Stories by Miriam Lafontaine

The Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK) shared three new housing related announcements with the community this week, following a council meeting held on Monday.

An environmental group filed a judicial review at Quebec Superior Court this Wednesday in the hope of halting a city-led plan to build housing over wetlands in Chateauguay.

A local man is facing criminal charges after being arrested in connection with recent threats made to the Kateri Memorial Hospital Centre (KMHC).

David Scott has officially retired from his role as fire chief of the Kahnawake Fire Brigade (KFB). Since joining in early 1980s, Scott has committed 42 years to the brigade, climbing through ranks to become chief and eventually fire chief.

Paul Graif said it was a complete surprise when he found out last week he’d won an award for being the best radio anchor and reporter in a small market.

After working on and off at K1037 Radio since 1995, station manager Heather Bauersfeld is finally calling it quits. Everyone at the radio station knew her retirement would be coming soon.

The Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK) wasn’t consulted about the Northvolt electric car battery plant because it couldn’t demonstrate the project would harm the community’s ability to practice “ancestral activities” on the land located in the Monteregie.  That’s according to a sworn statement sent to Quebec Superior Court in late November by a regional director employed by Quebec’s environmental ministry (MELCCFP).   “To the knowledge of the MELCCFP, no ancestral Aboriginal activities linked to hunting, trapping, gathering, harvesting medicinal plants, or ceremonial practices have been practiced on the Northvolt project site, at least since the industrial use of the site, which began in 1878,” Stéphanos Bitzakidis wrote.

A new technical table between the City of Chateauguay and the Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK) is expected to be active in the new year, ushering in what the band council hopes will be a new era of collaboration with its closest neighbour.  The shared commitment comes following a recent visit by MCK grand chief Cody Diabo and Council chief Iohahiio Delisle to Chateauguay’s city hall.  “That was one of our requests, and it happens that it was one of theirs as well,” said mayor Éric Allard, who welcomed them on November 29.

The Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK) is rushing to create an emergency shelter before the new year, Council chief Iohahiio Delisle shared, saying there’s been a growing number in town finding themselves without anywhere to stay the night.  As of November, a working group made up of staff from Kahnawake Shakotiia'takehnhas Community Services (KSCS), Council chiefs Jeremiah Johnson and Arnold Boyer, and MCK staff have been meeting on a weekly basis to address what Delisle called a growing problem.  “There’s a homelessness issue in the community, and it's time that we address it and acknowledge it for what it is,” he said.  To his knowledge there’s never been an overnight shelter in Kahnawake.

In an effort to show it’s taking traffic safety concerns seriously, the Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK) released a list of measures it’s considering implementing along the territory’s busiest roads.