It's an event that's been a long time coming...after 227 years the fire department is hosting its inaugural gala.
Not only will they be celebrating over two centuries of service, they'll also be fundraising for the Salvation Army's Community Outreach Program. Fire Chief Kevin Clifford tells CHSJ News the firefighters came up with the idea. He says the group is often at fire scenes offering help to victims, so it was a natural fit.
Clifford says events like this help boost morale no matter where you work. The formal event is happening on Saturday, October 5 from 6pm to midnight at the Saint John Trade and Convention Centre. Tickets are $100 a pop, to buy one, click here.
A baseball player from the Port City joining the Major League team he grew up rooting for.
20-year old right-hander Andrew Case of Saint John singing a Major League Baseball deal with the Toronto Blue Jays. He says his heart stopped when he got the call over the weekend, after impressing scouts at a tournament in Toronto by pitching a no-hitter.
Case, who is in Alberta right now, is coming home for a few weeks to celebrate with family, then will head back out West to train at the Prairie Baseball Academy until late February or early March when he reports for spring training in Florida. The six-foot-two 190 pound Case says he hopes to get some more power behind his best pitch, a fastball which now sits at the low-90s, and put on some muscle.
He says he hopes his story inspires other Saint John baseball players to work hard because anything is possible.
Premier David Alward expressed he was impressed by the quality of the reception he and members of the Tory caucus received in the Port City at their recent retreat.
Alward, speaking at the grand opening of the new law courts at Peel Plaza, also seemed to embrace the Renaissance City label coined by Mayor Mel Norton, saying the new law courts are simply one example of the rebirth and change happening in the city.
Alward described Peel Plaza as a "palace", saying it shows a link with Saint John's past while also providing a safer, more secure environment than the old law courts.
The number on your social assistance check will be a little higher this month.
The province boosting the province's basic social assistance rate by four percent on the first of October, and it's going to go up again by three percent in April of next year. The government says it's part of their focus to reduce, prevent and alleviate poverty in the province.
They're also making a few other changes to the system, including more support for families with high shelter costs and better assistance for clients with disabilities who are living with their parents.
Deceased city police officer Ken Estabrooks may have sexually abused 263 children over the course of nearly three decades dating back to the late 1950s.
That word coming from the private investigator contracted by Common Council to investigate the extent of the abuse. After decades of secrecy, private investigators and the city say vulnerable children were targeted for at least 25 years. Most of the sexual
abuse victims were boys but some girls have been identified in the
investigation. They were between the ages of 6 and 19 when the abuse happened.
About 53 of the victims are still living, 33 are dead and
it's believed there are another 152 suspected victims. Estabrooks confessed in 1975, but charges weren't laid until more than 20 years later. Perry revealing to CHSJ News he continued to sexually abuse children after resigning from the police department and being quietly transferred to a job in City Works. He was finally convicted in 1999 and sentenced to six years in jail, dying of cancer in 2005.
A toll free number has been set up for victims wanting to contact investigator Dave Perry and
receive counseling paid for by the city of Saint John. The number to call is
1-866-790-4764.
Perry says the investigation could take up to a year to wrap up.
Emergency crews were called out late yesterday afternoon outside the City market after a woman was struck by a car. It happened around 4:30pm in front of Billy's Seafood Company on Charlotte Street.
When City Police and Fire arrived on the scene, the woman was laying on the ground but was conscious and speaking.
She was was put on a stretcher and taken away in an ambulance.
An update into the investigation of now deceased former city police officer Ken Estabrooks, with more alleged victims coming forward, being delivered today.
And as the decades-old case continues to unfold, the province's Youth Advocate speaking on the social impact of an all too similar case which came to light just this year.
Norm Bosse tells CHSJ News, like Estabrooks, disgraced former Common Councillor Donnie Snook was in a position of trust and authority and he
believes Snook used that power as a way of getting away with abusing his
victims. "Who is going to question him?" asks Bosse.
While many may blame themselves for what happened, Bosse says at the end of the day only one person is responsible for Snook's actions, and that is Snook himself. However, he believes parents need to be aware of what their children are doing.
Bosse, who is a lawyer, represented the victims of sexual abuse at the hands of notorious pedophile Karl Toft at the Youth Training Centre in Kingsclear in the '90s.
The city, towns and local service districts that make up the Fundy Regional Services Commission will have to decide soon whether to give Saint John Airport 600 thousand dollars for marketing.
The Airport Authority making the case it needs to advertise in order to boost passenger numbers. Grand Bay-Westfield Mayor Grace Losier, who chairs the commission, is calling it a good investment after hearing the Airport say the little it has spent recently on advertising coincides with a rise in passenger numbers.
