Federal Agency Confirms ISA in Shelburne Harbour

An outbreak of a serious salmon virus has been confirmed at a Shelburne Harbour fish farm. The operation is owned by New Brunswick based Cooke Aquaculture. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency confirmed the results on Wednesday and determined infectious salmon anemia was present at the company's operation in Shelburne. The virus does not affect human health or food safety. It can, however, kill up to 90 per cent of infected fish depending on the strain. The federal agency says measures are being taken to prevent further spread of the disease, and it will continue to test the rest of the salmon at the facility. The fish farm remains under quarantine. Thousands of salmon were destroyed after ISA was suspected at the operation last month.

Bird Construction awarded LCLC contract

Bird Construction has been awarded the contract for the Lunenburg County Lifestyle Centre. Chair Paul Belliveau confirmed Wednesday morning after a meeting with officials. Belliveau says things are almost ready to go.

"We're very pleased that we've finally got to the point where we have awarded the contract, you know we're still negotiating the final price, we're getting close to our budgeted amount, we are not there but we're getting closer than what we were two weeks ago."

 Belliveau says the project manager and architects have been able to cut down costs between $500,000 and $600,000 so far to Bird Construction's bid of just under $24.4-million. Belliveau says they still have roughly $300,000 to either cut or deal with. He hopes negotiations will wrap up within the next couple of weeks and workers will be on site later this month.

Diamond Jubilee Medal for Hebbville Fire Fighter

A South Shore man is receiving a very special recognition for his lifetime of volunteering as a fire fighter. Harold Conrad is a retired chief of the Hebbville Fire Department and he will be presented with the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal later this spring. He is still an active firefighter, 64 years after he joined the department. "The Chief" says he's happy to be given the honor and will wear the medal with pride. In 2010, Conrad was also awarded the Canadian Volunteer Fire Services Association's Lifetime Achievement Award.

New Era: Historic Lunenburg Academy's Final Class

It will be the end of an era and there will be a lot of reminiscing today as Lunenburg Academy holds its very last day of classes. The 117-year old Academy closes at the end of the day to make way for the opening of the new Bluenose Academy on March 21st. Lunenburg Mayor Lawrence Mawhinney tells us this morning, he and a lot of other people have many mixed feelings heading into today. "Everyone who has grown up in the Town of Lunenburg has attended that school, my children did, my wife taught there, my grandchildren attend there...I think for the people that have been around for a long time this will be a day of emotion and memories," There will be a special ceremony this morning for students and teachers at Lunenburg Academy to mark the event. The historic Academy as well as Centre Consolidated and Riverport Elementary will be closing and students moved to the new Academy for its start of classes on the 21st.

SSRSB special meeting to discuss electoral boundaries

The public is getting a chance to hear how the local school board is approaching electoral boundaries. The region of Queens and Municipality of the District of Lunenburg have been granted requests by the province's Utility and Review Board to change their boundaries. With the change, the South Shore Regional School Board is contemplating the size of its board before October elections. Bridgewater town council says it would like to see the board shift from 12 members to nine. A decision is expected to be made during a special board meeting Wednesday night at 7pm at the School Board office.

MODL changing street light policy

The Municipality of the District of Lunenburg is making a change to its street light policy. Current wording in the policy is inaccurate and states "all property owners in the charge area boundary in Riverport shall be charged a street light rate." Municipal Engineer Satu Peori says its a simple wording change.

"We have proposed that we change the wording in section 3.5 to 'Street light ratepayers within the Riverport charge area shall be determined as all properties with an assessment code of residential or commercial that are within the charge area boundary'."

CAO Tammy Wilson noted the change doesn't add properties or take properties out. She says it clarifies that they apply rates to residential and commercial customers.

Mustangs name Grant Johnston new head coach

The South Shore Canadian Tire Mustangs have a new boss behind the bench. Grant Johnston has been named the new head coach after former coach Tim Boyce informed president Lionel Haughn he wasn't returning. Johnston says he brings a hard working philosophy.

"When you are in an organization, usually you get a lot of talent but you have to instill hard work, you have to instill preparation whether it be hockey, off-ice, on-ice, you know we want to do our best in any situation and preparing and working hard will definitely be a main factor in our success."

Johnston hasn't named any assistant coaches yet, but says he has a few people in mind. Boyce led the Mustangs to one of their best regular seasons, matching a franchise-best 19 wins and third in the Nova Scotia Major Midget standings behind Halifax and Dartmouth. Johnston says he learned a lot from Boyce.

"Not only to gain a lot of knowledge in terms of x's and o's with the game of hockey, but you know, from road trips to hockey practices to the games, the way a bench should be ran, he had so much to offer in terms of all levels of the game."

Johnston spent last season as an assistant coach with the Mustangs. Before that, he coached Peewee 'AAA' and Atom 'AAA' teams on the South Shore. President Haughn says Johnston was hired over the weekend after a series of interviews.

Chester Basin: Mounties Identify Homicide Victim

RCMP have released the identity of a woman found dead in her home in Chester Basin. Mounties say the body of Victoria Rae Brauns-Buckley was found Friday morning at a home on Borgels Point Road after paramedics had responded to an emergency call of a sudden death. The 57-year-old woman's death is being treated as a homicide, however no arrests have been made. It's still not known how the woman was killed although an autopsy was completed on the woman's body on Sunday. Investigators concluded their work at the crime scene on Monday.

Trial Underway: Woman Accused of Stabbing

The trial for a woman accused of stabbing her boyfriend last year is underway in Bridgewater. Katelin Leigh Whitney-Joudrey is charged with two charges of aggravated assault and one of assault causing bodily harm. She appeared in Bridgewater Provincial court on Monday for the beginning of her trial. The woman's former boyfriend, Kiel Naugler of Bridgewater, was rushed to hospital in Halifax on January 1st, 2011 after being stabbed in the neck and head. He underwent surgery and was later released from hospital. The trial continues March 16th.

