Pre-Budget Breakfast

2009-04-23 11:13:55

It's a chance to hear more about what could be the budget that launches us into the next Provincial Election.  Finance Minister Jamie Muir will deliver the third in a series of pre-budget addresses across the province tomorrow on the south shore.  Muir will be speaking to the Bridgewater and Area Chamber of Commerce tomorrow morning as part of a breakfast meeting.  The event is being held at the Days Inn on North Street.  Opposition parties have been critical of the MacDonald government's piecemeal release of financial details over the past month. They want to see the budget document introduced and debated in the Legislature, not in the public through the media.  Either the Liberals or New Democrats will have to support the budget to keep the minority government from falling to a non-confidence vote.

Wild Ride

2009-04-23 09:54:23

It was a police dog that finally netted an alleged drunk driver who smashed into three cars and a building in Bridgewater.  Police say they got a call about a hit and run around nine last night. A vehicle was struck on LaHave street. They say a grey-coloured Cavalier that was involved drove off when an off-duty RCMP officer approached.  The constable followed in his personal vehicle.  Police say the Cavalier was involved in another accident, hitting a Honda Accord on Aberdeen Road.  The car kept on going, heading south on Hirtle Drive and eventually hitting a house on Hollingsworth Drive and damaging a parked car in the lot of Eastside Manor Rest Home.  The Cavalier went off the road on Stretch Drive and the driver jumped out and ran off.  A police services dog was brought in and tracked the suspect to his home where he was arrested. He had to be taken to South Shore Regional Hospital for treatment of minor injuries police say were not the result of his arrest.  The man is facing charges of drunk driving, leaving the scene of an accident, damage to property and dangerous operation of a vehicle.  He has a court date set for June 24th in Bridgewater.  And Bridgewater police are asking to hear from anyone who witnessed any part of the string of events that happened last night.

Brothers Sentenced

2009-04-23 06:16:20

Two Chester brothers caught in a drug bust by the South Shore Integrated Street Crime Unit have been sentenced in Bridgewater Provincial Court. The search of a Commons Road residence last October netted almost 15 pounds of processed marijuana.  Forty-one year old Paul Onald Graves pleaded guilty to charges of producing marijuana and processing marijuana for the purpose of trafficking. He was placed on a 12 month conditional sentence, the first 6 months to be served on house arrest. That will be followed by a year on probation.  Graves was also ordered to undergo substance abuse counseling, submit a DNA sample, is prohibited from having firearms for 10 years and is restricted to having only one person in his residence at any given time except for family members.   His younger brother, 33 year old David Scott Graves pleaded guilty to an included offence of simple possession while the Crown withdrew a charge of production.  Police seized 6,878 grams of marijuana during the search last October 15th. 

South Queens High

2009-04-23 06:14:52

It was listed as a top priority on the capital projects list by the South Shore Regional School Board, but the province nixed a new school to replace the South Queens Junior High.  Board Chair Elliott Payzant says members are quite disappointed in the province's allocation of funding for school projects.  The Board approved a motion to request a meeting with Education Minister Judy Streatch to express their disappointment  and concerns and determine the future direction.

Art Exhibit

2009-04-23 06:13:57

Students from African Canadian Studies at Bridgewater Junior Senior/High School are hosting a freedom quilt art exhibition today (April 22th) as part of provincial Education Week.   The class will display paper replicas of freedom quilts they designed with help from local artist Rebecca Fisk.    Fisk says the students are discovering their artistic potential. She says they're mixing textures and colours and  coming up with beautiful designs.        Bridgewater Junior/Senior High received an ArtSmarts grant, through the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia and funded by the Office of African Nova Scotian Affairs.

AIMS Report Card

2009-04-22 06:45:58

South Shore schools are faring well in a report that grades educational facilities and academic achievement in the Maritimes.  The AIMS report card was released yesterday and the high school in Barrington Passage was third overall on the list for Nova Scotia Schools.  The think-tank gave a grade of A-minus for Barrington Municipal High School. 
Coming in 24th with a B-minus is Park View Education Centre in Bridgewater.  And with the same grade are number 26 Shelburne Regional High School and number 27 Bridgewater Junior-Senior High.  Liverpool Regional High School ranked 46th and Forest Heights Community School was 50th, both with a c-plus grade.  Eighteen other schools are unranked on this year's list.  AIMS says the fundamental belief that schools could get better, over time, that led to the launch of the first AIMS Annual Report Card on Atlantic Canadian High Schools in 2003. Visit http://www.aims.ca for the complete report.

