Drug Busts In City And Kingston

Saint John Police, Rothesay Regional Police, and the RCMP teaming up for a pair of busts on a marijuana grow-op this weekend.

On Saturday, police seized 32-thousand dollars worth of plants from a residence on Summer Street North in the city's north end and at Lake Road in Kingston.

A pair of 52-year old men being arrested and released.  They will be facing charges of production of a controlled substance and will be back in front of a judge at a later date.

Boys And Girls Club Kicks Off Capital Campaign

The Saint John Boys and Girls Club off to a good start as they look to raise 750 thousand dollars for programs and services. 

So far 375,000 dollars in donations have come in from various organizations. 

Campaign co-chair David Merrithew tells CHSJ News the staff does an excellant job with the budget that they have, but the Club needs money to pay for the upkeep of the building and new activities for the kids. 

He says the money will be used for things like new playground equipment, a new music room and new gym walls.

Merrithew says in 2010 the Boys and Girls Club had 110 thousand child visits, so it's a very well used facility.

New K-Park School Put On Hold

With plans to build a new school to replace Kennebecasis Park Elementary on hold, Finance Minister Blaine Higgs says it's about understanding what makes the most sense for the Kennebecasis Valley as a whole. 

The new K-Park school, which was set to open in 2012, was meant to accommodate 300 students. 

Higss tells CHSJ News, that's just not big enough.Higgs says there are issues with the existing school, such as the ventilation system, that need to be addressed sooner rather than later. 

He says the education Minister is prepared to address those problems.

Water Levels Going Up

As water levels in Fredericton drop they're going up here. 

The flood stage in the Saint John-Quispamsis area is set a 4.2 meters, and today water levels came in just below that at roughly 4.1 meters. 

Flood forecasters are projecting water along the Saint John River will reach the initial flood stage by tomorrow and stay steady there for Wednesday. 

People are advised to stay alert and make sure their belongings are protected.

Mayor Confident About Landing Porter Air

Mayor Court says officials from Porter Air are expected to visit the city in the near future.


Court tells CHSJ News the airline's Toronto Island terminal will mean almost direct access to the downtown - convenient for business people and sports fans alike.'

Court was a member of a delegation that met with Porter officials in Toronto recently -- he remains confident the city may be added to the airline's destinations when it begins receiving new planes later next year.

East Saint John Fire Guts Business

A east side fire destroying part of an auto recycling operation this morning.
City fire crews responding to the call of a fully involved building at Old Black River Road.
District Fire Chief Eric Garland says on arrival crews found thick black smoke and flames coming from a metal building.

At that time, Garland says they received word that all employees were out of the building but, one worker was taken to hospital with superficial burns.
He adds they do not believe the cause of the fire to be suspicious.

Chief Garland says there are no injuries to firefighters.
17 City firefighters at the scene today working the blaze along with another 8 recruits who were brought in to assist.  The main fire is knocked down and the metal building did collapse.

City Crews Respond To East Side Blaze

A major fire in an auto parts facility at 695 Old Black River Road is being fought.

The blaze at Auto Recyclers broke out shortly after 9:30 in the one and a half storey building which was fully engulfed in flames.

 Everyone is reportedly out of the building which is a total loss.

 Lots of thick black smoke could be seen billowing from the building and that prompted nearby homes to be evacuated.

Traffic is being prevented from going down Old Black River Road at Bayside Drive. Cottage Road is also blocked

Sea Dogs In Gatineau Tonight For Game 3

With the series tied at a game each, the Saint John Sea Dogs are in Gatineau tonight for Game 3 of the President's Cup Final.   Game 4 is also in Gatineau.
Game 5 will be back at Harbour Station on Friday and tickets will go on sale this morning.
 
The Sea Dogs are expected to welcome the one millionth fan in team history through the turnstiles on Friday.  That lucky fan will win a special prize.
For tickets call 657-1234 or click here

Early Morning Accident And Missing Teen Found

City Police reporting 15 year old Amber Mitchell who had been reported missing for a few days has now been found safe and sound.

A woman had to be transported to hospital early this morning after her vehicle left Foster Thurston Drive at Ashburn Lake Road and went into a ditch.

Parking At The Regional Hospital

With the expansion of emergency department at the Regional Hospital, many people are wondering what's going to happen with parking and will it be increased to handle the growth of the hospital.

The President and C-E-O of the Horizon Health Network Donald Peters says some extra spaces were made for the expansion and adds more spaces overall is on their radar but nothing is on the drawing board yet and there is no timeframe.

 A few years ago there had been talk of building a parking garage.

Municipal Byelections Being Held Around Province

A byelection being held in Quispamsis today to fill one empty town council seat. Mayor Murray Driscoll tells CHSJ News a new candidate always has some catching up to do but it's not a monumental task.

The vacancy occurred after Gerry Maher stepped down late last year.

 He had been a vocal advocate for the towns of Quispamsis and Rothesay to amalgamate.
The polling station for the Quispamsis by-election is at St. Mark's Church on the Pettingill Road and will be open from 10 this morning until 8 tonight. You can also vote at the returning office in the former Lane Home Furnishing building on Millenium Drive until 4:30 this afternoon.
 
