First Notice of a new member:

OK Tire and Auto Service, Windsor - www.oktire.com

Provincial Newsletter

The Nova Scotia Chamber of Commerce Fall 2007 Newsletter is now available online. It includes a review of the executive’s recent meeting with the Premier and updates from chambers across the province.

West Hants and Area News

New Windsor Bylaw

The town of Windsor is putting a minimum standards by-law in place. Mayor Anna Allen says they're doing it for the well being of all residents. The by-law will set certain minimum standards for all properties in the town as it relates to things like safety, sanitation requirements and appearance. (Source: AVR)

Mill Island Update

Mill Island Limited’s Project Co-ordinator Cathy Cox says the new development for the old textile mill is now rescheduled to open in the spring of 2008, due to delays in mechanical engineering for the heating and air conditioning systems. “Rarely do renovations of large projects open on schedule, because you are not starting from scratch,” she says. “But once the development is up and running, it will be a large draw for the community.” The first floor is fully leased and will include an Eveda hair salon, a bookstore, an upscale pizzeria, an organic market and two art galleries promoting local, national and international artisans. The Granite Brewery will be also opening a pub and a cold beer store to promote its local brew. Half of the development’s condominiums are sold. As is the case with all islands, how people will access it is also being considered, said Cox. Upgrades will be made to the local sidewalks, including on the Exit 6 overpass. She added the company might also approach the Kings Transit Authority to add the stop to it public bus route.


Moe’s Music Welcomes Taz

It’s not the Tasmanian Devil who’s arrived in Windsor, but those hungry for music will definitely be able to whet their appetite. Music connoisseurs and collectors familiar with the Halifax music scene need no introduction to Taz Records, well-known for its awesome selection of classic, used vinyl records and CDs the store has offered in downtown Halifax for the past 25 years. Taz is expanding to open its only branch store in the province at Moe’s Music Sales on Gerrish Street. One of Taz’s owners, Bob Russell, has been in helping to set things up at the store so that now customers can order that special CD or that vintage vinyl they’ve been looking for. “The music business is contracting today, but it’s still a viable business,” said Russell. “Being able to distribute through Moe’s will make us even more viable, and we’re very pleased to be here,” he added. With over 50,000 titles, Taz Records has the largest collection of vinyl on the east coast, covering all types of music from rock and roll to country, jazz, blues and hip hop. “Taz recently co-sponsored the tribute to Patsy Cline and really enjoyed the local vibe,” says Moe’s co-owner Edgar Card. “We’re thrilled to be able to partner up with such a long-standing and respected business in the maritime music industry,” said Card’s business partner, Willard Wood. “It’s a real compliment to this area.” Moe’s Music Sales also stocks new CDs. Taz Records: http://www.tazrecords.com Moe’s Music Sales: http://www.moesplace.ca


Railway ties to economy

The Kings Community Economic Development Agency is now considering proposals from consultants aiming to investigate the economic and environmental impact of the Windsor-Hantsport Railway (WHRC) closure in Kings County. The WHRC shut down service between Hantsport and New Minas in late September mostly due to continued deterioration of the rail bed putting company rail crews at risk and a lack of resources for necessary upgrades west of Hantsport. The company also expressed a concern for limited market opportunities to justify spending the resources to upgrade the rail line. Three major companies and a handful of smaller ones in and around the New Minas-Kentville area currently rely on the service, including ACA Co-operative, Co-op Atlantic, and Frito-Lay Canada. All cargo is unloaded at Port Williams where it is trucked to its ultimate destination in the area by each company. WHRC Manager Jim Taylor says this is still happening. “Goods are being trucked between Hantsport to their pick up in Port Williams, adding about 22 kilometers to their road journey.” Taylor says this translates into these companies receiving their goods at least a day or more sooner. Taylor also added the company, which is owned by Iron Road Road Railways Inc. based in Washington, D.C., has no plans to close the eastern portion rail line between Windsor Junction and Hantsport. “We haven’t even completely abandoned the western line, we can run on it if we absolutely need to,” said Taylor. Kings CED expects to name the winning consultant by November 9th.

Did you know?

Railway transportation and safety standards are officially regulated by the Province of Nova Scotia, but the Province contracts its federal counterparts in Transport Canada to oversee it.

