Tax Revenue for the City

The Commissioner of Finance says the province suggesting the city lower it's tax base rate by 5 cents will not provide the municipality with enough cash to efficiently operate. Greg Yeomans says the tax rate now doesn't provide the city with enough money, and it needs to find ways to generate more revenue.
He says his department is looking at solutions, such as increasing fees such as arena rentals, as well as more money from federal and provincial grants. The final decision on what the tax base rate will be is completely in the hands of common council.
Meanwhile, Deputy Mayor Stephen Chase says municipalities should be getting revenue from the sales tax. He maintains Saint John could generate a lot of dollars due to it's investment in shopping centres on the East side. Chase says as it stands right now, the provincial government is enjoying increased revenue on the backs of the city.

Hydro-Quebec President and CEO Speaks

The President and C-E-O of Hydro Quebec made his first appearance in Saint John to talk about the proposed sale of NB Power's major assets. Thierry Vandal says there is no intention to sweep NB Power or its current suppliers away:


Vandal says Hydro Quebec assumes the risk for the Point Lepreau refurbishment and any upgrades at Mactaquaq while homes and businesses get stable electricity rates.

Opposistion Leader Responds to Speech

               (Opposistion Leader David Alward)
                               (File Photo)

Opposition Leader David Alward says he heard only generalities about what would happen after the sale of NB Power to Hydro Quebec.

Alward wants to have a sit down with Quebec Premier Jean Charest to talk about the proposed agreement.

Open House in Rothesay Tomorrow Night

[M-L-A Margaret Ann Blaney---File Photo]
If you've been looking for a forum to voice your opinion about the NB Power-Hydro Quebec proposal, look no further than Rothesay tomorrow night. Conservative MLA Margaret Ann Blaney is hosting a town hall meeting and tells CHSJ News, it's vital she hear from her constituents:


Blaney says she has received hundreds of calls and e-mails from people not in favor of the proposal. Tomorrow nights meeting gets started at seven o'clock in the cafeteria of Rothesay High School.

Compu-College Changes it's Name

Feeling it has outgrown it's name........CompuCollege is changing the name over the door of it's seven campuses in Atlantic Canada to Eastern College. Officials says they want to let people know they offer more than programs in computers with over 40 diploma programs including public relations and massage therapy.


Since it opened it's doors 20 years ago, Eastern College has handed out over 20,000 diploma's. Along with Saint John, there are campuses in Fredericton, Moncton, Charlottetown, Dartmouth and St. John's.

City Works Deals with First Winter Storm

The City Works Department has it's first winter storm under it's belt and for the most part, everything went smoothly. Kevin Rice is Deputy Commissioner of Municipal Operations and tells CHSJ News, minor equipment issues were one of the things they had to deal with.


The winter operations center was activated with a full compliment of staff and resources on hand. Rice adds it was nice to get the first storm out of the way to test the gear and give it a good run before the wilder winter weather arrives.

Update on Man Killed Late Last Week

More details are being released after the death of a 23-year old man from Passakeg last week. Jeremy Shaw was killed when his vehicle left the highway heading to Hampton and rolled. The reconstructionist team says it looks like the vehicle missed the off ramp to the North side, hit the shoulder and then over-steered to try and get his vehicle back on the road.


Officers believe in doing so, his vehicle shot across the road and rolled twice on the South side. Shaw was also not wearing a seatbelt.

Power Outages Around the Province

Moncton, Shediac and Sackville were the hardest hit area's of a good size power outage yesterday. The quick change from rain to snow made for heavy tree limbs and power lines which can wreak havoc for the public utility. NB Power spokes-person Marianne Limpert tells CHSJ News, the power went out just after six but was back on line by lunch time.

Limpert adds it's nice for the utility to get it's first winter storm related outage under it's belt to make sure they are ready for what-ever else winter may have.

Winter Storm in Saint John

Saint John received about 15 centimeters of snow over the weekend and it made for a busy Sunday for city police and the fire department. One person was taken to hospital with serious injuries after being hit by a vehicle along Mcallister Drive last night around 7 near the Empire theatre. Fire Crews also responded to a house fire at 24 Muriel Avenue in Champlain Heights. One person fled uninjured. There was heavy damage to the livingroom. Fire officials say the blaze began in the fireplace.
Yesterday afternoon, a taxi van collided with a plow at Chesley and Main Street. The van was pinned against a light standard and the door had to be pried open with the jaws of life to take the driver to hospital. Another person was taken to hospital after a crash on Route One.
There were small natural gas leaks outside Prince Edward Square Mall and at a new building off University Avenue. Enbridge Gas was also called to Northumberland Avenue after a plow slid into one of the natural gas regulators.
Drivers and pedestrians being warned to watch out for black ice this morning as you make your way into work.

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

For everyone who was saying it was tough getting into the holiday spirit with-out any snow, here you go. Over ten centimeters is down in Greater Saint John with the first snow-fall of the winter season. Rain changed over to the white stuff early last night when the temperature took a sudden dip and the flakes continue to fall. Environment Canada tells us the sky should begin to clear by this afternoon. Police forces are reporting a few minor accidents but nothing serious at this point.

A reminder to make sure your vehicle is entirely cleaned off before pulling out into traffic and give yourself some extra time to get where you are going.

Rally of?

Word on what the replacement event will be for Rally of Hope is still being ironed out. The final event was held back in June and officials have been meeting ever since to get all the details wrapped up. Executive Director of the Regional Hospital Foundation Tim Cameron tells CHSJ News, they are talking to everyone who had something to do with the Rally to get the best ideas.
Cameron says the new event might be something that runs through-out the entire year with the final details expected to be rolled out early in the new year.

