Huge Weed Bust In Fredericton

RCMP taking in a huge crop of drugs after searching three homes in the Fredericton area.

The bust brought in 260 marijuana plants and 65 pounds of packaged weed, which could have produced more than 96-thousand joints.

Six men between the ages of 37 and 59 are facing various drug charges and are due in court tomorrow morning.

Liberals Want Premier To Meet With Fracking Protesters

With fracking protesters currently forming a blockade at a work site in Stanley, Liberal Leader Victor Bourdreau is calling on the Alward government to meet with the protesters.

Boudreau says the province needs to walk the walk when it says it is a transparent government and talk to the concerned citizens about fracking and shale gas.

He adds if the Premier or a member of government had meet with protestors during a march held on New Brunswick Day, the current situation may have been avoided.

NB Largest Producer Of Farmed Salmon

With over 90 licensed fish farms, New Brunswick taking home the prize for the largest producer of farmed salmon in Atlantic Canada. 

That from Pam Parker with the Atlantic Canadian Fish Farmers Association. 

She tells CHSJ News one of the things they do to protect the industry is rotate which farms are active. 

Parker says it gives each ecosystem enough time to rejuvenate and stops the cycle of pathogens.

She says salmon farms have existed in the province for 30 years so there is a large research base here to drive the industry. 

She says there is potential for industry growth in both Nova Scotia and Newfoundland, but each ecosystem is different.

Three Face Charges After North End Robbery

Three men ranging in age from 18 to 22 are facing charges after a North end robbery on Sunday night.
Stephen Tompkins and Jared Higgins both appearing in court and pleading not guilty. Tompkins is facing a charge of robbery while Higgins is looking at charges of unlawful confinement and robbery.
Both remain in custody and will be back before a judge tomorrow morning at 11.
A third person, 18-year-old Stephane Boudreau, plead not guilty to charges of robbery and unlawful confinement. He has a bail hearing on Friday.
City police tell CHSJ News the victim in this incident was not hurt.

Grocery Bills Are On The Rise

The Common Front for Social Justice says food prices are getting too high for families to keep up.


According to their latest study, which looks at food prices over the last year, the average cost of groceries has gone up 5.74 percent in one year.

Spokesperson Aurea Cormier tells CHSJ News it's getting harder for families to buy a nutritious grocery order, especially those on fixed incomes.

She says the prices of key items have been steadily on the rise: the cost of bread has gone up 10 percent while fruits and vegetables have jumped by over 40 percent.

She's hoping the figures will spark action on the part of citizens and the government to make grocery bills less of a burden for low-income families.

Sea Dogs Gearing Up For Training Camp

Hockey fever is about to return to the Port City with the Sea Dogs training camp about to start next week.

Sea Dogs President Wayne Long tells CHSJ News 50 to 55 players will be competing for spots on the squad.

Long says the team is focused on the new season and will not be resting on their laurels.

The first exhibition home game for the Sea Dogs is Saturday, August 20th.  Tickets are on sale now.

July Housing Starts Down A Bit

Home construction in the Province's urban centres down a bit in July according to figures from Canada Mortgage Housing Corporation.

There are 481 starts during the month compared to 491 starts for the same period last year.

Senior Market Analyst Claude Gautreau says the decline in housing starts in July was the result of lower multiple starts, as single starts in provincial urban centres for the month climbed 7 per cent compared to 2010.
In July, multiple starts were down 6 per cent to 306 units. Gautreau says the construction of multiple units in Moncton and Fredericton in July were more than offset by declines in Saint John. Multiple starts are down 25 per cent to 736 units year to date.

City Police Warning Shoppers to Cross Westmorland Road At The Lights

City Police have a message for those people who attempt to cross four lanes of traffic on Westmorland Road to get from Wal Mart to McAllister Place.........Not only are you risking life and limb but you can be charged with jaywalking. So says Sergeant Jeff LaFrance.

He says in such a high traffic area, you could do yourself some good by getting a bit of exercise and walking to the lights and crossing there.

He also advises pedestrians to extend their hand at crosswalks and even make eye contact with drivers.....Don't assume they will automatically stop just because it's a crosswalk.

Traffic To Be Disrupted In North End

Hilyard Street will be closed between Chesley Drive and Simonds Street from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday, August 10, and from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday, August 11th because of work being done on the Chesley Drive off-ramp.

Drivers heading west from the Uptown are advised to use Main Street to get to Chesley Drive.

Those drivers headed east on Chesley Drive will not be able to turn right onto Hilyard Street.

Tenants and customers of Place 400 will have access to the parking lot via Simonds Street and the parking lot behind the Lord Beaverbrook Rink.

For more information, please contact City of Saint John Municipal Operations at 658-4455.

Police Make Two Arrests After Roberries

Police have arrested a 30 year old man after two robberies involving bicycles earlier this week with a second suspect being sought.

Sergeant Lori Magee says a 17-year-old was was approached by two people on bikes while he was walking on King street. She says the second robbery took place a short while later at the corner of Main Street and Metcalf, again involving two men on bicycles.

Police also arresting a 22-year-old man in connection with a Sunday night robbery in the north end. She says the victim was confined to his house using a weapon and did suffer minor injuries from the incident.

A 56-year-old man will appear in court at a later date after displaying a case of road rage on Main Street West. A woman stopped her car after veering to avoid an oncoming truck when the other driver came over and assaulted her.

Liberals Calling For Rollback Of School Cuts

The provincial Liberals are calling on the Alward government to reverse it's mandate on cutting 2 percent from the education budget every year until 2014.

Opposition Leader Victor Boudreau tells CHSJ News educators and school officials have been telling them it was difficult enough to make the first cut and they're telling him they don't know how they'll do it again.

He says more people will be upset with the cuts after the school year begins when there are fewer teachers, teaching assistants and resources available. Boudreau maintains there are plenty of other departments that could handle cuts but the education department is not one of them.

Bathurst Movie Gets Go Ahead From School District

School District 15 giving Dream Street Pictures the go ahead to use Bathurst High School to film their movie about the Boys in Red van crash that took the lives of 7 players and a coach's wife.

Isabelle Hains lost her son in the crash and is one of the moms campaigning against the film. She tells CHSJ News she doesn't know why the district would go against their wishes. She says it's beyond her how the District can call this a "feel good" movie. She says it will act as a permanent reminder of what happened and it's too soon for the families to deal with that.

She says the community is on their side with a petition circulating against the film. She says copies will be sent to the Premier as well Transportation Minister Claude Williams and Minister of Sport Trevor Holder.