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September 23, 2008
West Hants and Area
News
Federal & Municipal Election
Info/Forums
Three weeks and counting… Here is the latest candidate
and campaign-event info. Please email updates and
changes in time or venue for events to
info@whcc.ca and information will be
circulated to our members. Thank you!
 Conservative
Party – Rosemary Segado
Campaign Office: 132 Gerrish Street, Windsor
Email:
campaign@rosemarysegado.ca
Web:
http://www.rosemarysegado.ca
 Green
Party – Brendan McNeill
Email:
kingshants@greenparty.ca
Web:
http://www.greenparty.ca
 Liberal
Party – Scott Brison (Incumbent) - MP for Kings-Hants
Campaign Office: 921 Commercial Street, New Minas
Email:
scott@votebrison.ca
Web:
http://www.votebrison.ca
 New
Democratic Party – Dr. Carol Harris – University and
community educator
Campaign Office: 18 Elm Avenue, Wolfville, B4P 1Z9.
Web:
http://www.ndpkingshants.ca
Kings-Hants Federal Debates/Forums:
Thursday, Sept 25th 7-9 pm, Windsor Legion
Tuesday, Sept 30th, 6 – 8 pm Acadia University
Wednesday, Oct 1st, 11:45-1:30 pm, Horton High School
Monday October 6th. All-Candidate Forum on Local
Environmental Issues
Belmont Hall is 1090 Belmont Road 7:30-9 pm.
Use the Canadian Federation of Independent Business’
election checklist to ensure candidates are
business-savvy:
http://www.cfib.ca/research/businfo/pdf/DIN0542.pdf
Municipal Campaign Events
Municipal voters with municipal questions and concerns
have a few opportunities to meet with municipal
candidates:
Monday, Oct. 6. Hantsport Baptist Church Hall with
Hantsport candidates.
7 p.m. Brian Bishop chair.
Wednesday, Oct. 8. Kings County, Area 12. Area 12 -
Hants Border, Lockhartville, Avonport and points west.
Hants Border Hall, 7 p.m. Dave Young chair.
Thursday, Oct. 9. West Hants, District 9, Mount Denson
and Falmouth candidates.
West Hants Search & Rescue, 7 p.m. Anne Bishop chair.
Daycare Job Fair
The Kinder Garden Preschool & Childcare Centre is
holding Job Fair on Saturday, September 27th, 96 Dunlop
Road, Brooklyn. The Centre is seeking 13 employees with
their early childhood education degree or equivalency
for employment in Mt. Uniacke, Brooklyn and their new
Windsor facility scheduled to open on November 1st,
2008. If you require additional information please
contact Sarah Lamey, 452-1200 or email
info@thekindergarden.ca
Who else is hiring?
Windsor and area
Kentville and area
Networking Means Business
The Valley Community Fibre Network (VCFN) board of
directors announced this week that the network is now
“live” and ready for business. The community-owned
network, spanning 186 km between Middleton and Halifax
along Highway One, opens doors and opportunities for
high technology business and gives schools access to
global expertise through on-line learning and
videoconferencing. High capacity fibre optic networks
provide backbone services critical to many high tech
applications such as video conferencing and
distribution, data connectivity, voice, and security.
The VCFN will also lease secure, high-speed
telecommunication services to multiple public-sector
partners along the route. Don Clarke, Chairman of the
Board said “It is an example of what can be achieved
when local governments come together in a spirit of
cooperation. It demonstrates what can be achieved
through partnerships." Acadia University, Nova Scotia
Community College, CANARIE, ACORN, Nova Scotia Office of
Economic Development and ACOA are the main funding
partners together with municipalities from West Hants,
Windsor, Hantsport, Wolfville, Berwick and Kings.
Internetworking Atlantic Inc. will manage the operations
of the network that is expected to carry high-bandwidth
traffic. The VCFN opens doors, for example, to advanced
technological health applications. With greater
bandwidth capacity offered through the network, health
professionals can “read” x-rays and other digital images
scanned and transmitted in seconds from rural hospitals
to specialists hundreds or thousands of kilometres away.
