three young girls, always ventures out into the neighbourhood with the little ones, but with many houses likely not handing out sweets this year, she has decided to do things differently.

“My girls would be so disappointed to walk from house to house and having no one answer their door or having very few answers and being tuckered out with barely any candy,” she said.

Fawx and her neighbour have decided to do their own trick or treating adventure, and they will end the night at home with a Halloween candy hunt.

While her family won’t be going out, she has still decorated her home and plans to hand out candy to anyone who shows up at her door.

“It’s going to be a little different but it will be as close to normal as we can make it,” she said. “Halloween is our household favourite time of year.”

Resident Joanna Touma has three kids, ages 11, 14 and 15, and her youngest would have normally gone out for candy. But since her mom lives with them and has health issues, they decided the best thing to do is to skip Halloween all together.

“Luckily, my kids are very understanding and care more about grandma than candy,” she said. “I can’t chance that someone comes to my door and doesn’t follow proper protocol.”

The Gibson Centre in Alliston is giving families an alternate way to exercise their spooky spirits in the safest way possible.

Executive director Jennifer Fortin said the centre will be hosting groups of kids Oct. 31 to experience its Halloween House. The event, which will follow all public-health protocols, will allow kids to experience different themed rooms, like a graveyard and vampire lair, through a supervised, one-way path.

There will candy stations along with way, with volunteers wearing masks and gloves.

The event is appropriate for kids ages three to 12 and it takes place between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Admission is $5 per child and $20 per family, but spots need to be reserved ahead of time. To book a time slot, call the centre at .

The town is asking residents to take a socially distanced approach to Halloween and one of the ways they can do this is to participate in its virtual pumpkin carving contest. For more details .

Story behind the story: With there being a lot of debate about whether people should stick with their Halloween traditions and send the kids door-to-door for candy, Simcoe.com decided to talk to some local residents to find out how they plan to celebrate this year.


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From Ryan Reynolds to pandemic punditry: How Ottawa Public Health mixes wit and wisdom to deliver serious messaging on COVID-19

Aug 20, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Ottawa Public Health’s irreverent and sometimes hilarious Twitter account educates, claps back at trolls, and has even gotten the attention of actor Ryan Reynolds.

With almost 100,000 followers, it’s become a public health influencer.

And in a pandemic where scientists are fighting, not just the virus but also misinformation, the public servants behind it have risen to the occasion.

Kevin Parent leads the small team that manages the agency’s Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts. The Star caught up with him about what it’s like on the front lines of the battle against misinformation.

Q: Judging by your follower count, it looks like the Twitter account has been quite successful. Is that all due to COVID-19?

A: If I’m permitted to humble brag: We’re the most followed local public health unit in North America.

Back in January, we were sitting about 55,000 and the next behind us was New York with in the 30s, Toronto was also in the 30s.

So we’ve been the most followed in North America for quite a while.

But the growth we saw during COVID was incredible. We got all this growth organically. We don’t put any money into our Twitter account. There’s no paid ads, or sponsored anything.

We’re quite proud of that.

Do you think that translates to impact?

Twitter is such a busy place. There’s so much going on and we’re just trying to get health messaging to stand out amongst the noise.

We’ve always tried to be human, we’ve always tried to be approachable.

It’s not typical government comms. We’re trying to be transparent, empathetic.

We’re recognizing that this is a very difficult time for people. We’re acknowledging that openly.

You look at the growth we’ve had and the attention we’ve had on the accounts throughout COVID and that in and of itself is kind of evidence of the success of the style and the tone.

How do you engage with followers and help public health messages find new eyes?

On Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram as well, we read every single comment.

We read every single reply.

It’s one of the ways that we’ll actually build content. If there’s something that a lot of people are asking about, or talking about, or identify, we’ll try to talk about it.

We like having one-on-one conversations, because it just makes people feel that much more comfortable with us. And it makes them more likely to engage with our posts, and share them with their friends.

So you read all your mean tweets?

We could do Jimmy Kimmel’s entire season of that after COVID.

How do you combat misinformation online?

A lot of people call it the infodemic, which is going on in parallel to the pandemic. We just address it by putting out as much information as we can.

Some people comment on our Facebook posts with a conspiracy theory, and what’s interesting is that very often the community will kind of take care of itself.

