THUNDER BAY – The Chief of Big Trout Lake or Kitchenuhmaykoosib Innunuwug Donny Morris is asking Thunder Bay City Council to defer a vote on demolishing Dease Pool.
The Chief in a letter obtained by NetNewsLedger writes, “It has come to our attention that this part of the city, especially the Dease/Vickers neighbourhood there is a high volume of Indigenous residents. This statistic is reported in your corporate report R 1742019 which states that 31% of the residents in this neighbourhood speak with an Aboriginal Dialect. We are also aware that many Indigenous families including Elders and Youth use the pool as a safe and healthy recreational activity during the summer months”.
Chief Morris is inviting the City of Thunder Bay for informal talks on Dease Pool and seeking that City Council defer the resolution to demolish the pool scheduled for the January 13, 2020, Council meeting.
When the City’s manager of Indigenous Relations and Inclusion Regina Mandamin was asked last week if she had heard from or reached out to any Indigenous groups over Dease Pool she said she had not. Mandamin, when pressed by NNL, said she had received a letter from RMYC asking her to reach out to First Nations leadership. Mandamin stated she had forwarded that letter to Community Services Manager Kelly Robertson.
Update: Thunder Bay City Council – continued their path voting against a motion to defer on Dease Pool brought forward by Councillor Andrew Foulds.
