Despite increased supply, low-income residents in Edmonton had a hard time finding affordable rentals, according to the latest annual report from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. 

Built in 1909, Vancouver’s Dunsmuir House at the corner of Dunsmuir and Richards streets has been a grand hotel, a barracks for soldiers and a shelter, but for the past 11 years, it’s been vacant, not maintained, and now so worn-down, the city says it’s a public-safety hazard.

The Thompson Citizen, the northern Manitoba city’s only weekly newspaper, is folding after more than 60 years.

On Jan. 1, Parkland County will implement a new fire cost recovery plan, aimed at holding individuals accountable for fires that get out of hand. The county's fire chief says similar policies are in place in the Edmonton area.

Denmark rejected Japan’s request to extradite Canadian-American Paul Watson in a decision released Tuesday, freeing the anti-whaling activist after five months in a Greenland jail.

Sought through an Interpol red notice, Mr. Watson was arrested aboard his ship in Nuuk, Greenland, as it prepared to dock in the capital of the Danish autonomous territory to refuel in July. He was on his way to the Pacific to monitor whether the Japanese would return to whaling in the Antarctic.

The University of Winnipeg is being encouraged to adopt clearly defined consequences for students and faculty found to have fraudulently claimed Indigenous identity for their own benefit, ranging from losing their job or scholarship to having legal action brought against them. 

Stepping aboard Judy Steinhoff's bus will transport you to more than just school: It's a gingerbread wonderland, complete with mock fireplace, a Christmas tree and gingerbread her students have decorated. Steinhoff gave CBC Windsor a tour of the whimsical holiday display.

The NWT government is replacing its Affirmative Action Policy with a new approach that prioritizes Indigenous people but not non-Indigenous northerners.

The Israeli military will remain inside Syrian territory — in what is supposed to be a demilitarized zone — indefinitely, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday, as part of what he described as an effort to shore up security amid the turmoil in Syria.

Shirley Grierson has seen music reach the deepest parts of people.

The accomplished pianist spent countless hours on hospital floors performing for patients when she was a musician with the “Music to My Ears” program.

Now the executive director of Artists in Healthcare Manitoba, which partially funds the program, Grierson recalls the early days of the initiative.

In one instance, she was watching a normally unresponsive patient listen to a musician playing “Yesterday” by the Beatles.

“She turned her head and her eyes actually… she looked at him,” Grierson recounted. “And I thought, that’s cool. She looked at him and then she smiled. And then she started to move back and forward and slowly tap herself in time with the music.

“(The nurse) said, in that moment, she woke up.”

Then there was the instance when Grierson witnessed a “completely unresponsive” patient respond by singing along to music.

“We see this all the time,” she told CityNews.

The “Music to My Ears” program sees skilled musicians playing for patients in Manitoba’s hospitals or clinics. It’s a calming distraction from the stress associated with illness.

“It brings a lot of joy, and especially around the holidays,” said musician Colton McKillop. “Everyone likes to hear some tunes at the holidays.”

“Just bringing something different, a little bit of joy or maybe a song they recognize,” added fellow musician Anne-Marie Williot. “Even if they don’t recognize the song, I find people really enjoy the music.”

The beneficial effects of music long ago escaped the realm of pure myth.

Learning to play an instrument, for example, sharpens how the brain processes sound and can improve children’s reading and other school skills.

Stroke survivors who can’t speak sometimes can sing, and music therapy can help them retrain brain pathways to communicate. Similarly, Parkinson’s patients sometimes walk better to the right beat.

“Sometimes as musicians, we end up helping people emote, helping people feel their emotions that they’re feeling,” Williot said. “Maybe they’ve been having a really hard time with this illness that they’re going through. Sometimes they just talk to us. … To have somebody that they can cry with or that they can laugh with that’s a special guest at the place where they’re trying to heal, I think it’s important to bring it there.”

“It’s just a very comforting thing,” added McKillop. “I think back to a couple of occasions working at some of the long-term care homes, a family would be visiting — someone who is in their very last days — and the family’s all gathered together. They’re like, ‘hey come and play this song, they love this song.’ Those moments, it’s like, it’s very heavy but you see kind of the real value of music and what the value can bring to people’s lives. Bring joy and ease the transition.”

Williot and McKillop are among the 20 “Music to My Ears” musicians who play in 17 different facilities in Manitoba.

“It just kind of brings that joy to people and it brings that, sometimes catharsis, to people,” explained Williot, who says she enjoys playing in “unconventional spaces.”

“It’s just nice to see people light up when you play songs that they recognize… any kind of music they enjoy,” said McKillop.

–With files from The Associated Press

The post How some Manitoba hospital patients are healing through music appeared first on CityNews Winnipeg.

Environment Canada has issued rainfall warnings for Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley and the Southern Gulf Islands bringing 50 to 70 millimetres of rain, while Vancouver Island could expect between 50 to 100 millimetres by Wednesday. 

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Several people were injured Tuesday morning after foggy conditions contributed to several car crashes that forced the closure of the 24-mile-long (38.6-kilometer-long) bridge connecting the north and south shores of southeast Louisiana’s Lake Pontchartrain. By early evening, both spans had reopened.

Carlton Dufrechou, the general manager of the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway, said there were six crashes — two on the southbound span and four on the northbound span. St. Tammany Parish fire officials told local news outlets that 33 people were transported to area hospitals with injuries. There were no fatalities.

Dufrechou said he didn’t know the exact number of vehicles involved in the crashes or the total number of injuries.

A total of 30 people were stranded on the bridge for hours and were transported by van to either Metairie on the south shore or Mandeville on the lake’s north shore throughout the day, officials said.