"Now any public-sector organization or business can be
placed in our rural Valley areas and not be limited by
high-speed connection to an urban area where all of the
technological offerings would be available," said Terry
Yuill. "It is a relief for the board members who have
worked so hard for it." West Hants councillor Shirley
Pineo has been a board member since day one. "It is
critical for the municipalities needing a secure place
to secure our important data off-site in the event we'll
need an emergency recovery system," says Pineo. "We're
also hoping that it will provide our staff with wireless
services they may need to help manage our off-site
locations, such as the sewage treatment plant." The
network is not in competition with high-speed providers
that residents use, such as Aliant or Eastlink, but
Pineo does hope that a smaller ISP will use the network
as the backbone for services they might provide. "The
fees from businesses who lease from the network will be
equally split among the partners, including the
municipal partners," says Pineo. "The more businesses
who lease from the network, the better it is for
everyone." Internetworking Atlantic Inc. (IAI) has been
hired to manage and operate the service. IAI is a
leading service provider of optical data communications
services throughout the Maritime Provinces. “We are
pleased to have been chosen to manage and operate this
network. The VCFN represents a pivotal opportunity for
both the public sector partners and private sector
users. We look forward to assisting the VCFN board and
the partners in realizing the benefits that will come
from its presence in the Valley” said Bruce MacDougall,
IAI President. For more information on the Valley
Community Fibre Network please visit the VCFN website at
www.vcfn.ca
Avondale vineyard plucked again
Lorraine Vassalo, a department of Justice criminologist
of Halifax, is the new owner of the Bennett's former
vineyard on Avondale Cross Road. Vassalo recently made
the purchase with her husband, Stewart Creaser, the
president of Halifax Heating and Air Conditioning.
Andrew and Mary Bennett owned the Avondale vineyard for
20 years but E-news reported that they sold the business
and retired last March. They sold the property to
businessman David Tabah and Chef Ray Bear, who united to
form the Avondale Liquid Group. For Vassalo, the timing
was just right. "We have no grape-growing experience,
but it's a passion I've had for a long time," she said.
"So we started looking for a piece of land and just
happened across Avondale, and it's so incredibly
beautiful we couldn't resist."
[Source: Avondale Media and AllNS.com]
Help the Tides turn
The Bay of Fundy is now playing in the big leagues when
it comes to international nature tourism, and you can
help it rise even more! The Bay of Fundy has just been
officially nominated as a participant in a new worldwide
contest for the New7Wonders of Nature. Bay of Fundy
Tourism, a non-profit organization supported by the Nova
Scotia and New Brunswick Departments of Tourism together
with Regional Development Authorities, made a compelling
case for Fundy’s inclusion in the contest. “Canadians
are increasingly becoming aware of the significance of
the Bay of Fundy as a national nature tourism icon,”
said Terri McCulloch, Bay of Fundy Tourism Manager,
“Now, a reputable international organization,
New7Wonders, considers us worthy of joining such
international natural attractions as Mount Everest, the
Great Barrier Reef, and the Grand Canyon in a worldwide
contest for the top seven.”
The Bay of Fundy has been compared in marine
biodiversity to the Amazon Rainforest. In addition to
having the highest tides in the world, the Bay of Fundy
achieved nominee status in the New7Wonders contest for
these globally significant features:
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Summer feeding area for
more than half the world’s population of the
endangered North Atlantic Right whale
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Critical feeding ground
for 90+% of the world’s population of semi-palmated
sandpipers during their annual migration
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Best site in the world
for tidal power potential
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Through migrations of
fish, birds and mammals, the Bay is biologically
linked to the Arctic, the Caribbean, South America
and Europe
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More species of marine
mammals in the Bay of Fundy than anywhere else in
Canada (and possibly North America)
-
Geological discoveries
that historically ‘wrote the book’ on geology that
still significantly contribute to global fossil and
dinosaur history worldwide
-
UNESCO designations for
the upper Bay of Fundy as a Biosphere Reserve
(November 2007) and Joggins Fossil Cliffs as a World
Heritage Site (June 2008)
Voting for the new seven
natural wonders of the world commences immediately with
the first contest milestone occurring December 31, 2008,
when one nature site per country will be selected to
continue in the international contest. Over 1 billion
votes are expected by the contest’s conclusion. The Bay
of Fundy is the only site in the Maritimes (and one of
only 7 sites in Canada) nominated to participate in the
New7Wonders contest. Bay of Fundy Tourism’s website
www.bayoffundytourism.com
provides links for voting in the New7Wonders contest.