Crab Charges

2009-04-22 06:11:33

Fishery officers from Liverpool have charged a Lunenburg county fisherman for an incident last Friday.  The man is from Dublin Shore.  He was arrested for possession female crabs while fishing for lobster.  A court date is set for June 10th in Bridgewater.

Foreign Fear

2009-04-22 06:10:02

The Region of Queen's isn't buying into the Buy Back Nova Scotia coalitions' concern over the Irving's private sale of 170 thousand acres.  The lands are located in Annapolis, Digby and Yarmouth counties.  Mayor John Leefe says the paranoia associated with possible foreign ownership is unfounded. He calls it a typically Canadian condition. And Mayor Leefe says what better way to extract a  high price than to create a public demand for the government to belly up to the bar and buy the lands. Leefe says it was only around 15 years ago that the Irvings purchased most of the land now for sale, from Bowater/Mersey for 34 million dollars.

R-o-Queens Budget

2009-04-21 06:01:04

It's a status quo budget for the Region of Queens Municipality as far as tax rates.. Mayor John Leefe says Council was able to hold the line on residental rates at 88 cents per 100 dollars of assessemnt for Districts 1 to 12.  Tax rates for Liverpool also remain unchanged at $1.85 per $100 of assessment.  Commercial rates are going up in all districts by 8 cents due to the phase out of the Business Occupancy Assessment.  Leefe says the greatest challenge for the Region will come into play next year with the loss of 1.6 million in revenue from the Nova Scotia Power  Corporation grant.   Leefe says the implementation won't take effect till the next fiscal year, April 1st, 2010. A number of other municipal units will also be affected by the province wide re-evaluation of Nova Scotia Power properties.

Car Thieves

2009-04-21 05:59:23

RCMP say they've arrested several teenagers who they accuse of stealing cars in Shelburne county recently.  Early on April 10th, someone took a vehicle from King Street in Shelburne, ditching it in Lockeport. A mini-van was then stolen from Cliff street and was driven and dumped back in Shelburne.  Police say early last Saturday morning, someone trying to steal a vehicle from Brewhouse Lane was scared off by the owner. Over the next few hours, other vehicles were entered on Woodlawn Drive and ransacked.  They were able to get another vehicle started and took off.  An RCMP officer on patrol tried to stop a vehicle on Water Street for a minor violation. That's when the vehicle sped off on Highway 103 towards Liverpool.  Police, citing safety issues didn't follow.  Investigators say the joint work between Shelburne, Queens and the Forensic lab in Yarmouth helped them get the stolen vehicle back and identified several of the people involved.  But they say because they are being charged under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, none of them can be identified. 

Assaulter Jailed

2009-04-21 05:58:20

A 30-year old Barrington Passage man has been taken back to jail for violating the conditions of his parole.  Sergeant Bob Forbes says a woman called 9-1-1 around 5:30 Sunday morning.  She had left their home after allegedly being assaulted by her common-law husband.  Police arrested the man charging him with Assault and Possession of a Controlled substance.  He will be taken back to Provincial Court in Barrington for an appearance on May 21st.

Bowater Back

2009-04-20 09:11:28

Employees at Bowater Mersey Paper Company are heading back to work on today following a five-week shutdown.  So far though, Union officials aren't commenting until they get more information about what's happening with the Queens county plant.  Today is the end of the plant's second five-week shut down in the past five months.  The parent company, AbibitBowater Inc. is seeking bankruptcy protection in the United States and Canada.  A 51/49-percent partnership with the Washington Post exempts the Brooklyn property from bankruptcy proceedings.  Union leaders have told CBC they have no idea whether the separation from the current action will benefit the local mill in the long term. A shutdown at the mill would affect more than 500 jobs in the region.

