Grant Lake Road: Needs More Attention

The Municipality of the District of Chester is hoping to see some improvements to the Grant Lake Road. Warden Allen Webber says for those who live in the area and use the road daily - it's a serious issue. Webber says the road is in poor condition and has been a concern around the council table for years. "If you happen to live there and have to travel it - it's high on your priority list. I think all we want to express to them is that there are people who care and they may not be able to fix it completely but it needs a lot more attention than what it's getting," Council has sent a letter to the Department of Transportation asking for better maintenance and care of the road.

Deloitte Inc. set to release SSRSB Performance Review

Deloitte Inc. will release its findings Tuesday into the performance review of the South Shore Regional School Board. A technical briefing will be held at 10am Tuesday morning in the Media Room at One Government Place on Granville Street in Halifax. Michael Hodgett of Deloitte. Inc will conduct the briefing. Keep it tuned in to CKBW and HANK-FM for all the details.

Forestry Threat Found In Lunenburg

The brown spruce longhorn beetle that devastated much of Halifax's Point Pleasant Park years ago has appeared in the Lunenburg area. The town recently received a notice from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency that prohibits it from moving any spruce logs, bark or wood chips off nine properties it owns.The notice says the beetle turned up in traps set in the area. Mayor Laurence Mawhinney says the beetle's presence is up for discussion at town council this week. For now though, the town doesn't know what the notice means for people living in the area. The Mayor says: "We were one of the properties within a thousand metres of a trap in the Garden Lots area where a brown-spruce longhorn beetle was found. They were raising this as a concern. We cannot move nor can anyone else within this thousand metre perifery any spruce logs, bark or chips. Its simply a matter at this time to further investigate." The notice affects about 14 hectares of land. The town does not plan to do any harvesting of trees in the area affected.

Dinosaur Spreading Anti-Smoking Message at South Shore Schools

Don't be alarmed if you see a nine foot dinosaur around local schools this week. The province's Dinosaur on the Move program has hit the South Shore with stops at Bridgewater Junior/Senior High, Park View, Liverpool Regional High, Forest Heights in Chester, Gorham Memorial Education Centre in Liverpool and New Germany Rural High School. The dinosaur monument, along with artifact boxes, are designed as part of an anti-smoking campaign targetting kids 13-18 years old. The manager of tobacco control with the Department of Health, Steve Machat, says they want to prevent kids from picking up a cigarette. The dinosaur is made out of old ashtrays with references to the government's anti-smoking website. For more details, visit http://www.15andfalling.ca/ .

Christmas on the Lahave Draws Record Crowd

There was a record crowd for last night's parade of lights and fireworks during Christmas on the Lahave in Bridgewater. Some officials say they've never seen the likes of it for the event. The parade, featuring Lunenburg County organizations and businesses, went at 6pm and the fireworks at 7. Awards were handed out too. The best decorated store award went to "King Street Shoes". Honorable mentions for the "Garden of Reading", "Kitchen Witch" and "Dennison Custom Framing." The awards were sponsored by Bridgewater and area Chamber of Commerce. Christmas on the Lahave has become the kickoff event for the Christmas season on the South Shore.

Lumberjacks Acquire Smith from Dieppe

Nick Smith

The CIBC Wood Gundy Lumberjacks made another roster move over the weekend. The Jacks picked up 18-year-old forward Nick Smith from Dieppe for a 9th round pick in 2012 and future considerations. Smith was a third round pick by the Commandos. He'll make his Bridgewater debut Friday when the Jacks host Summerside.

Clarke leads Mustangs over Pictou

Avery Clarke

Avery Clarke's hat trick lifted the South Shore Canadian Tire Mustangs to a 6-3 win over Pictou County Sunday in Bridgewater. Clarke also had an assist as the third place Stangs earned a weekend split with the Weeks Crushers. The Mustangs will be back on home ice Tuesday night against Cole Harbour. Gametime is 8 o'clock at the Bridgewater Arena. Meanwhile, Clarke was also named the Nova Scotia Major Midget Hockey League's player of the week for November 9. Clarke had six points in two games. He is currently second in league scoring with 33 points and leads the league in goals scored with 19 in 20 games.

