Official Sydney and Area Projects Thread

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http://www.capebretonpost.com/index....=265582&sc=151

Real ‘cleanup’ begins at last

The Cape Breton Post

In case you missed it, the big Sydney cleanup is underway — unless, of course, it isn’t. A $52 million contract was announced last weekend for the stabilization and solidification of the north and south tar ponds, the largest single job to be awarded for the $400 million federal-provincial cleanup of the tar ponds and cokes ovens site.

It’s become increasingly obvious over the last couple of years that various physical activities were going on around Sydney’s infamous industrial blight, but in many minds the cleanup — the real cleanup — won’t be underway until the tar ponds themselves are tackled. After all, the project’s usually called the Sydney tar ponds cleanup, and the agency in charge takes that name.

So this is the big enchilada, the genuine article, the real McCoy — except that not everyone’s willing to acknowledge it as a cleanup at all. To the inveterate critics of the government-driven cleanup plan, it’s a cover-up because none of the contaminants — not even the hotspot PCBs which initially prompted some official alarm — will be removed or destroyed. With the rejection of the incineration option, stabilization and solidification, followed by capping, became the entire solution.

Federal Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, who grew up in Cape Breton and earned her environmentalist spurs here, voiced the standing criticism of the plan, which comes down to two assertions: 1) that the work may do more harm than good by stirring up sediments and releasing volatile, potentially hazardous compounds into the air; and 2) that cement-based stabilization and solidification won’t work because of the high proportion of coal-based contaminants in the ponds.

The first point appears to ignore the pollution monitoring standards and operating techniques and procedures developed for the project to protect the surrounding community from harm. These precautions may be critiqued for their adequacy but they can’t simply be ignored.

The second point touches a valid question that has been there from the beginning. The federal-provincial panel that conducted the overall environmental assessment of the cleanup plan in 2006 saw a lot of unanswered questions about stabilization and solidification and spent some time describing how that key part of the plan needed to be further refined and tested.

A good deal of work has been done since then, enough to convince the project managers at least that they could award a master contract that includes some additional work to refine the precise mixture of cement and other materials that will work best in the ponds. John van Zutphen, co-owner of J&T van Zutphen Construction Inc. of Mabou, majority partner in the new consortium Nordly’s Environmental which has won the contract, says there is a formula that will work “but we need to refine that formula to make it more efficient.” He suggests the mixtures may differ a bit from one area of the ponds to another.

Although this is an area requiring further clarification, it is no longer a valid criticism simply to claim that stabilization and solidification won’t work when strength criteria have been developed that will have to be met as the work proceeds.

http://www.capebretonpost.com/index....=265677&sc=152

Historical society makes upgrades to centre

The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — The Old Sydney Society is making upgrades to the Cape Breton Centre for Heritage and Science (CBCHS), thanks to a $95,000 investment from the federal government.

“Heritage presentation is an important component of cultural tourism and its popularity continues to grow,” said Keith Ashfield, minister of state (Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency).

“The investment will enable the Old Sydney Society to continue to offer residents and visitors a quality experience, resulting in increased economic activity in the Sydney area.”

The CBCHS is located in the Lyceum Building in downtown Sydney. It is home to the Old Sydney Society and features a variety of permanent and temporary exhibits which chronicle the history and culture of Cape Breton Island.

The centre is also the last stop on the society’s walking tour of Sydney’s historic north end, offered from May to October each year. The tours are a popular attraction for locals and visitors, including thousands of cruise ship passengers who sign up for the tour each season.

Upgrades are being made to the facility’s washrooms, kitchen area, electrical and heating systems. The centre has also acquired a new display system and has implemented measures to increase energy efficiency, such as improved insulation and the installation of new doors.

“The Old Sydney Society takes pride in preserving the heritage of this area for local residents and visitors,” said Peyton Chisholm, manager and curator at CBCHS.

“In order to maintain and grow our appeal to tourists and residents, built heritage properties such as the CBCHS must be enhanced to provide product diversity and accommodate the changing needs of our visitors,” he said.

The total cost of the project is $126,667 with ECBC providing $95,000 through ACOA’s Business Development Program.

The Old Sydney Society is a non-profit, volunteer organization dedicated to collecting and preserving the community’s cultural and natural heritage.

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http://www.capebretonpost.com/index....=266098&sc=145

Lifeguards on duty at four beaches in Cape Breton

CHRIS HAYES
The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — Nova Scotia Lifeguard Service is on the job at 21 beaches across the province, including four in Cape Breton, although swimming may be the last thing on your mind with all of this rainy weather.

Lifeguards started work Canada Day at Mira Gut, Indian Beach, Inverness Beach and Port Hood Beach in Cape Breton as well as 17 others across the province.

The lifeguard service has supervised 16-million people, made more than 3,100 rescues and completed more than 1,340 beach projects since 1973, according to a release. Last year, lifeguards were involved in what director Paul D’Eon calls a “major” rescue at Port Hood involving young girls swimming in an area adjacent to the supervised beach.

“We had to do some resuscitation for one of them but she was fine in the end,” he said.

D’Eon said the lifeguard service is hoping to add to its record of 36 years without a drowning on its watch.

Last summer, the number of visitors to Nova Scotia Lifeguard Service supervised beaches in Cape Breton were estimated at 9,762 for Inverness Beach, 8,990 for Mira Gut, 5,744 for Port Hood Beach and 2,944 for Indian Beach.

The lifeguard service may have to take a critical look at covering Indian Beach because of the low numbers, D’Eon said. Indian Beach was the second lowest for the province beating out only Bayfield Beach in Antigonish County.

Weather conditions last summer meant lower numbers, he said.

The lifeguard service is looking at providing service for Point Michaud Beach in Richmond County, which D’Eon noted is quite popular.

D’Eon said there are some 3,000 beaches across the province including some nice ones in Cape Breton and the lifeguard service can’t supervise them all.

Looking at what beaches it will supervise, the lifeguard service considers popularity, the ability to erect infrastructure like bathrooms and parking, beach safety conditions and meeting the goal of providing reasonable access for the public to supervised swimming, he said.

“So if you are in the industrial Cape Breton area, we would encourage you to go to Mira Gut or to Indian Beach. That’s the service that is provided. We could probably name 10 other beaches in the immediate industrial Cape Breton area that are just wonderful places to swim but you just can’t do them all.”

Land ownership can also be problematic at some beaches, he noted.

“You just can’t go into private land and attract people or build stuff.”

Hopefully, the lifeguard service will soon be back at Dominion Beach if sewage treatment proceeds as planned, he said.

Lifeguards are on duty until Aug. 30 from 10 a.m to 6 p.m. daily at 19 of the supervised beaches including the four in Cape Breton. Mavillette Beach in Digby County and Clam Harbour Beach in the Halifax Regional Municipality will only be supervised on weekends.

