St. Albert news

• Stronger economy leaves most unfilled jobs in Canadian history

  12-12-2017 23:08 via edmontonjournal.com
  A growing economy and a shortage of skilled workers has left the highest number of unfilled private sector jobs in Canada on record, according to a report released this month by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business.
  There were 361,700 unfilled jobs in Canada in the third quarter of 2017 as the job vacancy rate jumped to 2.8 per cent, the highest since the 2008 recession.
  According to a report based on the Canadian Federation of Independent Business’ Your Business Outlook Survey,
  
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• Premier says Kenney should fire 'political lieutenant' over sexual harassment case

  12-12-2017 21:14 via edmontonjournal.com
  Premier Rachel Notley says UCP MLA Jason Nixon should step down as his party’s house leader, after learning of a B.C. human rights decision involving his company firing an employee after she complained she was sexually harassed. 
  The 2008 case stems from incidents on a B.C. worksite. It went to the province’s human rights tribunal and the woman was awarded $32,000. 
  Nixon told Postmedia in an interview he would do things differently now, but his comments come as he and
  
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• Sherwood Park standoff ends peacefully

  12-12-2017 21:03 via edmontonjournal.com
  A standoff between police and a suspect in a Sherwood Park industrial area that began with a man pointing a firearm at a woman has ended peacefully, RCMP say. 
  Officers responded to a business at 84 Avenue around 2:03 a.m. after receiving a firearm complaint, after which they closed off the area between 18 Street and 24 Street.
  Police were told a man had pointed a firearm at a woman. The woman left immediately and contacted police.
  In a news release, RCMP said they had reason to believ
  
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• Are the Edmonton Oilers due for a stinker game against Columbus?

  12-12-2017 21:00 via edmontonjournal.com
  It’s a strange time for fans of the Edmonton Oilers. You never know what team you’re going to see on any given night, one that will make you curse, grit your teeth and want to swear off hockey, or one that will delight you with its skill, hard work and execution. 
  In the last nine games, the Oilers have won five games, but they have also come up with three absolute stinkers, losing 3-1 to the Sabres, 4-2 to the Flyers, then somehow managing to beat Arizona 3-2 in a game Edmonton
  
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• Thieves in Fort McMurray crash through hotel, roll away with ATM machine

  12-12-2017 20:31 via edmontonjournal.com
  Two men in a pickup truck crashed through a Fort McMurray hotel before loading up the lobby ATM machine and fleeing, say Mounties.
  The men in a dark Ford F-150 pickup crashed through the walls of the Best Canadian Motor Inn around 10:50 p.m. Monday before loading the ATM from near the reception desk into the back of the truck and taking off, said Fort McMurray RCMP in a Tuesday news release. 
  Police say the theft caused “significant damage” to the building but no one was injured
  
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• 29-year-old woman dead after being struck by truck

  12-12-2017 20:15 via edmontonjournal.com
  A woman struck by a truck while crossing at an unmarked crosswalk in southwest Edmonton has died.
  The collision happened just before 6:30 a.m. Tuesday morning near James Mowatt Trail SW and Desrochers Gate, city police said in a news release. The 29-year-old was taken to hospital in life-threatening condition and died later Tuesday morning.
  The Edmonton Police Service’s Major Collision Investigation Section was investigating. 
  Police believe the woman was struck by a 43-year-old man d
  
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• 'Space matchmaking' to battle commercial vacancy rates: Edmonton Economic Development Corp.

  12-12-2017 19:54 via edmontonjournal.com
  Edmonton Economic Development Corporation (EEDC) has launched a “space matchmaking” service to combat commercial vacancy rates.
  Thisopenspace, unveiled Tuesday to the business community, connects property owners, managers, and lease-holders with tenants seeking short-term commercial space.
  The service also gives small businesses and entrepreneurs the opportunity to test the market to determine if they have a viable model for a more permanent lease.
  EEDC has been trying to bring such
  
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• Gun call at Sherwood Park business prompts RCMP alert

  12-12-2017 18:48 via edmontonjournal.com
  An early Tuesday morning gun call to a Sherwood Park industrial area in Strathcona County has RCMP now treating the case as a potential hostage situation.
  Officers responded to a business at 84 Avenue around 2:30 a.m. after receiving the firearm complaint, after which time they closed off the area between 18 Street and 24 Street.
  “We arrived on scene and saw the individual leaving at a high rate of speed from the business,”  RCMP spokesperson Chantelle Kelly said just after 10 a
  
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• City of St. Albert Launches Recreation Winter Holiday Guide 2017-2018

  12-12-2017 18:25
  ‘Tis the season to be active! The City of St. Albert has launched its Winter Holiday Guide and is inviting... Read Post
  
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• City’s 2016 Traffic Collision Statistics Show Collisions on the Rise

  12-12-2017 17:02
  Vehicle and Injury Collisions increase in 2016 over 2015 The 2016 St. Albert Traffic Collision Statistics released by the City... Read Post
  
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• Pedestrian in life-threatening condition after being struck by driver

  12-12-2017 15:44 via edmontonjournal.com
  A woman is fighting for her life after being struck by a man driving a truck in southwest Edmonton. 
   