Coastal Management Strategy Meeting in Petite Riviere

Here's your chance to have your say about the province's draft version of the coastal management strategy. The Municipality of the District of Lunenburg and the Bluenose Coastal Action Foundation will host a meeting from 7-9 Monday night at the Petite Riviere Fire Hall. The chair of the Foundation, Rick Welsford, says the meeting will discuss how residents can better manage the province's coastline. The chair of the provincial oceans network, Justin Huston, is expected to explain the draft version of the coastal management strategy. Welsford believes Monday night is the last public meeting that the government will collect feedback. If you can't make the meeting, you can read the draft policy online and respond at www.gov.ns.ca/coast/consultation.asp .

Weather Causes Delay For Lobster Fishers

High winds will push back Dumping Day for both LFA 33 and 34. Fishers in Shelburne, Digby and Yarmouth will only be delayed by one day. Lobster boats will now head out on Tuesday, November 29th. District 34 will depart at 6am while those in LFA 33 leave at 7am. The forecast is looking good for Tuesday giving fishers in both districts a better chance to set their traps.

Lumberjacks mauled by Bearcats in Truro

The CIBC Wood Gundy Lumberjacks got thumped 8-1 last night in Truro. The Bearcats jumped out to a 3-0 lead after the first period and never looked back. Jake Bullen had the lone goal for the Jacks, who were playing their third game in as many nights. In other MHL action the Amherst Ramblers topped  Woodstock 4-1, handing the Slammers their first regulation loss of the season.
 
In Nova Scotia Major Midget Hockey League action in Bridgewater the Pictou County Weeks Crushers doubled the South Shore Canadian Tire Mustangs 6-3. The same two clubs meet again this morning at 10:30 at the Bridgewater Arena.

Mustangs Take Impressive Record into Double Dip with Pictou

The second place Canadian Tire Mustangs hit the ice tonight in Bridgewater. The Stangs will take on Pictou Crush. Puck drops at 8 o'clock at the Bridgewater Arena. The two clubs will lock horns again Sunday morning at 10:30. The Mustangs sport an impressive 12-5-01 record on the season - good for 25 points on the season. Pictou County sits in fourth place with 21 points and a 9-6-0-2 record. Halifax leads the league with 32 points.

Ramblers Double Jacks - Ending CIBC's Two Game Streak

Maritime Hockey League action last night in Bridgewater the Amherst Ramblers doubled the CIBC Wood Gundy Lumberjacks 4-2. Jake Bullen gave the Jacks an early 1-0 lead but the first place Ramblers scored the next three goals. Shawn Boudreau brought the locals to within one midway through the third period but Brandon Street's second goal of the game with three & a half minutes to go iced it. The Ramblers outshot Bridgewater 33-30. Tonight the Lumberjacks head to Truro to face the Bearcats. Gametime is 7:30.

Resolute to Shut Down Mill in Fort Frances, Ont

Resolute Forest Products is curtailing its papermaking operations in Fort Frances for the rest of the year beginning on Monday. The company - formerly Abitibi Bowater - is citing poor market conditions as the reason behind the five week shutdown of its paper machines. About one hundred employees at the Ontario-based mill will be impacted.  It's the third work stoppage this year. Meanwhile, workers at the Bowater Mersey Mill in Brooklyn are facing a December 1st deadline to accept severance packages after the union accepted major concessions from Resolute in an effort to save the operation. It means 80 full-time workers will be unemployed and are mulling over company offers.

It's a Big Safety Concern: Shatford

The Deputy Warden for the District of Chester is upset over the lack of snow removal following this weeks storm. During council's regular meeting on Thursday, Floyd Shatford asked each councillor to contact their area MLA to try and draw attention to the issue. Shatford says residents of Chester and the surrounding area deserve better. "I mean I was totally disgusted, the roads were very very bad. My grand kids were heading on buses and the roads were dangerous. I have a hard time accepting they can't keep the roads cleaner. It's totally unacceptable," Snow removal has been an on-going issue in the community year after year and Shatford says something needs to improve.

Former Shelburne Film Studio/Navy Base Sold in Auction

The 150-acre parcel of land at Sandy point near Shelburne was sold in a receiver's auction for $125,000 on Thursday. Roger Sullivan, owner of Yarmouth-based Tri-County Construction was the successful bidder. At one time the asking price for the property was $5 million. Sullivan says he has no immediate plans for the former film studio and navy base. In a separate bid, Tanya Strate purchased six ocean front lots for $85,000 or less than $15,000 per lot. Proceeds of the auction will go toward creditors, including the now defunct South West Shore Development Authority.

