Much of the direct help for people suffering from mental illness comes through government-funded programs. We’ve directed your attention to several of the charities that work in social and community support roles around that work, in hopes that you would contribute your time and money to help those groups. Yet one of the biggest obstacles […]
Tim Bousquet
Posted inNews + Opinion
Ten Halifax councillors wanted to be on Trade Centre Limited board of directors
As we go to press Wednesday, final architectural plans for the convention centre complex to be built in downtown Halifax will be made public. But all other details around the convention centre are still unknown. Particularly vexing is the absolute silence from both the provincial and city governments about the management structure of the new […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Government tendering gets outsourced
Just weeks after entering into a 10-year $100 million deal with IBM for outsourcing of the province’s back-end finance department operations, the government is embarking on a “strategic procurement initiative” that appears to be written specifically to benefit IBM. That initiative seeks to contract out the management of short-term IT projects costing over $15 million […]
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Seaport Farmers Market investors may be “toast”
The Seaport Farmers Market will “undoubtedly” be a success, says Frank Schwartz, head of the group of citizens who invested $1.7 million to help make the market a reality. But part of that future success is based on a restructuring of the market that squeezes the investors out. It’s possible the investors have simply lost […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Recount confirms Bill Karsten’s District 3 victory
Supreme Court justice Kevin Coady yesterday oversaw the recount of the District 3 council race, and confirmed that Bill Karsten defeated Jackie Barkhouse by 66 votes. See background here.
Posted inNews + Opinion
Provincial Council of the Disabled has met just six times in 10 years
On his James McGregor Stewart Society website, accessibility activist Gus Reed has put together a pretty much perfect blog post: he starts by outlining the problems people with disabilities face in Nova Scotia. He then details, through documents he obtained through the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, how the government is failing […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Halifax council rejects Skye Halifax proposal
Tuesday, Halifax council rejected the Skye Halifax development proposal. Skye was put forward by United Gulf Developments, which had previously won approval, but never built, the so-called Twisted Sisters development on the same site, at the corner of Hollis and Sackville Streets. The Skye proposal contained two 48-storey towers, dwarfing any other building in Halifax, […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Skye Halifax vote today
A collection of downtown business representatives, planning experts and other concerned citizens issued a public letter urging Halifax council to reject the proposed Skye Halifax development. That proposal calls for two 48-storey towers at the corner of Hollis and Sackville Streets, and it has already been rejected by city staff because it violates HRM By […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
FOIPOP expert slams Dexter government over IBM deal
“There can be no good reason” for the Dexter government’s refusal to release documents related to the recently announced IBM deal, says Darce Fardy, Nova Scotia’s foremost expert on the province’s Freedom of Information law. The documents spell out the financial and other details of the deal, and are of interest to government watchdogs, media, […]
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Judge orders recount for District 3 council election
Supreme Court justice Kevin Coady yesterday ordered a recount in the District 3: Dartmouth South-Eastern Passage council election. The race was contentious and tight throughout the campaign, with results coming in slowly election night, October 20. The next morning, Sunday, October 21, at 3:30am, the elections office areported that Jackie Barkhouse had defeated Bill Karsten […]
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NDP giving SAP to IBM: a deal with the devil
The deal outsourcing provincial SAP operations to IBM is a brazen move by the Darrell Dexter government. By handing 73 union jobs to the notoriously anti-union IBM, Nova Scotia’s NDP has turned its back on its core support in the labour movement. On the other hand, the SAP outsourcing has won the government accolades from […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
New Halifax mayor Mike Savage hires office staff
Mayor Mike Savage has hired three employees for his office. They are: Cheryl Stewart, who will have the title of “Principal Advisor to the Mayor.” Stewart left her position as the provincial manager of entrepreneurship at the NSCC to work on Savage’s campaign. She has been hired on a three month contract, making a total […]