Miffed super fires back at AIMS president
Comments criticizing the Annapolis Valley regional
school board for its response to provincial standardized
test scores have superintendent Norm Dray miffed.
Results of the 2007 tests were released last week by the
Education Department. Charles Cirtwill, president of the
Atlantic Institute for Market Studies, said the Valley,
Tri-County and South Shore regional school boards lack a
specific course of action to improve their performance.
“If I was a parent in those three boards, I'd be
worried,” Mr. Cirtwill said, “I wouldn't worry so much
about the score; it's what they tell you when you ask
about the score.” Mr. Dray said that he doesn't know
where Mr. Cirtwill came up with his opinion.
“He says we have no plan. I'd like to know how he knows
that,” Mr. Dray said. “We do have a plan, and we've
targeted our support to those schools that do have
challenges.” He said that plan was created over several
months after the 2007 results were released. The plan,
initiated this month, targets specific schools where
students need to make improvements in certain subject
areas. He said the board also had its own data from
teachers to go along with the provincial test scores,
and used both to come up with the plan. “I would never
object to anything being printed that is true, but (Mr.
Cirtwill) never asked me if we had a plan,” Mr. Dray
said. He said the results for Grade 9 students have
improved substantially, although there is more that the
board can do at that level.
[Source: The Chronicle Herald]
Regional
and National Headlines
Flight Attendant support skids
Air Canada flight attendants facing layoffs and a base
closure in Halifax are reassessing their positions after
a decision by a federal arbitrator didn't award the
airline employees the financial support they were
seeking. The arbitrator was appointed under Division IX
of the Canada Labour Code to develop an adjustment
program to mitigate the effects of the layoffs and
closures.
Air Canada plans to close its Halifax flight attendant
base Nov. 1 and lay off 187 employees. The airline is
also shutting down Winnipeg with the loss of 144 flight
attendants and laying off up to 225 in Vancouver. The
employee layoffs, plus the airline's reduction in fleet
capacity, is part of the airline's plan to cut costs and
combat high fuel prices. Lesley Swann, president of the
Air Canada component of CUPE, said during a media
conference call last week that the arbitrator's award
“basically gives flight attendants two choices:
terminate their employment or stay working with the
airline on an adjusted basis.” Ms. Swann said there will
be some funds to help employees adjust to their changing
environment “but overall the airline is only paying a
very small portion of their estimated annual cost saving
of over $30 million. The employees had been hoping for
financial help for such things as retraining if they
left the company; travel assistance to and from work -
likely in Toronto - relocation assistance and severance.
Halifax Local 4090 president Lisa Vivian Anthony said
the Halifax employees are basically split into two
camps, half the members plan to stay with Air Canada and
commute to Toronto where they can bump other union
members from jobs, while “the other group is forced to
severe from the company.” She said many of the members
have over 30 years of good service with the airline and
“it saddens me greatly that neither the airline nor the
arbitrator saw it their wisdom to grant severance to
these people.” Several of the flight attendants are also
not pensionable because they came to Air Canada from
other airlines and were not given the opportunity to
join the pension program and will have to work until
they are 65 in other jobs. “It is pretty devastating for
them,” she said. The union will explore all its options
with its counsel, said Humberto DaSilva, national CUPE
representative, and continue to fight the base closures.
Premiers, Governors met
Maine played host to the 32nd Conference of the New
England Governors an Eastern Canadian Premiers last
week. The conference focused on regional energy
transportation, and economic development agencies. For
an overview of the conference and the resolutions
passed, please visit
http://www.negc.org/premiers.html
Changes to merchant card charges
Catherine Swift, President and CEO of the Canadian
Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is warning
merchants across the country about a potential
significant rise in credit and debit card fees.
