Casselman, ON

Teamwork makes it happen.

This is the philosophy behind a new venture for the United Counties of Prescott-Russell (UCPR).

At the committee of the whole meeting on Wednesday, February 13, UCPR chief administrative officer (CAO) Stéphane Parisien presented a list of priorities for regional mayors for 2013.

Among items such as the construction of a new Prescott-Russell Residence and creating transportation master plan, was the possibility of creating a MAP (municipal area partnership).

The fate of Hawkesbury regional fire dispatch is currently up in the air.

The town desperately needs the co-operation of its neighbours if it wants to reduce the large deficit it currently incurs to operate the system.

At a recent United Counties of Prescott-Russell (UCPR) committee of the whole meeting, Hawkesbury Mayor René Berthiaume said he was not pleased with the emergency services committee's proposal to operate the dispatch system with the UCPR in order to maintain the service in Hawkesbury.

Just one day after presenting a Hawkesbury couple with their $50-million lottery jackpot, another local couple received a multi-million dollar cheque from the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG).

Rene and Suzanne Longpre of Limoges were on an uneventful shopping trip when they found that they held the winning ticket for the Lotto 6/49 draw from February 25.

The tourism season in Prescott-Russell will start much earlier this year thanks to an infusion of funds from the United Counties of Prescott-Russell into a number of local tourism information centres.

As part of the 2011 budget, regional mayors voted in favour of providing $115,000 to the centres this year, compared to the $37,500 it spent in 2010.

As a result of the increase, tourism information centres in Hawkesbury, Limoges and Casselman will each receive $20,000, while Vankleek Hill will receive $10,000.

The phase-in of full-day kindergarten, already under way, and the proposed establishment of Best Start Child and Family Centres in communities across the province were the top priorities for Laurel Broten, minister of child and youth services, when she visited Casselman recently.

The province is seeking input on the best way to provide more timely, effective and convenient supports to children and their families. The input will help the province develop Best Start Child and Family Centres in communities across the province.

In an effort to stop a deadly disease from laying waste to the red pine population in Larose Forest, the United Counties of Prescott-Russell (UCPR) recently gave the go-ahead to cut five acres of forest to save the remaining trees.

The counties decided to embark on the "salvage operation," which is the first of its kind in the Larose Forest, after it became evident that numerous red pine trees in the forest were being attacked by Armillaria root rot.

There was a time when condominium developments were associated mainly with more urbanized areas like Ottawa and Montreal.

That isn't the case in the west of Prescott-Russell, where condominiums have been popping up in municipalities like Clarence-Rockland, Embrun, Casselman and Limoges.

Mayors in the United Counties of Prescott-Russell (UCPR) have long discussed the needs for more housing options as more and more Ottawa residents flock to smaller communities in pursuit of a better quality of life for their families.

According to statistics presented by the United Counties of Prescott-Russell (UCPR), tourism information centres (TIC) across the region, along with the UCPR's tourism website, received quite a bit more traffic this summer.

A report presented by Sylvain Charlebois, economic development and tourism coordinator for the counties, indicated traffic was up at most of the counties' four TICs this summer.

Firefighters with The Nation fire department and officers of the Russell County Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) were alerted to a structure fire at 1562 Route 500 early Wednesday morning, September 29.

The barn on the property was fully engulfed when crews arrived on the scene at around 5:35 a.m. Wednesday morning, and both the barn and a utility shed have been deemed a total loss.