Home Invasion: Date set for Show Cause Hearing

A Dartmouth man charged in a six year old home invasion in Chelsea is due back in Bridgewater court later this month. Forty-six year old Brian Hector Oickle will remain in custody until a show cause hearing on March 21st. Oickle is facing four charges including robbery and forcible confinement. He's accused of breaking into a home and stealing money from a 72 year-old woman during an incident in July of 2005. RCMP were able to make an arrest last week after they recently received new information in the case.

Investigators Conclude Work at Chester Basin Home

Police are expected to release more information today into a homicide investigation in Chester Basin. Investigators concluded their work at a home on Borgels Point Road last night. A 57 year-old woman's body was found inside the two storey home on Friday morning. Mounties say they are following some leads but haven't released any details surrounding their investigation to this point. An autopsy on the woman's body was completed on Sunday but police have yet to release the victims name.

Housing units to be built on Olde Town land

Eric Shaw

Olde Town Golf Club is going from golf course to residential housing. The club, which officially opened in 1928, is expected to be developed into housing as early as 2014. The town of Bridgewater and Genivar Inc., on behalf of the course, are currently exploring the option of building 157 units in the proposed Eagleridge Estates including 128 in phase one. Director of Planning, Eric Shaw, says phase one would provide a mixture of housing including singles, town-houses, semi-detached dwellings and two apartment buildings.

"If council decides to move ahead with the application and this development moves forward and those units are built, certainly it just introduces a lot of housing choices and opportunities for folks either living in town or interested in moving to town."

Amendments are needed in the Municipal Planning Strategy and Land Use by-law to re-designate the property as comprehensive residential. The first phase would be built on Bridgewater land, with negotiations needed with the Municipality of the District of Lunenburg to acquire property to complete the three phase project. A public participation meeting will be held March 21 at 6pm in Bridgewater council chambers.

Leash-free park moves closer to reality

Another step in the right direction for a leash-free dog park in Bridgewater. The town will hold a public hearing later this month to amend its Municipal Planning strategy and Land Use by-law. Town council decided to move ahead after its planning department heard comments during a public participation meeting in February. Director of Planning, Eric Shaw, says the public's main concern was around the design of a proposed leash-free dog space in Generations Active Park. Councillor David Mitchell pointed out, the amendments to the MPS and LUB does not mean every town park will become an off-leash dog space. The public hearing will be held March 26 at 6pm in Bridgewater town hall.

LCLC tender decision coming: Chair

A decision on the Lunenburg County Lifestyle Centre could be made by mid-week. Chair Paul Belliveau says significant progress has been made between the project manager and architects to lower costs and closer to budget. Belliveau could not release financial details. Late last month, Belliveau mentioned Bird Construction's bid of $24.4-million was between $500-thousand and $900-thousand over budget. He's hoping a decision will be made by Wednesday.

Stolen Property Recovered from Mayfair Drive

Two men are facing charges in connection with a series of vehicular break and enters in Bridgewater. Members of the police service say a number of items were taken from cars parked in the Mayfair Drive area over the weekend. The units dog team was brought out to help with the investigation and led officers to a home on Aberdeen road. That's where police made the arrests and recovered a significant amount of stolen property. They would like to return the items to their rightful owner and encourage those who had their cars broken into on the weekend to phone 543-2464.

Shelburne falls in provincial boys basketball final

A second place finish for the Shelburne High boys basketball team. The local club fell to Halifax Grammar 78-59 in the final of the division-3 provincials Sunday. The match pitted the top ranked teams heading into the tournament. Kris Buchanan scored 18 while Doug Poole and Steven Greig each had 12 for Shelburne. It was Shelburne Head Coach Steven Pippy's final game coaching. He coached more than 900 high school basketball games with over 600 wins. Elsewhere, New Germany finished fourth, losing to East Antigonish 83-55 in the bronze medal match.

Charges laid in 2005 Home Invasion in Chelsea.

RCMP have laid charges in a six year investigation into a home invasion in Chelsea. Police say they have charged a Dartmouth man with robbery, forcible confinement, break and enter and possession of property obtained by crime. The home invasion allegedly occurred in July of 2005 when a man entered a home and stole some money from a 72 year-old woman. Lunenburg County RCMP say they never closed the case and the arrest was made after they recently received new information. The accused is expected to answer to the charges in Bridgewater court today.

Lunenburg: Busy Intersection Causes Concern

The Town of Lunenburg has concerns over the safety of a busy intersection within the town. The area in question is the Green Street/Tannery Road intersection which also connects with Falcon Street. Mayor Laurence Mawhinney says council is concerned because the road may be too narrow - especially when big rigs (18 wheelers) are involved. He says the big trucks take up both lanes when making turns and the area will be even more congested when Bluenose Academy opens. Mawhinney is hoping the town will be able to sit down with the province in the near future to look at some options.

Newburne Man Killed in Logging Accident

A Lunenburg County man is dead after a logging accident in Newburne. Sixty-five year old Lorraine Edward Naas was killed while hauling trees out of the woods on Thursday. Naas was working alone at the time of accident and was found by RCMP officers, pinned between a tree and his tractor. He was prounced dead at the scene.

Parking Meter by-law receives thumbs up

 Bridgewater town council is moving ahead with its parking meter by-law. Members have voted to move forward with second and final reading during council February 27. Mayor Carroll Publicover says the town is waiting for new meters and tickets. One of the new changes in the by-law includes new enforcement. The town will issue a $15 penalty for a violation, with the fee increasing to $25 if the ticket isn't paid within seven days.