Owner renovating 99 Aberdeen Road in Bridgewater

The so-called 'blight' at 99 Aberdeen Road in Bridgewater is getting renovated. Building owner Frank Rhyno says he is completely refurbishing the roof, gutting the inside of the property and turning the building into rental suites. He says he plans to turn the front section into four or five spaces for people to rent. Rhyno says the time is right to improve the building's look.

"Well, I guess the bottom line is I've been sitting on this eyesore, as some people call it, long enough without doing anything, so I've come to the conclusion that you can't take it with you so I might as well put some money on it."

 Rhyno doesn't know how much he will need to spend, but adds, he will buy supplies on a day-by-day basis. He says the changes are necessary after four years of the building being vacant. Work began on the property Monday, and Rhyno expects a number of changes to be made by the end of the week.

Temporary Shut Down at Bowater Mersey

The Bowater Mersey Paper Mill will temporarily cease operations this morning. It's the beginning of a near three-week shut down at the mill. The decision was announced last month when the owner, Resolute Forest Products, said world paper markets were flooded with the product. The company also cited a shortage of new orders. It's the seconde shutdown at the Brooklyn mill since before Christmas, when it was closed for three weeks for the same reasons. Employees will return to work on March 28th.

VIDEO: Shipbuilding Action Plan Arrives in Shelburne

Shipbuilding firms in Shelburne are attending a supplier development information session today on the Atlantic Shipbuilding Action Plan. The Irving owned yard will see a large increase in work and employment when the federal ship building contract gets underway. South Shore-St. Margarets MP Gerald Keddy addressed the session this morning, with a lot of emphasis on youth. "But the other great opportunity here is for an entire generation of young people to have a choice to work in Nova Scotia versus going somewhere else. For far too long we haven't been able to give them the option - quite frankly - of staying, now that option will be open to them," Keddy says the session is designed to help businesses position themselves to become suppliers or sub-contractors to through the Shipbuilding contract. "This gives them an opportunity to ramp up and actually go out there and become certified, if they are not certified already and they will get a very good message from ACOA, Irving and other presenters on what exactly is needed for them to tap into these contracts," Today's event in Shelburne is the final information session hosted by ACOA and Irving Shipbuilding.

BREAKING: Arrest made in Chester Basin homicide

RCMP have made an arrest in the Chester Basin homicide case. Staff Sgt. Bruce Hill confirmed with CKBW and HANK-FM news Monday morning that a man has been taken into custody. Sgt. Hill couldn't release any other details. 57-year-old Victoria Rae Brauns-Buckley was found dead March 2 at her home on Borgels Point Road.

SSRSB applying for second SchoolsPlus program

The South Shore Regional School Board is looking to gain another SchoolsPlus program. The province announced late last week the application process has officially opened for boards to try and secure one of four new sites. Coordinator for student services for the South Shore Regional School Board, Jeff Dewolfe, says they are planning a proposal with their application that would allow SchoolsPlus to cover two areas instead of one. He says it would be more beneficial.

"So, we're hoping to actually include both Lunenburg and Queens County in our proposal. So, we're hoping that proposing this new structure, there will be some cost efficiencies with that and we'll be able to reach more students and more communities."

Chester has the only SchoolsPlus program on the South Shore. Criteria includes commitment to using school facilities after hours, adequate facility use for communities and the ability to reach as many schools as possible. Selected applicants are awarded $125,000 to provide leadership and community outreach for the program. Site selection is expected to be announced in the spring.

Bridgewater's McIntosh Wins Gold in Pentathlon

A former member of the Bluenose Athletics Club has set a new Nova Scotia Senior Record in the pentathlon. Bridgewater's Rachael McIntosh was competing for the University of Calgary and picked up the gold medal in the Canadian University Indoor Track and Field Championships in the event this week. Meanwhile, her Bluenose teammate Jesse Drennan had a top ten finish in the men's pentathlon in his first year at the University of Windsor. The event was held at the University of Toronto.

Harmony Bazaar announces 2012 headliners

The self-described festival of women and song has announced its headliners for this summer. Harmony Bazaar organizers say Serena Ryder and Sarah Harmer will perform at the event, which runs from July 27-29. Errin Williams Spidle says both artists can have a positive influence on women.

"One of the things it does it speaks to how women can do well in the music industry and they can do so with writing really good, strong lyrics and making well-crafted songs because they are both amazing singer/songwriters as well as performers."

Spidle says the two women are top Canadian performers and expects they will draw a big crowd for the event.
She says the festival is enjoying early bird ticket sales with weekend passes being sold for half price until the end of the month. All the details can be found at http://harmonybazaarfestival.blogspot.com/ .

Bridgewater council exploring social media

Bridgewater town councillors could be tweeting or liking statuses in the near future. Staff educated council members about twitter and facebook during their recent discussion session Monday night. Councillor David Mitchell says the time is now for council to get involved with social media.

"I think its one of those things that there's no sense in waiting. Social media is here, its not going away, there's just no sense in waiting, we might as well jump on the ship now."