The lifeguard service wanted to remind beach-goers to swim between the red and yellow flags that mark supervised areas of a beach and for parents, to keep children within arm’s reach and to watch over them at all times. It is illegal to consume alcohol on beaches, a rule underlined by the fact an overwhelming number of drowning and water-related incidents are tied to alcohol consumption.

Parks Canada provides lifeguard service from July 4 to Aug. 31 at Ingonish Beach and Freshwater Lake in Cape Breton Highlands National Park each day from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Lifeguards are also on duty at Kennington Cove at Fortress of Louisbourg National Historic Site from July 1 to Aug. 31 from 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. each day.

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Just posting this because of the "pink building" uproar earlier.

http://www.capebretonpost.com/index....=266311&sc=595

Glace Bay improvements eye-catching in a good way

The Cape Breton Post

I have never written a letter to the editor of the Cape Breton Post before but recent developments in Glace Bay have prompted me to send along my thoughts.

While there have been some negative stories circulating over derelict buildings in the downtown core and the eyesore they present for both residents and visitors, I would like to comment on the positive things that are happening.

I am a frequent traveller along the McKeen Street area of town and have noticed the remarkable improvements to the buildings and infrastructure along this heavily travelled route.

It is also the street where the beautiful town hall museum is located.
The latest improvements here are evidenced by the work carried out by Yates Construction through the remediation cleanup under the auspices of the Cape Breton Development Corp. All along the old tracks were massive elephant ear weeds, garbage and the old rail line, which created an unpleasant appearance to this area.

Well, just take a drive by now! It is all being cleaned up, ditched and beautiful, which really adds to the appearance of this area and the town.

Many thanks to those involved in making, through this transformation, a cleaner, neater and more environmentally friendly area of our community. I say to Devco and its employees, keep up the good work! It is nice to see the pride that this kind of work instils in our community.

Keith MacAdam
Glace Bay
Keith’s Place owner

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http://www.capebretonpost.com/index....=266584&sc=145

VLT device to be tested in Sydney

GREG MCNEIL
The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — The next step in the Nova Scotia Gaming Corporation’s attempts to implement responsible gaming will be tested in Sydney.

Beginning today, the Video Lottery Informed Player Choice System will be attached to local video lottery terminals.

The system follows two years of research on tools to provide video lottery players with information on their play.

“It is a card-based system,” said Robyn McIsaac, spokesperson for NSGC.

“It will be voluntary during the field test as to whether or not a customer wants to register for a card and use the tools on the system.”

The Sydney test follows a pilot project conducted in Windsor and Mount Uniacke between 2005 and 2007, when a Responsible Gaming Device was attached to VLTs.

“The results from the pilot test were quite positive. We anticipate similar results from the field test.”

The research found the features helped players spend less, exercise more control and make more informed decisions.

In 2007, Techlink Entertainment, the original developer of the RGD, was awarded the contract to create the Video Lottery Informed Player Choice System for Nova Scotia.

Sydney testing will take place until the fall.

“It is a field test of the actual system that will be used across the province.
We want to make sure the system integrates properly with the VLTs and all technical issues, should there be any, are effectively dealt with.”

McIsaac said establishments currently operating VLTs are co-operating with the field test.

“They understand as well as we do the importance of responsible gambling tools and initiatives and they have been extremely co-operative.”

Following the Sydney area field test, the IPCS will be installed in the province’s 2,800 VLTS, including First Nations, throughout 2009 and 2010.

For more information, visit www.nsgc.ca.

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http://www.capebretonpost.com/index....=266933&sc=152

All-inclusive vacation packages come to Cape Breton

BY CHRIS HAYES
The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — Dundee Resort in Cape Breton says it is offering the first all-inclusive staycation package in Atlantic Canada, at a time when many Maritimers are facing tight travel budgets.

Florida, Cuba, Mexico and other sunshine destinations are popular for their all-inclusive packages which are not generally seen in Atlantic Canada, according to a release from Dundee Resort.

Scott MacAulay, owner of Cape Breton Resorts which includes Dundee, said the packages include accommodations, meals, golf, and use of the resort’s recreational facilities for adults and children.

“We looked at the economy this year and said people are looking for a lot of bang for their buck,” said MacAulay, who is also the general manager of Dundee Resorts. “We just said listen, as opposed to doing a package for this and this and this, let’s just do one that includes everything and put it out there.”

“Just the meals alone where people can come in and they can eat whatever they want off the menu. They don’t need to worry about a budget for that particular part of it . . . If they want to golf two rounds a day, whether it’s a two-day stay or a four-day stay they are having, they could certainly do that. That in itself could eat up the whole price of it.”

MacAulay said the package is similar to the all-inclusive deals offered at resorts “down south.”

“This is pretty close to that. The only things we are not including is spa services, motorboat rentals or alcoholic beverages,” he said.

Dundee Resorts is offering the packages from Sundays to Thursday with a four-night package that includes four nights at the resort, four dinners, four breakfasts, three lunches and unlimited golf and recreation for $499 per person and a similar two-night package for $250 per person.

MacAulay figures the all-inclusive package would become a new trend in Atlantic Canada by making resorts more accessible.

Dundee Resort is located on the Bras d’Or Lakes in Cape Breton.

http://www.capebretonpost.com/index....=266934&sc=152

Island Career Academy approved for training program

The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — Island Career Academy has received final approval from the Department of Education to offer early childhood education training in Sydney.

Henry Johnston, president of Island Career Academy, said the two-year program has been under development for more than four years.

Island Career Academy is one of only five educational institutions in the province to be approved to provide early childhood education training programs.

“The college receives inquiries on a regular basis for EDE training both by prospective students and day-care centres seeking employees. Having the program here in Sydney makes it a great deal easier and much less expensive for those seeking this type of training as they now don’t have to move to the mainland to get it,” said Johnston.

The program will offer training for 20 students per year and provide full-time employment positions for three to four people in the first year increasing to five by year two. Spin-off employment at the lab school provides employment for five additional full- and part-time jobs.

Island Career Academy is a Department of Education registered private career college specializing in human services training.

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http://glacebaygleaner.com/public/in...168&Itemid=131

Cape Breton Drive-in has new website

Written by The Community Press
Friday, 03 July 2009

The familiar screen in the sky on the Sydney-Glace Bay highway has been a local summer tradition for over three decades, and this year the venerable ol’ Cape Breton Drive-in Theatre has modernized itself with a new website.

The drive-in, which will be celebrating 34 years in business next week, recently unveiled, www.capebretondriveintheatre.com, which not only lets people know what’s currently playing at the drive-in, but also what movies will be playing in the coming weeks. Gone are the days of waiting for the newspaper mid-week to find out what will be playing at the drive-in that weekend.

Also included on the website is the history of the theatre, starting with the July night in 1975 when James and Toula Sifnakis first opened the drive-in with a full-service cafeteria. Over the years, the drive-in has become as much beloved for its selection of delicious and affordable food at the concession stand as it has for its movies.

