If you want to bring business to the city, you need to invest in the airport.
That word coming from Quispamsis Mayor Murray Driscoll in response to the Airport Authority's request for $600,000 for advertising from the city, towns and local service districts that make up the Fundy Regional Services Commission. Driscoll, the vice-chair of the committee, tells CHSJ News we have to be competitive with airports like those in Moncton and in Bangor, and we may need to add more destinations in order to achieve that.
He's hoping at the next commission meeting they'll get more information on how the airport plans on spending the money. After that, he says they'll be prepared to consider the allocation.
Although propane is still leaking on and off from the railway tanker car in the Haymarket Square area, there's a very low probability that something is going to go wrong.
That word from Fire Chief Kevin Clifford, who says crews are getting very low readings, and the wind seems to be taking the propane away and leaving little opportunity for it to settle.
He says the train was parked when staff on site realized there was a leak and called the fire department. Buildings within a 300-yard area of the railyard were evacuated and Highway 1 from Garden Street to Ashburn Lake Road, both eastbound and westbound lanes, have been closed.
Clifford says residents can take comfort in the fact that crews are being very cautious.
Division Fire Chief Mark Wilson tells CHSJ News crews are re-entering the scene to mitigate the leak.
It's traffic chaos for people trying to get home from work this afternoon.
A tanker leak forcing the closure of Highway 1 in both directions during rush hour.
We are told traffic on Rothesay Avenue is backed up all the way to Haymarket Square near the scene.
Highway 1 is closed between Crown Street and Ashburn Road and has been for several hours. No word yet on when the Highway may be re-opened. Thanks to the road warrior for letting us know it's slow-going coming from the hospital on Foster Thurston towards the highway.
UPDATE: Division Chief
Mark Wilson of City Fire tells CHSJ News there is still propane leaking
from the rail car and they are re-entering the scene to mitigate the
leak.
Emergency crews called out early this afternoon to deal with a propane leak from a rail car near Haymarket Square.
Buildings within a 300-yard area of the railyard were evacuated and Highway 1 from Garden Street to Ashburn Lake Road, both eastbound and westbound lanes, have been closed.
Members of Irving Oil's hazardous materials team are on scene as well as NB Southern Railway officials.
A 27 year old mother is on trial charged with leaving her baby outside in the cold alone last January along Paddock Street. The court was told the baby was dressed for the weather with only her face exposed and appeared to be no worse for wear. Norma Cusack, who lived across the street, testified it was more like 15 to 20 minutes from the time she heard a baby crying to the time when police arrived.
Shea maintains the baby was only outside for a few minutes while she took her groceries inside along with her other young children.
When Police got there, Constable Amy Cunningham told the court Shea came out of the house dressed in a tee shirt, jeans and no shoes. Cunningham believes Shea didn't realise her baby had been left outside after telling her she had looked through the house twice for her baby who was 4 or 5 months old.
Propane is still leaking from a railway tanker car behind Haymarket Square. Fire crews are on scene working to isolate the leaking car and determine the cause of the leak.
The call initially came in about an hour ago. Workers on the One Mile Interchange were evacuated as well as a number of buildings in the immediate vicinity.
Due to concerns about the propane drifting over the road, the east and westbound lanes of the highway are closed until further notice from Crown St. to Ashburn Rd.
Despite the SJPD's ongoing contract negotiations, the quarterly reports are looking good and they're expecting to finish the year on budget.
That's the word from Police Chief Bill Reid who also tells CHSJ News there were some questions raised at Police Commission about the amount of overtime being used. He says they're down 17 officers from what they were a year ago, and sometimes that means they have to take officers off patrol and put them on criminal investigations.
Reid says watching the dollars and cents has been the responsibility of everyone on staff--and the administration has really had to watch the bottom line.
The city telling us Main Street West between Ready Street and Charles Street West is closed to thru traffic today with a detour in place because of roadwork.
