Category Archives: Canadian economy

04.11.26
by

The City of St. Thomas partnership with Indwell is leading the charge for a new vision of hope and homes for the homeless in the community

A new supportive housing project for St. Thomas was announced last March, a continuation of the successful partnership between the city and Indwell.

The organization is a Christian charity dedicated to providing affordable housing and community support

A groundbreaking ceremony was held Thursday morning on the site of the former Balaclava Street Public School.

Indwell had announced that they will be transforming the four-storey structure into 78 units of supportive housing, equipped with essential supports to assist residents, and to be known as Balaclava Crossing.

This will include 36 units within the existing school structure and an additional 42 units in a new extension.

Continue reading →

04.04.26
by

The updated model of care at St. Thomas Elgin General Hospital results in the loss of 26 PSWs

St. Thomas Elgin General Hospital is updating its model of care, which will result in the elimination of 26 full-time Personal Support Worker positions.

The announcement came on the same day that London Health Sciences Centre indicated more than 200 nursing positions will be eliminated through voluntary resignations or retirements over the next three to five years.

According to a hospital spokesperson, there will be no media release outlining the rationale behind the model of care changes or additional details on what these changes might look like.

The method of care update at STEGH is designed to better meet the needs of patients whose medical conditions have become increasingly complex.

The spokesperson advised in a text message that more patients now require frequent nursing assessments, complex medication management, and timely clinical interventions

Continue reading →

11.22.25
by

‘St. Thomas is exactly where we need to be’ – Vianode CEO Burkhard Straube in announcing a $3.2 billion investment in the city

With the Yarmouth Yards industrial park serving as a backdrop, Ontario Premier Doug Ford called Thursday’s (Nov. 20) announcement of a $3.2 billion investment by Norwegian firm Vianode a historic milestone for southwestern Ontario and a major win for workers.
The ceremonial ground-breaking was on the site of what will become a state-of-the-art synthetic anode graphite manufacturing facility that will initially result in 300 new, good-paying jobs.
Anode graphite is a critical component in electric vehicle batteries, nuclear reactors, semiconductors, aerospace and defence systems, steelmaking and other strategic industries.

Continue reading →

04.05.25
by

‘You have to put your constituency first, always’ and that in a nutshell explains the lack of endorsement from former MP Karen Vecchio

If you’ve known Karen Vecchio for even the shortest time she served as MP for Elgin-Middlesex-London (EML), you would have sensed that community comes first.
She was elected by members of the community to serve all members of the community.
EML PC MPP Rob Flack summed it up best at Vecchio’s retirement party last month.
One of the attributes that Flack most admires in Vecchio is that she is ecumenical.
“Not in the religious sense, but in terms of working across party lines, working across issues throughout this community that maybe have no partisan or political colours.

Continue reading →

11.30.24
by

Does the Volkswagen front in St. Thomas seem somewhat quiet?

Steady progress is being made at the Yarmouth Yards industrial park with activity continuing at a hectic pace.
Now, we’ve chosen our words carefully when referring to the 1,500-acre industrial park in general.
That’s because there has not been a lot of chatter of late related to the PowerCo EV gigafactory which will be the primary tenant on the site.
In fact, in Monday’s (Dec. 2) city council agenda package, there is an Industrial Development Update that indicates the majority of work at Yarmouth Yards is progressing on schedule.

Continue reading →

06.08.24
by

Going from trying to get houses built to helping farmers produce food for those who will live in those houses, the impact of a cabinet shuffle on MPP Rob Flack

Editor’s note: City Scope has a new Facebook page at http://facebook.com/St.ThomasCityScope

 

You could say Rob Flack is going back to his roots.
His agricultural roots, that is.
Late Thursday afternoon in the Doug Ford cabinet shuffle, the Elgin-Middlesex-London MPP found himself part of the major shake-up, becoming Minister of Farming, Agriculture and Agribusiness.
He had been Associate Minister of Housing as a member of the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, a posting that was part of a cabinet shuffle last fall.
Flack was given a specific mandate on attainable housing and modular homes reporting to Paul Calandra, the new Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.
It’s a return of sorts to his early days following his election in 2022.
Flack had been appointed one of two parliamentary assistants to Lisa Thompson, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs in July of that year.

Continue reading →

01.13.24
by

The City of St. Thomas ‘is at the forefront of this exciting new chapter for southern Ontario’s automotive sector’ – Liberal MP Filomena Tassi

city_scope_logo-cmykSt. Thomas was the recipient of another economic shot in the arm Thursday (Jan. 11) morning as announced by Filomena Tassi, the minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario.
“I am pleased to announce that the Government of Canada is investing $2 million in Amino North America to expand its facility here by over 40,000 square feet and add a new manufacturing line to meet the demands for its automotive products across North America.”
The expansion at the Highbury Avenue plant will create and maintain 45 jobs, with construction already underway.
It’s another indicator of the re-industrialization of southwestern Ontario.
That was the observation from London North Centre MP Peter Fragiskatos.

Continue reading →

06.17.23
by

A change in St. Thomas Canada Day fireworks venue lights up more than just the sky

city_scope_logo-cmykThe announcement from the city seemed harmless enough.
Canda Day celebrations this year will culminate in a spectacular fireworks display.
However, the light-up-the-sky show will take place at 1Password Park and not the traditional venue in Pinafore Park.
We asked Mayor Joe Preston what prompted the change in location.
He noted 1Password Park “has three accesses, a lot more parking and it gives us the ability to put on a better fireworks show.”
A reference, no doubt, to the tighter confines at Pinafore and the proximity of neighbouring homes.
Preston continued, “In discussions with the Kinsmen, who help us with the fireworks and also help us with Canada Day, we thought IPassword would be a great thing to try.”

Continue reading →

05.27.23
by

Rebuilding community strength “in great little communities like St. Thomas with long histories of contributing massively to the Canadian economy.” – PM Justin Trudeau

city_scope_logo-cmykSeems the PM just can’t get enough of St. Thomas.
For the second time in just over a month, Justin Trudeau dropped into the city Thursday afternoon for a quick lunch at Legends Tavern and then a stop at The Atrium for a sit-down session with local small business entrepreneurs before a quick jaunt over to Streamliner’s to greet customers.
Of course, Trudeau was on hand at the Elgin County Railway Museum at the end of April for the announcement Volkswagen, through its subsidiary PowerCo, had chosen St. Thomas as the home of its first EV battery gigaplant in North America.
Ostensibly this trip to the Railway City was to play up the economic benefits to small business owners after the massive battery facility opens in 2027.
Mayor Joe Preston joined Trudeau for the short walk from Legends to The Atrium and both appeared in high spirits with shirt sleeves rolled up the PM’s trademark down-to-business look.

Continue reading →