  The collision happened just before 6:30 a.m. Tuesday morning near James Mowatt Trail SW and Desrochers Gate, city police said in a news release.The Edmonton Police Service’s Major Collision Investigation Section was investigating. 
   
  Police believe the woman, who was a pedestrian, was struck by a man driving a truck. The woman was treated at the scene and transpor
  
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• Tuesday's letters: City council meddling in combative sports

  12-12-2017 14:00 via edmontonjournal.com
  Re. “Promoters cry foul as city puts one-year moratorium on all boxing, MMA events,” Dec. 9
  So our city council has decided that they are now experts in combative sports, so much so that they have now banned them for the next year.
  It was unfortunate that there was a death in the sport, but there have also been deaths in other sports and we don’t see our all-knowing city council ban hockey, or football. Heaven forbid there is a cycling death. Will they get rid of bicycle lanes?
  
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• Sexual harassment case involving MLA's former firm surfaces during labour law changes

  12-12-2017 14:00 via edmontonjournal.com
  Despite his former company being involved in a sexual harassment case, United Conservative Party house leader Jason Nixon maintains there’s no need for the government to legislate workplace harassment policies.
  MLAs are currently mulling Bill 30. Among other changes, it will mandate anti-bullying and harassment policies for all Alberta workplaces.
  Last week, Nixon argued against the bill, saying most companies have had such policies for a long time.
  “The right way to deal with i
  
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• Opinion: Prairies can take the lead in processing plant ingredients

  12-12-2017 14:00 via edmontonjournal.com
  A major opportunity – the kind rarely seen in the agriculture industry – is sprouting up on the Prairies: plant ingredient processing.
  Global demand for plant ingredients is escalating. International firms have assessed the Canadian Prairies as the perfect place to meet this appetite and are already beginning to invest hundreds of millions of dollars here. Getting in on the ground floor will position Western Canada to dominate the global plant ingredient industry. It is an opportunit
  
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• Opinion: How Notley could cut spending without major service losses

  12-12-2017 14:00 via edmontonjournal.com
  Until recently, the Notley government had suggested they had no choice but to triple the province’s debt and increase spending.
  If they didn’t, the government claimed they would be forced to raise taxes, fire teachers and nurses, and make “reckless cuts to social services.”
  The government did actually raise taxes – several times – but that aside, Albertans should know that there are plenty of ways Premier Rachel Notley could reduce spending without requiring l
  
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• NDP says Opposition 'spreading mistruths' about election residency rules

  12-12-2017 05:21 via edmontonjournal.com
  The United Conservative Party is under fire for claiming that NDP legislation would allow newcomers in Alberta to vote without proof of residency as soon as they enter the province.
  If approved, Bill 32, which includes Election Act changes that aim to make voting more accessible, would end the six-month residency requirement to cast a ballot in Alberta. Voters would still need to provide identification and proof of Alberta residency to vote.
  But UCP Leader Jason Kenney tweeted Friday that &ldquo
  
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• Court hears LRT killer's Charter challenge of mandatory life sentence

  12-12-2017 04:16 via edmontonjournal.com
  A man convicted of beating a fellow LRT passenger to death is fighting the constitutionality of a mandatory life sentence for second-degree murder.
  A sentencing hearing began Monday for Jeremy Newborn, who was convicted following a jury trial in 2016 of killing John Hollar, 29.
  Newborn is challenging the mandatory life sentence as unconstitutional, arguing it breaches the Charter protection against cruel and unusual punishment.
  Newborn is of “very low” intelligence and is below
  
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• Take in the peak of Geminids, one of the most prolific meteor showers of the year

  12-12-2017 03:57 via edmontonjournal.com
  If you want to wish upon a star, you may just get your wish … this week.
  As the Earth flies through the debris of a strange cross between a comet and an asteroid, 3200 Phaethon, material from that object will enter the Earth’s atmosphere and put on a light show that peaks Wednesday and Thursday, beginning at around 10:30 p.m. each night.
  “The meteors can be seen everywhere in the sky, but they will seem to move away from these two points in the northeast, Castor and Pollux, th
  