The four candidates running in Quispamsis are Michael Cole, Barry Farnsworth, Libby O'Hara and Kirk Miller.
 
Byelections are also scheduled in Norton and Blacks Harbour. There are three candidates running for council in Norton......Juliana Catherine Booth, Trevor Carson and Lawrence Dykeman. In Black's Harbour, Natalie Harris will join council by acclamation being the only person offering to run.

Common Councillor Wants All Of Chesley Drive Repaired

Common Councillor Bill Farren is calling on city staff to pave all four lanes of Chesley Drive instead of just three.

Farren tells CHSJ News the road is a provincial responsibilty but has not been properly maintained so the city has agreed to fix three lanes that are in desperate shape.

Farren estimates repairing all four lanes instead of just three would add an extra 30 thousand dollars to the project.

Councillor Peter McGuire is asking that any new tax revenue that comes from the new court house as part of the Peel Plaza development will be invested into the city's roads and streets.

Premier Calls Attracting Young People To Province A Priority

Premier David Alward says the greying of the province and the need to get young people back into the province is something his government is well aware of and must start now.

He calls it a priority telling CHSJ News the province has a great pool of young talent in the ICT sector and we need to attract more.

The Premier points out groups like FUSION and 21inc. show young people want to be a part of New Brunswick's future. He also realises New Brunswick is growing older more quickly than other provinces.

Canada Post Defends Move To Community Mailboxes On Peninsula

A spokesperson for Canada Post is denying claims by an official with the Canadian Union of Postal Workers that the addition of community mailboxes on the Kingston Pennisula is just an excuse to cut jobs.

Denise Cora tells CHSJ News this move is all about safety with an increase in vehicle traffic is making it more dangerous for letter carriers walking and driving.

Cora adds Canada Post has seen more 40 rulings resulting from 3000 complaints by rural mail carriers over health and safety concerns.

Pulp And Paper Mill Completes One-Week Shut Down

Things will be back to normal tomorrow at the Irving Pulp and Paper Mill, and traffic will be back to normal at the mill's entrance near the Reversing Falls Bridge. 

City police have been directing traffic each morning near the mill as 56 contractor companies descended on the mill to perform annual maintenance. 

Mill Manager Tony Binotto says maintenance is performed on the mill every 18 months to ensure the mill remains competitive in the long term.

Local By-Election In Quispamsis Tomorrow

A by-election being held in Quispamsis tomorrow to fill one empty council seat.

Mayor Murray Driscoll tells CHSJ News a new candidate always has some catching up to do, but it's not a monumental task.

The polling station for the Quispamsis by-election is at St. Mark's Church on the Pettingill Road.

The four candidates running in are Michael Cole, Barry Farnsworth, Libby O'Hara and Kirk Miller.

By-elections are also being held tomorrow in Norton and Blacks Harbour.

Crews Make Quick Work Of Carbon Dioxide Leak

Traffic diverted from Grandview Avenue for about an hour yesterday due to a carbon dioxide leak at the Praxair Plant. 

District Chief Gerry Morris tells CHSJ News police and fire crews arrived on scene just after 11am to find vapours coming from one of the tanks. 

Morris says a perimeter was set up and the HASMAT Unit was called in as a precaution, but carbon dioxide is non-flammable and is only a threat in confined spaces because it gets rid of the available oxygen.

Morris says the leak was caused by an electrical problem in the plant and the vapours quickly shut themselves off due to a built-in safety system.

Former Premier To Receive Humanitarian Award

Former premier Frank McKenna receiving the province’s Humanitarian Award for 2011.

McKenna is being recognized for his work in Canada and the U.S. to improve children’s access to clean water, food and education.

McKenna has also worked with causes such as United Way, the Heart and Stroke Foundation and the YMCA.

Megan MacDonald of Rothesay will receive the Young Humanitarian award for her involvement with Amnesty International and the Saint John Community Autism Center.

Both awards will be presented at a dinner in the city in November.

No Flooding Yet in Saint John

Saint John lucky so far when it comes to rising water levels along the Saint John River Basin.

Karl Wilmot with River Watch tells CHSJ News the city remains a half a meter away from it's initial flood stage of 4.2 meters.

Wilmot says forecasters are not expecting water levels to reach flood stage in the city in the immediate future, but that could change as the week goes on.

He says generally in Saint John water levels rise as water comes down river, but then drops accordingly when the tide goes out in the Bay of Fundy.

Wilmot says the province will re-evaluate flood levels again on Monday to determine the forecast for the rest of the week.

So far, Fredericton has seen the worst flooding with water levels half a meter above flood stage.

Police Still Investigating Prowling Incident

The Major Crime Unit is still looking for whomever was prowling around homes in the Forest Hills area during the early morning hours of Wednesday morning.

Police advising you to check out your property and report anything suspicious.

A warrant issued by a Saint judge for 24-year-old David Andrew Breau who is descried as Caucasian, 5 foot 9 weighing 150 pounds.

Anyone with information on Breau's whereabouts is urged to contact City police at 648-3333 or Crimestoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).