In an age when popcorn and pop for two people at a typical movie theatre can expect to run you $20, the drive-in sells a 16-ounce pop for $1.25, and popcorn, hotdogs and fries are all under $2.50.

The website even has some great ideas to solve two of problems everyone encounters at one time or another at the drive-in – your car battery dying, and being eaten alive by the flies when you open the window.

The drive-in broadcasts a signal in Dolby 5.1 Sound and, the website says, is best heard through your vehicle’s radio at 88.3FM or 650AM. Just about everybody at some point gets so wrapped up in the movie on the screen that they forget to start their car every once in a while and the battery goes dead. It’s a frequent occurrence to see cars boosting each other in the dark, trying to recharge their batteries.

Well, rather than try to call someone you know to come help, you might not be aware that the drive-in itself can help you.

“We have a battery pack on hand to help you out if your car battery dies,” the website says. “Ask us!”

And as for flies, there is another helpful hint on the website:

“Everyone hates black flies! Some nights when there's a breeze blowing it might not be a problem. But on some nights, there's little or no wind... so here's a suggestion! Purchase a fine mesh screen at Home Depot, Home Choice, Canadian Tire or Central Supplies. Lay it over the door and pull it tight. Then close the car door, and voila! You can enjoy the fresh air while you watch the movie!”

The website boasts that the Cape Breton Drive-in has the best admission prices in North America, and it’s hard to argue that when you compare it with going to the movies.

The regular price is $14.99 plus tax per carload. If there are four people in a car, that’s about $3.75 each for two movies – or $1.87 per person for each movie. Even if only one person goes to the drive-in, the cost would be about $7.50 per movie, which is less than the $10.99 cost of one weekend adult admission at Empire Theatres in Sydney.

As they have been for years, Tuesdays are still Super Carload nights, when admission drops to $8.99 plus tax per carload, and there is a bonus feature every Sunday night. And the famous Dusk ‘til Dawn features of 4 or 5 movies playing all night will continue this year on holiday weekends, at a price of $17.99 plus tax per carload.

For more information, check out the new website at www.capebretondriveintheatre.com/ or call the drive-in’s movie hotline at 539-9922.

As always, the show starts around dusk.

Photos will hopefully be added later this week for a splash of colour as usual.

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This is "The Vogue" office building. I'll try to get some construction shots when I'm in Sydney in a couple weeks. One thing I'm really glad to see in this is the underground parking...now if only we could replace the surface lots on Charlotte St and the Esplanade.

http://www.capebretonpost.com/index....=267307&sc=152

New Sydney office building will host major tenants

BY CHRIS HAYES
The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — A new office building under construction on Charlotte Street will have RBC and the Workers Compensation Board of Nova Scotia as tenants.

RBC said in a release it will move its Prince Street branch, commercial banking and area office operations into the office building at 392 Charlotte St. Forty-one employees will move into the new location.

Jerry Rankin, RBC’s regional vice-president for Cape Breton and eastern Nova Scotia, said in a release that in addition to personal, commercial and small business banking, the new location will also provide wealth management services through the first and only RBC Dominion Securities office in Cape Breton.

The new office building, which is being built by Harbour Royale Developments, will have two stories on the Charlotte Street side and three stories on the Esplanade, where there will be underground parking.

RBC is moving onto the first floor of the building and the workers compensation board onto the second floor.

Director of communications Mary Kingston said the workers compensation board will relocate the 35 employees and all of the services it provides for Cape Breton, Guysborough and Antigonish counties from its Kings Road location into the new Charlotte Street office building.

Kingston said the Charlottee Street office building was selected after a call for proposals.

“It’s good value for us,” she said Tuesday. “It offers a good location. It gives improved parking. There are some improvements that are available inside . . . Because it’s a new building, there is good technology infrastructure included in the building that would mean technologically communicating with our computer systems here in Halifax, that will be better.”

“When we looked at everything we said, yeah, it makes sense for us to move up there.”

She expected to move into the building at around the end of September.

Rankin said RBC is “thrilled” to be part of the commercial revitalization of downtown Sydney.

“When finished in early 2010, the new flagship branch will be 9,000 square feet, making it RBC’s largest and most modern branch in Cape Breton and one of its largest in Nova Scotia,” he said in the release.

The new Charlotte Street RBC location will also have four automated banking machines including RBC’s first drive-thru bank machine in Cape Breton and parking, both underground and behind the branch on the Esplanade.

RBC said for the next six months, it will be business as usual at Prince Street Plaza.

Royal Bank of Canada and its subsidiaries operate under the master brand name RBC.

Martin Chernin, of Harbour Royale Developments, said there is still about 1,600 square feet of space on the first floor of the building that has not yet been leased.

Downtown Sydney has been seeing other construction projects recently, including the new building where a Lawtons Drugs store is located and the major expansion of the YMCA.

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http://www.capebretonpost.com/index....=267545&sc=145

New seniors retirement project announced

Breaking News
The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — Details of a new $18 million seniors retirement home were announced by Shannex Health Care, Wednesday.

The seniors campus will feature a 67 suite retirement living residence and a 47 suite assisted living residence.

Details of the facility were unveiled at a press conference at Harbourstone Enhanced Care, another Shannex facility in Sydney.

The new complex will be located near Harbourstone and connected by a pedway.

For details, check Thursday’s Cape Breton Post.

Here's a map of the current facility and its surroundings. The current one is 3 or 4 floors, I'm assuming the new one will be similar.

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http://www.capebretonpost.com/index....=267635&sc=152

Advanced Glazings Ltd. reaches settlement with company’s founder

BY CHRIS HAYES
The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — Advanced Glazings Ltd. said Wednesday it has reached an agreement with high-profile Cape Breton businessman Douglas Milburn to settle a wrongful dismissal lawsuit that he brought against the company.

Interim president Rob Nearing declined to discuss the terms of the settlement reached with Milburn, who was terminated by the company that he himself founded and that manufactures a product he invented.

“We settled the suit on terms that were agreeable to both sides,” Nearing said. “I am not going to disclose the actual settlement.”

Milburn, who remained on the board of directors of the company and has been involved as a paid consultant since April, also declined to disclose details of the agreement.

“My interests are in making the company prosper: That has always been my interest,” said Milburn, who is also the company’s largest shareholder. “From the day all this stuff started going down, that’s what I have been trying to do.”

Milburn filed a wrongful dismissal lawsuit in Nova Scotia Supreme Court in November 2007 against Advanced Glazings Ltd. over his removal as president and CEO. He was seeking damages of one year’s wages as well as additional damages.

Advanced Glazings manufactures a product created by Milburn called Solera, a line of translucent, insulated glass designed to better distribute sunlight entering windows.

“Dr. Milburn’s employment was terminated in an inappropriate manner, and the company’s fortunes suffered in the period that followed,” Nearing said in a release Wednesday.

“We were fortunate that, in the period that followed, he continued to participate actively as director of the corporation, and more recently as a consultant on matters of business and technology. He’s played a crucial role in helping us restore the fortunes of the company this year.”