Losier concedes it's scary to think that Air Canada almost left Saint John a couple of years ago and what sort of effect that would have had on the local economy.
"A real can of worms".........That, from Trevor Thorne who lives outside Sussex on the recent vote about whether people outside the town should pay higher taxes to financially support the 8th Hussars Arena.
They voted against and the registration fees have gone up considerably.
Thorne tells CHSJ News the higher fees come with consequences........The Sunday night league has folded and minor hockey registrations are down 35 to 40 per cent which won't help make the shortfall any less.
The shortfall is estimated at 150 thousand dollars and Thorne says the issue has divided the community.
Thorne, who has played hockey in the town for 30 years or so and had sons in minor hockey, believes the town was after a tax grab from the outlying communities and the arena was just an excuse.
Emergency crews responding to a call of a pedestrian being hit by a car uptown.
It happened around 4:30pm in front of Billy's Seafood Company on Charlotte Street. When City Police and Fire arrived on the scene, the woman was laying on the ground but was conscious and speaking. She was put on a stretcher and taken away in an ambulance.
With the Council of Hospital Unions slating the province's new five-year health care plan as more concerned with the fiscal bottom line than patients, Health Minister Ted Flemming says healthcare can't continue to grow at a rate of 5-8% or a billion dollars more today than 10 years ago.
Flemming tells CHSJ News what matters is the end result, and that's the highest level of health care people can get. He adds, if we can do that more efficiently and if we can do it on a more cost effective basis, he considers that "no crime."
Flemming says efficiencies are going to be found in all areas, there won't be just one area cut. The Council of Hospital have expressed frustration with the vagueness of the plan and they are anticipating more layoffs.
An apartment building being evacuated after a fire broke out in one of the units.
City Fire says says there was heavy smoke pouring out of a third floor apartment on Davenport Avenue when they arrived. They found a fire in the back of the home, possibly in a bedroom.
While fire crews kept the fire from spreading, the room is heavily damaged by fire and the rest of the apartment has major smoke and water damage. The building itself has slight smoke and water damage.
The people living in the apartment where the fire started are displaced for a while until the apartment is fixed. A mother and son who lived in the apartment where the fire was now have no place to call home. No word on the cause of the blaze.
About 30 kids will take to the ice rink today, to audition for their moment in the limelight. They're trying out to be flower retrievers for this year's Skate Canada International event.
Cynthia Benson, the co-chair of the local organizing committee tells CHSJ News the flower retrievers pick up what the audience throws onto the ice. Benson says to evaluate the children, they'll be putting them through an obstacle course and judging them on their skating skills, grace and speed.
Out of the 30 children auditioning to be flower retrievers, only 12 will make the cut. Benson says they'll be notified as soon as possible. A group of teenagers will also be auditioning later today for a part in the medal ceremony.
A teenager brought to hospital with multiple stab wounds after intervening in an uptown assault. Sergeant Cowan of City Police says the incident happened on Peters Street where two men were assaulting a third man. When the 17-year old stepped in to help the assault victim, he was stabbed. Cowan says his injuries are not life-threatening and believes the teenager has already been released from hospital.
A 56-year old and 29-year old have been arrested and will be making court appearances. Police are still looking for a third suspect.
Car prowlers hitting more than five vehicles on the West side. City police say it happened overnight and the vehicles were not locked at the time. No word on what was swiped from the cars.
If you've always wanted to be a Saint John Mill Rat, you've got an opportunity to try out.
There are still a few spots open to apply for their mini-camp being held next Sunday in New Hampshire. From there, if you impress management with your skills, you'll be placed in the training camp roster.
The mini camp has only 40 spots and is by invitation only. To qualify, you must register and pay online here by October 1st.
Whether it's going for a stroll in the woods or having a picnic by the shade of a tree, take some time to appreciate forests this week. That's what Andrew Holland of the Nature Conservancy of Canada is suggesting you do to mark National Forest Week. Holland tells CHSJ News forests help drive our economy, clean our air and water, help mitigate flooding from storms and give us a place to explore.
Holland says many people who grew up in rural New Brunswick learned to find a friend in trees, but nowadays, many kids are only interested in staying indoors and playing video games and he believes we have to get them back to enjoying nature.
It's a day of celebration at the Saint John Arts Centre, where they're simultaneously marking their 10th birthday and National Culture Days, which encourages people to explore and engage in arts and culture in their communities.