Christmas Market

Vendors are asked to book space for the 3rd annual Christmas Market to be held between 9am -4pm at the Windsor Community Centre on December 8. Vendors are encouraged to call Debbi ASAP @ 798-5997 as there is limited booth space remaining. An 8'x3' table is $25 plus a $10 gift item for the $1,000 gift draw.


Mermaid in Mexico

Mermaid Theatre’s ongoing collaboration with renowned author Eric Carle has moved into its eighth year and its fourth language. “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” will be performed in Monterrey, Mexico at a NESCO-sponsored event called the Universal Forum of Cultures in November. The key themes will be cultural diversity, sustainability, peace and knowledge, with a broad spectrum of activities intended to encourage an active interchange between the public and artists, intellectuals, political leaders, scientists, economists and experts in environmental protection from every region of Mexico. More than 1.5 million visitors are expected. After a brief holiday hiatus, Mermaid will tour from January through June 2008, offering both English and Spanish-language performances in Ontario, Nova Scotia and in seventeen American states.
 

Provincial & Regional Issues:

Tax cuts anticipated

Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty is expected to announce the intention of a tax cut today as part of his fall economic statement. Rising prices of oil and the dollar approaching an almost fifty-year high reaching $1.05 translates into an almost $15 billion dollar federal surplus. Flaherty proposes to deliver the update in the House of Commons - not before the finance committee - and at 4 p.m., just as the stock markets closed. The timing pointed to a statement that will have tax measures. The tax cut is widely anticipated to be another 1 per cent reduction in the GST which could come before Christmas. The Canadian Press reports that although unlikely, the late October date - the minister had previously said it would come in November - also leaves a sliver of opportunity for a pre-Christmas campaign. While retailers can make the change on cash registers and welcome any tax reduction measures, the Retailers Association and Opposition members are on record preferring cuts in personal income tax to share the wealth.

Strike impacting local business

Local business in Wolfville is being negatively impacted because hundreds of students have left the town waiting out the end of the Acadia University strike, says the Town's Mayor, Bob Stead. The strike is now into its third week, and the student union estimates about half of its 3,000 full time students have gone home. "I find the downtown area, which is the core of the commercial district, much, much quieter than it normally is and much quieter than any of us would like it to be," he told local news. Grocery stores and restaurants, in particular, are seeing fewer customers, Stead said. The Mayor’s comments are the only ones available to media as both faculty association and university management agreed to a media blackout until negotiations reach a successful conclusion. The two sides returned to the bargaining table last week, but broke off yesterday with faculty rejecting the latest offer. About 300 professors and librarians walked off the job on October 15 to back demands for better wages and benefits.

Fundy tidal MOU signed

Tidal power development in the Bay of Fundy was the subject of a key international agreement announced last week between Maritime Tidal Energy Corporation of Halifax and UK-based Marine Current Turbines (MCT) Limited. Both companies announced the official signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to develop electrical power from in-stream current turbines in the Bay of Fundy. They will jointly submit a proposal to the Nova Scotia Department of Energy in response to the government’s request for In-Stream Tidal Energy in a Demonstration Project in mid-November. “This is a critically important step that will advance the strategic development of tidal energy in the Bay of Fundy,” said Ron Scott, president of Maritime Tidal Energy Corporation. Maritime Tidal Energy Corporation is a Nova Scotia ocean resources company with a particular interest in the electric power potential of Bay of Fundy tides. “This is a golden opportunity for Nova Scotia to lead in renewable energy generation, moving away from carbon based fuel systems.” Marine Current Turbines is known in the international alternative energy scene for its SeaFlow tidal power project in the Bristol Channel. MCT has just built the world’s largest in-stream turbine, with a capacity of 1.2 megawatts. Extensive environmental monitoring will be conducted, and, of course, we expect a similar process as tidal power is developed for the Bay of Fundy.” (Source: NS Business Journal)

Panel rejects Digby Neck Quarry

The Joint Review Panel for the Whites Point Quarry and Marine Terminal Project released its report on October 23rd containing its recommendations to government. The panel cited that “the community has a strong and well-defined vision of its future”, “the industrial project would undermine and jeopardize community views and expectations” and “lead to irrevocable and undesired changes of quality of life” for residents in the area. Further, the panel recommended that quarry’s of any size be required to undergo a thorough environmental assessment, which some say goes too far for smaller companies who wouldn’t not be able to afford to follow through. The report remains in the hands of federal and provincial Environment to make the final decision on the fate of the quarry. The panel’s decision can be found here.