Advanced Glazings now employs 23 people, all but two of them in Cape Breton, and is having a successful year, Nearing said.

A group of common shareholders of Advanced Glazings has launched a lawsuit naming two Toronto-based investment funds and a number of former or current directors.

An application that was filed in Nova Scotia Supreme Court alleges the investment funds and directors acted in an oppressive manner against the interests of the common shareholders.

Milburn, who is one of the shareholders, stressed that the lawsuit, which is continuing, is not against Advanced Glazings in any way.

I know I sound like a broken record with road improvements, but I can dispute the traffic volumes being strongly considered since I have the last 10 years counts sitting in my file cabinet at home...

http://www.capebretonpost.com/index....=267636&sc=152

Province calling for tenders on road projects

The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — The Nova Scotia government is calling tenders for 13 projects to improve highways, bridges and secondary roads across the province, including work on the Cabot Trail and Route 4 in Cape Breton.

Frank Corbett, the acting transportation minister, said in a release Wednesday the tenders, which are valued at $17.5 million, will result in safer and more efficient roads that will benefit communities and industries like tourism.

Corbett, the MLA for Cape Breton Centre, said this is one of the busiest and most productive construction seasons ever seen in the province..

The province recently announced that it expects to spend $325 million on highway construction and major maintenance projects this year, surpassing last year's amount by more than $100 million. A portion of the funding is earmarked to come from federal stimulus programs.

Cathy MacIsaac, a spokesperson for the department, said road improvements are priorized by looking at traffic volumes and the conditions of roads across the province.

Tenders released Tuesday include work on:

• Cabot Trail from 11.5 kilometres south of Path End bridge, north for six kilometres, for upgrading
• Cabot Trail (Trunk 30), Wreck Cove Bridge at Wreck Cove crossing Morrisons Brook, for repairs
• Cabot Trail (Trunk 30), McDonald Bridge, for bridge deck and bridge rail repairs
• Cabot Trail (Trunk 30), Mill Brook #2 Bridge, for bridge deck and bridge rail repairs
• Trunk 4 in Cape Breton, from Lake Shore Drive West east for 4.7 kilometres, for repaving

The tenders also include projects on mainland Nova Scotia including on East Petpeswick Road, Wellington Dyke Road, Highway 101 from Coldbrook to Kingston, Truro Heights Road, Lower Truro Road, College Road/Main Street, Truro, Route 301, in Oxford, Black River Bridge, and Bridge, North River, Colchester County.

I'm working on a traffic volumes post...using google or microsoft maps with colour co-ordinated traffic thresholds. It will be a while, I'm compiling right now, but Hwy 125 from Sydney River to Grand Lake Rd has 1.5x to 2x the traffic of the busiest untwinned sections of 100-series highways on the mainland, including 101 and 103. I know there was mention of some work being started from Balls Creek to Coxheath, and the entire length has been announced to be twinned, but I haven't heard anything about the SR to GLR section being started or tendered yet. I'll confirm or correct when I'm home in a couple weeks.[/rant]

[Davey Boy Smith]

Quite a bit of work has been completed on the Coxheath to Balls Creek section - it is going full steam ahead from what I saw a few weeks ago.

As for the Sydney River to GLR section, the earliest it can begin is 2010 or 2011 (if my memory serves correctly). I attended a Dept of Transportation information session on the proposed twinning of this section last winter, and they said that engineering, assessment and planning still needs to be completed before they could even consider tender/ start that section. This part of the highway would be a "jersey barrier" type set up, with both sides being on the same road separated by a concrete wall, similar to what is in Coxheath now. The transportation guys did seem pretty sincere that it was a priority of their though. An issue is that this section is not considered part of the National Highways System and the federal portion of the money would have to come from a different program. They were optimistic that it could come from a new program that cost shares for roads contained within urban centres. Let's hope this gets done more sooner than later.

There is some major road work going on in Route 4 in the Big Pond/ Ben Eion area and it is also being resurfaced from Howie Centre right into Sydney River.

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^Thanks for the update. I remember that it was going to be jersey-barrier divided, and that it wasn't part of the NHS. I thought most of the design work had been done though. I'm glad it's a priority.

I'm actually not as ticked about it as I probably sound, I just know that there has been a political factor in the delays its seen along with the non-NHS factor. It's actually a well designed highway even in the 2-lane sections, which is probably what's keeping it from being as dangerous as a 2-lane with that volume of traffic would normally be.

Also, good to see the Rte 4 upgrades progressing past the golf course.

One more thing, since I'm arriving in town next weekend (flying in and out of Sydney, but spending the first week in Fredericton)...am I going to be disappointed with the downtown developments? I'm not expecting a whole lot, but I'm expecting more than crap too. lol

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Just logging in for some quick updates while I can. I'll post a full rundown of what I saw when I get back to Calgary, hopefully with as many photos as possible, but for now I just wanted to say that YMCA is coming along nicely with the back addition looking close to complete, Lawtons is done though I didn't get a good look at it, the Vogue office building looks nice and seems to be just putting on finishing touches, Victoria Rd in Whitney Pier looks awesome where they've done the facade program, and the Burnac Dr extension to SPAR Lake Rd to take it to the east traffic lights at Mayflower Mall is completely cut through.

And, oh yeah, 23 rows * 6 seats/row = 138 occupied seats on my Westjet flight from Toronto to Sydney...not a single one was empty. Hopefully it's as successful going the other way too.

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http://www.capebretonpost.com/index....=269239&sc=145

From left, George Hennick, site supervisor with the Sydney Tar Ponds Agency, explains the remediation process from a viewing area above the north tar pond Tuesday as Chief Raymond Tutcho of the Deline First Nation, N.W.T., and Alex Paul of Membertou First Nation, training co-ordinator with the Unama’ki Economic Benefits Office, listen. Tom Ayers – Cape Breton Post

Follow the leader
Northern aboriginal groups seek help from Unama’ki on environmental remediation

The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — Community and business leaders from the Northwest Territories are touring the tar ponds this week and learning from local aboriginal groups how to build capacity in their own communities and take advantage of future cleanup projects in the north.

Tuesday and today, representatives from the Tlicho and Deline First Nations are being accompanied by officials from Indian and Northern Affairs in meetings with others from the Unama’ki Economic Benefits Office based in Membertou First Nation.

Deline Land Corp. spokesperson Marty Ann Kenny said five uranium mine sites around Great Bear Lake are scheduled for environmental remediation and northern aboriginals are hoping to learn from local groups in Cape Breton how to set up private companies and bid on government cleanup projects.

The land corp. is a band-owned entity, but other private companies will be expected to bid on cleanup projects.

“That’s part of why we came here, to find out how they set up the companies,” Kenny said.

The northern cleanup sites include the Port Radium mine, which supplied uranium used in manufacturing of the nuclear bomb dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, during the Second World War, she added.

