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Friday, June 11, 2010

Bell Aliant Employees Turn Down Proposed Collective Agreement

Unionized workers at Bell Aliant in Atlantic Canada have turned down a proposed new collective agreement.
The workers are represented by the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada.

In a release, Bell Aliant President and CEO Karen Sheriff says they are disappointed in the results but, they have always said this process was about their employees making a choice and they have done that.

Sheriff adds they will have to move forward on alternative ways of reducing and managing their costs.
The current collective agreement between Bell Aliant and the C.E.P. members remains in effect until December 31, 2011.

New Wind Mills Arriving at the Port

If your commute to the office is an early one, something to keep in mind that could slow you down.


New sections of windmills will begin arriving at the Port on June.21st.


Every morning at six, five loads will travel along Lower Cove Loop to the intersection of Crown and Union, then on to Rothesay Avenue and out to the highway.


Some of the sections of windmill are 200 feet long so as you can imagine, they will take up a lot of roadway.



City Police will escort the equipment and it's expected the daily deliveries will continue until August.20th.

Four Teens In Custody After East Side Mischief



Four teenagers are in custody after 4 or 5 businesses in East Saint John were spraypainted around 3 this afternoon.
One of the those businesses hit with the paint is the Scotiabank on Westmoreland Road.


Officers are taking pictures and trying to establish exactly which businesses were hit.
No word on any charges yet.

Discussion Paper on Bullying
















(Saint Johner's Gather at a Rally Against Bullying Recently)
                           (File Photo)

A discussion paper for public feedback has been released by the Department of Education on bullying in schools.

It is a lead-in to it's Summit on Bullying set to get started next Thursday in Fredericton with more than 100 students, parents, and educators will be on hand.

The goal of the summit is to have an open and informed discussion on bullying and how it is addressed in the school system.


The discussion paper will stay on the Department of Education website for two weeks after the summit to allow enough time for people to send in their comments.
 
To find the link, click here:

Lottery Fever Is Alive And Well
















(Shirley Goudreau at the Brunswick Square Lotto Booth)
                   (Photo by Jim Hennessy)

What would you do with $50 million dollars?


That is a question people from coast to coast hope to answer with a winning ticket tonight for the Lotto Max Draw which for a second week has topped off at fifty million dollars.


Shirley Goudreau works at the lotto booth in Brunswick Square and tells CHSJ News, the traffic volume has been wild.


Goudreau says a lot of people who bought tickets have promised here they will be back to share if they have the winning ticket.



New Look in St. Andrews

When the silver shovels hit the dirt in St. Andrews this morning, it marked the start of construction for the new Discovery Centre.
Federal and Municipal politcians were on hand for the ceremony at the Huntsman Marine Science Center.
The new space is 20,000 square feet and replaces the existing aquarium complex and will feature a multiplex aquarium facility and a giant exhibit of the Bay of Fundy Tides.
Total cost of the project is eight million dollars and no word on when the new facility will be open for business.

District Eight Education Council And Parents




















(District Eight Education Council Chair Rob Fowler)
                    (File Photo)

Even after holding a series of Town Hall style meetings earlier this year, the District Eight Education Council wants parents to become more involved.

DEC Chair Rob Fowler tells CHSJ News, the problem they struggle with is explaining what the role of Education Council is.


Fowler adds the DEC needs to get into the 21st century and make Facebook and Twitter more readily available for it's members and use a tool to communicate with parents or guardians.



Armed Robbery Suspect to Appear in Court











Armed Robbery with a knife is the charge a 44-year old man will answer to in court today.

This after City Police arrested him earlier this morning and charged him with the robbery of Needs Convenience store on Wednesday night.


Officers tell us the man was taken into custody on an un-related charge.

Alcohol and Dope Factors in Teenagers Deaths











Alcohol and dope are being pointed out by RCMP as two of the factors that killed three teenagers from Riverview back on May.29th.

A vehicle left the road on Route 905 in Forest Glen with five people in it and struck a tree.

Officers also point out no one in the vehicle was wearing a seatbelt and the three people killed, including the driver, had alcohol and marijuana in their systems.


Re-constructionist's have also determined the vehicle was going well over the posted speed limit of 80km/hour and the road was somewhat wet but rain didn't start until after the crash.





Legion In Oromocto Is Destroyed By Fire



(Oromocto Legion Before The Fire - photo submitted by a listener) 

       

The Town of Oromocto is in shock after losing it's Legion to fire last night.
It was spotted just before midnight and despite their best effort, fire crews could not save the building.


Mayor Faye Tidd lives directly behind where the building used to stand and tells CHSJ News, this is a massive loss for the community.


Tidd says she has no idea about what insurance if any the Legion might have but assures residents Town Officials will do what they can to help the facility rebuild.


No word at this point on how the fire started but RCMP is calling the fire suspicious.

Liberal M-L-A Abel Leblanc Acclaimed In Saint John Lancaster













(Saint John Lancaster M-L-A Abel Leblanc)
                    (File Photo)

A big turnout at the Assumption Centre on Chapel Street to see Liberal incumbant Abel Leblanc acclaimed without opposition to seek re-election in Saint John Lancaster. Leblanc says the Premier has taken a giant step forward in tackling the problem of poverty but more has to be done besides just raising the minimum wage. He says the most important thing for people struggling to get by is to retain their benefits.
Premier Shawn Graham calls Leblanc a defender of peoples' rights and rejects the charge from the Conservatives that his spending is out of control. He says that spending is necessary until private sector investment kicks in. The Premier also promises to provide one third of the funding needed of the 200 million dollars required to provide clean, safe drinking water for the city calling it the number of issue for Saint Johnners.
Leblanc says the Liberals have done alot more for Saint John than the previous Conservative government under then Premier Bernard Lord ever did.

Traffic Disruption Later Today

Traffic will shut down on Route 1 in both directions this afternoon as crews working on the One Mile interchange remove the rock wall from the closed Crown Street exit.
The disruption will last about 15 minutes at 2:00 this afternoon.
It's necessary because of blasting activities as part of the Route 1 One Mile House Interchange construction project. That project will take truck traffic out of the uptown core by diverting it along Bayside Drive onto the Industrial park.

Saint John Arts Awards Handed Out

Saint John honored it's finest and most creative artists during the inagural ""The Originals"" awards ceremony at the Imperial Theater last night. Ten winners walked home with the hardware including Suzanne Hill, Richard Kidd, Bob Doherty and Jack Bishop. The shows artistic director Judith Mackin tells CHSJ News, it was an incedible evening with support for the arts community growing.
Mackin adds the goal of the event is to make sure all of the creative talent in Greater Saint John is recognized and celebrated. Fred and Sheila Ross were honored during the show with the Lifetime Achievement Award.

School District 8 Breaks Even Thanks In Part To Mild Winter

The proposed budget for School District Eight is complete and comes in just over $95.3 million dollars. Director of Finance and Administration Chris Toole tells CHSJ news, the numbers show a zero balance for the fiscal year as they did find some savings last year with signifigant operational changes. He also credits the mild winter and stable oil prices.
Toole adds NB Power holding the line on its rates also helped out the bottom line in a big way.

Rothesay High Overcrowded












(School District 6 Superintendent Zoe Watson)
                      (File Photo)

A District 6 report showing how full schools are is showing a lack of space at Rothesay High School. The School has a 110% usage rate meaning, every space you can use as a classroom is already taken up. Superintendant Zoe Watson says four portable classrooms will be added to the school as a short term solution for now but an addition is the long term solution.
Rothesay is currently using the library for a homeroom class, the cafeteria for other classes and one lab is being used as a double classroom.