"Over the past couple of months, we have become
increasingly concerned about developments in the credit
and debit card industry that will adversely affect all
businesses who accept payment via these cards," Swift
said in a letter to CFIB members. "There are a number of
different changes that will be taking place in the near
future, all of which appear to be designed to complicate
the ability of the merchant to figure out exactly what
they are paying to process transactions, and enrich
credit card companies and other institutions such as
banks who issue the cards, largely at the expense of the
merchant." If you are currently using a CFIB or a
Chamber plan for VISA, MasterCard and debit, you will
still be better off than if you try to negotiate an
arrangement on your own, and if you are not currently on
a plan you may want to consider it going forward. The
changes stem from the new types of cards credit card
companies have been introducing over the past few
months, such as those referred to as “Premier”, “Mosaic”
or “Infinite” cards, usually offering a special set of
benefits to consumers who spend a certain amount of
money. Consumers have not requested this—it has been
completely initiated by the credit card companies with a
wink and a nod from the issuers—Canada’s financial
institutions. The hitch for merchants is that these
cards can result in considerably higher fees for those
who accept card payments. In some instances, the exact
same credit card can attract a different merchant fee
once it has been deemed “high spend”, or where the bank
issuing the card detects a certain dollar amount has
been reached. “This can happen without the merchant
having any clue that the merchant fee has changed.”
Swift claims credit card companies will be making a lot
more money for what is effectively the same service.
“And the consumer won’t care because they will not be
assuming any costs,” says Swift.
On the debit card side of the market, Swift says the
plan to is to shift the transaction fees from a flat
rate to a percentage of the sales value. Canada has long
operated with Interac, a cooperative venture among
banks, credit unions, payment related companies and
others, as the principal clearing house for debit
transactions at comparatively reasonable cost to
consumers and merchants. With the significant growth in
debit since its introduction in 1984, VISA and
MasterCard now want in on the action in Canada and are
trying to convince the banks to support them with the
promise of greater fee income. In the U.S., both VISA
and MasterCard allow their credit cards to double as
debit cards; in most cases, debit transactions also
attract the “interchange rate” (a percentage of the
transaction amount), not the flat fee charged by Interac.
"We believe that if VISA and MasterCard were to bring
the same service to Canada, debit rates would go up
dramatically," says Swift. "Therefore, VISA and
MasterCard will make a great deal more money than has
been charged in the past by Interac’s “flat fee”
approach, with no extra value accruing to the merchant."
Currently, debit attracts a “cents per transaction” fee.
If the credit card companies succeed, the market will
move to a fee which is a percentage of the transaction
size. For example, for a transaction of $1,000, a
current common rate would be $0.065 (6.5 cents). In
future, if the charge was to become 0.65 per cent (the
current U.S. average), the fee would be $6.50—an
increase of almost 10,000 per cent! Not surprisingly,
these developments have taken place “under the radar” to
date as serious scrutiny would raise opposition to the
plans. Swift’s letter to CFIB letter continues, “As VISA
and MasterCard dominate the credit card business, they
are used to calling the shots with little if any
push-back from customers, governments or other players
as they have no competitors.”
If you are currently a merchant dealing with VISA or
MasterCard, Swift says you will likely receive notice of
some of these changes in the near future. "If these
changes proceed as planned, the bottom line for small-
and medium-sized businesses will be sharply higher costs
for both credit and debit transactions, costs that will
be especially difficult to bear as our economy faces a
range of other serious challenges, including such things
as punitively high energy costs." [Source: CFIB.ca]
ABC campaign launched
Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Danny Williams has
registered his ABC Campaign as a third party in
Newfoundland with Elections Canada in a bid to scotch
Prime Minister Stephen Harper's chances of winning a
majority government. The move limits Williams to
$183,300 in campaign spending that would be aimed at
convincing people to vote for any party but the
Conservatives in next month's federal election. But it's
also a sign that Williams and other members of the
provincial Progressive Conservatives could take their
message across Canada. “I'm basically giving the
Canadian public the benefit of my experience and the
experience of Newfoundland and Labrador as a province in
dealing with the federal Conservative government,” said
Williams. Williams has not yet endorsed any party or
said whether he plans to take his ABC Campaign to other
provinces. The website is
www.anythingbutconservative.ca
[Source: The Canadian Press]
Business Calendar of Events
When you schedule your business events, please also
email them to
info@whcc.ca
Don’t forget to check out the federal and municipal
election events under West Hants news!