People will start replying to it with the actual factual information.

We know it’s out there.

There’s been an entire series of misinformation posts that we’ve done. And each time we tend to be fairly cheeky with it.

We like to point out the obvious absurdity with a lot of things.

One of the most recent things that we did which I really enjoyed, I believe the tweet said: the notion that COVID-19 is a conspiracy that involves every nurse, doctor, paramedic, hospital, health unit and health agency on the planet represents a very optimistic view of project management.

Anybody who’s ever worked in government knows that just couldn’t happen.

What about trolls?

They’re there. We see them. Sometimes we just mute the accounts.

One of the hardest parts of this job is learning not to take it personally. Some pretty awful things have been said on social media, but on the other hand, it’s nothing new.

There’s an article that comes to mind, from the CBC archives, in 1987. It was about mandatory seatbelts. I kid you not, in the video there’s a gentleman saying “this is government dictatorship.”

“I’m going to ask my doctor for a medical exemption from wearing a seatbelt.”

The public having issue with being told to change their behaviour by health officials is really nothing new.

What about legitimate constructive criticism, or questions?

Sometimes you can just sort of tell that somebody’s asking a question and they genuinely would like an answer.

There are people who will ask a question and we see an opportunity to educate and inform and we will absolutely reply. But then there’s others where, you’re well aware that no amount of answering and information is going to change this person’s mind.

So we carry on with our day.

You also have shared a couple of examples of recent clusters of COVID transmission, like one that stemmed from a cottage weekend, another from a wedding. Why do that?

I understand that messaging fatigue is a thing.

We needed tangible examples. People see case numbers every day. But what does it actually mean? There’s clear-cut lessons to be learned. The most recent example was at a wedding.

As much as we’re not trying to shame anybody, there was one individual who woke up and had mild symptoms, and chose to go to a wedding. And that one decision had that exponential effect.

Think of all those parents. All those kids that couldn’t be in school. The testing centres with an extra 200 people in line. Those are all real human impacts that are beyond the case numbers.

That particular one has a couple of thousand likes and retweets and between Facebook and Twitter, last time I looked at it I think it reached about 600,000 people.

The feedback has been great, people are like, this is real, this is something that I can see and relate to.

It’s also to look at the other side of it. Had that one person woken up with mild symptoms and decided to not go to the wedding, that one individual action would have saved 200-plus people from having to go through all that. It’s the power of individual actions.

How do you craft your posts?

We’ve had some really successful posts, when something happens and we react to it as quickly as possible.

Remember when Dr. Fauci in the States threw the first pitch at the ball game? We retweeted and said: in his defence he’s spent his entire career trying to prevent people from catching things.

Whether it’s something like that where something happens and we want to react to it, or if it’s just when we’re building our week’s social media plan, there’s always three sets of eyes on every single post.

We keep a bank of all the posts that have gone out so that we have quick access to things. We also leave ourselves room within our day to pivot to things and react as they happen.

Some public health agencies are using TikTok to get messages across to younger people. Will you do that?

TikTok is something we’re considering.

There is solid value in us being there, on the other hand we’re a taxpayer-funded municipal institution and there’s been a lot of privacy concerns about TikTok.

So we have our privacy officers looking into that. We’ve got a legal team looking into it, and we’ll see how it goes.

What are some of your recent favourite posts?

I don’t know if you’ve seen any of our Twitter threads. I think those are my favourite.

It’s that moment of candour between us and the followers. That moment of like, all right, we need to talk.

When mandatory masks were introduced in Ottawa, our thread included almost an apology. We said, we understand that for some of you this is coming out of nowhere. We recognize that frustration and we acknowledge it. But here’s why, and then we walked through the reasoning.

And the couple of times Ryan Reynolds replied to us, was just fantastic.

We had a fun little interaction with him back in February. He started following us. We said, we take physical distancing so seriously that we would kick Ryan Reynolds out of bed.

You have your little fan moment. He has 16 million followers.

So 16 million followers scrolled through their feeds and saw an Ottawa Public Health tweet because he interacted with it.

This interview has been condensed and edited for length and clarity.

