Whitehorse Daily Star

April 7, 2008

• New judge 'possesses vision and compassion' The newest judge in the Yukon was welcomed to the bench Friday afternoon at a swearing-in ceremony that packed courtroom #1 at the Andrew Philipsen Law Centre.
• Old Fire Hall gets new life The Old Fire Hall has opened its door for its first full year of arts performances.
• Labour gives hand-cyclist a generous send-off Ramesh Ferris, who is slated to begin his six-month Cycle to Walk journey this weekend, was the proud recipient of a cheque for $8,250 from the Yukon Federation of Labour this morning.
• MP to taste fatherhood at 58 No one likes to be the butt of a joke, but on April Fool's Day, Yukon MP Larry Bagnell turned the tables on his pranksters.
• Man sentenced A 24-year-old man received a four-month conditional sentence and two year's probation in territorial court last Thursday after he was found guilty of assault with a weapon.
• Money available for 2007 flood victims Another $1 million in relief funding has been set aside to assist property owners whose homes or cabins were damaged in last summer's flooding.
• Liberal wants Lang's involvement examined Liberal MLA Don Inverarity has made his own request to have the conflicts commissioner look into allegations against cabinet minister Archie Lang.
• Dawson water delivery rates on the upswing DAWSON CITY - Dawson residents on trucked water delivery will see their rates rise as a result of a bylaw which received first reading on March 18.
• Premier promoted Yukon's potential at Edmonton meet In a one-day round trip to Edmonton, Premier Dennis Fentie said he was able to successfully talk up the Yukon as a prime investment.

April 4, 2008

• School's students may be separated by gender Boys will be boys, girls will be girls, and so at Takhini Elementary School, students may soon be learning in gender-segregated classrooms.
• Investments remain at risk: analyst There are no guarantees the Yukon will recover all or even most of the $36.5 million it invested in asset backed commercial paper (ABCP), says an independent investment analyst.
• Elk hunt tops list of hunting rules changes Premier and Environment Minister Dennis Fentie has approved a limited elk hunt recommended by the Yukon Fish and Wildlife Management Board.
• You are paying to pollute our environment Three cheers for Whitehorse city councillor Jan Stick for her motion to ban plastic give-away bags from local stores (Star, March 18, 26).
• The John Henrys get down to the wood Sweet as the Grain, the newly-rereleased album by the Ottawa-based country rock band The John Henrys, is just that: sweet music to listen to.
• The Summer of Magic Quartet concludes W.O. Mitchell used to say that writers had absorbed all the really important elements that would go into their work by the time they were 12 years old.
• The meaning is in the mind's eye DAWSON CITY - While there is a photograph of a dead bird in the middle of one of the three photo collages, the ODD Gallery exhibit called Exquisite Cadaver isn't about a bunch of corpses.
• These are big injustices It is both sad and disappointing hearing the news that there is no low-cost housing funding for those who, in many cases, are marginalized through no fault of their own but through neglect, as is the case with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome.
• School, studio plan gets first reading Whitehorse city council gave a River Ridge Lane couple's proposal for a Montessori school and expanded Pilates studio first reading March 25, with a condition.
• Dawson recreation centre to stay open after all DAWSON CITY - The ink hasn't dried on the paper yet, but the City of Dawson is reasonably certain it will have the necessary engineer's stamp of approval to keep the Art and Margaret and Margaret Fry Recreation Centre open for another year.
• Jamaican musher was one of the most popular DAWSON CITY - Oswald "Newton" Marshall got a hearty round of applause at last Saturday night's mushers' banquet for his seventh-place finish in the Percy DeWolfe Memorial Mail Race.
• Musher wasn't sure he'd prevail in DeWolfe DAWSON CITY - When Gerry Willomitzer picked up the antler memorial as the first-place winner in the recent Percy DeWolfe Memorial Mail Race, it wasn't the first time he'd held the heavy trophy.
• Mark's Work Wearhouse plans cancer fundraiser Mark's Work Wearhouse hopes to raise $250,000 this year as part of its fundraising initiative, Clothes That Work For The Cause, in support of the Breast Cancer Society of Canada.
• Students extend their generosity to Afghanistan Most Whitehorse children do not understand violence, destruction or chaos, and fortunately so.
• Springs get new owners, changes A group of shareholders who used to hold a minority of the shares in Takhini Hot Springs are now the new owners.
• RCMP on the lookout for man, two women The public's assistance is requested in locating three Yukoners wanted as of noon Wednesday.
• Man faces deadline to move appeal ahead A 71-year-old man who is appealing his 2007 assault conviction has until April 15 to serve the Crown with court transcripts and a memorandum of argument for the appeal to proceed, Yukon Supreme Court heard Tuesday.
• Convicted man ordered to jail to await sentencing A 39-year-old man who was convicted of sexual assault in February was remanded into custody Thursday, pending his sentencing on May 9.
• Author enters eighth decade in style DAWSON CITY - Dick North says he hasn't had a birthday party since he was five years old.
• College releases long-term goals Yukon College unveiled to staff, faculty and students its draft plan of strategic goals and directions Wednesday.
• Opinions differ over youth centre progress A Riverdale resident's claim that local youngsters' needs are not being considered for a potential youth centre is by no means unanimous.
• We earned $754 million in 2006 The average Yukoner earned nearly $3,000 more in 2006 than he or she did in 2005, according to figures released recently from the Yukon Bureau of Statistics.
• Man is jailed after conviction on a string of criminal charges A 28-year-old man received a 12-month jail sentence in territorial court Wednesday on charges of cocaine possession, assault, assault causing bodily harm, causing a disturbance, and failure to appear in court.

April 3, 2008

• Make remarks outside house, Fentie tells MLA Premier Dennis Fentie has challenged Liberal MLA Don Inverarity to step outside the legislature where he would lose his legal immunity for making what Fentie regards as slanderous remarks.
• Questions surround centre's cost, completion Health Minister Brad Cathers isn't saying when the new Watson Lake health care facility will be ready, nor what the final cost will be.
• City's legal review calls petition invalid City staff are calling a McLean Lake petition invalid, following a legal review.
• Federation plans health and safety conference The Yukon Federation of Labour will host a major Youth Health and Safety Conference from April 27-29 inclusive at the High Country Inn in Whitehorse.
• Recycling ventures funded The Yukon government has provided almost $80,000 in funding support this year to enhance community recycling efforts, Environment Minister Dennis Fentie said recently.
• Local students are urged to 'drop the pop' Yukon students are being asked this week to drop the pop, in a government-run health program.
• Journey Far Carver program to continue The Yukon government is looking to spend $245,000 in the 2008-09 fiscal year to continue the Journey Far Carver program, says Justice Minister Marian Horne.
• MLA ignites anti-cancer fight Steve Nordick, the Yukon Party MLA for Klondike, is challenging the territory's public figures to join him in the fight against cancer.
• Hardy spurns Chinese-made pins NDP Leader Todd Hardy has turned in his collector's pins, which were fabricated in China.