Highlights of History from The Whitehorse Star

Published by The Whitehorse Star on December 31, 2018.

Dateline: May 16, 2024.

    Choosing the Yukon's top 10 stories of the year is, to a large extent, an arbitrary task. It's a mixture of our judgment, of the stories which have attracted considerable media coverage, or those with the most significant effects on the largest number of Yukoners.

    Here, then, are the Star's top 10 stories of 2018.

1

    The territorial government opens its 150-bed continuing care site in September for the public and media to get a sneak peek, as it continues adopting its aging-in-place mantra.

    Premier Sandy Silver is proud to see Whistle Bend Place (WBP) provide work to a number of local firms, and it begins accepting residents in late October, as promised. His government hails it as the largest infrastructure project in the territory's history, as it clocks in at $146.6 million.

    Meanwhile, the Yukon Bureau of Statistics releases its annual statistics review data in July, in which it pegs the number of those aged 65 or older to make up about 20 per cent of the Yukon's population. It predicts that climb from the more modest 12 per cent figure as of December 2017.

    The territorial government says WBP is expected to have all new residents settled into the home by early 2019, with the vast majority moved in by the holiday season. It's expected to take in those from the community waiting list and those from the hospital, and eventually from Macaulay Lodge in the new year.

    Riverdale's aging Macaulay is to eventually close, keeping the total number of continuing care facilities in the Yukon at five: Birch Lodge, Copper Ridge Place, Thomson Centre, McDonald Lodge and WBP.

    Meanwhile, the Department of Health and Social Services begins to feel the crunch of the housing shortage in Whitehorse for incoming staff at the site, of whom there are to be about 250 when all is said and done. It turns inward to its HSS workers and sets up an ambassador-like program in hopes of connecting new and existing employees about making the move here.

2

    Recreational cannabis officially becomes legal in the country on Oct. 17, fulfilling the federal Liberals' 2015 campaign commitment ahead of next year's election. It comes slightly behind schedule, though, as it was initially expected to happen during the late summer.

    Yukoners join others across the country in enjoying cannabis products when the sole government-run retail site and online store go live in mid-October. Together, they rake in just shy of $1 million in sales after two months of being open, after the doors to the 150-square-foot 120B Industrial Rd. site open to more than 1,000 people on its first day. Products like oils, flowers and pre-rolled joints hit the market ranging from $8 and up, with edibles set to become legal in late 2019.

    The Yukon government secures eight producers to meet demand, as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau acknowledges shortages in supply but predicts toward the end of 2018 that they will be cleared in about a year's time.

    Meanwhile, the Yukon RCMP say they are ready for street-level enforcement for impaired driving ahead of legalization. Ottawa unveils the limits of THC (the substance in cannabis that cause impairment) that can be found in a driver's blood concentration. Those who have a concentration of two or more nanograms of THC per milliliter of blood can begin to face fines and/or offences.

    The Yukon government vows to bow out of the legal cannabis game and eventually hand off the reins to private retailers once the regulations are set.

3

    The territory sees a tragic attack involving a grizzly bear that is eventually shot by a trapper returning to his cabin in the Einarson Lake area, northeast of Mayo, on Nov. 26. A father returns to see his 37-year-old wife and 10-month old daughter dead: they are identified as Valérie Théorêt and Adele Roesholt, respectively.

    The coroner releases details the following day, explaining the family had been trapping in the area for three months or so. The RCMP, Environment Yukon and the coroner investigate as the department confirms that a necropsy is done within days of the attack. The investigation is in the hands of the coroner, who will decide when the results will be released via a public report or if more information is needed. No definitive timeline is set for an update on the necropsy or report, which would provide details like the bear's age, sex and overall health.

    The incident captures headlines across the country and internationally, as the department explains that human-bear conflicts are rare in the territory: there have been three fatal incidences over about the last two decades. A Go Fund me campaign is set up to help the family of the teacher, her husband and their daughter, with the Yukon Trappers Association listed as the page's organizer. Within a day, it surpasses its $5,000 goal, and has raised more than $33,000 as of last Thursday.

4

    Capstone Mining announces Oct. 11 it's shutting down the Minto Mine. The operation is in its 11th year of production. Capstone president Darren Pylot says the company will be shifting the mine to care and maintenance mode to preserve and maximize its value. The goal is to leave Minto in a condition where production could resume efficiently and safely should the copper and equity markets improve. The company employs 119 people. The entire workforce at Minto, including contractors, is 200 people. The company lays off 24 of the employees the day of the announcement. Pylot expects there will be only 12 after the company finishes the transition.

    Capstone is expecting the transition to care and maintenance to be completed by January 2019. The 12-person crew is known as the care and maintenance crew. Members are responsible for the water treatment as well as environmental and air monitoring.

    Capstone itself is for sale. Pembridge Resources, a British Company, is interested in purchasing the mine for $37.5 million but runs into trouble; it's unable to raise the money to seal the deal. Negotiations with Pembridge and other potential buyers are ongoing.

5

    Yukon transportation history is made June 1, when Greyhound Canada ceases its passenger bus service to the territory. The announcement had been made earlier in the year. The buses' disappearance impacts a number of Yukoners travelling among communities in the southern part of the territory or northern B.C. to the capital city. Its one route - Dawson Creek, B.C. to Whitehorse - of seven the bus line discontinues, with the other six in B.C. As the company explains, it's no longer viable to continue running the service given the low ridership. The B.C. Passenger Transportation Board, which rules in favour of Greyhound's request to terminate the service, notes in its decision: "These routes of route segments have extremely low ridership and very large operating losses that significantly impair Greyhound's financial viability."