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• Paperless boarding, virtual lounge in works for Edmonton International Airport

  12-12-2017 03:42 via edmontonjournal.com
  The elimination of paper boarding passes and a virtual “pop up” passenger lounge are on the horizon as Edmonton International Airport continues to navigate the aviation technology revolution.
  “More and more people are getting on their phones here, so I think you will see in the future we’re spending a lot more time ensuring that the information people want to know, and different amenities, are easy to access,” airport president Tom Ruth said Monday.
  Ruth, who was pa
  
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• Paula Simons: Have yourself a kitschy little Hanukkah. Really.

  12-12-2017 02:45 via edmontonjournal.com
  Among my favourite bits of Yiddish vocabulary is the word “tchotchke.”
  It’s hard to translate into English. A knicknack? A trinket? A doodad? Those words get close, but they don’t quite capture the kitschy appeal of a true tchotchke, something that’s both tacky and endearingly appealing at the same time.
  This time of year, stores are full of Christmas tchotchkes of all varieties, from light-up reindeer to Bobblehead Santas to stuffed Grinches to creches where all th
  
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• Notes from the Dome: Silver alert proposed for missing elderly, licence plate showdown continues

  12-12-2017 02:33 via edmontonjournal.com
  A system to help locate missing elderly Albertans with dementia moved a step closer to reality Monday.
  Called a silver alert, it would mimic an amber alert, the Canada-wide system that broadcasts information about missing children when there are fears for their safety and disseminating information about them could assist in their safe recovery.
  The new alert would apply to adults with a cognitive impairment, mental disorder or medical condition that renders them vulnerable. It would also ap
  
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• Motorist killed by tire from passing truck in 'freak incident' on QEII Highway

  12-12-2017 02:30 via edmontonjournal.com
  Police are asking the public for help after a 54-year-old motorist was killed by a tire from a passing truck Sunday on the QEII Highway.
  “Preliminary investigation indicates that a large tire, consistent with one used on a semi-trailer, may have dislodged from a southbound vehicle and struck the driver of the northbound vehicle,” Ponoka RCMP Sgt. Chris Smiley said in a news release Monday. “Following this, the driver was fatally injured and lost control of the vehicle.”
  T
  
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• Graham Thomson: Kenney undermines his message in over-the-top attacks

  12-12-2017 02:21 via edmontonjournal.com
  This is getting tiresome.
  Another day, another statement from United Conservative Party Leader Jason Kenney that has to be run through the fact-checker.
  The latest deals with Kenney’s assertion that a new NDP government bill will remove the residency requirement to vote in provincial elections.
  According to Kenney, Bill 32 means residents of other provinces could simply show up in Alberta, vote, and then go back to their home province.
  “NDP supporters are denying that their new elect
  
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• Worker dies in hospital after sandblasting accident in Acheson

  12-12-2017 01:09 via edmontonjournal.com
  An industrial painter has died in hospital after suffering serious injuries when he was apparently knocked from the top of sandblasting equipment.
  Family and friends have identified Robert Hogue as the worker hurt while sandblasting a tower crane on a work site in Acheson, just west of Edmonton.
  Hogue died at the University of Alberta Hospital surrounded by family Friday.
  Trent Bancarz, spokesperson for Alberta Labour, said Monday a worker with Norpoint Sandblasting and Painting Ltd. was using s
  
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• Player grades, Games 21-30: Edmonton Oilers can't seem to break the vicious cycle of win-one-lose-one

  12-12-2017 00:47 via edmontonjournal.com
  The Edmonton Oilers are improving, honest. It’s just happening so slowly that the gap between the NHL club and the playoff cutline is widening, while the number of remaining games is already dwindling.
  After winning 3 of their first 10 games and 4 of the next 10, the Oilers won fully half of Games 21-30. Problem is they lost the other half, all in regulation, to post a .500 points percentage for the segment. This in a league with a cockamamie points system that has a median points percenta
  
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• Emergency responders honour Edmonton boy, 6, for quick action

  12-12-2017 00:33 via edmontonjournal.com
  Alberta emergency responders are praising a six-year-old boy for acting quickly and staying calm when his diabetic mother needed emergency medical care earlier this year. 
  Paramedics presented Ronan Male, a Grade 1 student at St. Angela Catholic School, with a lifesaving award during a school assembly Monday. Emergency officials told students Ronan’s calm demeanour when he found his mom on the floor may have saved her life.
  “Ronan was able to be very clear, he was able to b
  
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