Beckett Testifies In Ferguson Trial

Saint John's former Finance Commissioner is continuing to testify at the defamation lawsuit launched by the pension board against former Common Councillor John Ferguson.

Ferguson is currently the Town Manager of St. Stephen.


Andrew Beckett told the jury the city's pension plan had an estimated surplus of 29 million dollars at the end of 2000.
 
A year and a half later there was a significant deficit.
 
By 2003 there was the realisation that investment returns were so low, the plan would not get back on track by a rebound in the stock market alone.
 
Both Beckett and Councillor Chris Titus, a pension board member at the time, raised concerns over the cost of disability pensions and approvals.
 
Beckett says there was no reluctance to keep Common Council informed.

Biker Festival Gets Funding For Music Events

Help for music events is coming in the form of $2000.


The Canadian Committee for the Rally in the St. Croix Valley making the announcement today.

The Charlotte Coastal Region Tourism Association providing the funds and joining forces with the Rally for the event this summer.

The biker-fest is scheduled to run from Canada Day through to July 8th.

A Nickel Mine In St. Stephen? Maybe.

A nickel mine in the town of St. Stephen is still a possibility -- but that's all it is.


Manager of Geophysics and Project Generation for Continental Nickel, Sharon Taylor tells Tide News the project in St. Stephen is not a done deal, with many stages left to complete before a decision to build a mine can be made.

She says they have just finished a drilling program, drilling seven holes. She says the plan for 2012 is to evaluate the size of those discoveries, as well as having a lot of untested marks left.
Taylor gave the update last night at the Chamber of Commerce Annual Dinner.