A portion of Ashburn Lake Road is closed to traffic from now until Monday at the railway crossing near Rothesay Avenue. The closure is for NB Southern Railway to complete rail crossing maintenance. Access between Highway 1 Exit 128 and Rothesay will not be open and drivers are advised to use alternate routes.
If you live in the area access on either side of the closed section of the road will remain available.
There's hope for the SPCA, thanks to the help of people in Greater Saint John. Between personal donations, fundraisers and business support, the Saint John SPCA has raised $42,000 in a week. As well it was confirmed yesterday by Joshua Group founder Bobby Hayes the kid's charity has bought the former SPCA building on Taylor Avenue.SPCA President Melody McElman says they need to raise $200,000 to stay open.
It doesn't matter if you're a level 12 elf or you've never rolled a D20 before... all levels of gamers in Saint John are together for the 11th annual Impossible Realities gaming convention. For 24 hours a day, all weekend long, gamers are playing everything from role playing games like Circus Imperium, Dungeons & Dragons and Call of Cthulhu to classic family board games. Organizer Dana Betts says players come from all walks of life, some even from the US, Nova Scotia & PEI. He says it's now "chic to be geek", with popular shows like Big Bang Theory & Community. He says most people who are big into role playing games are usually pretty low key, so this convention gives them a chance to come out and enjoy the company of other people who love gaming. Betts says if you're new to gaming, there's staff there to help you learn.
There will also be a number of artists and vendors from the Maritimes, including Sandy Carruthers (illustrator, "Men in Black"), André Myette (creator of "Humbug!"), and local artist Chas Goguen (creator of "Dotman").
The convention runs until 6:00pm on Sunday at the Chinese Cultural Centre at 24 Coburg Street in uptown Saint John. It's $10 for a day, $20 for the weekend and all ages are welcome.
Two men are in police custody after two separate break and enters that happened in Saint John overnight. City Police say one B&E attempt by a 26-year-old man was in the west end on Lloyd Street while the other was by a 29-year-old man in the north end on Clarendon Street.
It's a happy day for the both the SPCA and the Joshua Group....Joshua Group founder Bobby Hayes announcing they've managed to buy the former Peacock property to use as a permanent headquarters for the kid's charity.
Hayes tells CHSJ News there's still much that needs to be done to assess the cost of renovations and make sure the building is safe for the kids to use. No word yet on how much the building went for, or when the group is expected to start using it.
3 months in jail the sentence handed a city police officer who was found guilty of common assault and engaging in threatening conduct after a breakin at his home on Westfield Road. Mr. Justice Hugh McLellen cited a New Brunswick Court of Appeal ruling in sending 39 year old Constable Chris Messer to jail. The Court of Appeal ruled when police break the law, a conditional discharge is woefully inadequate.
The judge also rejecting house arrest when Messer's lawyer expressed concern over his safety in jail.
Messer was told he was convicted largely on the basis of his own evidence. The police officer suspected Randy King of breaking into his home and admitted to punching him three times in the back of the head outside the detention area after transporting him from the west side.
The judge also telling Messer he was in a conflict of interest by investigating a crime committed against himself but no one in the police department prevented him from doing so. Mr. Justice McLellen says Messer doesn't seem to understand he was in a conflict of interest which is a breach of trust.
Hard drinking will destroy your support network of family and friends........That advice from Mr Justice Hugh McLellan, handing down a sentence of 2 years in jail, plus 3 years probation, to 25-year-old Bradley Scott Wilson.
Wilson was found guilty of sexual assault in connection with a January incident at a West Side pub.
In a statement to the court, the victim of the assault said she quit her job out of embarrassment and is haunted by the pain of the incident every day.
Wilson's defense pointed out while his client had a prior record, his offenses were all alcohol-related, but the judge said he simply needs to learn to stay sober.
Wilson was also entered on the sex offender registry and required to submit a DNA sample.
His mother and father have told CHSJ News they don't feel justice has been served.
A 39 year old city police officer will be sentenced later this afternoon. Constable Chris Messer was found guilty of common assault and engaging in threatening behaviour after his home on Westfield Road was broken into. The prosecution cites breach of trust in calling for jail time of 3 to 6 months even though Messer's presentence report was favourable. Messer, though, maintains his innocence.
