Policing costs, long-term care beds, among topics discussed by Sioux Lookout delegates at annual ROMA Conference

Tim Brody - Editor

A busy Rural Ontario Municipal Association (ROMA) Conference for Sioux Lookout delegates Jan. 18 to 20 in Toronto.
Sioux Lookout Mayor Doug Lawrance, CAO Brian MacKinnon and Councillor Joyce Timpson attended on behalf of the Municipality of Sioux Lookout.
Mayor Lawrance shared, “This year, we met with the Associate Minister of Long-Term Care, The Honourable Minister Kusendova-Bashta, and expressed our gratitude for the Minister’s ongoing support in moving the Meno Ya Health Centre long-term care project forward. We have assured the Minister that Sioux Lookout Meno Ya Win Health Centre (SLMHC) is advancing the project to obtain a pre-construction Class A Estimate in the very near future. At our meeting, we invited the Minister to visit us in Sioux Lookout this summer. 
“We also met with The Honourable Vijay Thanigasalam, Associate Minister of Mental Health. At the meeting, we highlighted the need for provincial support for the 20 Schedule 1 Beds at the Sioux Lookout Meno Ya Win Health Centre. We noted that administration at SLMHC has informed us that the Ministry Capital Branch is currently reviewing the SLMHC submission. We expressed the extreme need for this project in Sioux Lookout and our hope for Ministry approval. We also invited the Minister to come to Sioux Lookout this summer to further his understanding of the needs and opportunities here related to mental health and addictions.” 
Lawrance continued, “We met with The Honourable Michael Kerzner, Solicitor-General of Ontario. In our meeting, we expressed our sincere gratitude to Solicitor-General Kerzner and his staff for the adjustments they have made to the Regulatory Discount Table associated with OPP policed communities. The changes made have provided a much-needed deeper discount to our policing costs, which is very beneficial to our municipality. As with the other Ministers, we invited the Solicitor-General to come back to our community – he has been here previously. 
The Municipality of Sioux Lookout shared, “The changes referenced relate to an updated policing discount applied to Sioux Lookout under the Province’s policing funding framework. Importantly, these changes do not affect policing levels or service delivery—the community continues to receive the same level of policing service as before.
 “The updated discount results from a recent provincial review of the Regulatory Discount Table, which considered, among other factors, Sioux Lookout’s unique policing realities as a regional service hub. 
 “We would like to acknowledge and thank Minister Kerzner and staff at the Ministry of the Solicitor General for undertaking this thorough review and making amendments that provide more appropriate and sustainable support for our community.”
The Municipality further informed, “In the 2026 draft budget, the benefit of this deeper discount has been used in two key ways. First, it helps offset modest increases in Provincially Legislated Agencies and Services (PLAS)—these are mandatory costs invoiced to the Municipality for services such as the Kenora District Services Board, the Northwestern Health Unit, and the Kenora District Home for the Aged, over which the Municipality has little discretion. Second, a portion of the savings has been reinvested in community safety and well-being initiatives, including a review and ongoing implementation of the Community Safety and Well-Being Plan and the introduction of Community Navigators, which complement traditional policing through prevention and outreach.
“Overall, while policing costs in the 2026 draft budget are lower than they would otherwise have been, the Municipality continues to prioritize public safety and responsible financial management. These changes have also helped the Municipality keep the proposed 2026 tax rate increase at 1.75%, below the current annual rate of inflation, while maintaining service levels and investing in community priorities.”
Lawrance concluded, “In another meeting, we met with the President of the Ontario Medical Association, Dr. Zainab Abdurrahman. During our meeting, we discussed the general state of health care in Sioux Lookout and the region, and the needs related to Physicians here, especially the need for more Family Doctors. We extended an invitation to Dr. Abdurrahman to come to Sioux Lookout.”