    The B.C. government eventually subsidizes several operations that move to replace Greyhound's service in some areas. Yukon Highways and Public Works Minister Richard Mostyn rules out similar action from the very day of Greyhound's announcement.

6

    After months of questioning allegations of mistreatment in Yukon government-run group homes as detailed by CBC Yukon, the territorial government apologizes in September to the youth involved. It also admits some of its workers provided misinformation, calling that unacceptable, and explains there has been a turnover among other Department of Health and Social Services (HSS) staff dating back to 2016. An assistant deputy minister of HSS, who had been on the receiving end of complaints by an ex-HSS worker about youth in government care, resigns from her role.

    The government is unable to speak to how other staff were held accountable for the allegations - adding that breaches were in governmental law and policy rather than criminal in nature. YG initially questions some of the concerns in April before the apology five months later. That comes after a report from an internal investigator is ordered by YG, which finds merit in some of the allegations dating back to late 2016. The government does not make the report in its entirety public, instead offering a summary by the investigator detailing six recommendations. One of those is publicly apologizing. YG also acknowledges an "institution in crisis" that led to allegations from both workers and youth.

    Meanwhile, the conference during which the apology is made is held at 22 Wann Rd., the site which the government says it will renovate after having bought the property for $1.1 million in May. It's to be converted into a group home to help older youth transition out of care, and is to lead to the closure of two other group homes in downtown Whitehorse.

7

    The Yukon's lone seat in the Red Chamber is sitting vacant - and has since August 2017. One-time Liberal premier Pat Duncan is working for the Yukon government (also of the governing Liberal stripes) in its Justice department, more than a decade after heading the first-ever Liberal government in the territory. But this changes Dec. 12 as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announces she will fill the Senate vacancy. At 58, Duncan, who enjoyed two years as the first female premier of the Yukon from 2000 to 2002, is slated to head to Ottawa to fill the shoes of Tory appointee Dan Lang. Past and present political figures praise Duncan for her sports involvement and volunteering, among them MP Larry Bagnell, who will accompany Duncan in the capital. Duncan tells the Star there is no one issue that she will advocate for - an ode perhaps to Trudeau's vow to appoint non-partisan members to the red seats. She does, however, acknowledge climate change and responsible economic development among the pressing topics faced by the territory.

8

    On Oct. 18, Mayor Dan Curtis is handed his third consecutive term in office, coming out ahead in each poll with a final vote count of 2,993 votes. His closest competitor, Rick Karp, who had also run against him in 2012, finishes with 1,908. Behind them in the contest for the mayoralty are Colin Laforme, who finishes with 1,511 votes; Wilf Carter (who also challenged Curtis in the 2015 election) with 163 votes; and Kelly Suits, with 148 votes.

    Meanwhile, Jan Stick is at the top of 20 candidates running for one of six councillor positions with 3,946 votes. Stick had previously served on council after winning in a byelection in 2005, and was then re-elected in the municipal election of 2006. She opted not to seek re-election in 2009 and would go on to serve as an NDP MLA for Riverdale South from 2011 to 2016. She and Steve Roddick campaign together in the October vote with Roddick earning the second-highest number of votes for a councillor candidate at 3,115 to bring him to his first term as a city councillor. Behind him is Laura Cabott, with 2,752 votes. Incumbents round out the final three spots for councillors, with Samson Hartland taking 2,548 votes, Jocelyn Curteanu 2,460 and Dan Boyd 2,378. Incumbents Betty Irwin and Roslyn Woodcock fail to win re-election.

    Voters in many other municipalities throughout the territory go to the polls electing new councils, though mayor and council in Dawson City and Mayo were all acclaimed to their roles. A number of local advisory councils for unincorporated areas also see members acclaimed.

9

    In May, Montreal climber Monique Richard attempts to be the first solo woman to summit Mount Logan. She is successful in summiting the nation's highest peak - but with storms on the descent, Richard is rescued and flown off the mountain, leaving behind $10,000 worth of gear. The cost of the rescue is covered by insurance Richard had purchased before the climb. Despite the rescue, Richard says she's "very happy about my expedition" in achieving her goal to climb the 5,959-metre mountain in Kluane National Park.

10

    A Whitehorse man dies in jail on Sept. 23 after having been arrested on a charge of mailing a bomb to his brother in Port Alice, B.C. Leon Nepper, 73, experiences "medical distress" during his time at the Whitehorse Correctional Centre. He is taken to Whitehorse General Hospital where he dies. The Yukon Coroner's Office does not release a cause of death nor any further details on Nepper's health. Nepper expires just two days after upgrades to his charges, which involve serious injuries to his brother, Roger. He originally faces only two charges: sending an explosive device with intent to cause bodily harm and illegally possessing an explosive device.

    Crown prosecutor Ludovic Gouaillier later seeks convictions of attempted murder and aggravated assault. These two are more serious charges that take the matter to Yukon Supreme Court. The charges cover the time period of Aug. 14 to Sept. 11 - the time when the bomb is in transit. The Crown explains that the case is scheduled to take place in Whitehorse. Nepper's death dissolved the need for a trial.