You could soon be saying goodbye to the RRPD and hello to the KV Police Department. Quispamsis Mayor Murray Driscoll tells CHSJ News he's hoping to see the name change happen by the new year.
The town pays for two-thirds of policing in the valley, and Driscoll says it's only fair they're included in the name. He adds, the change will undoubtedly come with a cost, but it won't be what he calls a phenomenal cost. He says Rothesay Mayor Bill Bishop seems to be on board with the idea, and he doesn't believe there's any objection from police, though he hasn't heard from them personally.
The fire department changed their name from Rothesay Regional to Kennebecasis Valley back in 2006.
As 2013 winds down Police Chief Bill Reid still has a New Year's resolution to fulfill: an arrest in the investigation into the murder of Richard Oland.
Reid tells CHSJ News the Crown will be reviewing the file in the next month, and then will come back with either a recommendation for further investigation or the green light to lay charges. He says it's impossible to magically declare "today's the day" when in fact a legal process has to be followed, as everyone is aware.
Reid says only a small amount of information is available to the public so it's discouraging for some people when assumptions are made about the lack of charges. At the same time, the Chief maintains the SJPD is transparent in all of their operations, and he's confident at the end of the day the police will be successful.
Getting screened for cancer improves your odds dramatically--and some people in the province will be taking advantage of a new screening program to catch the disease early.
The province has announced a new program beginning in early 2014 that will remind eligible individuals to get screened and track who's been checked and who hasn't.
A program has existed to screen for breast cancer since 1995--now colon and cervical cancer screening will be added to the list. Colon cancer is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer in Canada.
The $75 million dollar One Mile Interchange project, which will provide a direct connection between Highway One and Bayside Drive, will be finished by next month according to Tim O'Reilly of Traffic Services.
Truck traffic headed to the industrial areas out east will be rerouted onto the interchange---keeping it off city centre streets. There's going to be plenty of new signage to direct drivers where to go.
We get the occasional call reporting cats stuck in trees around the city--so we asked Mark Wilson of the Saint John Fire Department whether the SJFD still performs those rescues like you see in the movies.
He tells CHSJ News they generally don't, since there's a good likelihood a cat will come down on its own without any intervention from a firefighter.
Wilson says if there's a case of something or something being truly trapped or stuck they'll respond--but in the case of a cat up a tree 9 times out of 10 it'll come down on its own.
The province's energy utility bringing its companies together under one umbrella. NB Power's Group of Companies are now one integrated Crown Corporation as required by the Electricity Act.
That company is now solely responsible for generating, transmitting and distributing the province's electricity.
The change means the Electric Finance Corporation which was created to deal with debt is disslved and the utility will take on $325-million in net debt, and a new subsidiary, the NB Energy Marketing Corporation, will be created.
President and CEO Gaëtan Thomas says the changes will help keep energy prices low and stable over the next decade.
In an email, the City letting us know their contract with the Investigative Solutions Network regarding the Estabrooks investigation includes the approval of funding in $100,000 increments beginning last October and again in January and April of this year.
About $300,000 has been spent so far and Common Council authorized another $100,000 just over two weeks ago bringing the total approved amount to $400,000.
If your kids like those energy drinks, you may be interested in the results of this discussion today.
The Department of Health is hosting a dialogue that include the chief medical officer of health Dr. Eilish Cleary, Dr. Samuel Godefroy of Health Canada and Martin-Pierre Pelletier of the Canadian Beverage Association.
A report on the dialogue will be made available on the department of health's website later this fall.
The top honours for local businesses will be given out tomorrow night by the Saint John Board of Trade.
The mood of business in the city over the last year has been somewhat downcast. Saint John has the dubious distinction of having the highest unemployment rate along the cities surveyed by Stats Canada.
Board of Trade President Eric Poirier tells CHSJ News it's not all doom and gloom these days. He characterises it as "cautious optimism".
Colwells, Liquid Gold Olive and Vinegar Inc. along with Maritime Hydroseed are all in the running for the Entrepreneurial Excellence award.