The Deline First Nation, with a population of about 600, is located on the shores of Great Bear Lake. It is a fly-in community with winter-road access.

Unama’ki executive director Owen Fitzgerald said the five First Nations communities in Cape Breton have already secured work contracts worth more than $19 million as part of the $400-million cleanup of the Sydney tar ponds and coke ovens sites.

First Nations communities across Canada have been hearing about the success of the unique economic partnership between the Unama’ki communities and the federal and provincial governments, he said, and are interested in learning how aboriginal set-asides are identified and pursued.

In addition to a tour of the tar ponds, the northern visitors are touring a Devco mine site remediation in Sydney Mines and meeting with local First Nations government and business leaders to discuss how aboriginal communities are organizing to effectively participate in the larger cleanup project and how aboriginal groups are using the project as a stepping stone to business development and future economic development.

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http://www.capebretonpost.com/index....=269643&sc=152

Alexandra Street roundabout included in highway tenders

The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — Tenders were called Wednesday for several paving projects totalling $12.5 million, including construction of a new roundabout on Alexandra Street in Sydney.

A total of 11 tenders were issued for road projects in seven counties and two regional municipalities as part of the province's highway construction program.

"We're working with partners to make sure improvements continue to go forward on roads all over Nova Scotia," said Bill Estabrooks, Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal.

"These latest projects are among the many now underway to provide Nova Scotians and visitors with a strong road network that connects our communities."

The province is scheduled to spend $325 million on highway construction and major maintenance projects this year, surpassing last year's amount by more than $100 million. A portion of the funding will come from federal stimulus programs.

"There is a wide variety of work involved in these projects, from building a roundabout to bridge painting," said Estabrooks.

“Whatever the job, I know that the Nova Scotia construction industry is up to the task."

Meanwhile, island motorists are being advised of a paving project currently underway in Victoria County which will result in delays.

Two sections of Highway 105, from Exit 10 west for 4.3 kms and east of Big Harbour Road, for about 1.8 km, will be reduced to one lane for cold planing, patching and repaving from today until Aug. 31.

Motorists can expect delays and work takes place from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.

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Mary Mombourquette shows a conceptual design for the Whitney Pier Community Heritage Trail. Trail construction could begin as early as the fall. Mombourquette is a member of the trail committee, along with Charlie Neville, Sandra Dunn, Gordon Kiely, Selma Nobrega, Helen Carrol, Simon Gillis, Posey MacKinnon. Greg McNeil - Cape Breton Post

Whitney Pier historic trail in planning stage

BY GREG MCNEIL
The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — A trail designed to link a community’s past with its present and the community to the rest of the municipality is a step closer to completion.

The Whitney Pier Community Heritage Trail, a concept born in 2003, will be a 1.5 km trail developed between the former lands of the International Pier and the Sydney Steel Plant.

“It is going to be a historic trail,” said said Mary Mombourquette, a member of the society overlooking the project.

“In an around the trail there is going to be different monuments explaining where you are that particular site. Also, all the ethnic organizations will be getting together and they will be providing something on their culture.”

The Cape Breton Regional Municipality is now looking for design proposals for the project.

“We already have a very conceptual plan,” said regional planner, Rick McCready.

“We want somebody to look at that and put together something very specific, including construction drawings that we could actually tender out for the construction of the trail.”

Trail features will allow for a tobaggan run and cross country skiing in the winter. Summertime users will enjoy biking, a boardwalk, benches and flowers among other things.

McCready said the idea stands on its own as a project for Whitney Pier, but it will eventually link into a larger municipal network.

Conceptual plans have the trail linking under the coal railroad to the sidewalks being built in the Harbourside Commercial Park.

That means when the new Ferry Street bridge is built, there will be a connection for foot and bicycle traffic from the trail directly into downtown Sydney.

The proposal was identified in the CBRM’s Active Transportation Plan, which includes sidewalk improvements and other trails around the municipality.

The CBRM is working with Nova Scotia Lands and the Whitney Pier Historic Trail Society on the project.

Construction could begin as early as this fall.

Mombourquette said numerous residents, organizations and schools have been and will be involved with the trail project.

“It is being very positively received within the neighbourhood. I myself did surveys with all the homeowners.”

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New Waterford residents ready to once again celebrate Coal Dust Days

SHARON MONTGOMERY-DUPE
The Cape Breton Post

NEW WATERFORD — It is about to get a little crowded in New Waterford.
Coal Dust Days festivities begin today and continue until Sunday, July 26.

“A lot of people from away come home for these events, especially Plummer Avenue Day,” said festival co-ordinator Carol Ann White.

White said although many of the festivities attract a big crowd, Plummer Avenue Day is definitely the one that no one misses.

“It is the most popular, as it is a nice social event, the one people from away can especially run into a lot of people they haven’t seen in awhile.”

Coal Dust Days begins Saturday with the annual children’s festival at Colliery Lands Park and includes free hotdogs, pop, cotton candy, cookies, games and pony rides.

Organizers are encouraging everyone to get in the community spirit and put a float in the Coal Dust Days parade which takes place Sunday. Formation is at 5:30 p.m. on the KOC on Plummer Avenue. The parade begins at 7 p.m. The route includes lower Plummer Avenue, proceeding up King Street to Emerald Street, down Mason Street back to Plummer Avenue. The awards ceremony will follow at the KOC hall. For safety reasons no bicycles will be permitted and only registered ATVs, operated by a licensed driver, will be accepted.

Plummer Avenue Day is Thursday from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. The street is blocked off and non-profit organizations, groups, individuals and businesses will have booths set up along Plummer Avenue. Entertainment throughout the day will include Olive Street, Tender Trap, Air Traffic Control, Bernie McCuish & Friends, Dougie MacPhee & Carl MacKenzie, magician Patrick Drake. The wrap-up party follows 7-11 p.m. with Colin, James & Michael MacNeil as well as Laurel Martell and the Deal.

White said they always keep the long-running popular Coal Dust Days activities intact, but like to add new ones.

“We are always looking for new events, especially for the youth.”

A new event this year is the ball hockey challenge at Rotary Ball Hockey Arena beginning at 9 a.m., Monday.

There is also a big bike ride this year sponsored by the Heart and Stroke Foundation, 9 a.m.-1 p.m., July 24 at the Knights of Columbus hall. Teams or groups sign up for the ride and get pledges to raise money.

“It is like a big flat bed with about 30 bikes so your team can all ride together. It is put on by the Heart and Stroke Foundation, one of the ways they try and raise money.”

White said there is still time to register for events at the Colliery Lands Park including the ball hockey challenge, the big bike, Guitar Hero competition, parade and NBA 2-Ball competition.

The only registration for the tavern tour will be 12-8 p.m., today at the New Waterford Volunteer Fire Department.

Coal Dust Days celebrations will wrap up July 26 with the annual fireworks and concert at Colliery Lands Park at 7:30 p.m. The Andrew Doyle band will perform.

