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News Briefs: Friday, Aug 24, 2012
Crackdown in school zones
The city is starting to crack down on residents speeding in school zones as children get ready to head back to class, starting next week,
"Kids are going back to school, watch out for them," said Mayor Gord Van Tighem.
Speed limits in school zones are 30 km/h. Students will begin classes on Sept. 4. School zone rules are in effect 24 hours a day, 365 days of the year.
- Miranda Scotland
Days Inn buys Chateau Nova
The Chateau Nova will be the Days Inn and Suites come October after extensive renovations to the establishment are completed.
Ibrahim Neviri, general manager for Chateau Nova, said the new hotel will cater to both short-term and long-term stays and will be the home of Yellowknife's newest fine dining restaurant.
"I hope this is going to help rejuvenate the life in the downtown area," he said.
"Traditionally, every city in North America, they have big brands already located in the downtown. This is going to start the new experience for the city of Yellowknife, as well."
- Lyndsay Herman
Pool to close for over a month
Ruth Inch Memorial pool will shutdown Saturday evening for more than a month.
The annual closure will start at 8 p.m. and last until Oct. 1 at 6 a.m. The time will be used to do regular maintenance on the pool.
"It's closed down because the summer activities wind down, school programs haven't started up and it works all through the winter," said Mayor Gord Van Tighem.
-Miranda Scotland
MLAs travel south
David Ramsay, minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment and MLA for Kam Lake, attended meetings and presentations with oil industry and government representatives regarding fracking this week in Calgary. The meetings began on Monday.
Ramsay was joined by Norman Yakeleya, MLA for the Sahtu, and members of the Standing Committee on Economic Development, such as Robert Hawkins, MLA for Yellowknife Centre, and Bob Bromley, MLA for Weledeh.
- Lyndsay Herman
News Briefs: Thursday, Aug 23, 2012
Graduates celebrated
Deh Gah School in Fort Providence will be holding its graduation ceremony on Aug. 30.
As many as 12 students are expected to celebrate their graduation during the event. A ceremony, a dinner and a dance will be held during the day. The schedule for the day is still being planned.
MLAs visit Fort Simpson
A series of events have been planned to welcome members of the legislative assembly to Fort Simpson.
Seventeen MLAs are expected to arrive in the village on Aug. 26 on their way to a caucus meeting at the North Nahanni Naturalist Lodge from Aug. 27 to 29. The events will begin with a community barbecue at the recreation centre from 2 to 4 p.m.
From 4 to 7 p.m. there will be an opportunity to play best ball golf at the Seven Spruce Golf Course. The day will conclude with a drum dance from 7 to 9 p.m.
First Nation gathering
Pehdzeh Ki First Nation (PKFN) will be holding its annual general assembly in Wrigley from Aug. 27 to 31.
The five-day meeting will include presentations on PKFN's lands and resources and protected area strategy, PKFN's community comprehensive claims process, and the band's financial report.
Presentations will also be made by a number of companies including Enbridge Pipelines Inc., Devonian Metals Inc. and Copper North Mining Corporation.
Drum dances or cultural activities are scheduled to take place each evening.
Following the assembly, PKFN is hosting a youth and men's handgames tournament from Aug. 31 to Sept. 3.
Youth aged 15 and under are invited to compete in the youth division and the men's division is open to males over the age of 16. Teams must include eight players and one alternate.
Cash prizes will vary according to the division with a first prize of $8,000 in the youth division and $18,000 for first in the men's division.
Warning for drivers
The Department of Transportation is cautioning drivers to be on the lookout for bison while travelling on highways 3 and 7.
Mid-August until December is the period of the year when bison collisions are the most frequent. According to the department, bison can be found along Highway 3 between kilometre one at the border and kilometre 160.
Bison herds frequent the entire length of Highway 3. The risk of collision increases as drivers travel from Yellowknife to Fort Providence.
Thank you to town
Operation Nanook is wrapping up and the Town of Inuvik is partnering to host a community day on Sunday.
Operation Nanook has approximately 600 Canadian Forces members split between Inuvik and Tsiigehtchic. It's designed to enhance the Canadian Forces' capacity to work with other government partners. Military has been in the area since June.
The aim for this Sunday's event is to thank Inuvik residents for their support during the western portion of Operation Nanook and to give community members an opportunity to showcase their culture to the visiting military personnel.
From 1 p.m. until 4 p.m. displays will be set up in Chief Jim Koe Park.
The Inuvik Drummers and Dancers will be performing. There is also a Northern games demonstration scheduled.
Food and craft vendors will be on site as well as a display of military equipment.
Vet clinic returns
The non-profit society Arctic Paws will be hosting its second spay, neuter and vaccination clinic starting Sept. 6 at a location yet to be determined.
The clinic runs until Sept. 17 and is open to all residents of the Beaufort Delta region.
There are also regular clinic appointments with Calgary-based veterinarian Dr. Lucie Levy scheduled as a fundraiser for the Forget Me Not campaign – to raise money for future clinic.
"Volunteers are still needed to assist at the clinic," said Angela McInnes, director of Arctic Paws.
Swimming fun for youth
The Inuvik Youth Centre is hosting a drop-in swim event tomorrow.
Starting at 7 p.m. on Friday, youth aged eight and up are invited to a supervised swim at the Midnight Sun Complex.
"They should be at the centre for 6:30," said Samantha Stokell, executive director of the youth centre.
"There is an advance sign-up because we only have 18 passes."
The swim will go on until 8:15 p.m. There are reduced hours at the Inuvik Youth Centre this week. Thursday and Friday the centre will be open from 4 p.m. until 9 p.m.
Arena user group meeting scheduled
The ice surfaces will be prepared at the Midnight Sun Complex in the coming weeks.
In preparation, the Town of Inuvik is holding an arena users group meeting on Sept. 13 at 6:30 p.m.
Rose Constantineau, recreation co-ordinator for the Town of Inuvik, is asking that one or two people from each organization come to the meeting with an idea of ice times and tentative dates for tournaments and events this season.
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News desk 
