Whitehorse Daily Star

April 29, 2005

• There's no writers' block at this event Thursday was day one of the 26th annual Young Authors' Conference, and things were well underway by the middle of the afternoon. Close to 100 students are meeting for two days of workshops.
• New theatre company takes the stage After four years of conception, L'ark launched itself onto the Yukon theatre stage in a flurry of coloured streamers and champagne Wednesday afternoon.
• Excitement under the Parliament Buildings I bet you didn't know that there was an entrance to another world just under the Parliament Buildings in Ottawa.
• Allegations misleading': fired official Some former Dawson City officials have responded by letter to Community Services Minister Glenn Hart's invitation to comment on a high-profile forensic audit performed on the town's troubled finances.
• Fish Lake-area land bidders won't have future advantage The 26 applicants who were denied Fish Lake Road lots will not hold any special standing if future residential development occurs there, says the minister responsible.
• Museum takes possession of veteran bush pilot's aircraft Built in Atlin, B.C., in the early 1960s, CF-RKN, now at the Yukon Transportation Museum, was one of the first homebuilts to be constructed in the remote reaches of northwestern Canada.
• YTG quizzed on how it will quench land thirst Liberal Leader Pat Duncan wants to know what plans the Yukon government has in place to deal with the high demand for land in Whitehorse and its surrounding areas.
• Man faces assault, weapons charges Strickland Street saw some action Wednesday afternoon after a man pulled a gun during a fight with four people.
• A tribute to Margaret Fry, a real Yukoner I had intended with this week's column to print the answers to the previous two or three columns.
• Lawyer cleared to defend accused pair in courtroom Two young men facing charges after a large brawl broke out at the 202 Hotel last November have finally sorted out problems with their lawyer.
• Alcohol abuse has moderated, chief says Alcohol is less of a problem than it used to be in Old Crow, says Joe Linklater, chief of the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation.
• Passport services get boost locally Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) at 300 Main St., Suite 125, Whitehorse, is now a receiving agent for Passport Canada.
• Man's plight underlines lack of FAS services A young man who likely has fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) finds himself behind bars because the Yukon justice system cannot provide him with the help he needs.
• ANWR battle not over, chief insists The U.S. budget bill that approves oil and gas exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) was cleared Thursday night, Yukon MP Larry Bagnell said today.
• Exploring source of major fuel leak is getting costly The cost of finding a serious underground fuel leak in the downtown core could go beyond $50,000, says an official with the Department of the Environment.
• Development agreement to be signed Less than a year after it turned down Dustin Slonski's application to subdivide his Porter Creek property, city council voted in favour of a development agreement for the subdivision.
• Election could put gas tax deal at risk A federal election could put the gas tax deal between Ottawa and the provinces and territories at risk.
• Largest northern labour gathering is set for May The Regional Council of the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) in the North will hold its triennial regional convention in Whitehorse, May 6-8. It will be held at the Whitehorse Convention Centre.
• Every single safeguard failed' in Dawson DAWSON CITY Dawson's former financial supervisor doesn't understand why there hasn't been more of a media frenzy over the material in the recently released forensic audit.
• City will purchase new trucks, gear The city will spent an extra $23,400 it has on two under-body plows in an effort to make winter road maintenance more efficient and cost-effective.
• Fallen workers mourned Citizens, government workers and labour representatives met at the Elijah Smith Building early Thursday afternoon to commemorate the Day of Mourning, remembering individuals killed or injured at their places of work.

April 28, 2005

• Police seize booze buried in dog food An attempt to smuggle 10 mickeys of vodka into Old Crow on an Air North flight was quashed by the Whitehorse RCMP Tuesday.
• Area bridge to have its deck replaced The last of the Yukon's share in the federal Strategic Highway Infrastructure Program (SHIP) will be spent on fixing up the Takhini River Bridge along the Alaska Highway west of Whitehorse.
• Key U.S. budget bill is imminent, Bagnell says Fresh from an anti-drilling lobby in Washington, Yukon MP Larry Bagnell says the vote on the U.S. federal budget bill could come today or tomorrow.
• Yukoners to pass judgment on RCMP People concerned about RCMP practices will have their chance to speak as a territorial policing review gets underway.
• Kids' obesity: It's serious, it's real' Get off the couch.
• Grey Mountain housing manager upset, confused' 'It is just beyond my imagination why,' says Darla-Jean Lindstrom, manager of the Grey Mountain Housing Society. Star Repo
• Lawn decorations returned to owner Nick Renyk's lawn ornaments have found their way back to their Porter Creek home.
• Women's groups make recommendations Representatives of women's groups from the three territories met during a recent video conference in Whitehorse to respond to the federal government's Northern Strategy framework as published in the booklet, Developing your Northern Strategy.
• FIRE TOLL ESTIMATED TO BE $4 MILLION Yukon Electrical Co. Ltd. is maintaining a damage estimate of between $3 million and $5 million for Thursday morning's inferno at the Whitehorse Rapids dam.

April 27, 2005

• Housing society challenges YHC decision The Grey Mountain Housing Society is looking to appeal a decision by the Yukon Housing Corp. (YHC) that has kept the society from being part of the 89 new housing units planned for seniors.
• Costs shelve downtown condo project After 14 of the 18 Hanson Lofts condos were sold before they were even built, the project has been cancelled.
• Woman gets wish, is directed to jail A young woman who robbed a Whitehorse cab driver at knife-point is now behind bars.
• Coal mine plan a secret agenda: NDP After a week of back-and-forth questioning in the legislature, the status of a future coal-fired plant in the Yukon remains unclear.
• Chopper needed to pluck car out of Yukon River A car dumped into the Yukon River several weeks ago will have to be airlifted out by helicopter.
• Views on affordable housing are mixed The NDP and the public are becoming confused about the definition of affordable housing in regards to two new developments that will begin building in May.
• Council approves bed and breakfast in Hidden Valley Eva Stehelin will be able to go ahead with her plans for a four-bedroom bed and breakfast, though not a whole lot will change at her Couch Road home.
• Man's sentencing date still unclear Although a Whitehorse man has pleaded guilty to killing a 5th Avenue taxi driver last summer, lawyers are having a tough time agreeing on what exactly happened.
• Parties trade shots over sole-source contracts The NDP is far more guilty of sole-source contracting than the Yukon Party, says Premier Dennis Fentie.
• Put brakes on rail study, YCS urges The Yukon Conservation Society (YCS) wants the territorial government to reconsider its plan to spend $2.5 million US on studying connecting the Alaskan and Canadian railway systems.
• Long-time broadcaster gets a Commissioner's Award Winning the Commissioner's Award for Public Service is all in a day's work for veteran Yukon broadcaster Ron McFadyen.
• Day of mourning is planned Thursday will mark the 21st anniversary of the National Day of Mourning. 'It's a day to remember and honour people who have died on the job,' Diney Williams, president of the Public Service Alliance of Canada, Yukon Area Council, said Monday.
• It's time for an election, says watchdog duo DAWSON CITY John Meier and John Steins are anxious to get democracy back to Dawson.