For a complete list of events log on the website, www.coaldustdays.com or call 862-4710.

More rural than Sydney area, but I'll put it here anyway...
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Mi’kmaq culture will be in spotlight during Wabanaki Ways Festival

LAURA JEAN GRANT
The Cape Breton Post

INDIAN BROOK — The work of a renowned Cape Breton artist will be showcased on the opening day of a first-of-its-kind festival happening at the Cabot Shores Wilderness Resort.

Membertou’s Arlene Christmas, who goes by the name Dozay, will unveil the results of a special project at an art show opening reception Saturday at 3 p.m. at Cabot Shores, as part of the resort’s Wabanaki Ways Festival. The reception will be followed by a traditional Mi’kmaq dinner and a live musical performance by award-winning group Morning Star, featuring Alex Poulette and Richard Poulette. John Henry Lafford, an elder from Eskasoni, will open the day’s festivities with a traditional welcome and smudging ceremony.

Dozay has spent years researching legends about native Mi’kmaq hero, Glooscap. She has travelled to the locations where these stories took place, photographed them, and then created paintings celebrating both the legends and these landmarks.

“They’re original acrylics and it’s the series on Glooscap legends,” said Dozay, of the work that will be featured at Cabot Shores. “It’s mostly on Cape Breton legends. There’s 14 pieces altogether.”

Paul Weinberg, who owns and operates Cabot Shores Wilderness Resort located in Indian Brook on the Cabot Trail, said he was first inspired to organize the festival during a tourism conference where officials talked about the importance of providing visitors with unique cultural experiences.

“A lot of our guests come from Germany, France, the United States and all over the world and they’re always asking about native culture so we’ve been doing a lot with the Mi’kmaq with a fellow named John Henry Lafford, who lives in Eskasoni. He’s done some guiding here. He’s taken my guests on trips down the Margaree doing salmon fishing, he’s taken them to Glooscap Cave and so forth. At the same time I connected with Dozay, who’s a native artist in Membertou,” he said, in explaining how the festival has come together.

Weinberg said he hopes the festival is a fun experience for all involved.

“The purpose would be for non-native people to learn what the native culture is on Cape Breton and maybe, even more broadly, the Maritimes,” he said, noting they decided on naming the event the Wabanaki Ways Festival.
“Wabanaki is five tribes — the Mi’kmaq, the Maliseet, the Passamaquoddy the Penobscot and the Abenaki.”

The festival opens this weekend and will continue throughout the summer, coming to a close Sept. 23. Weinberg said they have a number of events planned over the next two months including art workshops for children and adults, musical performances and workshops on a wide range of topics including native culture, storytelling and crafts.

Dozay’s paintings will be on display at Cabot Shores throughout the summer.
Her work has been displayed and exhibited her work throughout the Maritimes, Ontario and the United States. In the coming year some of her pieces will be featured in exhibits in Melbourne, Australia and at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver.

But for right now, Dozay said she’s looking forward to the Wabanaki Ways Festival.

“It sounds interesting. It’ll be the first one of its kind, I guess, for Cape Breton. It should be a lot of fun and there will be a lot of interesting things to do,” she said.

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A baby eagle relaxes in a nest in Dominion. Despite a constant convoy of activity with the building of the new sewer treatment plant, the eagles seemed unbothered and nested in the community once again. Sharon Montgomery-Dupe - Cape Breton Post

Family of eagles still nesting in Dominion despite noisy construction

SHARON MONTGOMERY-DUPE
The Cape Breton Post

DOMINION — The eagles have landed — again.

Eagles will return to their same nest year after year, providing there aren’t any major distractions.

CBRM Coun. Darren Bruckschwaiger said hats need to be tipped to workers involved in the new sewer treatment plant project in Dominion.

Bruckschwaiger said nothing could be much more distracting than a constant convoy of heavy equipment building the road maybe 100 feet or so from the nest.

“That goes to show you how well these people work, always keeping the nest in consideration,” he said.

Terry Power, regional wildlife biologist for the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources (DNR), agrees.

“We are quite pleased this eagle continued to nest here because at the time the new road was being built.”

Power said the Cape Breton Regional Municipality contacted him before starting the project for advice on building a road while ensuring the nest was preserved.

“The municipality was able to acquire an additional piece of property they hadn’t owned up to that point to swing the road a little to the right to give a larger buffer between the road and eagles nest.”

However, he said it was touch and go whether the eagle would stay.

“They have continued to nest there, which is a good outcome for everyone.”

He said eagles adjust to activity of the surroundings, but if something new comes along it is quite possible they would pack up.

“That would have been an example of that. Building a road is something new. They hadn’t seen that. This pair of eagles was use to nesting in an urban setting, use to a lot of activity from people and this was just one more such activity. It is a good outcome. We are pleased they continued to nest.”

Power estimated there are 175-180 eagle nests in Cape Breton. The DNR documents and keeps track of the nests on the island.

Power said most eagles that breed in Nova Scotia breed in Cape Breton.

“What eagles are looking for is a ready supply of fish. Predominately what they eat in nesting season. They will take road kill, garbage, but nesting time coincides with the gaspereaux run.”

Power said most eagle nests are heavy — built with large sticks — and well anchored.

However, because they return to the same next every year, they continue to add more material.

“They get larger in diametre and deeper. Every year they put fresh grass in the middle.”

Eventually the snow will bring an eagle’s nest down and they will rebuild in an adjacent tree, he added.

“That is why it is important to keep the grove of poplar trees there by the eagle’s nest in Dominion.”

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Sounds like we may have to keep an eye out for something new on this site.
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Workers cleaning up Jasper's site

TOM AYERS
The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — Workers from Hazco and several subcontractors are cleaning up soil under the parking lot of the former Jasper’s restaurant on George Street.

The location was formerly a gas station, although a site supervisor said no tanks are buried there. He said a private client hired Hazco to remediate the ground under the parking lot, a job which is expected to take a couple of weeks.

Workers have erected a temporary fence around the parking lot on the corner of Dorchester Street, and the George Street sidewalk is expected to be blocked to pedestrian traffic next week for safety reasons, the supervisor said.

Details on the remediation work are not being released, but the supervisor said the job is necessary because environmental guidelines have changed since the former service station property was cleaned up years ago.

He said the parking lot will be restored once the work is finished.

Michael Florian, inspector specialist with the Nova Scotia Department of Environment, said the department is not aware of the work, but that’s not uncommon.

“It happens all the time,” he said. “The only thing we need to know at the end of the day . . . is the real heavy stuff.”

Florian said environmental regulations permit cleanups that fall below a certain level and likely pose no concerns.

A large cleanup at the Jasper’s property occurred years ago, he added, so the amount of work left to do is likely to involve only small amounts of gasoline, which is volatile and dissipates easily.

“It is hydrocarbon,” said Florian. “It came from Mother Nature and it can go back to Mother Nature. You’re probably worse when you’re filling up your lawn mower with gas.”

