Rothesay Avenue Blaze Under Control

2009-05-15

21:23:14

(Ladder Tower unit pours water on stubborn blaze off Rothesay Avenue - photo by Gary MacDonald)

Fire crews continue to hose down a business complex off Rothesay Avenue near McAllister Drive.
They've been on the scene since just after 5:30 this afternoon -- and -- Fire Chief Rob Simonds says the biggest challenge has been trying to get at the flames burning between a steel roof and sub-roof supported by wooden trusses.
Simonds says the combination has resulted in a fire burning with intense heat.
No one has been hurt and fire investigators are on the scene doing some preliminary work.

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Crews Battle Rothesay Avenue Blaze

2009-05-15

17:46:20

Fire crews are battling a major blaze behind A to Z Rentals on Rothesay Avenue. City Police are asking drivers to avoid Rothesay avenue until the flames are brought down. The road is currently closed to traffic between McAllister Drive and Retail Drive.

Officials are also delaying a train scheduled to come through the area as a precaution.

Earlier today fire crews were on the scene of a grease fire at Deluxe French Fries on Wellesley Avenue.  Firefighters made quick work of the flames and no major damage reported.

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New Brunswick Cities Lose-Out on 'Smart' City Title

2009-05-15

16:39:08

Stockholm Sweden has been named the most intelligent city by a New York think-tank--beating out Fredericton and Moncton. The two provincial cities were among seven finalists for the smartest city. Premier Shawn Graham says he's proud of our success, non-the-less.

Graham is on a trade mission in New York, where he says he's learning a lot about the energy market there.  The Premier says he's confident meetings with companies in the Big Apple will bring about positive returns for the province--and--says many businesses are planning to visit the province to scope out the energy projects.

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Home Invasion Update

2009-05-15

15:26:33

Details are still sketchy surrounding a home invasion this morning in New Zion-- near ripples. RCMP Sergeant Claude Tremblay tells CHSJ News four or five men entered a home there around nine o'clock and then left in an SUV a few minutes later. He says nothing was stolen and the two people living there were not injured.

So far, no arrests have been made, but Tremblay says they were surveying the area.

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Peel Plaza Short List Finalized

2009-05-15

12:59:15

(Mayor Ivan Court - file photo)

There are three companies now on the short list to build the Peel Plaza police and parking garage complex.
Integrated Team Solutions - Ashford Investments - and - AeroTerm Management will now come back with solid proposals for construction -- and -- mayor Ivan Court tells CHSJ News the project is on a tight time line.
Court says the province plans to break ground for the new Justice Complex in September -- and -- work on the new parking garage will have to coincide with the province since it will be leasing over 100-parking spaces.
He says the final construction proposal could be in the form of a public - private partnership.
Meantime -- the city will hold an open house June 3rd to give the public a chance to see the latest plans for the Peel Plaza area.

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Saint John Police Have New Deputy And Inspector

2009-05-15

12:58:21

The Saint John Police Service has two new senior officers -- Darrell Scribner has been sworn in as the new Deputy Police Chief while Bruce Connell has been promoted to the rank of Inspector.
Scribner and Connell were sworn in this morning during a ceremony held in a packed council chamber at city hall.
Three former police chiefs - Al Bodechon - Butch Cogswell - and - Charlie Breen attended the ceremony.

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Business Minister is Doing Fine

2009-05-15:

11:30:29:

Business Minister Greg Byrne is on the road to recovery. This after undergoing major heart surgery last week at the Regional. His office tells us he is home resting and in good spirits. No word on when he expects to be back to work.  In his absence, Energy Minister Jack Keir will take over Business portfolio along with the Population Growth Secretariat, Service New Brunswick and Communications.

Education Minister Kelly Lamrock will take over his duties about the Erin Walsh case file for the Office of the Attorney General.

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City Staff Gearing up For Summer

2009-05-15:

11:29:37:

After bringing in over $246 million last year, Tourism Saint John is hoping to better that as they gear up for another tourist season. Staff are stocking the three visitor centers as this long weekend gets their busy time of the year underway. Spokes-person Lori Jensen tells CHSJ News, they are keeping an eye on rising gas prices but are not losing sleep over them.

Jensen says they expect to be busy in the coming months and hope for a steady stream of sunshine to go along with it.

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Illegal Smokes off the Streets

2009-05-15:

11:28:21:

Another huge find for RCMP in their fight against illegal goods coming through the Province. Officers stopped a passenger van traveling east near Saint Basile last night and found 300,000 contraband smokes and other tobacco products. The driver was arrested and is due back in court next month to face several charges.

It's believed the cigarettes were destined for Saint John. 

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Home Invasion near Minto

2009-05-15:

11:27:35:

There was a home invasion this morning in New Zion which is near ripples. RCMP Sargeant Claude Tremblay it took place just after nine o'clock and no one was hurt.

No word yet of any arrests as RCMP continue to talk with witnesses to try and piece together what happened.

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Latest Development on Peel Plaza

2009-05-15:

11:26:44:

Even though the lot continues to sit vacant, work continues behind the scenes on the Peel Plaza proposal. Council has approved the steering committee to move to the next stage and ask three companies to respond to a request for proposals. They are  Integrated Team Solutions, Ashford Investments Inc and AeroTerm Management Co.
 
Once the contract is awarded, a three -story police facility, parking facility off of Carleton Street and a new justice complex will be constructed on the former YM-YWCA site. It's estimated the cost of the project is nearing the $100 million dollar mark.

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Promotion Ceremony at City Hall

2009-05-15:

04:02:16:

The Saint John Police Force will usher in it's new deputy chief during a ceremony at City Hall later this morning. It will announce the official promotion of Inspector Darrell Scribner to the rank of Deputy Chief in the council chamber. Scribner is taking over for Bill Reid, who was promoted to the chief of police when Al Bodechon announced he was stepping down last year.

Also taking part in the ceremony is Sargeant Bruce Connell who is being promoted to the rank of Inspector of the Criminal Investigation Unit. The ceremony gets started at eleven.

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West Jet is Back in Saint John

2009-05-15:

04:00:35:

There will be plenty of activity through-out the summer at the Saint John Airport. Westjet will resume it's third seasonal flight schedule today with six flights every week to and from Toronto not including Saturday. President and CEO Bernard Leblanc tells CHSJ News, the airline will offer competitive rates which should keep seats filled in a bid to keep the service year round.

Also just announced, Air Canada is re-introducing a 4th daily flight to Toronto starting June 20th.

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Power Still Out for Over a Thousand

2009-05-15:

03:59:38:

It's a cool and dark start to the Long Weekend for over a thousand people in the Province. The high winds and rain have been knocking down power lines and as of three this morning, just over 1400 people are still off the grid. At the height of the problem last night, over 7000 customers were with-out electricity. NB Spokes-person Heather McLean tells CHSJ News, some of the restoration crews have reached the limit for safe hours of work and are getting some rest to be refreshed for the morning if need be. 
 
The hardest hit area is Grand Falls with over 600 customers with no power. Other area's include Moncton, Fredericton and Bouctouche.

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