Bikers And Toys Invade City For Good Cause

There will be a lot of "hogs"on the city streets and it's all for a good cause.

The 18th Annual Lana Sherwood Memorial Toy Run goes tomorrow -- hundreds of bikers will be motoring through the city to donate toys to the Regional Hospital.

Hospital Coordinator Beth MacNutt tells CHSJ News playing with toys can be very therapeutic for children during a hosptial stay.

The gifts are donated by the Harley Owners Group. 

The donation will take place at the hospital cafeteria at 2 o'clock.

Sussex Area Man Gets Hefty Fine For Illegal Smokes

76-year-old William McEwen of Four Corners is being fined over 8 thousand dollars for possessing illegal smokes.

He plead guilty after making an appearance in Sussex court yesterday.

McEwen was arrested back in June after RCMP searched his home.

Environment Minister Gets Update on Environmental Trust Fund Projects

Environment Minister Margaret-Ann Blaney taking a trip to the New Brunswick Museum to get an update on two environmental projects.

The first project involves documenting and assessing the diversity, distribution, habitats, and population status of lichens.

The second is an inventory and monitoring program on the province's Protected Natural Areas.

Both projects received funding from the Environmental Trust Fund totalling 45-thousand dollars.

North End Man In Court For Stabbing And Robbery

A Metcalf Street man has been sent back to jail at the conclusion of a bail hearing on several charges.

Richard Charles King is charged with aggravated assault from a stabbing on Main Street in the north end and robbing a convenience store on Adelaide Street.

He returns to court September 23rd to have a date scheduled for a hearing into the admissibility of conversations that were intecepted by City Police in the course of their investigation.

Unemployment Rate Falls In Saint John But Is Up Nationally

The unemployment rate in Saint John dropping last month from 6.3 to 5.8 per cent with the provincial rate also declining from 10.1 to 9.2 per cent. 

The national unemployment rate rose to 7.3 per cent with the loss of  55-hundred jobs.

Earlier this week the Bank of Canada warned the second half of 2011 would be weaker than previously predicted and that the export sector would face difficulties in foreign markets due to decreased demand and the high dollar.

Most Small Business Owners In Province Are Satisfied With State Of Business

Confidence among small business people in the province remains steady and is almost on par with the rest of the country. That word coming from the latest survey from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business.

Richard Dunn is a policy analyst with the C-F-I-B in New Brunswick who tells CHSJ News the small business confidence barometer in the province is just under the national rate of 61.7. Ideally, it should be above 65 for growth.

Dunn says only 14 per cent of small businesspeople in the province say things are bad with 86 per cent of respondents characterising the state of business as either good or satisfactory.

Housing Starts Are Down In The Province

Housing starts in the 3 major cities of the province on the downward trend -- that from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.

From January to August, housing starts are down about 20 percent in both Fredericton and Moncton.  But Saint John taking a huge hit -- we're down over 50 percent year to date.

Analyst Claude Gautreau with the CMHC tells CHSJ News one of the reasons for the drop is because people are buying existing homes rather than building their own.

He says a very strong 2010 building season is also leading to the softer numbers.

Harbour Bridge Toll Plaza Disappearing

Agreement Between Province And Francophone Schools

After months of bickering, the Provincial Education Department and School District 1 which includes Samuel de Champlain have reached a funding agreement.

The Alward Government announcing the agreement covers three main points......a balanced budget, funding that will reflect the growth in student enrollment and new funding for immigrant students.

The school district will receive an additional 600 thousand dollars in provincial money along with 600 dollars for each immigrant student.

Provincial Education Minister Jody Carr points out the francophone school district has never received additional funding for students from other countries even though anglophone school districts have.

User Fees For Garbage Pickup Getting Thumbs Down

Listener feedback on Facebook showing that some people aren't warm to the idea of garbage bag user fees.

Jennifer calls the idea crazy, saying we already pay for the service via taxes.

Courtney calls it crazy and couldn't imagine paying to put her garbage out while Jean says if fees were put in, people will be dumping trash on the side of the road.

Krista says many municipalities in Ontario charge you for each bag you put out but they also offer curbside recycling.