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Airplanes on course for Cape Breton

ERIN POTTIE
The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — What is believed to be the largest rally of airplanes to fly coast-to-coast in Canada is nearing its final destination at the birthplace of Canadian aviation.

As part of the country’s centennial year of flight, more than 100 non-military airplanes and approximately 200 pilots will land in Cape Breton Monday, ending their two-week journey which began July 16, in Boundary Bay, B.C.

Destined to be near Baddeck, where Canada’s first manned powered flight occurred on Feb. 23, 1909, the event includes stops across the country as the fleet of small planes makes its way to the Sydney airport.

Members of the public will be invited to watch outside the airport gate as the planes land one-by-one in Sydney, with the first plane expected to arrive at 9:30 a.m.

Once the entire group has landed, both pilots and the public will be invited to attend a reception to rename Sydney airport in honour of Silver Dart pilot J.A.D. McCurdy. A concert will also be held featuring Cape Breton music group The Barra MacNeils.

“There’s just a huge amount of press on this flight and it’s picking up momentum for sure,” said Eleanor Anderson, project manager, Silver Dart Centennial Association. “We’re planning a big welcome for them.”

Anderson said most pilots will stay at a Sydney hotel and later be bused by motor coach to the Alexander Graham Bell museum July 28.

Eight to 10 planes will fly into Baddeck for the occasion, landing at the Crown Jewel Resort airstrip.

Anthony Nalli, media co-ordinator for John Lovelace’s Cross Canada Century Flight, said Tuesday the group was currently stationed in Dryden, Ont.

Nalli, who is a pilot himself, said each plane flies according to its own flight plan — not as a squadron.

John Lovelace, the flight marshal, had originally planned to complete the cross-Canada trip himself after discussing the idea in Baddeck with a grandson of Alexander Graham Bell. After sharing his plans, more and more pilots had requested to join, leading him to organize a group of 100 planes to represent 100 years of flight.

“To tell you the truth if we didn’t stop registration a few months ago we could have had double or triple that,” said Nalli. “The interest has been absolutely phenomenal.”

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Harbour busy today with arrival of two cruise ships

The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — Sydney’s harbourfront will be abuzz with activity today with two cruise ships along with local ports officials hosting a special barbecue for the crew.

In addition to the cruise vessel Maasdam coming into port, the Tahitian Princess will make an unexpected call on Sydney today.

Owned by Princess Cruise Lines, the Tahitian Princess carries 700 passengers and 373 crew and is expected in port at 8 a.m. Her sister ships, Pacific Princess and Royal Princess, will both make visits to Sydney later this year.

Meanwhile, the crew of the Maasdam will be feted today by port officials during the fourth annual Maasdam Crew barbecue. The event is scheduled to run from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and is open to the public.

Among the events planned is a special presentation to Captain Andre VanSchoonhoven by regional Deputy Mayor Clarence Prince in appreciation of the Maasdam’s continued support of the Cape Breton port.

In total, the Maasdam will make 17 visits to Sydney this year.

After today’s visit by two cruise ships, the next one doesn’t come into port until Aug. 24 when the Eurodam is scheduled to arrive.

The harbourfront will also be busy on the weekend thanks to the arrival of the Tall Ships. A number of activities are scheduled.

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Centre 200 renovations will take a year, says GM

TOM AYERS
The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — It will be one more hockey season before $1.5 million in renovations to the Centre 200 arena will be finished, said general manager Blair Brewer.

“They have started, but they’ve just started,” Brewer said Wednesday.
“There’s nothing of any significance done yet. They’re fairly extensive and it’s probably going to be a year before they’re all done.

“Construction takes that long. By the time you go through a process of getting drawings done, getting tenders out . . . this isn’t abnormal.”

In March, Nova Scotia MP Peter MacKay announced $1.5 million in upgrades to Centre 200, including funding from the federal government, the province, Cape Breton Regional Municipality and the private sector.

Planned improvements include increasing seating to at least 5,000 with the addition of 13 new skyboxes and club seating, and a new video scoring system. The concession area and washrooms are also slated for renovation.

Brewer said the only work being done so far is the washrooms, which are being modernized and should be done next month.

“There may be a little bit more done, but that’ll probably be it this year,” he said.

Some people may have expected work to be done quicker, but a large construction project simply takes time, said Brewer. “I didn’t expect we would have more done than we do.”

With ice scheduled to go in Aug. 1 and a new hockey season set to begin, the rest of the work will have to wait.

“Before the beginning of next hockey season it’ll be done,” said Brewer.

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CBU project among this year’s nominees for world technology award

The Cape Breton Post

NEW YORK — For Cape Breton University’s Petroleum Applications of Wireless Systems (PAWS) Project, it was simply an honour to be nominated.

The project was among this year’s nominees for a 2009 World Technology Award for Communications Technology.

Although CBU did not win, the nomination was great exposure, according to Cecil Smith, CBU’s director of PAWS.

“We are deeply honoured and delighted that the PAWS project had been nominated for the Communications Technology category of the 2009 World Technology Awards. Recognition from one’s peers means so much and this nominations highlights the importance collaboration plays in research and development."

Winners were announced earlier this month in New York at the World Technology Awards gala ceremony at the TIME & Life Building at the conclusion of the two-day World Technology Summit.

The World Technology Awards honor individuals and corporations from 20 technology-related sectors viewed by their peers as being the most innovative and doing the work of the greatest, likely long-term, significance.
Award categories range from biotechnology, space and energy through to ethics, design and entertainment.

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Claude Goora, contract manager with the Sydney Tar Ponds Agency, stands along side the coke ovens brook as he explains one aspect of a new cleanup project that will see groundwater at the coke ovens site collected and contaminants removed. Steve Wadden - Cape Breton Post

Contract worth $15M awarded for coke ovens cleanup

NANCY KING
The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — The cleanup of the former coke ovens site took a substantial step forward Thursday, with the awarding of a $15.2-million contract that will see groundwater at the site collected and contaminants removed.

MB2/Beaver Marine Joint Venture, a partnership between a First Nations contractor from Cape Breton and a non-aboriginal Nova Scotia-based company, was awarded the contract to construct a ground water collection system and a water treatment plant at the former coke ovens site.

“It ties in the coke ovens into the tar ponds themselves,” said Claude Goora, contract manager with the Sydney Tar Ponds Agency. “Contaminated groundwater being treated at our water treatment plant, which is part of this contract, and discharging into the coke oven brook, which leads into the tar ponds area. So, it is the link.”

The work is expected to begin in August and be completed next spring.

Contaminants include polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), petroleum hydrocarbons, benzenes and toluenes.

Contaminated sediment in bottom of the coke ovens brook will be excavated, and replaced by clean backfill material. At the top of that material will be perforated piping which will be used as the collector of groundwater beneath the brook, creating a channel.

