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Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Spring Break Flights To Three Tropical Destinations Doubled

With more people travelling to Caribbean destinations out of the Saint John, Airport President and C-E-O David Allen saying modifications to the terminal may be needed in the future if demand keeps up. 

Allen tells CHSJ News Sunwing Vacation flights to Cuba, Mexico and the Dominican Republic have doubled over the last year and he's heard feedback from people who said they didn't even know the airline flew out of Saint John.

Allen tells some of the people he heard from have been travelling to Fredericton, Moncton and even Halifax to fly down south on charters.

Hospital Workers Reach A Deal


Over 9000 hospital workers in the province have a new collective agreement.

CUPE and its union representing workers in patient care, institutional services and administrative support reaching a four deal.

It provides for two years of zero per cent increases followed by 1 per cent increases every six months.

How Can Our Growing Senior Population Live And Age Well?

The government and others want to focus on the healthy happy seniors in this province that want a say in the future.
 

A roundtable discussion on aging well and living healthy is coming up tonight on the West side, one of 9 public sessions in the province.    The first was held last night in Moncton.
 

Minister of Healthy and Inclusive Communities Dorothy Shephard tells CHSJ News says 97 per cent of our aging population are still living at home.

She says that's a really good thing adding they want to keep them at home as long as they can and want to remain at home.

Tonight's event begins at the Branch 69 Legion on Wilson Street at 6pm.


Shephard says the data collected by the provincial health council from the 9 sessions will be compiled to determine the priorities for seniors.


For more info, click here




Chicken Farmer Think Backyard Coops Work Well


A chicken farmer from the Hampton area doesn't see any problem with people living in the suburban areas of the city having chickens.

Bernadette Fowler tells CHSJ News chickens need space to move and a fenced in yard would work.

She doesn't see where it will be a messy, noisy problem because chickens don't make much noise or mess.

Fowler has 15 chickens in a coop on her farm and she tells they don't smell because she cleans it often.

MacKenzie Testifies In Her Own Defense At Murder Trial

29 year old Crystal Dawn MacKenzie, who's charged with second degree murder in the 2010 stabbing death of her common law partner admits she was plastered drunk and wasn't thinking clearly. 

The case goes to the jury tomorrow.
 

She also testified not being herself on the police video with half the stuff she said didn't make sense. 

MacKenzie telling the court she doesn't remember stabbing 29 year old Patrick Thomas to death on Alma Street and doesn't recall grabbing a butcher's knife and saying "I'm going to kill him, I'm done". 

She claims only to recall being choked and having her head banged but prosecutor John Heneffer maintains she was choked after approaching Thomas while armed with a knife.
 

Both she and Thomas were pretty drunk and MacKenzie admits she wasn't thinking clearly.

Mixed Opinions On City Chickens

The idea of pseudo-city chickens eliciting quite a reaction from our listeners.

Suzy finds the idea ridiculous saying the City already has enough problem without adding chickens.

Bill says it's about getting back to your roots people and showing your kids where an egg comes from adding he'd rather smell chicken waste than a paper mill.

Anita says there will be more problems for the SPCA to deal with if you allow chickens in the backyard.   She says the limit may be only 6 chickens but if she has six and her neighbour has six it will get messy and smelly.

Dave think it's a great idea adding he can speak for all cats in the city and they are fine with it too adding the fox's will have another option instead of kitty.

Any your thoughts to the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.  

Click here

Backyard Chickens In City Closer To Reality

Breakfast from your own backyard may soon be possible, with Common Council unanimously giving preliminary approval to a recommendation that would allow the keeping of chickens in some parts of the city. 

Raymond Breau spoke to councillors about his experience keeping a half dozen chickens in his backyard on John T. McMillan Drive for over a year. He says they're not noisy, and if a coop is set up properly, invading wildlife won't be an issue. Breau telling council he saves about $600 a year in eggs and reception from neighbours was positive.

Mayor Mel Norton tells CHSJ News a coop's success will depend on the quality of person raising chickens. Norton says if homeowners are responsible and do it the right way, he sees it as a good opportunity.

Sustainable Saint John Dares You To Walk, Bike Or Carpool To Work For A Week

Could you leave your car keys at home for a week? 

That's the idea behind the commuter challenge, hosted by Sustainable Saint John, which dares you to find greener ways to get to work during Environment Week, which runs until June 8. City planner Jody Kliffer tells CHSJ News it's to draw attention to the accessibility of more environmentally-friendly modes of transportation.

He says walking, cycling, taking transit, carpooling, even working at home can reduce our footprint by an extraordinary amount. 

Kliffer says last year we placed first in our size category of cities across Canada, and hopes we'll retain the title. To register your workplace, click here.