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Friday, September 4, 2015
Multiple bear sightings restrict park access
Residents are being asked to refrain from using the Cameron Falls trail and parking lot near Hidden Lake Territorial Park until further notice due to bear sightings in the area. A temporary blockade will restrict access to the park, which is about 47 km east of Yellowknife.
Dean Cluff, biologist for the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, says it is rare to close public areas due to bears.
The department is reminding the public not to feed wild animals and report any bear sightings.
- Meagan Leonard
Greener ice at the Multiplex
New upgrades at the city's Multiplex will help improve the facility's energy consumption and reduce its environmental footprint.
This summer a vortex degasser was installed - which removes air bubbles from the water used to make ice, reducing the amount of hot water needed. According to a news release, this will save $16,000 in heating oil and $16,000 in electricity each year. Funding for the project came from the city's community energy planning fund. It cost $31,000 to install.
- Meagan Leonard
Nominations for school trustees open
Nominations for candidates vying for public and Catholic school district trustee seats opens today. Papers from candidates running in either of the districts should be filed with Evelyn Straker, at the Yellowknife Education District No. 1 (Yk1) office before 3 p.m. on Sept. 19.
Nominations close on Sept. 24 and the election is proposed to be held Oct. 19. Nominations for French district trustees opened at the end of August and papers should be filed in Yellowknife before 3 p.m. on Sept. 11.
- Evan Kiyoshi French
Nortwestel re-numbers cable channels
Northwestel cable subscribers may have noticed some of their channels had moved to new numbers.
According to the company, the changes were necessary to make way for the fall launch of 99 additional channels including sports, movies and high definition programming.
Customers can expect to receive a package in the mail outlining the new channels.
- Meagan Leonard
Thursday, September 3, 2015
NACC production comes to village
The first of four productions to take place in Fort Simpson as part of the Northern Arts and Culture Centre's (NACC) 2015-16 season is scheduled to come to Bompas Elementary School at 6 p.m. on Sept. 16.
After a feast, the Storytelling Festival will begin, featuring Deneze Nakehk'o, Thelma Cheecho and Moe Clark. The festival celebrates strong indigenous women and storytelling and is set to begin at 7 p.m.
Fort Simpson is one of six locations for NACC's latest season, based on the theme Reaching New Latitudes. Other shows will kick off in Fort Smith, Hay River, Yellowknife, Norman Wells and Inuvik.
Election directive on campaigning
Elections NWT, the territorial election authority, has issued a written directive from chief electoral officer Nicole Latour to prospective candidates for the 2015 territorial election.
The directive states that although there is no definition of "campaigning" in the Elections and Plebiscites Act, potential candidates are prohibited from actively promoting themselves until their nomination papers have been filed and accepted by a returning officer.
At that point, all campaigning will need to take place through the candidate's "official agent," she stated.
Hunting season opens
Hunting season has begun in the Deh Cho for resident hunters going for wolf, black bear, grizzly bear and moose.
Moose season opened Sept. 1 while bear and wolf opened Aug. 15.
Tags are available at local Environment and Natural Resources offices, as well as the new NWT hunting regulations.
Election race is on
Nominations are in for Deh Gah Got'ie First Nation's band elections, which are scheduled to be held Sept. 15 at the Nahecho Keh Centre.
Current Chief Joachim Bonnetrouge has been acclaimed.
Sixteen members are vying for seven council positions, including Theresa Bonnetrouge, Gemma Bouvier, Veronica Bouvier, Xavier Canadien, Ricky M Gargan, Samuel Gargan, Bernadette Landry, Rudolph Landry, Betty Ann Minoza, Kenneth Minoza, Matthew Sabourin, Wayne Sabourin, Wayne Sanderson, James Thom, Margaret Thom and Michael Vandell.
An advance poll was held Aug. 31. Another advance poll is scheduled to be held Sept. 4.
Homelessness initiative waiting for approval
The NWT Housing Corp. is waiting for a response from the federal government regarding its submission for more low-cost housing in Inuvik.
Smith Apartments on Bompas Road are being considered for such a project and, while town council gave its stamp of approval, there is no word yet on the outcome.
"The Northwest Territories Housing Corporation submitted an application to purchase the Smith Apartments located on Bompass Street in Inuvik from the federal government," stated Housing Corp. spokesperson Cara Bryant in an e-mail Aug. 26. "We are currently waiting for the federal government to inform us of their decision on the matter. We are unsure when exactly a decision will be made, but are hopeful it will be in the coming week."
Storytelling celebrated
The Northern Arts and Cultural Centre is bringing the Ko K'e Storytelling Festival to Inuvik, featuring performances by Reneltta Arluk and Quantum Tangle.
Arluk is from Fort Smith and is of Dene and Inuvialuit descent. SQuantum Tangle is a duo comprised of Greyson Gritt and Tiffany Ayalik. Their performances combine throatsinging and traditional legends with new sounds and music. The show begins at 7 p.m. Sept. 16 at the Midnight Sun Complex.
Online voter registration open for NWT election
Voters can now look up whether they are in the voter database and register to vote online, thanks to a new interactive tool released by Elections NWT.
On the Elections NWT website, users can confirm they're registered to vote by looking up their name, address and community. If not registered already, users can use the online voter registration page to put their name on the list. In order to register, users must provide their name, date of birth, gender, address and verify they are a Canadian citizen, older than 18 and a resident of the Northwest Territories.
Users are given a confirmation number and reminded to show up to the polls on election day with a valid form of identification. A list of approved forms of identification can also be found on the Elections NWT site.
Photography contest open
The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society of the NWT is holding its fourth annual Love the Land photo contest.
Photos from across the territory are eligible and the best will be picked to feature in a calendar, with the people who took them winning swag from NWT businesses.
Twenty-four photos will be chosen for the calendar and the contest closes Sept. 14. Participants may submit up to five photos.
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