Immigration investigation

Officials with the Province’s Office of Immigration are scheduled to appear before the legislature's public accounts committee on November 21st. The committee wants to know what went wrong with the Province’s controversial immigration program. The business mentoring program, which charged immigrants 130-thousand dollars each in exchange for a work term, has prompted a lawsuit and a government offer to hand back 60 million in application fees. The Committee’s Chair, NDP MLA Maureen MacDonald, said the routine hearing would look at all provincial immigration programs but focus on the controversial work placement program. "It's clear that there were many problems with this program … and that there are many unanswered questions," she said. "It's our job to find out what went wrong, why it went wrong … and learn some lessons so that we can prevent a similar problem in the future.” (CBC, AVR)

Job site doubles postings

ALLnovascotia.com reports that the number of jobs posted on Careerbeacon.com has nearly doubled in the past year. The Atlantic-based website owned by Brunswick News, an Irving company, now lists between 2,600 and 3,000 jobs a month. Last spring, the site started a new service allowing job seekers to post their resumes online for free. Since then, the company has uploaded some 23,500 resumes and that number is growing by about 600 per week. The rate for advertisers to post a job is $375, but there are group discounts. The company’s president Jean Nadeau says that 65 of Atlantic Canada’s 101 top companies advertise on the site, which accounts for about 48% of the market share of the cyber-space job seekers market in Atlantic Canada, beating out Workopolis.com at 23% and Monster.com at 17%. Careerbeacon.com also recently launched a site aimed at young people seeking less specialized employment, called jobbeacon.com.


Constant Issues – Canada's 'Real' Energy Crisis

There is new research to support that Canadians are on an energy roller-coaster ride every day. According to a report released this week by the Better Sleep Council Canada, Canadians' energy levels fluctuate widely from morning peaks to afternoon crashes and evening recoveries. And one in four Canadians qualify as officially sleep deprived. They can make good use of the upcoming extra hour of sleep when clocks roll back one hour at 2 am on Sunday, November 4. The Council’s research found that nearly one in four Canadians (about 23 per cent) are clinically sleep deprived, as judged by their likeliness to doze off or fall asleep in situations like certain situations like sitting and reading, in a theatre or a car. "If we're a nation that is nodding off, rising and crashing throughout the day and week we're abusing, not managing, our energy patterns," says David MacDonald, vice president with Environics Research Group who conducted the Better Sleep Council study. According to the Better Sleep Council research, Canada is a nation of morning people, with nearly 4 in 10 (37 per cent) of Canadians reporting they are most energetic between 6 and 9 am. After that, most people's energy levels take a nose-dive, crashing in the late afternoon between 3 and 6 pm, before getting a boost after the dinner hour. The Council also said their research proves many Canadians also suffer from a severe case of the "Mondays" with 31 per cent saying Mondays are their sleepiest days, with Fridays and Sundays following at 17 and 13 per cent. "Consistency in the bedroom is a key to better sleep," said Gary Baskerville, Better Sleep Council Canada. "Good quality sleep is critically important to be able to function well during the day and smooth out those energy peaks and valleys."

The research found:

• On average, Canadians wake up at 6:50 am.; Atlantic Canadians are the
  earliest risers (6:43 a.m.); while residents of Manitoba & Saskatchewan rise latest (7:00 a.m.)

• Canadians' average bedtime is 10:06 pm.; BC residents are the night
  owls (10:53 p.m.), while Atlantic Canadians hit the sack at an early 9:11 pm.

• 20 per cent of Canadians are very early risers, waking between 3 am and 6 am.

• 15 per cent are true night owls - their bedtime is between midnight
  and 3 am.

• On weekends, Canadians typically sleep in an extra hour, waking up at
  8:02 am.

• One-quarter of Canadians however sleep in to between 9 am and noon,
  compared to only 4 per cent of Canadians who wake up at that time
  during the week.