Mitchell says his attempt to use social media last year to promote council's budget process didn't fly with members. He says social media sites like facebook and twitter would help promote Bridgewater.

NSTU President Slams Education Cuts

The president of the Nova Scotia Teachers Union says funding cuts are changing the way education is delivered. Nova Scotia's eight school boards are bracing for combined cuts of $13.4 million from an overall budget estimate of just over $1 billion. The South Shore, Strait and Cape Breton-Victoria regional school boards are facing the highest cuts at 2.1 per cent. School boards were also hit with a $17.6 million reduction in funding last year. Alexis Allen says teachers are dealing with larger classrooms and heavier work loads. "Twenty teaching positions will not be filled. The minister keep saying they will be through attrition but we're losing teachers on the South Shore and that has to mean larger class sizes. Last year, we lost 343 teachers throughout the province, those are all gone and those people that retired...those jobs were not replaced," Allen predicts the province could lose as many as 300 teaching positions for the second straight year in order to meet budget requirements.

Mustangs Former Coach: Travel main reason why I left

The former head coach of the South Shore Canadian Tire Mustangs says it was a tough decision to walk away from the hockey club. Tim Boyce lives in Halifax and says the daily grind of travelling back and forth to Bridgewater became too much.

"The safety of the highway really got to me, you know, when you're travelling three or four nights a week on that highway as I am from Halifax to Bridgewater and back for practices and games, it's a dangerous stretch of highway, single-lane highway and I'm getting married in the summer and I just couldn't handle it anymore. Every time I got in the car it kind of weighed on my mind."

Boyce says he started having thoughts of not returning in late December. He says he enjoyed his time as coach and had a lot of fun with the team. Grant Johnston was announced as the new head coach earlier this week.

Volunteers request funding from MODL for Maggie's Playground

A dedicated park is expanding and in need of more money. Volunteers with the Vogler's Cove Community Hall have approached the Municipality of Lunenburg requesting funding for Maggie's Playground and Park. The group is hoping to expand its project over the next two years to include a multi-purpose court, mini golf, walking trail and a boat activity centre at an estimated cost of $163,476.21. The park is named after Jim and Jan Moir's daughter, Margaret Timmins, who died suddenly in February 2007 while vacationing with her family in San Antonio, Texas. Jan Moir says the park is a perfect tribute for her daughter.

"Nothing could have been more fitting for my daughter. Her deepest love was for her family and for families to be able to get together and enjoy a place such as we have been creating."

The group is requesting $16,000 from the District of Lunenburg to help with the project.

Chester: Land Purchase Along East River for $60,000

The municipality of Chester has acquired a five hectare piece of land along the East River. The property was purchased for $60,000 from a private owner in a deal finalized this week. The listed value of the property was originally $94,000. Warden Allen Webber says the price was right for a nice piece of land. "It's a very nice piece of property that's right by our trails system and we thought it was some property worth pursuing," The area is bordered by the Chester Connection Trail and is a good spot for fishing, canoeing and hiking.

Community Mourns Homicide Victim in Chester Basin

A funeral service will be held this afternoon for a 57 year-old homicide victim in Chester Basin. The body of Victoria Buckley was found late last week at her home on Borgels Point Road. Buckley was born in the United States but moved north after getting a job with Air Canada in the 1970s. She retired from her job as a flight attendant in 2006. Buckley is survived by her two children Alannah and Jack and a grandchild. Police have not made any arrests in relation to her death. The service will take place Aenon Baptist Church in Chester Basin at 2 o'clock.

SSRSB eliminates 20 teaching positions

The South Shore Regional School Board is eliminating 20 teaching positions in the upcoming school year. The majority of positions are being scaled back because of budget cuts by the Department of Education, while five positions were eliminated due to declining student enrolment. Board member Judith Sullivan-Corney says they are optimistic the job losses will be through attrition, not layoffs.

"The superintendent has worked very closely with the principals, so I think we're going to be able to absorb those cuts without layoffs; we're hoping that's where we'll be."

A total of 507.7 full-time equivalent teaching positions have been approved by the board. Those positions include school-based teachers and administrators only. The board is bracing for as high as a $2.7-million cut to its budget for 2012-13.

SSRSB: Multiple Options for New Board Size

Judith Sullivan-Corney

Three options are better than one for the South Shore Regional School Board. The board is recommending multiple scenarios to the province's UARB regarding the size of the school board. Judith Sullivan-Corney says they've decided to suggest a six person, seven person and nine person board as options to the Utility and Review Board to decide on. The first option is the six-person board with two at-large representatives for African Nova Scotian and Mik'maq electors. That would give two members for Park View and one for Queens, Forest Heights, New Germany and Bridgewater. Sullivan-Corney says its the option she prefers.

"It met a number of the objectives that I was hoping to meet and I also think it supports the Deloitte Report. So, the six seat option is if we didn't have to concern ourselves with the minimums in the Education Act, I think it would be a really great option."

The province's Education Act says there can not be less than eight board members. Sullivan-Corney says the school board is hoping their recommendation of six or seven can spark a change in legislation. If not, she says they have a nine person option for the UARB to fall back on.

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.