SSRSB Member Reinhardt states her case

Karen Reinhardt

A South Shore Regional School Board member who allegedly breached 11 sections of the code of ethics is telling her side of the story. In an exclusive interview with CKBW/HANK-FM News, Reinhardt says the Board had planned a special meeting for November 15, but it wasn't supposed to be about her being censured. Reinhardt says the Board didn't inform her about being censured until after she was volunteering overseas.

"I think that it's a bit unfair. To let me go away and believe one thing, I don't know why they didn't let me know that. They weren't fair enough to let me know that before I left, because I think they were aware of it before I left."

Reinhardt says she wouldn't have made the trip to Liberia if she had known before-hand that the Board planned on making a censure motion. She also wanted to clear the air over allegations she interfered in the school review process. Reinhardt says members exchanged emails and phone calls because they felt they had no time or opportunity to discuss school review before the March 30 meeting. Reinhardt says she doesn't feel she's done anything wrong.

"I don't think there's anything wrong, I can't see anything wrong with board members talking with each other and exchanging information. I don't think that subverts, not only, democracy, but it doesn't subvert board authority at all, especially when 10 board members voted for the motion not to review any schools at this time."

She says School Board Chair Elliott Payzant should also shoulder some of the blame.

"I mean, I do blame the Chair a little bit, because knowing that there was initiative from more than one board member to have a discussion about this, he could've called a special meeting and then we could've done it within the perameters of bylaws and regulations, but that didn't happen."

Reinhardt says final reports, with significant changes, were given to the board just before the March 30 meeting began, giving them no time for careful review or deliberation. Reinhardt also reacted to recent comments by the Education Minister. Ramona Jennex criticized the Board's decision Monday evening, for not making a responsible decision to censure Reinhardt. The vote failed to pass by a 7-4 margin. Reinhardt says she's not sure how to take the Minister's comments.

"She does have a couple of options open to her, neither one of which, in my mind, is terribly pleasant for anybody including her. But, I don't know what to think about what part of that she was dissatisfied with."

Jennex can still decide to overrule the Board's decision and vacate Reinhardt's seat, or the Minister can choose to disband the entire Board. To hear Reinhardt's full interview, tune into this weekend's South Shore Sunday Morning program from 8-9am on HANK-FM and 9-10am on CKBW.

No Serious Injuries After School Bus Veers of the 103

No serious injuries after a school bus went off the road outside of Chester this afternoon. The incident occurred around 1 o'clock on Highway 103 near Exit 7. No children were on board the bus at the time of the incident.  EMS and RCMP are on the scene to check on the status of the bus driver. No word on what caused the bus to veer off the road.

Webber: Pleased Eastlink will Relocate Cell Tower

The Warden of the District of Chester says he's pleased Eastlink has backed down from their proposal to construct a cell phone tower near Demone Road. Allen Webber says it was a poor choice for a telecommunications tower given it's proximately to homes in the area. He says numerous residents had expressed concerns. "It's sort of like you're putting an industrial structure in a entirely residential neighbourhood, so people just don't like that - even if its good or bad or indifferent. There are all kinds of concerns - is it too close to property lines and what if it falls down - those are legitimate concerns," Eastlink still wants to construct a tower in the municipality and is hoping to work with council and the community on selecting an alternate site. Council will send a letter of thanks to the company for removing the Demone Road site from its initial plans.

GasPrices May Fall Again

This may bode well for drivers on the South Shore.
The price of gasoline is down today in New Brunswick and Newfoundland.
In New Brunswick, the Energy and Utilities Board has reduced the maximum price of regular self-serve to a dollar-22-point-2 a litre.
That's lower by almost two-and-a-half cents from last week's posting.
In Newfoundland, the regulator there has dropped the price by three cents.
Here in this province, the utility and review board will set the weekly price at midnight tonight.

MLA Conrad Pleased with South Queens Site Selection

Queens MLA Vicki Conrad

The new South Queens Junior High will be built at the same address as the current school. The province made the site selection announcement Thursday morning in Liverpool. Queens MLA Vicki Conrad says she expects the old school will be demolished, but not right away.

"The students will be able to remain in the current school while the rebuild is taking place. So it's going to be an easy transition, you know, we won't see students being moved to other locations, teachers will be on site, as the rebuild is happening."

Conrad says she's excited to see the new South Queens remain at the same address because it will keep students in the heart of Queens County. The new South Queens is expected to be built in 2013. It will house grade six to eight students, with grade nines going to Liverpool Regional High.