3D Property Managemen, Flex-Con Concrete Repair and Urban Shoe Myth are the finalists for the Emerging Entrepreneur Award.
The finalists for business excellence are Bayview Credit Union, Commercial Properties and Fortis Properties which owns the Delta.
The Young Entrepreneur Award is going to Sarah Jones of Jones Gallery.
UNB Saint John - The Promise Partnership gets the Big Heart Award and Carole Cunningham of the Saint John Board of Trade will receive the Chairman's Award.
$15,000 from the Feds means the Atlantic Coastal Action Program can fix up at a dam at Ashburn Lake facilitating fish travel. Tim Vickers of ACAP Saint John tells CHSJ News some of the funding will be used to replace a historic dam where Ashburn Lake meets Ashburn Creek.
He tells us over time the dam has washed out and it gets filled in with large rocks preventing the fish from getting through.
A new dam will include a fish ladder that allows them come in and out of Ashburn Lake while the water levels are maintained. Saint John MP Rodney Weston making the funding announcement this morning on behalf Fisheries Minister Gail Shea at the Glen Carpenter Centre.
CHSJ News has been contacted by friends who say they're worried about a 19 year old woman who has been missing since September 29th.
Genevieve Mary Cormier, known as "Gen" was last seen on the Reversing Falls Bridge heading west.
She's described as being about five feet 7 with dark brown/blackish hair and has a tattoo on her back reading "Take these broken wings and learn to fly" with a bird.
Her friends are urging you contact City Police if you know anything about her whereabouts because they're worried sick.
If the city has to defend itself in the face of 263 lawsuits, the cost could alone bankrupt the city. That word from Halifax lawyer John McKiggan.
He tells CHSJ News a class action lawsuit will be filed in a matter of days or weeks on behalf of the people who say they were sexually abused by the late Ken Estabrooks when he was a City Police Sergeant and later a city employee with the Works Department.
McKiggan says they want to find if the Mayor and Common Council back in 1975 signed off on transferring Estabrooks from the police to City Works after confessing. McKiggan says a class action lawsuit offers a more flexible solution.
Main Street West between Ready Street and Charles Street West will be reduced to one lane in both directions over the next two days for crosswalk improvements and roadway maintenance.
Alot of activity for Police in the Valley. They had to save a man from harming himself when he was hanging off a bridge along Route 111 and threatening to jump the next time a truck came along. Police managed to grab hold of him before he could make the leap and he's now in hospital for mental health issues.
Another man was taken to hospital after losing control of the bicycle he was riding on Randy Jones Way. Police say he was wearing a helmet which save his head but did suffer injuries to his chest.
Another deer was struck causing considerable damage to the vehicle in Gondola Point by Miller Road and a home along Rothesay Road was broken into.
The future of the
Reversing Fall Jet Boat business is up in the air-- and another question
mark hangs over the future of Fallsview Park.
Tourism
Minister Trevor Holder tells CHSJ News it's time to take a second look
at the park off Douglas Avenue and how we can make it more attractive to
visitors.
Holder says he'd like to see consultation with the
business community, especially the businesses that rely on Reversing
Fall for revenue, and ask them what they'd like to see changed about the
park.
No word on whether we're likely to see a public consultation like that currently being held on the future of the Market Square/Loyalist Plaza. Holder says that would be up to Waterfront Development.
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure when it comes to vacant lots and derelict buildings--and common council is expressing its approval for the idea of a land bank to help further than end.
The idea was floated by Housing Alternatives, which has promoted adequate, affordable housing in Saint John area for 30 years. In essence, a land bank means a not-for-profit holds the title for a property until they can find a suitable investor to take it over.
Housing Alternatives Executive Director Kit Hickey explains in the event there are vacant parcels of land that are turned over to the city, the land bank would hold them for future development. Common Councillor Gerry Lowe says it makes sense to let a not-for-profit deal with vacant lots since the city has a lot on its plate already.
Mayor Mel Norton calling the idea a "huge benefit" to the city.
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.