For tips on the value of good sleep and how to get it, visit www.bettersleep.ca


Events Calendar - Submit your event to info@whcc.ca  today!


Thursday, November 1st & 2nd – Chinese Auction
Dykeland Lodge, sponsored by the Windsor Senior Business Society. Viewing and bidding is between 2 pm – 8 pm on Nov 1; on Nov 2nd, starting at 9 am. Drawing for winners to take place at 1 pm.

Thursday, November 1st – Annual Fall Dinner
Halifax Chamber of Commerce, World Trade and Convention Centre. Halifax
Pre-dinner Reception: 5pm Dinner: 6:30pm Post-dinner Reception: 9:30pm
$160 Members ~ $185 Non-Members Guest speaker Dr. Thomas Homer-Dixon.
Individual and corporate table tickets available. Contact melissa@halifaxchamber.com

Saturday, November 3rd – Art Auction
RCL Branch 009, Windsor. Original works by NS artists in support of the Southwest Hants Fire Department Society. Viewing and silent auction 1 – 3 pm; auction starts at 3 pm. Evening dance at 9 pm. $5 admission.

Tuesday, November 6th – Christmas Shopping Spree
The Summerville District Volunteer Fire Department is holding a Christmas Shopping Spree from 7– 9pm to help raise funds for a new fire truck and equipment. There will be special sale items, door prize, free draws and refreshments.

Thursday, November 8, 2007 - Kings County Business Awards
6pm reception, 7pm dinner Tickets $50.00 for members, $55.00 for non-members
Call 678-4634 or e-mail executivedirector@ekcc.ca

Saturday, November 10th – Busking Workshop
Sponsored by Quick As A Wink Theatre and the WBES, Internationally renowned musician-composer, busker and author of the upcoming book, The Busker’s Bible, Darren Arsenault will be presenting a workshop entitled “Busking for Fun and Profit” at the Christ Church Anglican Hall at the top of Wentworth Road , 1:00 – 4:00 pm. Participants should register in advance by calling 792-1455 (leave a message) and are encouraged to bring musical instruments, juggling balls, magic tricks, or other props to develop your own routine. For further information contact Michelle at 798-2008.

Sunday, November 11th – Remembrance Day
The Town of Windsor will hold its annual service at the Cenotaph across from the Windsor Memorial Community Centre for 10:45 am. Brooklyn’s ceremony will be at the Centotaph in the centre of the village, and Hantsport will hold a Remembrance Day Service at Hantsport School. Doors open at 10:30 am and the service beings at 10:45am sharp. Everyone is welcome. http://www.ns.legion.ca

For holiday information, please visit the Department of Environment and Labour’s website.


Links you can use:

Who’s Hiring: Windsor-West Hants Job Bank

Ticket Atlantic: Your Metro Centre event connection
 

Acronym Look up

Chuckles:

Things To Say If You Get Caught Sleeping At Your Desk:

• "They told me at the blood bank this might happen."

• "Whew! Guess I left the top off the liquid paper"

• "I wasn't sleeping! I was meditating on the mission statement and envisioning a new paradigm!"

• "This is one of the seven habits of highly effective people!"

• "I was testing the keyboard for drool resistance"

• "I was doing a highly specific Yoga exercise to relieve work related stress."

• "Darn! Why did you interrupt me? I had almost figured out a solution to our biggest problem."

• "Boy, that cold medicine I took last night just won't wear off!"

• "Ah, the unique and unpredictable circadian rhythms of the workaholic!"

• "I wasn't sleeping, I was trying to pick up contact lens without hands."

• AND THE #1 BEST THING TO SAY IF YOU GET CAUGHT SLEEPING AT YOUR DESK: -  "Amen"

The next time you post a flyer for your business or non-profit organization at the mall/post office, or have a special business announcement to make, please also email it to info@whcc.ca  or fax it to 757-1969. By getting it included in the West Hants Chamber of Commerce E-News free of charge ensures you’re getting it in the inboxes of people who want to know. Every two weeks, E-News is distributed to - and read by - over 200 local business contacts throughout the Windsor-West Hants area. If your business has news or events you would like to share with our readers but can’t find the words, please call our Newsletter Editor, Heather Desveaux on 790-4009.

Our next issue will be published November 13th, and the deadline for submissions is Friday, November 9th.