RCMP Say Social Responsibility Is Next Step In Battling Drunk Drivers

According to the RCMP, the next step in battling drinking and driving is infusing people with a sense of social responsibility.

Spokesperson Claude Tremblay tells CHSJ News he wants it to become the norm when drivers will call 911 when they spot a drunk driver.

He says several campaigns have been attempted over the last 20 years to curb drinking and driving and this is the next step.

He adds in many cases a drunk driver will have been seen on the road by several people but many don't make the call.

MacLeans Ranks Saint John Sexual Assault Capital of NB

Most of us think Saint John streets are fairly safe--but should we think otherwise?

According to the magazine, Saint John has the highest rate of reported sex crimes in the country.

The rate in the city is 132 per cent above the national average at 97 per 100,000. And our provincial capital, Fredericton has the third-highest rates in the country after Belleville, Ontario. 

The numbers don't necessarily mean that Saint John and Fredericton have more sex crimes. It does suggests that more people report the crimes here compared with other places.

UNB Charters Buses in Response to Bus Strike

The University of New Brunswick working a little Christmas magic for students stranded by the strike at Acadian Coach lines. In response to the lock-out at the bus company, the UNB Student Union chartering buses to get students home for Christmas Break.

Rides will be leaving on December 21 from the Student Union Building in Fredericton and heading to Saint John, Moncton, and Amherst. Tickets will cost between $40 and $25 depending on the destination. Contact the Student Union for more details.

More Controversy Over Prescription Drug Co-Payments

More controversy in the provincial legislature about the Alward government's decision to charge seniors more for their prescription drugs.

Cecile Cassista, Executive Director of the Coalition for Seniors, says that there are other options out there.

She says they're urging government to work with pharmaceutical companies, and seniors, to find different solutions. Seniors in the province are often over-medicated, says Cassista.

The coalition presented its series of recommendations to health minister Madeline Dube when the changes were first announced earlier this month.The Alward Government has proposed doubling yearly prescriptions costs for seniors from $250 to $500 per year.

According to the health minister, the change will save the province $3 million per year.

Fire on Ellerdale Street

A fire breaking out on Ellerdale Street this afternoon.

A wall in the apartment on the corner of Margaret Street and Westmorland street caught ablaze after some work was being done on the pipes in the walls.

The fire department put out the fire after demolishing the wall to determine whether it had spread. Despite the damage, no one was injured. Killam Properties is moving the residents displaced by the fire to another unit.

Body Discovered in Market Square Parking Garage

A man found dead in an uptown Saint John parking garage.

On Friday evening, police responding to reports that someone appeared to be laying trapped beneath some furniture in the garage.

When city police arrived on the scene, they found the body of a 50 year old man behind some items which were being stored there.

Police are looking into what happened. They also say they're not treating the death as suspicious at this point.

Province Launches Taxpayer Website

The Alward government looking for your input on how to help balance the province's books.

They have launched a website called Taxpayers FIRST, which gives snapshots of our fiscal woes as well letting you submit ideas on how to turn things around.

The schedule for the 2012-2013 pre-budget consultations are also on the site -- the Saint John meeting is scheduled for Monday, January 16th.

To go to the site, click here.

Harbour Passage Reopens While Several Parks Close Down For The Winter

Good news for Harbour Passage fans: it is open for the winter

A release from the city says there will be ongoing work under the bridge during the winter which may close the walking trail from time to time.

Closure of Harbour Passage is expected this spring when construction on the Harbour Bridge resumes. The Main Street Bike Lane will be open when Harbour Passage is closed next year.

Conversely, several parks are also closing up for the winter except in the case of certain winter activities: Fort Howe, Dominion Park , Little River Reservoir, and Tucker Park.

Conservation Council Wants Inquiry Into NB Power Spill

The Saint John Chapter of the Conservation Council of New Brunswick is calling on the Premier to hold a public inquiry into the recent heavy water spill and other incidents at the Point Lepreau generating station.

Chairwoman Sharon Murphy-Flatt tells CHSJ News details about the spill have been left out, such as clean-up workers being trapped in the radioactive area due to an air locked door failure.

She says the company has a culture of secrecy and cutting corners as it also took them 3 weeks to inform the public that chemicals had leaked into the Bay of Fundy.

She believes the safety incidents point to a larger problem and must be addressed.

Parents In Morna Heights Continue Fight To Save School

The Morna Heights Parents School Support Committee making a final appeal to save the local school from closure. 

Lori Nason of the Parents Committee says enrollment will be rising because of all the young families moving into the area who have children.
 
More than 100 homes have been sold in the community since 2008. Nason also warns a new school in Grand Bay-Westfield could get overcrowded quickly because of all the new housing expected to be built in the town.

Nason maintains the proposal could be amended to close down the two schools in Grand Bay-Westfield but leave Morna Heights alone.

