Whitehorse Daily Star

March 31, 2006

• Bookends Many mysteries in Tim Wynne-Jones' House of Memory Tim Wynne-Jones has been playing with the notion of fallible recall since his adult novel The Knot (1982) and his juveniles often feature teenagers who are trying to sort themselves out according to memories that are not quite the mirror of reality.
• Evening will offer tools for transformation Settling comfortably in the haven of the Serenity Centre located in the heart of downtown Whitehorse on Fifth Avenue, I realized my interview with Linda Lemphers-Fenton was not going to be the conventional question and answer session but a journey of deep listening.
• Uffish Thoughts Old memories linger on at Dawson City school building DAWSON CITY Gary Parker, the executive director of the Dawson City Arts Society (DCAS), might wish that people would stop calling the building at the corner of Third Avenue and Queen Street the Old Liquor Store, and adjust themselves to its new identity as the School of Visual Arts (no formal name as yet).
• Pegasus Wing to headline Guild Hall fundraising event 'I didn't choose to learn these songs, they chose me they were forced upon me. I was, in a sense, violated by classic rock,' musician Andre Gagne said in an interview with the Star earlier this week.
• Minimum wage to climb to $8.25 In the first initiative of its kind in Canada, the Yukon Employment Standards Board announced today that annual increases to the territory's minimum wage will be based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
• Games food demands: We can handle it' The menu is made for the 85,000 meals that will be dished out at Yukon College during the Canada Winter Games next February.
• Fentie not spending responsibly Opposition 'It's definitely a go for broke budget,' NDP Leader Todd Hardy told the Star following the tabling of the $793 million 2006/2007 budget.
• Court grants injunction extension The temporary court injunction issued earlier this month stopping the Yukon government from privatizing a leased property bordering Shallow Bay has been followed by an interim injunction for another 60 days.
• Pot O' Gold closes doors after 23 years in business Twenty-three years after the doors to Pot O' Gold opened on Fourth Avenue, its owners are selling off the final 10 pieces of gold jewelry along with just a few other last items that line the store's shelves or hang on display.
• Driver's licences changes looming The Yukon government plans to replace, upgrade and modernize its computer equipment and applications, including a new system for the motor vehicles licensing program.
• The Colourful Five Per Centô Goody Sparling on the Shipyards Respected Whitehorse old-timer Gudrun (Goody) Sparling gives her opinion about the Whitehorse waterfront.
• This is no election budget: premier The $793-million budget tabled in the legislatureThursday afternoon is not an election budget, says Premier Dennis Fentie.
• Consumers' group vows to fight on It's not clear whether Yukon Energy and the Yukon Utilities Board will take Roger Rondeau and the Utilities Consumers' Group to court for money owed.
• Game player on a lucky streak Beaver Creek resident Betty Monahan's numbers proved to be very lucky for her twice.
• City considering new community engagement plan In the hopes of giving Whitehorse residents more opportunities to participate in municipal decision-making, city council is looking to develop a community engagement strategy.
• Wage will spur unemployment: chamber The new minimum wage of $8.25-an-hour in the territory does not adequately meet the needs of Yukoners, say members of the Yukon Federation of Labour and the Whitehorse Chamber of Commerce.
• Election is pending, Fentie assures Dawson Dawson City will be able to hold an election in a few weeks.
• Deer hunt being proposed The issue of whether the Yukon will have its first deer hunt this coming season will be before the Yukon Fish and Wildlife Management Board in early April.
• Yukon musician celebrates ANWR with new CD Yukon artist and environmental activist Matthew Lien has released his latest CD, Arctic Refuge.
• Returning officer to be appointed In preparation for this fall's municipal election, city council is set to appoint a returning officer.

March 30, 2006

• Health, education lead O&M spending True to his word, Premier Dennis Fentie tabled a record-high budget this afternoon, toppling last year's at $793.3 million for 2006/2007.
• Land development spending explodes While the Yukon government will decrease overall capital spending for the 2006-07 fiscal year, money allotted for some specific items like land development has skyrocketed.
• City ponders fire hall lease City council will soon decide whether to renew the lease at the downtown's Old Fire Hall for the Canada Games Host Society.
• Cathers injects $21.6 million into health care The Yukon government will invest $21.6 million into the territory's health care system over the next five years.
• Sport and recreation director to speak at education forum If Canadians are going to close the gap between first nations and mainstream children, aboriginal children must be made to feel included in the school environment and freed from the burdens of the past.
• Pare Dawson's debt, committee urges YTG DAWSON CITY It appears that the group planning to hold a mock council election here on April 20 won't have to worry about any real elections stealing its thunder.

March 29, 2006

• MLA pays off his territorial government loan Klondike MLA Peter Jenkins has paid off $281,000 in Yukon government loans, just in time.
• Man wonders about fate of in-city mining claims A Tagish miner may soon find his decade-old claims inside Whitehorse city limits are off-limits for resource extraction as the territory's Municipal Act and Quartz Act are again in conflict.
• City needs comprehensive planning system: Mitchell The Yukon needs a more comprehensive planning system if the territory is to pursue responsible and sustainable development and avoid the conflict that is so often associated with land use.
• Hydrant solves school's water woes When some teachers at Jack Hulland Elementary School entered the building March 12 to do preparation work in anticipation of their students' return from spring break, they were greeted with a bit of a surprise.
• City may update voters list In what is estimated to cost $30,000, city council may be updating its list of citizens eligible to vote in this fall's municipal elections.
• Eight accused claim innocence Eight people facing close to 20 charges connected with a major grow-op bust in Whitehorse last September have pleaded not guilty to the counts and have elected to be tried by territorial court judge.
• Junction's hot water may be examined An application is going forward for funding to further examine the use of Haines Junction's underground hot water supply as a primary source of heat.
• Conference analyzed violence against women Provinces and territories in Canada need to take ownership of the challenges of violence against aboriginal women if the issue is to ever be resolved, says Elaine Taylor, minister responsible for the Women's Directorate.
• YTG must help Dawson with money, Mitchell says DAWSON CITY Ray Hayes held his last meeting as Dawson's trustee on March 21.
• Politicians confirm support for pipeline Canadian leaders are committed to helping make the Alaska Highway pipeline a reality, two premiers said Tuesday.
• Man will spend more than two years in jail A Whitehorse man was sentenced to more than two years behind bars Monday for the possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking, possession of a restricted weapon with ammunition and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.
• Children's museum proponent working on feasibility study It's not your usual museum, but Dianne Homan, chair of the Children's Museum of the North, is taking another step toward establishing a children's museum in Whitehorse.
• Suggested placer mining rules pending Yukoners will get their first look in May at what's proposed as a new regime to manage the territory's placer mining industry, it was announced Monday.