Fredericton police have arrested two men in connection with the robbery of a pharmacy at 640 Prospect Street this morning.
Around 11am, one man went into the business carrying a weapon and made demands, then fled in a black SUV with undisclosed items.
No one was injured, and the suspects were tracked down at an uptown hotel around 3pm. They eventually surrendered to police without incident.
A request from the Salvation Army for more funding to go towards the Centre of Hope getting shot down by the Department of Social Development.
Minister Madeline Dube tells CHSJ News they have been reviewing the request for the past few weeks and says based on the business plan and financial information given to them by the Salvation Army, they've decided they're not able give them more than the $1.1-million already being given.
The department says they could find efficiencies and that they will work with the non-profit to identify those so that it can be more financially sustainable. She tells us in terms of changes, a combination of things would need to happen including reducing services and staffing.
The centre's future is currently uncertain, and it could be closing by the end of February.
The Saint John Harbour M-L-A says the possible closure of the Salvation Army Centre of Hope in the South end seems to have come out of left field.
Carl Killen calls the situation totally unexpected and tells CHSJ News he toured the facility a short while ago and things appeared to be going well, and now he's hearing they're in trouble.
Killen says no matter what happens, he's confident the government will continue to make sure that people who are now using the facility on St. James Street continue receiving the services they require.
A Moncton man being killed in a snowmobile crash in northern New Brunswick.
The 21-year-old died after being ejected from the snowmobile on a trail located about thirty kilometres south of Bathurst.
RCMP did not release the man's name.
A Millidgeville man fed up with the flooding situation at his apartment complex is looking for answers from the city.
Doug James of 10 Charlie Grace Terrace says his superintendent has been struggling to keep rain and melting snow from flooding the building, which is located just a few feet away from a sloping hill.
The tenant says a few weeks ago the superintendent had to dig a big trench to try and contain the water and describes the middle of the parking lot as looking more like a skating rink this winter.
In a letter directed to Mayor Mel Norton with Councillors Gerry Lowe and Donna Reardon copied, James says he wants to know why the building was built where it was without considering proper drainage and what MetCap is going to do to provide a long-term solution to the problem.
Crews battling a structure fire on the East side of the city.
Firefighters quickly knocking down the fire which broke out in an unattached shed on Knox Street.
It doesn't appear anyone was hurt as a result of the blaze.
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| Joshua Jewett |
Police are calling on the public for help finding two missing men from Fredericton.
31-year-old Joshua Jewett disappeared on February 10 while 40-year-old David Watt has been missing since on December 2. Both were last seen in the capital city. The two cases are not related.
Jewett is described as 5 foot 9 inches tall, thin build, approximately 160lbs, the last time he was seen he was clean cut and clean shaven but may also have some facial hair, has glasses but rarely wears them, brown shaggy hair that may be in a ponytail, and does not have any tattoos, scars or other distinct features. He normally wears a black ski jacket and blue jeans.
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| David Watt |
Watt is described as 5 foot 10 inches tall, 150lbs, with short brown hair, and brown eyes.
If you have any information about either of the missing men you're being asked to get in touch with the Fredericton Police Force by calling 460-2300 or Crime Stoppers by calling 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
Provincial NDP leader Dominic Cardy says people are still fearful of voting for the wrong party at election time because the M-L-A's have too much of a say in who the provincial government hires.
Cardy would like M-L-A's to have their influence limited to just the people who staff their offices.
Cardy created quite a stir recently when he equated the reluctance of the school system to fail students to the province's high rate of illiteracy but he tells CHSJ News we have a crisis on our hands with 56 per cent of people in New Brunswick considered functionally illiterate.
Cardy argues having a highly trained workforce is the best way to attract business investment to the province rather than handing out grants.
Big Data is fast becoming big business and T4G is holding a conference on Data Science at the Delta.
Paul Mansz of Ambir Technology estimates it could be worth in the tens, if not hundreds of millions of dollars as companies struggle with sifting through all the data that's available these days before they can make a decision.
Saint John M-P Rodney Weston says a lot is happening under the radar in Saint John.
The conference will be examining how data science can help improve patient outcomes while, at the same time, be cost effective.
The C-E-O of NB Power Gaetan Thomas will be taking part in another session on energy and the smart grid entitled "What can be measure, can be managed".
The city might lose the Salvation Army Centre of Hope on St. James Street as early as the end of this month, according to the Canadian Union of Public Employees.
The Union representing the workers at the Salvation Army, CUPE local 4780, says it told last week four days of negotiation were being postponed until further notice. Marcos Salib of Local 4780 is warning the closure would result in 35 employees losing their jobs and 34 residents without a roof over their heads.
Salib goes on to say the employees have been told the building, itself, is in need of repairs.
The C-E-O at Horizon Health John McGarry has been given the mandate to reduce the cost of healthcare which was increasing year by year above the rate of inflation and swallowing up a greater percentage of the provincial budget.
McGarry tells CHSJ News the revamping of healthcare will be the norm from now on because the provincial government wants it to run more like a business and, as such, there will be destabilisation among the workers in healthcare.
McGarry says the technology is there to allow lots of things to occur at a distance which will restrain costs. He estimates if 2 per cent in cost efficiencies can be found in the system each year and growth can be limited to 4 per cent, the system should be sustainable with an annual increase in funding of 2 per cent.
One of the messages to be delivered to the Big Data conference getting underway today at the Trade and Convention Centre is that improved patient outcomes and increased cost effectiveness is within our reach with the intelligent application of data science to healthcare.
Common Council holding a special meeting tonight to go over Zone SJ which is the road map to guide future development in the city over the next generation.
Jacqueline Hamilton is the Commissioner of Growth and Future Development and says under the plan, rural development would still take place but it would be clustered in places like Lorneville and Ketepec. There would be be restrictions on building sub divisions in the more remote rural parts of the city.
Industrial development would be allowed in the industrial parks and industrial zones to avoid conflict in residential neighbourhoods.
Fed up with buildings being torn down to make way for new parking lots?
The new draft zoning bylaw, ZoneSJ, will purportedly crack down on landowners who allow properties to crumble, only to replace them with gravel lots.
Common Councillor David Merrithew says he just hopes it's enforceable--a sentiment echoed by Councillor John Mackenzie and others.
Planner Stacey Forfar explained another element of ZoneSj is addressing the problem of heavy industry situated right beside residential areas. While we might have accepted such development in the past, Forfar explained, we need to safeguard against it going forward to ensure resident's quality of life is maintained.
ZoneSJ also relaxes the rules about adding granny suites to homes, and will make sure developers follow minimum landscaping standards; although, some rural residents have criticized what they see as a singular focus on urban development at the expense of their interests.
Council voted to take steps to adopt ZoneSJ by this summer with only common councillor Susan Fullerton voting against.
It seems many of us have come to expect the unexpected when it comes to investing in these market conditions.
According to a new report by BMO Global Asset Management, 77 percent of investors feel market volatility is the "new normal" and will stay that way for the foreseeable future. When asked to point out their top priorities when deciding how to invest their cash in today's market, 96 percent said balancing risk in their investments is critical.
80 percent of respondents said they could use a helping hand finding their ideal investment level while 85 percent reported needed assistance finding investments suited for their risk level.