Quispamsis Mayor Says Town Should Have Been Notified Of Seismic Testing

Quispamsis Mayor Murray Driscoll says he wasn't aware Windsor Energy carried out seismic testing for shale gas within the town limits without approval but he now wants more information from the government.

The Mayor would also like to know what was found because he was unaware there are any natural gas deposits undergound in the town. 

The legislature was told the seismic testing took place last October along a provincial highway.
 
Driscoll says he couldn't speculate on how town council would have voted had the company sought permission beforehand. 

He does say the fact it was carried out without the town being notified is a concern.

Ruling Made On Richard Oland Search Warrants

The search warrants in the Richard Oland murder investigation will remain sealed for at least the next six months.That ruling made by Judge Leslie Jackson of Woodstock who says the ban will extend until June 15th.

He concluded information in those search warrants might harm the rights of the innocent. 

The 69 year old Oland was murdered last July in his office on Canterbury Street. City Police have not said how he died but they think he knew his killer. 

The searches have included the home of Oland's son, Dennis on Gondola Point Road in Rothesay, a wooded area in Renforth and a sailboat that was docked at the Kennebecasis Yacht Club in the name of Oland's wife, Lisa. 

The prosecution had offered to release redacted information from the search warrants after claiming release of all information would compromise the ongoing investigation.

Rainbow Park Will Be Open For Skating Soon

For those of you looking to go for a skate at Rainbow Park, you will have to wait a little longer.

New equipment will be installed in about two weeks that will generate the ice -- repairs were needed and it is now cold enough to test the ice equipment.

Rainbow Park, which has a splash pad in the summer, had freezing problems last winter.

Irving Oil Drivers Trained To Identifty Drunk Drivers

Irving Oil and MADD Canada teaming up for the Red Ribbon Partnership that gets drunk drivers off the road.

MADD Canada reps, local police, and the RCMP training over 100 Irving Oil fleet drivers to identify and report drunk drivers.

Former MADD President Margaret Miller tells CHSJ News it's a natural partnership because truck drivers are on the front lines and making that 911 call to report an impaired driver can save many lives.

According to Police Chief Bill Reid, almost half of drunk drivers caught in the city are the result of 911 calls.

Confusion Over Use Of City Owned Vehicles

The city is being told by a consultant it has to spell out clearly if and when its vehicles can be used for personal use by its managers.

Kate Vigneau says one manager told her he wasn't sure if it was alright for him to pick up his daughter from daycare in a city vehicle.

 She spoke to other managers for the city who say if you're going to and from work, it's alright to make a stop to pick something up or do an errand.

Vigneau says that's not all that unusual among municipalities and she adds the city is doing alot that is right with the management of its fleet of vehicles.

Common Councillor Bill Farren says he finds the lack of clarity to be disturbing nonetheless.

Fredericton Company Builds Home For Attawapiskat

Imagine living in a shack in bitter winter temperatures without heat, a working toilet and running water.
That's the reality for the famillies living on the Attawapiskat First Nation where things are so desperate that the Harper government has taken over the day to day operations.
Maple Leaf Homes of Fredericton is creating 22 homes for the community and Sales Manager Jacques Roy tells CHSJ News their homes are very energy efficient with superinsulation to handle the artic climate.

He tells us where these homes are going the average temperature in the wintertime is minus 65 on average.


Roy says they understand the huge need in the northern first nation communities and they have the capacity to supply them and the experience with this type of housing.

Fire In North End

Its believed a wood stove may be the cause of a shed fire this morning on Sandy Point Road. 

The shed was fully involved when fire crews got there.

They managed to keep the blaze from spreading to a nearby house that was exposed.

Businesspeople Joining With School District To Close Poverty Gap

School District 8 and the Business Community Anti-Poverty Initiative will be working together to tabulate what needs to be done to help students who are living in poverty succeed.

John Adams, who chairs the Education to Employment Working Group for the Business Community, says if you're looking for additional funding from government, you need hard numbers to make your case.
 
Adams says the goal is to close the gap between the students who are living in poverty and those from more affluent homes. 

The District 8 Education Council was told Saint John has a potential work force on its doorstep but too many people just don't have the proper skills employers are looking for.

Gas Prices Decline

Gas is costing you less after the weekly setting.

Self serve regular, in the city, is listed at $1.20.7. That's a decrease of less than half a cent a litre while diesel at $1.33.4 is just under 2 cents a litre cheaper that what it was. 

Heating oil is also cheaper now at $1.15.2, down from $1.16.9 with propane still the same at $1.17 a litre.

New French School For The K-V

Part of the new spending in the provincial government's capital budget for 2012-2013 is to build a new francophone school in the Kennebecasis Valley. 

The school for students from kindergarten through grade 5 is expected to be ready in 2014. 

Right now, they have to either go to a satellite school on the Pettingill Road or make the trek to Samuel de Champlain in Millidgeville.