“Fog was definitely a factor but from what I’m hearing it was not the (only) factor,” he said. “There was some haze on the bridge but the fog developed all of a sudden. We look at accidents all the time on this bridge and 60% to 70% of those wrecks are due to inattentive driving, either texting or answering a phone or looking down and not looking at the road.”

The causeway, connecting the New Orleans metro area on the south shore to suburban communities on the north shore, was closed around 8:30 a.m. After damaged vehicles from the two parallel spans were cleared, the bridge was reopened at about 5 p.m. with rolling convoys, officials said.

Tuesday’s crashes were reminiscent of a deadly accident on Interstate 55 on Oct. 23, 2023, near New Orleans. Seven motorists died and about two dozen were injured in pileups involving about 160 vehicles amid a super fog, which is created by smoke from marsh fires mixing with dense fog.

The Bonnet Carre Spillway Bridge was also briefly closed amid the fog but was later reopened. No accidents were reported on that bridge during the bad weather.

The Associated Press

There is no change in the mill rate in Paradise.

The town tabled its $44.6 million municipal budget for 2025 Tuesday evening.

Mayor Dan Bobbett says the town is not immune to rising costs and increased financial pressure and maintaining the mil rate means they have the revenue to sustain operations and services.

That doesn’t mean that taxes won’t increase per household. Residential property assessments increased this year and residents of Paradise will notice a small increase to their 2025 tax bill – an estimated $102 per household on average.

The town is spending money this year on new snow clearing equipment, the development of the Trenton Drive Open Space Area, and the development of new trails in the Silverbirch Crescent and Morgan Avenue areas.

Funding has been set aside for expansion of the Route 30 Metrobus schedule to an all-day service. The town is also looking at a feasibility study on a swimming pool.

It’s been a transformative year for Mohawk singer-songwriter Shawnee Kish.

She became a mother, was nominated for two Juno Awards, released five singles and was named one of TikTok’s 2024 Indigenous Visionary Voices.

Kish feels lucky to be in the position that she is in, but admits the music industry has not always been welcoming to her as an Indigenous, Two-Spirit person.

“Especially, when I came out, first into the scene and released some music I was encouraged to not be out as a Two-Spirit person and that was, I was told, would help all genders feel included, which is specifically we’re going to talk about men to feel included in my journey, which nobody is excluded in my journey,” says Kish on the latest episode of Face to Face.

“There’s so much power and beauty that female, Indigenous women hold and I would love to see that amplified.”

Kish says she’s grateful for the opportunities that have come her way and says she tries to turn them into something else not only for herself but for others.

As someone who struggled with depression as a youth, Kish says she tries to empower youth with her music and voice.

She has been a long time supporter for the Kids Help Phone.

“What I love about them is that it’s the emergency call when you are at the very edge of your last bit of hope,” says Kish. “It’s that emergency call that you can make, just to talk to someone, especially because kids are so vulnerable. I remember when I was younger, I felt the weight of the world, feeling like tomorrow was not an option and, oh my gosh looking back on it like ‘oh girl, you have so much life to live’ and how at risk I was.

“When you don’t have someone in your life to call and say ‘hey I’m struggling’ or a parent or a family member or a friend, you don’t have that person, Kids Help Phone is there,” says Kish.

Kish is quick to acknowledge that music saved her life.

During her times of struggle and when she felt most alone, she would start writing things down.

Her latest single, Favourite Gift is a Christmas song about her baby daughter and a departure from the usual themes of her music.

“A lot of my songs are self-reflective and kind of the journey of healing, which is important but this song is about the joy of just what she brings to my life, and how much peace and happiness she has brought and being able to share that with her. So, she’s my favourite gift on Christmas and it made so much sense and I can’t wait to put it on when she finally, with her little legs can stand up and dance,” says Kish.

The post Music industry has not always been welcoming for Mohawk singer-songwriter Shawnee Kish appeared first on APTN News.

Peel Regional Police say they have seized a record number of illegal firearms this year and that the increase represents a "significant" risk to public safety.

Luigi Mangione is facing life without parole in the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York. Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg announced three murder charges yesterday, including first-degree murder and two counts of second-degree murder. "This was a frightening, well-planned, targeted murder that was intended to cause shock and attention and intimidation," Bragg said. (UPI)

Retail sales increased by 0.7% in November, with auto dealers in particular seeing a 2.6% jump. The rise in spending indicates a healthy economy, potentially impacting the Federal Reserve's approach to interest rates. However, sales at grocery stores, clothing shops, and restaurants declined, showing some remaining consumer caution amidst the progress. (AP)

Japanese automakers Honda and Nissan are reportedly in talks to merge under a single holding company to compete in the EV market. The merger may include Mitsubishi Motors to create one of the world's largest auto groups. Both companies admit to exploring collaboration opportunities, particularly focusing on electric vehicle initiatives. (CBS News)

Teen drug use has not returned to pre-pandemic levels, as indicated by a national survey showing high rates of abstinence from alcohol, marijuana, and tobacco among 8th, 10th, and 12th graders. The only notable increase was in nicotine pouches. About two-thirds of 12th graders say they haven't used alcohol, marijuana, cigarettes or e-cigarettes in the previous 30 days. (ABC News)

Grubhub agreed to a $25 million settlement for deceptive practices, misleading customers on delivery costs and drivers on potential earnings. The FTC and Illinois Attorney General accused Grubhub of unlawful behavior, including inflated service fees and false advertising of pay rates. Grubhub must change its platform practices to ensure transparency and truthfulness. (NBC News)