Executive Director Andrew Kierstead tells CHSJ News they're offering tours of the centre, which includes a stop at the new printmaking facility where artist Herzl Kashetsky made his latest edition of etchings. Kashetsky will be singing the prints today at noon.
Musical events start at 11am, when young pianist and composer Wen Gao will be playing original piano transcriptions of Hollywood movie music and popular Asian songs. At 12:30pm, Saint John Idol runner-up Sadie Donahue is will be singing with Jerry-Faye Flatt and at 1:30pm, Master Hammer Dulcimer Player Wenmei Li is performing.
Rothesay Regional Police want your help with a number of investigations.
On Tuesday, they found a water scooter floating on the river along the Gondola Point Road. On Sept. 3, a cell phone and wallet were swiped from the men's locker room at the Goodlife Fitness on the Hampton Road.
On Aug. 15, a Mercury short-shaft motor was stolen out of a boat on Cameron Road Beach in Rothesay. It has a chip in the propeller and a white arrow on the throttle handle. They're also looking for info in the theft of a ski-doo on the Vincent Road. The blue 2012 Grand Touring was stolen sometime between April 19 and Aug. 24.
Police asking you to give them or Crimestoppers a call if you have information about any of these investigations. You can contact police by calling 847-6300 or Crimestoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
The NDP leader says the lateness of the Alward government quarterly financial report is another broken promise. Dominic Cardy tells CHSJ News we know why they are late adding Minister Higgs was even writing op-ed articles about it a few years back.
He says the departments wouldn't give Higgs the figures he needed to get the updates out.
Cardy says that mean Blaine Higgs has been taught not to talk about the incompetence and lack of discipline inside the government over the last two years.
Cardy says the projected deficit is a sign of how the government failed to put forward a vision that would change the province. He says that task will be left to the next government to make sure we can fix problems like seeing our population drop and high unemployment.
Law and order are important to any community--and the new law courts at Peel Plaza reflect that, according to dignitaries gathering for the facility's grand opening.
In his first official duty as the new Justice Minister, Troy Lifford praising the new law courts as a vast improvement over the old situation at city hall.
The mayor, premier, lieutenant governor and various MLAs were on hand. The law courts have been in use for some time already but the ribbon cutting ceremony officially marked its opening to the public.
The city has scheduled an update Monday on the investigation into sexual abuse perpetrated years ago by then City Police officer Ken Estabrooks, amid reports of many more victims have come forward. There are also rumblings a potential class-action lawsuit.
Common Council has approved an additional $100,000 to continue the investigation. There may have been more than 40 victims of the abuse.
Estabrooks was never charged in 1975 even though he confessed. Estabrooks resigned from the police department but was transferred to City Works. Charges were finally laid in 1998 and Estabrooks, who died in 2005, was convicted in 1999 and sentenced to six years in prison. The Police Commission released a report, calling the 1975 investigation "unprofessional" which allowed a serious sex offender to go unpunished.
Mike Biggar is a name in country star most folks in Saint John will recognize.
Biggar's been breaking into the mainstream music scene will his collaborations with Chris Cummings and he tells CHSJ News he's excited to release his new album Feels Like Now.
Biggar is an ECMA and New Brunswick Music Award winner. He's performing tonight on the Mexi's patio with Chris Cummings and a full band to launch the new record.
The show starts at 9pm at Mexi's on Princess Street in Saint John. For more info, click here
Premier David Alward says he has confidence the National Energy Board will be able to adequately evaluate the environmental risks associated with building a pipeline to Saint John.
David Thompson of the Conservation Council tells CHSJ News a lot of people were turned off by their treatment when the National Energy Board held hearings in the city a few years ago on the natural gas pipeline through Rockwood Park.
Thompson says the rules apparently have changed since then and a lot of people who might want to have something to say and take part could be shut out from participating because they won't be given standing.
A grassroots energy summit will be held in the city next week with the theme that shale gas, oil pipelines and nuclear energy represent the past and not the future. One of the speakers will be Maude Barlow of the Council of Canadians.
The Alward government providing a long overdue fiscal update with first quarter results projecting a deficit of nearly 500 million dollars. Finance Minister Blaine Higgs joined by the Premier and MLA Glenn Savoie for the announcement at the Delta today as the Saint John caucus wraps up its summer retreat.
Higgs says if government had not confronted spending the revenue challenges they have been facing would be much worse.
In 2011 and 2012, Higgs says they saw year over year expenses decrease for the first time in 11 years adding in the last two years they have seen spending only grow by a half a per cent compared to the 10 year average of 4.2 per cent.