Defense lawyer Brian Munro calls it the best presentence report he has ever read and he's arguing for a conditional discharge.
Munro calls Messer a devoted family man who, up until this, had no blemishes on his record as a police officer. Munro telling the court Messer felt his family had been violated by the breakin but the public interest would not be served by a jail sentence.
For his part, Messer apologised to his family for what he has put them through.
Mr. Justicie Huge McLellen delivers his verdict at 4:00.
One man has been arrested and police and looking for a second inconnection with a break and enter in St. Andrews.
RCMP arrested a 21-year-old St. Andrews man for a break and enter at the W.C. O'Neill Arena Complex on August 24. He will appear in St. Stephen Provincial Court in October. They are still looking for another man who may have been camping in the St. Andrews area in late August.
Anyone with information regarding this incident or any other property crime is asked to contact District 1 RCMP at 506-755-1130 or Crime Stoppers at www.crimenb.ca or 1-800-222-TIPS (2477).
The Saint John Mill Rats and the Africa to Canada Committee announcing Modibo Diarra, his wife Mariam and three year old daughter, Cindy, are currently on a flight heading to our city. The family will be arriving at the Airport early Sunday morning between midnight and 12:30.
This arrival to Canada marks a successful result in getting Diarra and family to Canada to escape the ongoing conflict in Mali, Africa.
A movie theatre, family style restaurant, more stores, proper landscaping and a roundabout at Simms Corner. Those are some of the suggestions West Siders are making about what the future of the Golden Mile should look like.
Ward One Councillor Greg Norton likes the new direction because there's alot of potential for new investment and will give residents in that part of town the option of going east or west to shop.
The other Ward One Councillor Bill Farren says the light industries now located along Fairville Boulevard are already planning for the transition by buying property in the industrial park.
Chief City Planner Ken Forrest says it's hoped if there is more retail along the Golden Mile, it could ease some of the traffic congestion out east as well as drawing people to the area from Grand Bay-Westfield and parts of Charlotte County.
A homeowner in Quispamsis foiling a break-in at his house but, in the process, suffering what Rothesay Regional Police are calling serious injuries which may need corrective surgery down the road.
Two young people were nabbed and they could be looking at charges of armed robbery or assault causing bodily harm.
A wide range of street and presciption drugs have been seized after a failed attempt by an inmate to sneak them into the Dorchester Penitentiary.
The drugs included Dilaudid, Imovane/Ambien, Steroids, Atavan, Mirtzapine, Remeron, Marijuana and tobacco. The estimated institutional value of this seizure is $19,000.
The jail currently uses scanners and drug dogs to try and stem the flow of contraband into the medium-security facility.
The New Brunswick Community College is gearing up for another academic year...and according to Regional Director Chris Toole, enrollments at the college are up. Their capacity is about 950 students, and currently they are at about 85% of that.
The college is rolling out new courses, including an electrical engineering course in generation and distribution, and one focusing on sustainable energy. There's also a brand new engineering building, the grand opening of which will be held in the coming months.
That question at the heart of a recent meeting between politicians and the trail's development authority to see what the next steps are to complete it. Tourism Minister Trevor Holder tells CHSJ News when it's done it will take the entire Fundy experience to the next level.
He says the Fundy Trail is a gamechanger because it takes everything from the Hopewell Cape to Campobello Island and ties it together with Saint John in the middle of the whole thing.
Holder says while they don't have the funding to complete it now they are working hard to find it.
A 5 year journey--that's how local historian Harold Wright describes the dedication of the Wade-Myles Park and Centotaph. The park next to M. Gerald Teed School is the former site of the Millidgeville Airport. Wright tells CHSJ News Jack Myles was a distinguished pilot with the Canadian air force and he also designed M. Gerald Teed School where the memorial will live.
Large posters of Wade, Myles and others will hang in the Aviation Hall of Fame in the lobby of the School.
Harold Wright was surprised during the ceremony when Lieutentant Government Graydon Nicholas gave him a Diamond Jubilee Medal from the Queen.
New developments are in store for the Golden Mile...and the city of Saint John wants to hear what you think. Fairvale Boulevard is designated a retail area under the new municipal plan, a change from its historical status as an industrial and retail area.
The open house on the Golden Mile will be held tonight from 5-7pm at the legion at 714 Wilson Street.