May Warren is a Toronto-based breaking news reporter for the Star. Follow her on Twitter:

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Clearview Township restricts access to recreation facilities for visitors from COVID-19 hot spots

Aug 12, 2021 , , , , by shlf

The Township of Clearview is restricting access to recreation facilities, library branches and its administration centre for residents from COVID-19 hotspots.

In a press release, the township said it’s following a recommendation from the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit’s (SMDHU) Medical Officer of Health.

In a letter to municipalities last week, Dr. Charles Gardner strongly urged this action be taken to stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus from higher transmission areas to lower transmission areas. 

The township also announced it would start rotating in-person and remote staff shits on Dec. 7.

As a result, alternate opening hours for the administration centre and Creemore Branch of the Clearview Public Library will be in effect. 

The administration centre will begin closing for lunch between 12:30 and 1:30 p.m., Monday to Friday. The drop box located at the Gideon Street entrance will be accessible during this time. The Creemore Branch of the Clearview Public Library will close between 1 and 2 p.m. on Fridays. 

As staff will alternate working remotely and in-person, residents are encouraged, where possible, to schedule appointments. Staff can also be contacted by email and over the phone for those wishing to remain safer at home. Clearview’s staff directory can be accessed online by visiting

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Barrie man charged in fatal hit-and-run in Springwater

Aug 10, 2021 , , , , by shlf

A 22-year-old Barrie man is charged after a woman was struck and killed last month by a vehicle on Bayfield Street North in Springwater Township.

Huronia West OPP charged Kraig Roberston on Oct. 6 with failing to stop at an accident causing death.

Police identified the alleged vehicle and the driver a few days after the collision.

Police say a woman who was standing on the side of the highway with her dog waving at passing vehicles was struck and killed at about 10:48 p.m. Sept. 15.

Police have not released the woman’s name or her age.

Initially, Ontario’s police watchdog began an investigation because an OPP officer was on the scene quickly and was forced to swerve around the woman’s body. The Special Investigations Unit dropped the investigation a day later.

An off-duty Barrie police officer was driving behind the unmarked OPP cruiser and also pulled over. 

The officers performed CPR on the woman, but were unsuccessful.

The accused appeared in the Ontario Court of Justice in Barrie for a bail hearing Oct. 6.

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COVID-19 outbreak at Oshawa wedding yields eight new cases so far

Aug 9, 2021 , , , , by shlf

The Durham Region Health Department is urging guests and staff to come forward after an COVID-19 outbreak at a wedding at Oshawa’s on Sept. 19.

According to the department, about 50 guests and eight to 10 staff and volunteers were in attendance, resulting in eight positive cases of so far.

“It is very important that individuals who participated in this wedding contact us as soon as possible to allow Health Department staff to provide appropriate followup,” said Dr. Pepi McTavish, Durham region assistant medical officer of health, in a news release.

Two workplaces have also been contacted for further investigation.

Anyone who attended the event is encouraged to call the Health Department at 905-668-4113, ext. 2680.

Ann Marie Elpa is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Star’s radio room in Toronto. Reach her via email:

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Collingwood Legion reminds residents ‘remembering is the most important thing’ this Nov. 11

Aug 9, 2021 , , , , by shlf

While November traditionally brings with it a cold winter wind, it hasn’t dampened the spirits of Collingwood residents and their willingness to brave the elements to remember those who paid the ultimate sacrifice.

The annual Remembrance Day ceremony is one of the most well attended and important events on the community calendar.

However, as with all other events, COVID-19 has led to the cancellation of the traditional event, including the parade and ceremony at the Cenotaph.

Royal Canadian Legion president Rob Graham said a small contingent of Legion members will be laying wreaths on Nov. 11.

“We can’t have people out; we’re under the same constraints as everyone else,” he said. 

“It’s disappointing to have to come to that conclusion, but it’s also the only reasonable conclusion to come to.”

Graham said residents should take time to remember those who fought and died for Canada.

“I would encourage them to stay home, stay safe, watch the national service from Ottawa, and at 11 a.m., remember,” he said. “It’s nice to get together, it’s nice to have the veterans and armed services on parade and we’ve been very fortunate with wonderful crowds and services year after year, but the most important thing is remembering.”

While COVID-19 has changed the way people will remember the fallen, it’s also changed the annual poppy campaign.

Annually, Legion volunteers and members of the local cadet corps could be found outside stores with boxes of poppies, collecting donations.