Province-wide events
September 24 to 26th - NS Association of Regional
Development Authorities AGM
"Growth is Good" Westin Nova Scotian Hotel, Conference
info:
http://www.nsarda.ca
Sept 27 – Oct 12th – Windsor/West Hants Pumpkin
Festival Events
http://worldsbiggestpumpkins.com
Saturday, September 27th - The Kinder Garden
Preschool & Childcare Centre Job Fair
(see West Hants News above for details)
Sunday, September 28th, Open Auditions, "The Best
Christmas Pageant Ever"
by the Quick As A Wink Theatre Society, St. John's
Catholic Church basement, King Street, Windsor. CHILDREN
please arrive: 5:30pm ADULTS please arrive: 7:30pm
Performances will be Nov. 29, 30, Dec. 6, 7 at Falmouth
Hall. Roles for 9 girls (6 - 14), 8 boys (6 - 14),
6 women (30s and up), 4 men (late teens and up)
Wednesday, October 1st – Business Buy & Sell
Registration Deadline
Are you a small business owner planning to retire/sell
in the near future? Or are you an
Immigrant entrepreneur looking for a strong business
opportunity? Then this unique matchmaking event is for
you. The event is October 14th, but October 1st is the
deadline to register. Businesses should be valued at
under $1 million dollars. Holiday Inn Harbourview, 101
Wyse Road, Dartmouth, 8:30 am to 5:00 pm Contact Flavia
Saldanah 42-3607 ext 238 or email ibds@misa.ns.ca Cost
is $50 for sellers, $20 for buyers. Sponsored by MISA,
CBDC, ACOA, Centre for Women in Business, NS Office of
Immigration and others.
Thursday, Oct 2nd - Winemakers' Dinner, Cunard
Event Centre
Enjoy a five-course feast pairing the flavours of foods
and wines from the featured country, Argentina.
Reception 6-6:30, dinner 6:30 - 10:00 PM $180 per
person. Silent auction proceeds to Symphony Nova Scotia.
Sponsored by the NSCC and BMO Financial Group.
Monday October 6th, Geared for Growth Business
Conference (G4G)
Geared for Growth will provoke thought, generate ideas
and inspire growth for your business. Invest in yourself
and your business by attending a conference that offers
insightful panel sessions, top-notch keynote speakers,
and plenty of networking opportunities. World Trade &
Convention Centre, Halifax Time: 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
http://www.gearedforgrowth.com
Monday, Oct 6th Atlantica Forum on Information
and Communications Technologies
Smuggler’s Notch Resort, Vermont. The Atlantica Forum is
being held in conjunction with the 11th Annual Rural
TeleCon Conference, hosted by EDCNV in partnership with
the Rural Telecommunications Congress (RTC) between Oct.
5- 8, 2008 (www.rtcconference.org). Combined, the two
events showcase innovative approaches to using local
telecommunication capacity and enabling information
technologies to improve the quality of life for people
in rural communities. For more, contact Marlene Huntley,
Atlantic Provinces Chamber of Commerce, Kentville
office, Tel: (902) 678-4218,
mhuntley@apcc.ca
Small Business Week, Oct 19 – 25th
Every year for the past 29 years, the Business
Development Bank of Canada (BDC) has organized Small
Business Week to pay tribute to Canadian entrepreneurs.
Stay tuned for local and regional events.
Chuckles
The definition of Broker: The person you trust to help
you make major financial decisions.
Please note the first five letters of this word spell
"broke".
E-News info
Our next issue of WHCC E-News will be published on
October 7th. Please submit your business news, event or
announcement by October 3rd. Every two weeks,
E-News is distributed to - and read by - over 250 local
business contacts throughout the Windsor-West Hants
area. If your business has news or events you would like
to share with our readers, please call our Newsletter
Editor, Heather Desveaux on 790-4009 or email
info@whcc.ca
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