Premier Alward says historically departments have been way over budget with their early quarterly results and now they are seeing departments below budget and within 1 per cent representing a huge shift.
The Premier also revealing to the gathered media that the fall session of the Legislature will begin early on November 5th.
Next May will mark the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Empress of Ireland.
It's happened in the St. Lawrence River and more than a 1000 passengers on the ship died.
The New Brunswick Museum hosting a travelling showcase on the ship which includes video of the underwater wreck. Pascale St. Amand tells CHSJ News the exhibit is moving on to Halifax at 5 today.
She says she has had many visitors from cruise ships and they are a bit scared by the tragedy but most people are surprised they have not heard of the Empress before.
St. Amand says the exhibit includes a video that depicts how the Storstad hit the Empress sinking her. She add the sinking is significant as World War 1 broke out a short time later.
The stray cat population in Saint John has exploded and one foster mom wants to see changes to help the situation.
25 year old Missy Hebert has 10 cats in a one bedroom apartment most of which are rescues and she is also caring for two sick foster kittens. She says stray can be found in every neighborhood of the city and as it gets colder people are concerned about the animals being outside and they may also be injured or pregnant.
Hebert tells CHSJ News the City created a problem when they changed the animal control by-law and cut funding. She says with that move they decided cats are worthless by throwing them out of the city's by-law adding the local shelter has no legal responsibility to help cats unless its on death's door and there is no other option but to euthanize it.
Hebert would like to see a low cost spay and neuter program put in place and believes there needs to be more education on the true cost of pet ownership.
She says that free kitten someone gave you will need shots that average $100 and a neuter or spay that can run between $200 to $400.
Residents of the Baxter Road and Old Westmoreland Road area are going to be happy to hear about this one.
An illegal dump site on Worden Drive could be shut down in a matter of weeks, after which time it's hoped the province will help clean up the site. Common Councillor David Merrithew tells CHSJ News he wants everyone to know even though the operator was charging tipping fees he had no right to let people dump there.
Merrithew says he had never seen an illegal dump site this bad--and it looked like a lot of the materials were industrial waste. He says he'd like to see the people who dumped on the site penalized as well.
Just days after the province came out with their healthcare blueprint, the province's doctors releasing a companion piece called Care First.
The New Brunswick Medical Society says their document is built around the four pillars of primary care renewal, wait time reduction, healthy living and front line work input.
Medical Society President Dr. Robert Desjardins tells CHSJ News they advocate a new program called 'Choose Wisely' which aims to improve decision-making by medical profession in areas like testing.
He says the program will support a certain kind of standardization in testing but it only works with education and in co-operation with the government. Desjardins says in the US, the standardization of testing has saved over 25 per cent in hospital laboratory costs.
The Medical Society is also calling on New Brunswickers to be more responsible for their own health adding just talking about it is not enough. He says their must be some legislation by the government to force hospitals and schools to serve better food in their own cafeterias.
The city has taken members of the caucus on a tour of the city aimed at demonstrating Saint John's key role as the economic powerhouse of the region, according to Mayor Mel Norton.
Norton says the city was especially keen to show off the role of the Port in the economic life of New Brunswick.
An iconic Saint John tourist attraction is officially on the market.
Marc Gosselin and his wife started running the Reversing Falls Jet Boat 19 years ago and now they say it's time for them to move on to some new ventures. Gosselin tells CHSJ News it's unclear what the future will hold for the Jet Boat, but already they've received some inquiries. Gosselin says he's not in his thirties anymore and as time goes on he doesn't think they'd be able to keep providing the same quality of service.
The "For Sale" sign is currently hanging on the operation and they're entertaining offers.
It's time to make some major changes to the boardwalk area including Market Slip and Loyalist Plaza. With that goal in mind, Saint John Waterfront Development will host three public consultations with one beginning next week.
General Manager Kent MacIntyre says the sky is the limit adding they want as many ideas as possible from people who use the space every day and in every season
The first consultation is coming up next Thursday, October 3rd in the Mary Oland theatre at the museum. It begins at 6 and includes a reception and interactive presentation.
With poll numbers in the doldrums, Premier David Alward and his M-L-A's are holding a caucus retreat in the city with a year to go before the provincial election.
The Premier is rejecting criticism about not demanding more liability protection from the risks to the environment with Trans Canada's proposed pipeline to Saint John.
Alward says he has full confidence in Trans Canada based on its history. He adds the proposal will be scrutinised by the National Energy Board which will evaluate the risks and the provincial Environment Department will have input.
More than 2600 people in this province got a diagnosis of heart disease between 2009 and 2010. That startling stat from a provincial report on heart health.
