Halifax local news from Metronews.ca

Halifax shipyard gets government financial aide package for navy ships

The Canadian Press — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 12:25:38 -0400

HALIFAX - The Nova Scotia government is making more than $300 million available to Irving Shipbuilding Inc. to help it prepare for the construction of the Royal Canadian Navy's next fleet of vessels.

The government's financial assistance package consists of a forgivable capital loan worth up to $260 million and a repayable marine industry loan of $44 million for human resources development.

Irving Shipbuilding says it will spend between $5 million and $10 million annually on capital improvements to its operations over the next 30 years.

That money is over and above what the company is spending to build new infrastructure that's needed to complete the project.

The Irving-owned Halifax Shipyard was the successful bidder for a $25-billion contract to build 21 combat vessels.

The contract is expected to maintain a steady flow of work at the shipyard over the next 20 to 30 years.

Bail denied for Halifax navy officer accused in rare case of espionage

The Canadian Press — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 12:00:06 -0400

HALIFAX - A Halifax navy intelligence officer accused in a case of espionage has been denied bail.

Sub-Lt. Jeffrey Paul Delisle is charged with communicating information that could harm national interests.

Delisle has been in custody at the Central Nova Scotia Correctional Facility since his arrest in January.

Delisle was charged under a section of the Security of Information Act that was passed by the House of Commons after the terrorist attacks on the United States on Sept. 11, 2001.

The RCMP say the charges against Delisle mark the first time that anyone has been charged under that section of the act.

Court documents say one of the alleged offences happened between July 6, 2007, and Jan. 13, 2012, while the other offence is alleged to have happened between Jan. 10 and Jan. 13 of this year.

Delisle also faces a breach of trust charge under the Criminal Code that is alleged to have happened between July 6, 2007, and Jan. 13, 2012.

All the offences are alleged to have happened in or near Halifax, Ottawa and Kingston, Ont.

Up until 2010, Delisle worked for both the Chief of Defence Intelligence and at the Strategic Joint Staff, which oversees virtually every major aspect of the military's domestic and international plans and operations.

He joined the military as a reservist private in 1996 and was posted to the 3 Intelligence Company in Halifax.

He went on to join the regular forces in 2001, was promoted to sergeant before being accepted at university for two years in Kingston as an officer candidate and eventually landed back in Halifax at the army's Atlantic headquarters.

In August of last year, Delisle was posted to Trinity, a highly secure naval intelligence centre in Halifax.

OrKidstra performers ‘take in their stride’

Steve Collins, Metro Ottawa — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 10:36:06 -0400

All the stars coming to town for the Juno Awards may get more attention, but the arrival of four musicians from Venezuela might be just as big an event for some local music students.

The Simon Bolivar String Quartet has toured all over the world, but they started out as students in a free music-education program for Venezuelan children known as El Sistema, which inspired similar programs globally, including Ottawa’s own OrKidstra.

“The program basically provides singing opportunities and free music lessons and free instruments and the opportunity to sing or play in an ensemble,” explained Craig MacDonald of the Leading Note Foundation, which runs OrKidstra with the help of charitable donations.

Many students, he added, can’t afford private lessons.

Kids from OrKidstra are scheduled to perform with the Simon Bolivar String Quartet at several of their appearances this weekend. They got their first chance to jam Thursday at Carleton University, where El Sistema’s founder, José Antonio Abreu, was granted an honorary degree.

“It’s amazing how they take in their stride, you know,” MacDonald said.

Neptune to mark 50th season with a party, and you’re invited

Drew Casford, Metro Halifax — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 09:44:29 -0400

Neptune Theatre will celebrate its golden anniversary with music, laughter and friends, the theatre’s artistic director says.

George Pothitos unveiled the much-anticipated 2012-13 lineup to a packed Fountain Hall theatre at the launch of the 50th-anniversary season on Thursday.

“I wanted to have a celebration,” Pothitos said in an interview afterwards. “So there’s music, there’s laughter, there’s drama, but there’s also friends. And to me, that’s a party. So that’s what I started out with.”

The season opens in September on the main Fountain Hall stage with the musical thriller Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.

Other highlights include Elf: The Musical, for the holidays, and Legally Blonde: The Musical, to close the season out.

“From new works to celebrated classics, we have something for everyone,” he said. “Sweeney Todd is (everything) a musical can be, but each production is very different.”

Introduced this year was the Open Spaces program, which was developed to provide a place to perform for Nova Scotia theatre companies with limited funds.

“It’s a part of the celebration. It’s to include other theatre companies in Nova Scotia,” Pothitos said. “It helps theatre branch out.”

As for the 50th anniversary of Neptune, Pothitos hopes the community will come out and celebrate.

“People talk about Neptune in such loving terms, so I hope they will rekindle their passion (this season). They can celebrate by simply seeing plays.”

'Tough decisions' ahead for CanJet flight attendants

Jon Tattrie, Metro Halifax — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 09:36:01 -0400

CanJet has laid off the last 18 flight attendants working out of Halifax, the union says.

Mary Fougere is the union local’s president and one of those who lost her job.

She said they met with the company Monday and learned they were all losing their positions.

“There was no sign leading up to this. We were on the end of a successful winter flying season,” she told Metro on Thursday.

CanJet mainly offered winter routes to sunshine destinations out of Halifax.

“We’re in shock that they’re laying off all the members,” she said.

CanJet could not be reached for comment, but Fougere said the cutbacks were due to a reduction in flights out of Halifax.

The 18 Halifax flight attendants are senior staff and have bumping rights across the country. The nearest base is Montreal. The other bases are in Toronto and Vancouver.

“They are having to make very tough decisions about relocating,” Fougere said. “They did tell us they had hope that one day they would be able to recall these members.”