It’s going to be collected into the perforated pipe and into a pumping station and into the water treatment plant,” Goora said. “What’s above that clean backfill material and pipe, we’re going to create a new channel, the new channel being lined with high density polyethylene ... that’s basically to protect the surface from groundwater coming up, and also to protect the underneath from surface water coming down.”

Water from the brook will drain into the engineered channel that will wind through the tar ponds site until it reaches Sydney Harbour. The channel will also capture other sources of water that drain into the ponds.

At the on-site water treatment plant, there will be a series of filters and vessels that will treat the groundwater. Once the water meets acceptable freshwater aquatic life guidelines as set out by the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment, it will be released into coke ovens brook, Goora said.

The sediment that is removed from the brook will be later stabilized and solidified, while the material collected from the groundwater treatment process will be shipped to a certified treatment facility.

The federal and Nova Scotia governments have committed a total of $400 million to the cleanup of the tar ponds and coke ovens sites by 2014.

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Don’t be deceived by what your eyes can’t see

ERIN POTTIE
The Cape Breton Post

SYDNEY — For those wondering why the Wentworth Park bandshell is wrapped in plastic — read on.

Over the past week or so, even on the sunniest of days, the park’s crown jewel has appeared untouched and hidden under a giant plastic tarp.

“It’s all good news,” said Alan Peddle, chair of the Friends of Wentworth Park Society, who is guiding the renovations. “The reason it’s wrapped in plastic is because they want to remove all the exterior and interior paint and they’re sandblasting it, so they don’t want it going everywhere.”

Peddle said after carrying out work to remove paint and dust fragments from the aging cement dome, workers found insignificant concrete fractures, which are common in these types of restoration projects.

Engineers were brought in to check the bandshell and found it to be structurally sound, however a cement mixture was applied to prevent the cracks from worsening.

“There’s no problems, but they had to fill it with epoxy and epoxy takes about two weeks to cure,” said Peddle. “That’s why there hasn’t been a lot of activity; it’s been curing.”

Bill Murphy, an engineering and public works manager with the Cape Breton Regional Municipality, said he expects the protective plastic to be removed in about two weeks, if not sooner.

“We’re doing work that the community doesn’t see inside the covered part of the bandshell,” said Murphy. “We basically have the bandshell cleaned down; all the old paint removed. It had to be assessed and a new coating application is going on it, that work is going on as we speak.”

Murphy said doors and windows that were part of the original bandshell were filled with cement, which also has to cure.

In addition, cement was poured for a playground area and sitting and retaining walls. A final paint product will complete the look of the bandshell near the end of the project.

The final renovations which began in May, are part of a three-phase project and are estimated at $850,000 which is being shared by Enterprise Cape Breton Corp., the province and the municipality.

The first phase cost approximately $2 million, and the second was pegged at $750,000.

Upon completion, which is expected to be sometime in September, the bandshell area will feature new lighting, pathways, asphalt walkways, a pond fountain, playground equipment for toddlers and a new entrance consisting of an archway for Wentworth Park at the corner of Bentinck Street and Bing Avenue.

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CBU professor picked for provincial biodiversity panel

The Cape Breton Post

HALIFAX — A Cape Breton University professor is among the 12 Nova Scotians named Thursday to help develop a new natural resources strategy for the province.

“The steering panel has selected 12 well-qualified technical experts for this second phase of the natural resources strategy process,” said Constance Glube, former chief justice for the province.

"The four expert panels will soon begin the job of consulting with stakeholders, and their findings will be reported to the steering panel late this fall,” she said.

The four, three-member panels of expertise will focus on the key components of the strategy: forests, minerals, parks and biodiversity.

Joining the biodiversity panel is Martha Jones, associate professor, department of biology at CBU. Also on the panel is Cliff Drysdale of Middleton, director, Southwest Nova Biosphere Reserve Association, and Steve Mockford of Wolfville, assistant professor, department of biology at Acadia University.

Other panel members include:

Forests: Bob Bancroft, Pomquet, biologist; Jonathan Porter, Liverpool, manager, Forestry and Fibre Resources, Abitibi Bowater; Donna Crossland, Bridgetown, senior park warden, Kejimkujik National Park.

Minerals: Jacob Hanley, Halifax, geology professor, Saint Mary's University; David Duncan, Wolfville, geologist; Marcos Zentilli, Halifax, geology professor, Dalhousie University.

Parks: Tony Charles, Halifax, professor of management science and environmental studies, Saint Mary's University; Bruce Martin, Bear River, parks planner; Dale Smith, Dartmouth, president, Nova Scotia Nature Trust.

Under the guidance of the steering panel, the four panels will define the process for researching the issues and themes that emerged during the public consultations. The panels will seek technical expertise and hold consultations.
They will also prepare and submit draft reports and recommendations to the steering panel.

The third and final phase of the process will see the development of a strategy to manage Nova Scotia's natural assets, and guide the department of natural resources and government for the next decade and beyond.

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Plummer Avenue Day once again a hit with residents

GREG MCNEIL
The Cape Breton Post

NEW WATERFORD — The skies cleared in time for people to fill the town’s favourite street in the middle of its most popular festival.

Plummer Avenue Day proved once again to be the highlight of New Waterford’s Coal Dust Days.

Held Thursday, the avenue was filled with entertainers, food and activities from the time the street was closed to traffic at 11 a.m. until barriers were removed following the evening wrap-up party.

“The sun was shining, that is certainly a plus and it has been shining for 26 consecutive years for Plummer Avenue Day,” said Susan Coombs of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality recreation department.

“We had a great turnout, wall to wall people and I think it was bigger than ever this year.”

Coombs said both young and old took part in the day that had events lined up to please all ages at all times of the day.

“I think it is tradition and I think it is certainly a place to meet and greet old friends and make some new ones. It is just something that has become synonymous with Coal Dust Days and the festival.”

Although Plummer Avenue Day is thought to be the most anticipated day on the Coal Dust Days calendar, Coombs reminds residents that there are plenty of other festival activities still to come.

Today’s schedule includes a Plummer Avenue stop by the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Nova Scotia big bike and the annual doll carriage and bicycle parade in the town square.

Tonight 1,000 people are expected to hit the streets for the 15th annual Coal Dust Days tavern tour.

Coombs said the festival committee event sold out within three hours and is yet another example of the growing popularity of Coal Dust Days.

“I think it grows every year. It certainly met our expectations and beyond.
The committee is more than happy with the whole week of events.”

The highlight of Saturday’s schedule will be the annual firefighters competition, sponsored by the New Waterford, Scotchtown and New Victoria volunteer departments. Activities begin at 11 a.m. and include a full day of entertainment and educational activities for the entire family. That includes fire departments competing in hook and ladder races, bucket brigades and nozzle races.

Sunday, the last day of the festival, begins with a pancake and sausage breakfast at the New Waterford fire hall and concludes with fireworks at dusk.

Call the Coal Dust Days hotline, 862-4710 for details on these and other events.