Donate While You Doze

For anyone who can't seem to find the time to donate to a charity, the United Way has a new initiative that takes very little effort. Its called ""Donate While You Doze"" and is in conjunction with the Holiday Inn and Suites in the North End. The hotel is slashing it's room rate in half with twelve dollars from each room going to the United Way. Elizabeth Jadoo is Executive Director of the United Way and tells CHSJ News, giving to charity doesn't get any easier than this.
Moncton raised over eight thousand dollars last year with this initiative and Jadoo hopes they can raise three thousand dollars. It runs between December.20th and January.4th.

Daycare Owner Continues to Wait for Council Decision

Another delay for the rezoning of Janie's Kid Zone in Quispamsis.

The process started back in May, and last week's town council meeting was supposed to determine whether the area on Sugarmaple Lane would be rezoned for a daycare.
With more letters of support coming in to the town, the issue has been tabled until a public hearing can be held in February.
Owner Janie Stewart says it's frustrating the process is still going on, but at least it's winding down.
Neighbours previously opposed the location of the daycare, and the final chance to be heard on the issue is on February 2nd.

Tenders For Water Projects to Go Out Soon

Tenders for the first 3 of 6 projects relating to safe, clean drinking water will be going out soon.

That from Commissioner of Municipal Operations Paul Groody, who says these are the most important projects the city has ever undertaken.
Groody says the a public call for proposals on the final three projects will also be going out soon.
Mayor Ivan Court says he heard from the Federation of Canadian Muncipalities these projects need to be started by March 31st, because after that date any flexibility may be lost.

Seadogs look to Continue Winning Streak

Can the Seadogs up their winning streak to 19 straight games? We will find out tonight when they play host to Gatineau for a seven o'clock start at the Station. When the season started, goaltending was a big question mark but they along with every player in the line-up has or is exceeding expectation. The holiday trading period starts on the 19th and Head Coach Gerard Gallant tells CHSJ Sports, it's too early to say what might unfold.
Gallant says a strong show of discipline has been a huge turning point for this team.

Santa Claus Visiting Dairytown

Santa Claus will wrap up his tour of the Greater Saint John area with a stop in Sussex tonight. It's the town's annual Santa Parade with plenty of people expected to show up along the route to see the jolly old elf from the North Pole. This years parade has 50 floats which will start from Princess Louise Park at 6:30pm. It will then cruise down Main Street and finish up in the Walmart parking lot.

Children are reminded to bring their letters for Santa and members of the Kiwanis Club will walk the route picking up non-perishable food. The theme for this years parade is the Olympic Spirit of Christmas.

More H1N1 Clinics for the General Public start tomorrow

Public Health has announced more H1N1 clinics for the general public.
They start tomorrow and run until December 11.
The following is a list of the upcoming clinics:

NBCC Saint John, 950 Grandview Ave, Saint John, December 5, 9am - 9pm
Norton Elementary, 274 Route 124 Norton, Saint John, December 5, 9am - 3pm
NBCC Saint John, 950 Grandview Ave, Saint John, December 6, 9am - 9pm
Campobello Island Consolidated School, 1722 Route 774, Wilson’s Beach, Campobello Island, December 7, 12pm - 8pm
Village Hall, 73 Main St, St. Martins, December 7, 10am - 7pm
Hampton Senior Resource Center, 31 Demille Ct., Hampton, December 8, 9am - 7pm
St. George Community Center, 11 J.O. Spinney Dr., St. George, December 8, 9am - 9pm
Carleton Community Centre, 82 Market Place, Saint John (West), December 8, 9am - 9pm
Royal Canadian Legion, 43 Queen St. West, St. Stephen, December 9, 9am - 9pm
Exhibition Park,159 McAllister Drive, Saint John, December 9, 9am - 9pm
Saunders Irving Chapel, Bethany Bible College, 26 Western Street, Sussex, December 9, 9am - 7pm
Lord’s Cove Church of Christ, 227 Route 772, Lord's Cove, Deer Island, December 10, 10am - 8pm
Macdonald Consolidated School, 3950 Route 845, Kingston, December 10, 3pm -9pm
St Marks United Church, 50 Dexter Drive, Saint John, December 10, 12pm - 7pm
Kings Valley Wesleyan Church, 332 Hampton Road, Quispamsis, Kennebecasis Valley, December 10, 9am - 9pm
Barrack Green Armoury, 60 Broadview Avenue, Saint John, December 11, 9am - 9pm
Lawrence Station Elementary School, Lawrence Station, December 11, 1pm - 8pm

For more updated information on the clinics go to www.gnb.ca/flu or call 1-800-580-0038.

Knappe Is Still Missing

(photo by Tamara Steele)

City police are still looking for a 26-year-old man who has been missing since October.
Kristopher William Knappe was seen near uptown Saint John on October 17th and later spotted in Fredericton on November 2nd.
He is about five foot seven with light brown hair, hazel brown eyes and a goatee.
If you have seen him, call police at 648-3333.

Damage to Fundy Trail

     (Photo of Damaged Main Gate at Fundy Trail)
         (Photo Courtesy of Fundy Trail Officials)

The search is on by Hampton RCMP after senseless damage has been done to a section of the Fundy Trail. Officers were called to the area to find someone had done damage to the entrance gate. Brian Clark is General Manager of the Trail and says someone with an ATV used winches and cables to tear open and damage the main entrance and back gate.

This is the third time there has been damage to the trail this year. The cost to fix what was broken is estimated to be around three and four thousand dollars.

St. Stephen Woman Was Murdered

(file photo)

The death of a St. Stephen woman is now being called a murder by RCMP. 59-year-old Mary Scott was found earlier this week at her Queen Street home in the border town and autopsy results tell officers they are dealing with a homicide.


Her family notified police when they had not heard from Scott for several days. Major Crime continues to go through the home looking for clues and are following up on a numbers of leads.