More than 21,000 men and over 13,000 women are living with the disease. Almost 1800 people in the province went to hospital for the first time with heart failure over those two years.
The rate of new cases of heart disease is steadily decreasing over the last decade and more people with heart disease are living longer.
With growing senior populations and the increase in rates of diabetes and adult obesity, the evidence doesn't show whether or not the decline in new cases and deaths due to heart disease will continue.
Just another promise he made to get elected. That's what one Liberal Health Critic is calling the Alward government's failure to get the Saint John Regional Hospital a 3T MRI.
Donald Arsenault tells CHSJ News that was a commitment Premier David Alward made to the community and is now just another addition to a long list of broken promises. He says he wants to know where Alward stands on the issue now.
The city's medical professionals seem to want the 3T version, while the Horizon Health Network has come out against it. Arsenault says they'll see what position Health Minister Ted Flemming takes and go from there.
Watch out for those Bullwinkles and Bambis as you drive around the city.
City police putting out a warning about the potential for deer/moose collisions this time of year.
Drivers are asked to be vigilant when driving as deer are coming closer to roadways from the woods this time of year.
The police asking drivers to heed the warning signs in areas where moose and deer are regularly spotted, to drive defensively and be aware of your surroundings.
It's a keepsake that gives you coffee and supports your favourite team.
You can get a reloadable coffee card at your local Timmy's with the Sea Dogs logo on it.
Sea Dogs President Wayne Long tells CHSJ News it's something they always thought about doing.
He says you always see the cards with a winter scene or the Tim Horton's camps and they thought it would be a great idea to have a Sea Dogs logo on one of those cards.
You can get your own Sea Dogs Tim's card at locations between Sussex and St. Stephen.
A new telemarketing scam is making the rounds. The Saint John Police Force Fraud Section warns people are receiving calls stating that they have won anywhere from 10,000 to 100,000 bonus Air Miles.
They are then asked to provide personal information like a credit card number. Air Miles has debunked the scam as a fake saying they never use automated messages. You can visit the Canadian Antifraud Centre's website at here to learn more about what steps you should take to avoid becoming a victim of telemarketingand automated telephone schemes.
We need to be proactive instead of reactive when it comes to flooding. That from MLA for Charlotte-The Isles, Rick Doucet who isn't happy his idea to establish a committee on flood damage control was shot down by Premier David Alward.
He tells CHSJ News the government's Regional Emergency Management Coordinators network only deals with flooding after-the-fact. He says we have to get into a proactive stage and get out in front of these things because they're going to be happening more and more frequently.
Doucet says we're losing an opportunity to open up some dialogue on a topic that's impacting all New Brunswickers.
You might want to be extra careful about locking your doors if you live in the Quispamsis area.
There have been two daytime break-ins and thefts already this week on Hardwood Crescent and on the Quispamsis Road. Both happened when the homeowners weren't at home, and numerous items were taken.
The Rothesay Regional Police Force is asking the public to report any suspicious people or activities in their neighbourhood. Call the dispatch center at (506) 847-6300 or 911 if a crime is in progress.
A Nova Scotia franchise has opened a brand new restaurant in uptown Saint John.
The newly-opened Ryan Duffy's in Market Square is the third location of the steakhouse and seafood chain in the Maritimes, with locations already in Truro and Halifax
The restaurant is named after a Halifax speakeasy from the prohibition era and specializes in grilled menu items, table side-prepared caesar salads and drinks according to manager partner Matt Costain, who will be running the restaurant with owner Damian Byrne.
Ryan Duffy's will be announcing its grand opening in the coming weeks.
The New Brunswick Roadbuilders Association is not discouraged by the response of the Transportation Minister to spending more money on roads around the province. Claude Williams warns money is tight.
Tom McGinn is the Association's Executive-Director. He says the idea is to spend a bit today, then avoid being faced with a more serious problem that will require more money down the line.
McGinn also warns many of the people who work on the roads have gone out west to the point where there's a labour shortage.
The patient who's suffering from a potentially highly contagious type of tuberculosis and remains hospitalized at the Dr. Georges Dumont Hospital is a business faculty student at the University of Moncton who was on hand for the first week of classes.
Medical authorities indicate the student’s condition is getting better and are optimistic the risk of infection is low.
They're also confident only those people who had close contact with the affected student are at risk of infection. The university is establishing a list of those who could have potentially been in contact with the student, including other students, professors and all other staff members.
Over the next few days, health professionals will be present in the classes in which the affected student would have been present during the contamination period in order to answer questions that may arise.
