It's been an issue in the city for years and getting worse so it's no surprise that homelessness and the problems associated with it was voted the 2022 Story of the Year by BayToday readers.
See the final results here.
A total of 1,306 votes were cast for 32 options for 2022.
The homeless situation was the clear winner with 205 votes or 16 per cent of the votes cast.
The issue was particularly bad downtown as a new homeless tent city appeared.
Residents noticed that adjacent to the beach volleyball and new basketball courts behind the North Bay transit bus terminal on Oak Street, tents popped up down the embankment right adjacent to that park.
"One tent led to two, led to three. A kitchen area started popping up a day or two later and now along that whole embankment next to the volleyball courts on the other side of that park is lined with tents," one reader told us.
"A couple of encounters we have had with people is, somebody yelling at themselves and us incoherently when we were walking by, screaming and angry. I don't know how aware of themselves they were - there was obviously drug use present - but that is just one of the few encounters," he recalls.
"We have also seen two homeless people having sex on the street within eyeshot of the basketball courts while there were minors playing basketball. That is definitely another incident that stuck out in my mind. We noticed people on a blanket in that park doing drugs so it is escalating and becoming a growing concern."
North Bay police said they were monitoring the situation.
This is not the first time this situation has caused a stir among local residents. Tent cities at North Bay City Hall and Third Avenue in 2020 and 2021 respectively led to complaints and both were eventually torn down.
Second place in the poll went to the election of five women to the North Bay City Council, including a sweep of the top three spots.
The event garnered 121 votes 9 per cent of the votes.
Voters clearly wanted change, and they got it.
The top three spots were won by candidates with no municipal political experience, led by Maggie Horsfield who surged to the top of the rankings in claiming the deputy mayor's chair.
"I'm very humbled," said Horsfield. "I wasn't anticipating getting the deputy mayor position. I'm really excited to see where the next four years go."
Lana Mitchell finished second with Justine Mallah in third.
Mitchell said citizens can expect straight talk and hard work from her first foray into municipal politics.
Third spot in our poll went to the drug crisis in the city with North Bay having the 4th-highest opioid-related mortality rate in Ontario It had 111 votes or 8.50 per cent of the vote.
Despite decreases in opioid-related deaths province-wide, northern Ontario communities continue to suffer the devastation of the ongoing opioid epidemic, according to the Quarterly Update on Opioid-related Deaths in Ontario compiled by the Office of the Chief Coroner.
Data covering the first two quarters of this year shows the opioid toxicity mortality rate of 25.8 per 100,000 recorded in North Bay is the fourth-highest in Ontario over that time period. Five of the top six census subdivisions in the province (population greater than 30,000) with the highest opioid toxicity mortality rates per 100,000 — including the top four — are in northern Ontario.
Using the province-wide rate of 8.5 deaths per 100,000 as a benchmark, the four locations that top the list — Thunder Bay (42.4/100,000), Greater Sudbury (29.0), Timmins (28.6) and North Bay (25.8) — all register at least triple the provincial rate.
Thanks to all who took the time to vote!
Our Newsmaker of the Year poll is now up, so please check it out and cast your vote.