However, restrictions will not allow that to happen. Poppy boxes will be available at a variety of locations, including Home Depot, Home Hardware, Tim Hortons, LCBO, and The Beer Store.

“Normally we have 110 boxes, but it won’t be anywhere near that,” said poppy campaign chair Hans Muller. “Totally different campaign this year.”

All money raised from the campaign helps veterans in a variety of ways.

“Our first priority would be the veterans and their dependents,” Muller said.

He said they not only help individual veterans in need, but organizations that assist veterans, including Leave the Streets Behind, as well as the local hospital.

“Any veteran that comes for help, we help them,” he said. “That’s what we’re here for.”

Muller said while they expect donations to be down because of the pandemic, they will collect what they can to help veterans.

He said local businesses, as many have in the past, can make donations to the campaign.

Graham said despite COVID-19, the local Legion is healthy. He said the members’ side of the Legion is open six days a week, while the Normandy Room is occupied by the Collingwood General and Marine Hospital.

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Remembrance Day ceremonies and the poppy campaign are always important to the Collingwood community. How are things changing because of COVID-19? We talked to legion president Rob Graham and poppy chair Hans Muller.


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Most Ontarians believe the pandemic will last 1 to 2 years and favour continued COVID-19 restrictions, new Star poll says

Aug 9, 2021 , , , , by shlf

Most Ontarians believe the, which struck in March, will last one to two years, a new Star poll suggests.

The Campaign Research survey also found a vast majority of respondents want restrictions to continue until the end of November to curb the spread of coronavirus infections, which have risen to new heights in recent weeks.

This comes as is expected to announce Tuesday a new framework that would allow businesses, such as , to re-open for indoor services.

Overall, 72 per cent of people believe the government has done “a good job” responding to the pandemic with 21 per cent saying it has done “a bad job” and 6 per cent were unsure.

But 69 per cent feel restrictions should remain in place until the end of the month.

That included 54 per cent who felt the government has done “a good job” and 15 per cent who felt the government “has done a bad job because the rules and restrictions were not effective enough and more restrictions and more enforcement must be put into place.”

Campaign Research polled 1,118 people across Ontario last Thursday through Monday using Maru/Blue’s online panel. It is an opt-in poll, but for comparison purposes, a random sample of this size would have a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

The firm found 23 per cent believe the pandemic will last one year, 21 per cent a year and a half, 14 per cent two or more years, and 13 per cent feel it will “never be fully over.”

Only two per cent think it will end within three months, six per cent within six months, and nine per cent within nine months.

“It tells me that people are realistic,” Campaign Research principal Nick Kouvalis said Tuesday.

“A large amount of people are listening to everything … and they understand that this thing is not going away soon,” said Kouvalis, who has worked with Conservative and Liberal candidates across Canada and managed the winning Toronto mayoral campaigns of Rob Ford and John Tory.

Indeed, 52 per cent agree with Premier Doug Ford’s decision last month to enter a modified Stage 2, which limited restaurants and bars to patio and takeout service, while 18 per cent feel the government should have remained in the less restrictive Stage 3.

At the same time, 19 per cent believe the Tories should impose a Stage 1 “stay-at-home” lockdown as was the case last spring.

“There’s definitely a balancing act for the government,” said Kouvalis.

Almost three-quarters — 72 per cent — feel COVID-19 measures should continue to be implemented on a “region-by-region” basis as opposed to 20 per cent that favour province-wide curbs while nine per cent were unsure.

With Finance Minister Rod Phillips unveiling a provincial budget on Thursday, 44 per cent of respondents feel the Tories are “spending the right amount” while 14 per cent believe they are spending “too much” and 18 per cent “too little” and 24 per cent weren’t sure.

The governing Tories received good marks from respondents when asked which party is best at guiding the economic recovery with 41 per cent favouring them compared with 13 per cent for the New Democrats, nine per cent for the Liberals, four per cent for the Greens, one per cent for another party, while 33 per cent were undecided.

In terms of the ballot test, the Conservatives were at 39 per cent, the Liberals at 19 per cent, the New Democrats at 17 per cent, the Greens six per cent with 17 per cent undecided.

is the Star’s Queen’s Park bureau chief and a reporter covering Ontario politics. Follow him on Twitter: