Hillsborough residents are concerned about oil and gas drilling and production being approved without the provincial government making an assessment of the community's baseline health status.
An assessment was reccomended by the chief medical officer for the province, Dr Eilish Cleary, in a report last year.
A new well in Edgett's Landing is less than 2km from both village water wells and .5km from residential areas according to a local citizen group, Water and Environmental Protection for Albert County, who are concerned about potential adverse effects.
Hillsborough Village Council and citizens groups have sent a letter with over 100 signatures to the Minister of Health asking that province establish baseline health and socio-economic status and water/air quality, before more developments are approved.
For those seeking out new ways to cope with bullying have another option in the K.V.
"The B Factor" is a support group and information resource for victims of bullying and for the parents and guardians of those who have been bullied.
Constable Krystal Daley of the Rothesay Regional Police tells CHSJ News they meet every month in the KV Superstore community room.
She says they started last fall and they have either a guest speaker or a presentation by someone in the community relating to bullying and what is being done in the schools.
Daley says they've been meeting every month in the community room of the KV Superstore and they will again tonight at 7. Tonight's presentation is about internet safety and anyone who is interested can just show up.
No answer yet when it comes to tackling the tricky traffic spot at Simm's Corner. Common Councillor Bill Farren tells CHSJ that he thinks the spot is most problematic for drivers unfamiliar with the area, not west siders. After the idea to install a roundabout was shot down, Farren wants to see a permanent solution put into place.
He calls the choice not to install the traffic fixture "disappointing".
A damaged covered bridge may get a new lease on life if some petitioners have their way.
Locals are presenting a petition to Curtis Malloch, MLA for Charlotte-Campobello, urging the provincial government to restore the damaged covered bridge at Maxwell Crossing.
The bridge was heavily damaged in a January 21 single-vehicle collision and the Department of Transport suggested the bridge might not be repaired, but replaced with a bailey bridge. The petition has been signed by more than 900 people.
The repairs would cost some $500,000. The province has lost almost 240 of its historic covered bridges in the last 50 years.The bridge at Maxwell Crossing was built 103 years ago.
A recovery center aimed specifically at women is marking 5 years in operation in Saint John.
Sophia House has seen 370 women through its doors since it opened and executive director Janet Bordage tells CHSJ News there have been some amazing success stories. She says one thing, however, came as a bit of a surprise for her: the most commonly abused drug isn't something illicit. Rather, about 50% of the women they see are primarily addicted to alcohol.
Everyone who works and volunteers at Sophia House is in recovery themselves, which provides an atmosphere of understanding as women work to overcome their addictions. An event marking the 5 year milestone is being held Monday (today) at the center at 83 Hazen Street.
Slowly, but surely, the shipbuilding industry is moving forward. MP Rodney Weston telling CHSJ news that he's confident that the current strategy for the program in Halifax is the right one to keep the maritime industry afloat.
The Irving shipbuilding project will span over the next 30 years, and Weston says because of that time frame, they're factoring inflation rates into cost estimates.
Main Street in the Old North End used to be a thriving commercial area---and although things have changed for the worse according to Marigolds on Main founder Barry Ogden, the city needs to focus on the area's potential.
Ogden tells CHSJ News he'd like to see the murals along that street keep up and a fountain installed near Fort Howe.
Ogden says part of the reason people aren't attracted to the area is also the high rate of speed on Main--but that needs to change is the city wants to generate tax revenue from the North End.
The Nature Conservancy of Canada is asking you to take a closer look at milk cartons.
The organization is partnering with Northumberland Dairy for the second year in a row for a provincial campaign that aims to protect undeveloped areas that are special to New Brunswickers by promoting the organization's land and habitat protection project on all white milk containers.
NCC Director Andrew Holland tells Tide News he hopes the campaign gets residents thinking about those spots they share a connection with in New Brunswick.The goal is to raise awareness, and to match the $50, 000 they made in donations last year.
A shoplifter who made the the rounds of 3 local businesses before getting busted will appear in court in the spring.
The 41 year old man us charged with with 3 counts of shoplifting from the Co-op, Grand-Bay Home Hardware and also Guardian Drugs in Grand-Bay all in the same day.
A major retailer of farm, industrial, garage, and surplus items is opening its doors in Saint John this year.
Princess Auto announcing it will be opening a new location at the East Point Shopping Center at some point in 2013. Previously, the closest location to the Saint John area was in Moncton.
The Canadian retail chain operates 34 stores in 8 provinces and employs 1,700 hundred people nationwide.
Police were called to a few Friday night upsets; however, none of the calls were too serious.
Some residents on the corner of Pitt and Crown awoke to a nasty shock finding some windows smashed out and tires slashed overnight. Police are looking into the cause of the damage.
The Fire Department were also called to deal with a propane leak on McAllister Drive. it's speculated the leak was caused by a leaky ball joint but the situation was soon turned over to mall management.
Provincial NDP leader Dominic Cardy tells CHSJ News he gives Shawn Graham some credit for realizing, albeit a bit late, that quitting was the right move.
Cardy says following Justice Ryan's report and his conflict of interest, getting out of politics is the correct and honourable step for Graham.
In terms of whether or not he'll seek a seat in the inevitable bye-election, Cardy says he'll be speaking with the NDP folks in Kent but he does promise there will be a strong candidate there.
It appears to be a shuffle with some title changes. That is the reaction from Norma Robinson, the President of the Council of Hospital Unions, on a management shake up at the Horizon Health Network. The health authority announcing changes to 25 senior management positions yet only 2 people are actually leaving the system. President Norma Robinson tells CHSJ News she wonders if there is an intention of making more reductions.
She says they are talking about going from 23 people to 12 but only two are leaving the system so she isn't sure what that implies.
Robinson isn't sure if that means there will be another sweep adding it's one of the unknowns.
Former Premier Shawn Graham is leaving politics after an investigation concluded he violated conflict of interest laws.
The province's conflict of interest commissioner released a report this week saying Graham was in a conflict of interest when his Liberal government gave a $50 million loan guarantee to a construction company.
Patrick Ryan said Graham should have removed himself from cabinet discussions in March 2009 over the loan guarantee to Atcon because his father was a paid consultant of Atcon companies. Graham said the conflict was an oversight on his part and he accepts full responsibility for his actions.
Graham was elected premier in 2006 but ousted from power four years later. He says he will continue to serve as the member for the riding of Kent until March 11.
Exporting natural gas from Canaport is where the real money is according to John Herron of the Atlantica Centre for Energy.
He says because of shale gas development in North America, the business case for bringing natural gas in by ship is drying up but being able to export natural gas is a whole different story with prices in Europe and Asia alot higher.
Herron says 30 per cent of natural gas in North America comes from shale already and that is expected to increase to over half within ten years which he calls a real game changer.
He also estimates an export terminal at Canaport would be a 2.5 to 4 billion dollar investment.
A public sector union says the Harper government should stop sending federal employees on Employment Insurance house calls because they might end up in dangerous situations. Spokesman Larry Rousseau says some employees who have done the E-I house calls have not been well received and the union is worried about their safety.
Saint John M-P Rodney Weston is not ready to say yet whether this is the right approach to uncovering abuse. Weston has many questions he wants answered after conceding it caught him by surprise and , at first glance, finds the house calls a bit disturbing. Prime Minister Harper is defending the house calls, saying hundreds of millions of dollars are lost through false or inappropriate E-I claims.
72 thousand dollars........That's the legal bill for former Liberal Premier Shawn Graham, who was found to be in a conflict of interest over loan guarantees to Atcon, but who should have paid that.
The Peoples' Alliance Party releasing a statement saying it should not have been provincial taxpayers who already find themselves under the gun but ought to have been the provincial Liberal party, the former Premier himself or the former members of his cabinet who took part in coming to the decision to give the loan guarantees.
On Tuesday, PotashCorp NB made a $250,000 matching contribution and today MP Rodney Weston gave $100,000 to support the theatre over two different seasons. Executive Director S. G. Lee tells CHSJ News the money from the federal government is for programming.
She says this money goes directly to the cost of bringing in artists including fees, travel and flights and community activities in and around the Imperial.
Lee says planning for the 2013/2014 is 75 per cent complete and now they are working on the 2014/2015 season.
The mother of a Moncton teen who strangled herself in prison says no one has been held accountable for the death.
Testifying today at a Toronto inquest, Coralee Smith says nothing has changed for inmates.
She says everyone in the system knew how desperate her daughter was, yet they did not help.
Ashley Smith choked herself to death in her segregation cell in Kitchener, Ontario in October 2007. Guards, who were under orders not to intervene, simply watched. Her mom says the 19-year-old should not have been in prison in the first place.
Some streamlining at the top at the Horizon Health Network.
New president John McGarry announcing the Executive Management Team has been reduced from 12 to 7. McGarry says three VP's are out of the senior management team, 4 VP's have been converted to corporate directors and one person have been brought in as Chief Operating Officer.
McGarry says the two people leaving will receive a standard severance package as approved by the province. He says that will result in significant savings for the organization but he would say how much money they will save with these changes. Horizon Health Network must find 3 million dollars in savings by next year and McGarry tells CHSJ News this gives them a start on it.
Disabled patients should be seen as people first and their disability second and doctors should be more compassionate. So says Dr. Shawn Jennings who suffered a debilitating brainstem stroke when he was 45, forcing him to give up his family practice of 20 years.
Dr. Jennings still uses a wheelchair but has recovered to the point where he's a member of the faculty at the Dal Medical School and tells CHSJ News doctors will treat the disabled differently but not out of malice but because they feel sorry for them.
Dr. Jennings says examination tables in doctors' offices are too high for the disabled to get up onto but they're designed that way so doctors don't have to bend over as much and save wear and tear on their backs. Another barrier is actually getting into a doctor's office if it isn't wheelchair accessible.
More than 17 per cent of people in the province are coping with disabilities which is the second highest rate in the country, second only to Nova Scotia and we have to get our act together. That was the message delivered at a forum organised by the Saint John Human Development Council.
Executive-Director Randy Hatfield tells CHSJ News there are still too many barriers when people with disabilities seek healthcare and at a time when the province is trying to constrain the escalating cost of healthcare.
The forum was told there are not enough interpreters around to allow the deaf to communicate by sign language and that sometimes results in them being treated with a lack of respect. The forum also hearing there's a stigma that if you have a physical disability, somehow you also suffer from a mental disability.
Elevated carbon moxide levels at the Charles Gorman Arena may have been responsible for several users getting sick over the weekend.
The Arena Attendant at the Gorman was alerted to the problem after getting a call from a user asking about the air quality. Testing with a hand-held device showed the carbon moxide levels in the building were indeed higher than safe levels, with readings up to 67parts per million. Exposures to 100ppm or greater are hazardous to human health.
The building was evacuated and the natural gas fired boilers were checked but no leaks or malfunctions were found. The Zamboni was pulled from service and tested as well, but the results were normal. At this point the source of the elevated levels is unclear but it is still being investigated.
We known New Brunswickers love to get outside in nature; however, the Nature Conservancy of Canada has some numbers to back that up.
Andrew Holland of the NCC tells CHSJ News nature is even more important to our family's overall health and well-being than we might think. A recent poll by the conservancy asked Canadians whether they'd rather spend family time inside or out--and a whopping 87% of those surveyed said they'd be inclined to head out of doors.
Holland tells CHSJ News it's a great way to beat the winter blues, pointing to skiing, snow-shoeing and winter bird watching as fun activities that can be enjoyed in nature, and says it's important to appreciate the value of our natural landscape if we want to preserve it.
We have more technical details from the search warrants in the investigation of former common councillor Donnie Snook.
The 568-page document describes events leading from March 2011 to Snook's January arrest, including the installation of a surveillance camera on a power pole outside his home. The camera recorded who was at 575 Martha Avenue while explicit chat sessions were happening with undercover police.
On January 9th an officer observed while all the lights were on at the home, no one answered the door. Snook was the only one inside. The chat logs from that time show a message saying "some one at the door....see you later?"'
The warrants also inndicate the person sharing the explicit images was hacking into their neighbour's wi-fi connection. However, the Mac Address of the computer used to transmit them was traced to Snook's home.
The chat user promised the undercover cop "live action" in order to win his trust--but only with their face covered, because if they were caught, "[they] would die." Cameras, computers, a tablet, phones and other electronic devices were all confiscated in the search. Snook's next court appearance is on March 11 when he is expected to enter a plea.
The Feds giving the First Steps housing project $80,000 to assess the social and financial benefits of their program.
The house on Cobourg street provides a place for pregnant and parenting young women to live and get an education.
40 women have graduated from the program since its inception in 2002.
First Steps Executive Director Sharon Amirault says they hope at the end of the two year project its helpful in evaluating their program and others.
She says it will set a standard for how other non-profit agencies will look at valuing their service.
Amirault says as an example it may find that every dollar First Steps receives five dollars is saved in the health of children and mothers and education etc.
Saint John MP Rodney Weston says the results of this survey will be helpful to government so they can show return on investment.
For more info, call 693-BABY (2229) or email info@firststepshousing.com
Graphic and disturbing details of the investigation into former common councilor Donnie Snook have come to light with the release today of search warrants in the case--albeit heavily redacted.
The warrants reveal someone using the same internet IP address as Snook's home on Martha Avenue engaged in lengthy chats discussing sexual activities with numerous young boys. The warrants state someone at the home posessed the technical knowledge and ability to steal Wi-fi from others at nearby addresses; however, the Mac address signal was traced to Snook's home address. To an undercover officer playing the role of a fellow pedophile, the chat user described himself as "100% boy lover" plauged by "forbidden passion that haunts [him.]" The person also described "playing" with at least 3 boys, engaging in "cam sessions" with others, and shared video depicting a prepubescent child engaged in a sex act.
Of the victims, chat user writes, "little boys like pleasure to [sic] you know...its society that has messed them up with shame and hate...i NEVER hurt. i treat them like gold...they are little princes." Over a thousand images with child-related pornographic content were shared on the network.
The documents also indicate Snook attempted to grab a laptop and flee through the back door when police came to arrest him at his home on January 9th.
Snook's bail hearing is scheduled for March 11 pending completion of the police investigation. Until then, he has been remanded to provincial jail. Since the initial charges came to light several more people have also contacted city police and RCMP alleging they have been sexually abused by the 40-year-old.
His lawyer, Dennis Boyle, says he will enter a plea on March 11.
One of our road warriors sent in this picture of an accident Sunday on Highway 1 near Hammond River. A tractor trailer had skidded off the road and had to be removed.
The Department of Natural Resources is on the scene today excavating some soil contaminated by a fuel spill after the weekend crash.
We could soon know more about the case against former common councillor Donnie Snook.
Search warrants in the case are scheduled to be released later today although some of the information will be blacked out.
The two-term councillor resigned last month amid 8 charges relating to child pornography, child exploitation, and sexual interference with a child under 16. The 40 year old was arrested at his home on January 9th and resigned as a Councillor on the 17th.
The best and brightest of Facebook, Twitter and Instagram will be getting some kudos at the 3rd annual Salty Awards.
Voting is now live for the social media awards which includes categories like Twitter Person of the Year, Best Facebook, and a new award for the Best Instagram account.
Co-chair Craig Allen tells CHSJ News received over 500 nominees and they're hoping a large number of Saint Johners will vote as well.
Former winners include the Saint John Alehouse, Jonathan Huberdeau and Piece O'Cake Custom Creations. Allen says since social media is an ingrained part of many of our lives it makes sense to recognize the locals who make valuable contributions.
Some massive sketches by famed Saint John artist Miller Brittain are getting a new lease on life, thanks to the efforts of staff at the NB Museum.
Conservators are working to repair the 9-by-9 foot drawings, which were intended as the basis for a mural at the old TB hospital.
Conservation intern Moya Dumville has been removing decades-old tape inch by inch and making repairs using stable materials. The sketches, made for a proposed mural for the walls of the Saint John Tuberculosis Hospital in 1941-1942, depict people suffering from tuberculosis, the treatments of the time and the hope for a cure.
Conservator Claire Titus tells CHSJ News it's a shame that improper handling has done some damage to the works, which consist of large squares held together with paper tape. Over the years, someone had applied masking tape to hold them together--and while that was done with the best intentions, it now is damaging the works and needs to be removed.
The public are invited to see the sketches and the restoration work in person at the NB Museum Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday from 1:30-3:30pm; Thursday from 1:30-3:30pm and 5:30-7:30pm; and Sunday February 17 and Sunday February 24 from 1:30-3:30pm.
One Change has big plans for programming at the Nick Nicolle Community Centre on Victoria Street when it takes over running the day to day operations in a few months time.
The President of One Change Scott Crawford says there will be programmes on offer for everyone in the neighbourhood, not just recreation for young people.
Crawford is talking about pre-natal classes, early childhood education, which he calls essential, so children from the Old North End don't find themselves behind even before they start their schooling and adult education programmes including computer instruction.
PotashCorp New Brunswick giving a matching contribution of $250,000 to the Imperial Theatre. That means the theatre has to come up with $250, 000 themselves in order to get the corporate donation. Jamie Whittaker of the Imperial Theatre's board says this kind of contribution engages the community in something they already own.
He says a non-profit charity organization runs the theatre now but it was started by Saint Johners donating money so it's really owned by the whole community.
Whittaker says the Imperial Theatre has been restored now it just needs to be maintained.
Common Councillors will learn everything they need to know over the next several weeks about a public-private partnership to bring clean drinking water to the city with construction of a water treatment plant on the east side.
A number of meetings are being scheduled with the aim being to draw up an application for funding by early April.
Mayor Mel Norton, who would like to break ground later this year, is adamant the city will not be giving up control and ownership of its water.
Common Council will be getting a value for money study in the next little while to give a better idea whether this arrangement makes financial sense for the city.
The city of Saint John will soon be posting on its website the pay scales and salary ranges of its employees.
The idea coming from Common Councillor Greg Norton who argues it will provide taxpayers with the opportunity to compare the performance of an organisation with what's its paying people to do the job.
Fellow Councillor John MacKenzie is hoping Mayor and Council will be leaders of the pack with publicising what they get paid.
Norton points out there will be no names used and this is already being done by the city of Fredericton on its website.
One Change getting a vote of confidence from Common Council and will be taking over management and day to day operation in a few months of the North End Community Centre on Victoria Street which is officially called the Nick Nicolle Community Centre.
West Side Common Councillor Bill Farren is not hesitent to voice his support and fellow Councillor David Merrithew says he has seen how well this type of arrangement can work in the south end with the Boys and Girl Club.
City Manager Pat Woods telling Council One Change will be more responsive to the needs of the community and offer increased programming for both young people and adults.
The Province's conflict of interest commissioner says former premier Shawn Graham broke provincial rules because of his involvement in his government's decision to give financial help to a construction company. Patrick Ryan has released his report into allegations that Graham was in a conflict of interest in 2009 when his Liberal government gave a $50 million loan guarantee to Miramichi-based Atcon.
Ryan says Graham should have removed himself from cabinet discussions over the loan guarantee because his father was a director of Vanerply, a Swedish subsidiary of Atcon, and a paid consultant of Vanerply and other Atcon companies.
Ryan says while Graham didn't check whether his father had ties to Atcon at the time the loan guarantee was offered, it was his responsibility to know.
Despite the loan guarantee, Atcon went bankrupt in 2010. Ryan is recommending Graham be fined $3,500 and reprimanded.
Graham issued a statement saying the fault was an oversight' on his part and he accepts full responsibility for his actions.
If you can safely get out of your driveway, Canadian Blood Services is hoping you will consider driving straight to 400 University Avenue.
Peter MacDonald of Donor and Clinic Services says this is the fifth week they have experienced clinic impacts due to weather this winter.
109 appointments remain in Saint John for clinics this week.
If you can't keep your appointment to donate, you are asked to cancel it and allow CBS the chance to book another donor. To book an appointment, 1 888 2 DONATE (1-888-236-6283).
Our Sunday storm has lasting impact in the form of power outages. More than 3200 NB Power customers province wide are without electricity including many folks throughout the Rothesay region from Nauwigewauk and Darling's Island to the Kingston Peninsula. At 11 this morning, that number exceeded 5500 homes and businesses.
All schools are
closed in the Anglophone South School District and the Anglophone West
School District along with the Francophone South School District which
includes Samuel de Champlain.
The Saint John campus of the Community College is closed.
Classes at the Community College campus in St. Andrews will not be starting until 10:30 this morning.
Somerset pre-school is closed for the day.
Eastern College and Eastern Trades College are both closed.
The Academy of Hair Design is closed.
All five libraries in the Saint John region are closed.
Grand Manan Library, 1144 Rte 776, for the whole day Kennebecasis Public Library, 1 Landing Ct., for the whole day Le Cormoran Library, 67 Ragged Point Rd., for the whole day Saint John Free Public Library, Central Branch, 1 Market Square, for the whole day Saint John Free Public Library, East Branch, 545 Westmorland Rd., for the whole day Saint John Free Public Library, West Branch, 621 Fairville Blvd., for the whole day The S-N-B Wood Co-op in Sussex is closed.
Family Ties Daycare will be closed.
Dr Mark Lowney's Office
Boys and girls Club closed and all programs - cancelled for the day Habitat Re-Store closed.
AJ's on the West Side closed
Classes at Ready Arc Welding are closed
All classes at the Atlantica Centre for the Arts are cancelled. The Princess of Acadia crossing today has been cancelled because of the high winds.
Now that the Alward Government has released its regulations to move forward with shale gas exploration, the big question is whether the public, by and large, will buy in.
The President of the Atlantica Centre for Energy John Herron tells CHSJ News the government will need what he calls "social licence" to make this a go.
To achieve that, Herron says the provincial government will have to show it's willing to enforce its own regulations because without enforcement, they're not worth the paper they're written on and if something does go wrong, the government will have to demonstrate it's got the landowner's back.
Common Council is being urged by city staff to turn over management and operation of the North End Community Centre on Victoria Street, officially named the Nick Nicole Community Centre, to One Change which is promising an increased level of service.
One Change says it can operate the community centre with a yearly budget of more than 184 thousand dollars, over 158 thousand dollars of which would be provided by the city.
The recommendation calls for One Change to take over at the beginning of June. The Centre will be closed for 6 to 8 months for work to be done to the exterior of the building.
Security at schools in the Anglophone South School District is being enhanced in the wake of the shootings in Newtown, Connecticut before Christmas.
There will be new I-D badges for school district workers who are not attached to any particular school but perform jobs at several of them when the need arises.
Superintendent Zoe Watson tells CHSJ News school safety is always uppermost in their minds at the school district and there are some schools in Saint John which have an intercom outside and you have to be buzzed in.
The new logo for the school district was designed by a grade 9 studeent at Hampton High, Melanie Levesque in her art class.
Saint John got 25 centimeters of snow in the latest winter storm to batter the region.
All schools are closed in the Anglophone South School District and the Anglophone West School District along with the Francophone South School District which includes Samuel de Champlain.
The Saint John campus of the New Brunswick Community College is closed today.
George Parkes of Environment Canada calls it a significant storm with winds gusting to a maximum of 87 kilometers an hour.
He tells CHSJ News we might still see a couple of more centimeters of snow this morning snow before its said and done.
The high winds will remain with us all day long with gusts up to 70 kilometers an hour. Parkes expects they will start to diminish tonight and become light by noon tomorrow.
As of early this morning, NB Power is reporting 11 outages throughout the Rothesay region affecting more than 600 customers from Nauwigewauk and Darling's Island to the Kingston Peninsula.
The first two flights of the day from Saint John Airport to Toronto and Montreal have been cancelled. he flights to and from Halifax are delayed.
We are told there will be traffic delays at Rothesay Avenue and Russell Street today, not so much because of the nasty weather but construction work that's taking place on the One Mile Interchange project.