She said CanJet did not tell them when any recall would take place. The cuts take effect on April 9.

Government jobs could be on the move

Jennifer Taplin, Metro Halifax — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 09:32:17 -0400

The province is looking at moving some government offices out of HRM.

“There are some services that could actually be better delivered from communities outside of Halifax,” Premier Darrell Dexter told reporters after Thursday’s throne speech.

Technology these days means that work doesn’t have to be done in Halifax, he said.

Further details, including how many public-sector workers will be impacted and the costs of moving, will come through the budget, Dexter said.

He did say it “wouldn’t be thousands” of jobs, and employees, unions and departmental stakeholders would be consulted first.

“It will be done in areas it makes sense,” he said, but he was not willing to give examples.

Liberal Leader Stephen McNeil said it needs to be determined if government is moving departments or growing bureaucracy.

Dexter said it’s not growing bureaucracy but putting existing functions in communities where it makes more sense for them to be.

While not opposed to the idea, Tory Leader Jamie Baillie called it an empty promise since it refers to new and consolidating departments, of which there are none at the moment.

Mayor Peter Kelly said he can understand the need to relocate on a small scale if necessary, but he also said HRM is accessible and centrally located in the province.

“As long as there is reason and rationale to go along with it and not carte blanche,” he said.

Uncertainty looms over defence cuts

Jennifer Taplin, Metro Halifax — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 09:26:03 -0400

National Defence took a big hit in Thursday’s federal budget, but this is not expected to affect the shipbuilding contract, said Nova Scotia Finance Minster Graham Steele.

Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty is trimming $5.2 billion in annual spending, with the National Defence budget receiving the biggest cut of $1.1 billion by 2014-15. Alternatively, the Coast Guard is receiving $5.2 billion over 11 years for new boats and helicopters.

“The federal government says it’s going to keep the regular forces at the same level, that’s promising, so the details on this are yet to come,” Steele said.

He said it appears the cuts won’t affect the shipbuilding contract, but he’d like concrete reassurance from Defence Minister Peter MacKay.

“It’s so important to Nova Scotia’s future,” Steele said.

He said his staff have combed through the budget documents and found nothing that would require the Nova Scotia budget to change.

“I expect to deliver the provincial budget next week as scheduled,” Steele said.

He’s also concerned about the impacts of cuts to the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency ($17.9 million in ongoing reductions), Department of Fisheries and Oceans ($79.3 million) and changes in the business model for the National Research Council.

Mayor Peter Kelly is also worried about the impacts of cuts to defence.

“We wouldn’t want to see any impact to the naval operations,” Kelly said. “I want to make sure it wouldn’t impact that approved (shipbuilding) contract.”

Police make 'spectacular takedown' after home invasion

Jon Tattrie, Metro Halifax — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 08:52:53 -0400

Police say four people were arrested on Wednesday evening, minutes after a man was badly beaten during an armed home invasion in Tantallon.

Halifax RCMP Const. Tammy Lobb said officers made a “spectacular” takedown just after 6:30 p.m., stopping a vehicle full of suspects as it fled the scene. Lobb said police found a firearm in the car, as well as cash.

“Four suspects broke into the home and restrained the residents. An adult man was assaulted with a pipe and suspects used a firearm to threaten them and demand a quantity of cash,” she said.
It is understood the victim’s wife and teenage son were also present.
A source with knowledge of the assault told Metro a blue car pulled up in front of the house and three people wearing hoods and masks raced inside brandishing guns.
The source said the man in the house was tied up and severely beaten. The three assailants ran out of the house and fled in the waiting car, but were stopped by police.
The home invasion happened on Hemlock Drive, in a subdivision with only one main way in and out.
The four people stopped were in Halifax provincial court on Thursday to face about 70 charges, including break-and-enter, robbery with a firearm, assault causing bodily harm, unlawful confinement and a range of firearms offences.
Police don’t believe the attack was random. The man was taken to hospital and released Thursday.

City hopes new bike routes will attract commuters

Jon Tattrie, Metro Halifax — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 05:04:32 -0400

About 100 people packed the Bloomfield Centre on Thursday night for an HRM presentation on the possible locations for a north-south bike corridor on peninsular Halifax.

David MacIssaac, the HRM staffer making the presentation, said the municipality wants to pull in as many thoughts on the routes as possible.

“What are their priorities for where cycling routes should be on the peninsula?” he said. “We want to hear what type of routes they think would attract more people to ride their bikes.”

The corridors being looked at are Novalea and Gottingen streets; Agricola Street to Bell Road; Windsor Street to Vernon Street; and Connaught Avenue.

About eight per cent of commuter trips on the peninsula are on a bike. HRM wants to double that figure within 20 years.

The new route could be laid as soon as next year, although it could take longer if the selected route is more complicated. The route would be painted on the road and signed.

Depending on where it goes, it would involve losing parking spaces used by residents and businesses, having cyclists riding with varying levels of traffic and having differing levels of connectivity to other bike routes.

Scott Grundy is a north-end resident and frequent cycler. He backs the Argricola route, but says any bike lanes would be an improvement.

“It’s not the safest,” he said.

Target opening location in Mic Mac Mall

Metro Halifax — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 01:00:00 -0400

Target will open its new store at Mic Mac Mall in Dartmouth in the fall of 2013, the U.S. retail chain said Thursday.

The company announced last year it was spending $1.83 billion to take over the leases of as many as 220 Zellers stores across Canada, among them the stores at Bedford Place Mall and Mic Mac Mall.

In a Thursday release, Target said as many as 200 employees will be hired for the Mic Mac Mall store, which will be renovated at a cost of $10 million to $11 million. The release did not mention an opening date for Bedford Place Mall.