Joining Forces

2009-04-20 05:45:09

The Bridgewater and Area Chamber of Commerce recently made presentations before two councils seeking input of their budgets.  Chamber President Craig Collins told both the Municipality of the District of Lunenburg and Town of Bridgewater having cohesive municipal units will result in creating an attractive business environment for the current business base and a competitive advantage to luring new business to the region. Sandra Richards, Chair of the Chamber's Advocacy Committee says there are concerns about rising commercial rate assessment trends, and on the day to day issues, there are concerns about the rising cost of fees in respect to services provided.

Municipal Budget

2009-04-20 05:44:12

No  hints at what's to come in the budget for the Municipality of Lunenburg, but Mayor Don Downe says it's going to be a challenge. Downe says the Municipality has a new working committee, the Budget/Finance Committe that has been working very hard in conjunction with staff.  Downe wouldn't speculate on whether it will be a status-quo budget that will be able to hold the line on tax rates.

Georges Moratorium

2009-04-17 12:11:51

Shelburne's MLA is urging the MacDonald government to commit to an extension of a ban on drilling on Georges Bank.
Sterling Belliveau accuses the Conservatives of ignoring the opinion and advice of the fishing industry in South West Nova.  He says no one in government will stand up on behalf of the industry and the thousands of jobs it provides.  Belliveau says the reaction to potential drilling on Georges Bank is something coastal communities don't want.   This week, Energy Minister Barry Barnet again raised the issues of ending the Georges Bank moratorium during a speech in Halifax. The moratorium expires on December 31, 2012.  Belliveau says people deserve an independent review of the moratorium and the potential risks of it not being in place.

Furey Runs

2009-04-17 05:43:49

He's spent 29 years serving the community with the RCMP. Thursday night, Mark Furey is heading down a different road as he enters politics. The Staff Sergeant with the Lunenburg County detachment is being acclaimed as the Liberal Candidate for Lunenburg West. Furey tells CKBW he wants to offer something different than what voters have come to expect from politicians.  Furey will be running against Gary Ramey of the NDP and Carolyn Bollivar Getson who is holding her nomination meeting the same night.

Queens Place Cash

2009-04-17 05:42:25

The Federal Government has come through with funding for the proposed Queens Place Recreation and Community Centre.  South Shore/St. Margaret's MP Gerald Keddy made the announcement in Liverpool Thursday morning.        Councillor Doug Adams who chairs the Queens Place Recreation Committee says the 7 million dollars  towards the project is a great step forward. Mayor John Leefe says Council is working towards obtaining other funding as well.  The 26 million dollar project will include a fitness centre, aquatic centre, fitness studios, community rooms, a walking track and an NHL sized arena with seating for 900.

Fire Help

2009-04-17 05:41:23

Community members are working at helping a young couple from Queens county who lost everything in a fire.  Firefighters will be setting up to accept donations of clothing and other items at the North Queens station.  And a bank account is being opened to accept money for the young family from Pleasant River.  The house was owned by Angela and Christopher Cherry, who bought it in October 2006. They lived there with their five-year-old daughter.  Both parents were working in Bridgewater when the fire broke out Wednesday morning, and their pre-schooler was in daycare.  The cause of the fire is still under investigation. The provincial Fire Marshal was on the scene today.

Pleasant River Fire

2009-04-15 12:08:59

A young family of three is staying with family after a fire destroyed their home in Pleasant River.  The North Queens Fire Association called on mutual aid from Liverpool and Hemford and Annapolis Royal stood by.  Highway 208 was blocked off to traffic for several hours Wednesday.  The two-story dwelling was fully engulfed in flames  when members arrived on scene. There were no injuries as both parents were at working at the time and their pre-schooler was in daycare. The cause of the fire, which was reported around 10:30 yesterday morning, is under investigation.  The home was insured. Canadian Red Cross volunteers will be assisting with emergency food, replacement clothing and personal-care items. Pleasant River is about  30 kilometres west of Bridgewater.

Academy Plans

2009-04-15 06:10:44

The Town of Lunenburg is getting a new Primary to Grade 9 school. The location, yet to be determined will replace the Lunenburg Academy, the town's  junior high school, Centre Consolidated and Riverport and District Elementary.  Mayor Laurence Mawhinney says the Academy, almost a sacred property in the Town  will operate in some capacity or other. Mawhinney says the Academy is too valuable a property to lose. Mayor Mawhinney says the Lunenburg Academy Foundation was formed in 1981 with the intent that when the Academy was no longer required as a school it could be used for other purposes.