Thunder Bay’s key priorities were addressed during the 2021 Rural Ontario Municipal Association (ROMA) Conference that took place Jan. 25 and 26. The Conference was held entirely online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

A delegation led by Councillor Brian McKinnon, Chair – Intergovernmental Affairs Committee, along with Mayor Bill Mauro, and City Manager Norm Gale brought forward community issues to lobby for action and/or funding, and promote Thunder Bay’s important issues relevant to the community.

“ROMA 2021 was a good opportunity to advocate on a number of key issues that are important to the City of Thunder Bay, and its citizens, and we appreciated the opportunity we had to speak with various ministers, parliamentary assistants and ministry staff,” said Mayor Bill Mauro. “There were two issues that stood out as being of critical importance to me, including future contracts for Thunder Bay’s Bombardier Plant and a proposed mental health and addictions crises centre for the City.“

The Thunder Bay delegation secured meetings with Provincial Ministers, and/or designates, including:                                        

  • Solicitor General, Sylvia Jones
  • Attorney General, Doug Downey
  • Minister of Sport, Heritage and Cultural Industries, Lisa MacLeod
  • Minister of Health, Christine Elliot
  • Minister of Transportation, Caroline Mulroney
  • Policy Assistant Crawford, Ministry of Infrastructure
“Overall, our efforts at connecting with Provincial Ministers to discuss our priorities were a success,” said Councillor McKinnon, Chair of Intergovernmental Affairs Committee. “We had time to speak to key issues facing our city and region, including lobbying for crucial projects in our community.”

Key priorities the Thunder Bay delegation lobbied for included:

  • General Stimulus Funding for Infrastructure
  • POA – Provincial Offences Collection
  • Joint and Several Liability
  • Travel Funding for athletes attending the 2024 Ontario Winter Games which Thunder Bay has applied to host
  • Crisis Centre for Mental Health and Addictions
  • Non-Urgent Patient Transport
  • Thunder Bay Expressway Project
  • Bombardier
  • Police Services Funding
  • Next Gen 911

The ROMA 2021 conference program brought forward a wide range of issues that are critically important to rural municipalities, and brought together municipal leaders from all over Ontario together with Provincial politicians to discuss and advance the priorities of rural communities.

It is a key moment for municipal and provincial officials to connect on the unique challenges faced by rural municipalities. It presents an opportunity to profile municipal priorities and demonstrate participation and advocacy on local needs.

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Contact: Jeff Howie, Policy Assistant – Mayor’s Office, 632- 9233