July 2007

Chebucto News & Parkview News

In this month’s column, I’ll touch on a few different topics that I think may be of interest to you.

The first item is that on June 28th I attended the graduation ceremonies for Halifax West High School (in the morning) and J.L. Ilsley High School (in the afternoon). My sincere congratulations to all of the graduates and their families. I’ve said before, and I’ll say again, that one sure cure for cynicism about today’s young people is to attend a graduation ceremony. You get to meet and hear about so many smart, talented, accomplished young men and women.

At both high schools I sponsor a graduation award called the Eileen O’Connell Memorial Bursary. I do this in memory of my predecessor as MLA, who succumbed to breast cancer in September 2000. The award is given to a student with high academic standing who has made a significant contribution to the school’s model parliament. This year’s award winners are Lisa Delaney (at Halifax West) and Elissa McCarron (J.L. Ilsley). Congratulations to you both.

Although Queen Elizabeth High School is not in my constituency, and only a few of “my” residents go there, I noticed that both of QEH’s winners of the Lieutenant Governor’s Medal for highest standing are in fact from my constituency. Congratulations to Laura Fitzpatrick and Erik Fraser.

The second item is that CN Rail has applied to discontinue use of the rail spur that runs along Joseph Howe Drive, around the Fairmount and Fairmount Ridge subdivisions, and out to Bayers Lake. Although this is not a provincial issue (at least not directly), I know the application for discontinuance will be of interest especially to homeowners who live beside or near the line. Naturally there will be questions about the future of the line. I am trying to gather as much information as I can about how an application for discontinuance unfolds, and what local homeowners can expect. I plan to put a package of information in neighbouring homeowners’ hands sometime in July.

The third item is a good news/bad news thing. The good news is that the provincial Department of Transportation is finally allocating some money for work on the intersection of Walter Havill Drive and Northwest Arm Drive. (This is a provincial responsibility because Northwest Arm Drive is a provincial highway.) The bad news is that the work being done is only brush-clearing and changes to the traffic lights. This is only a fraction of what needs to be done to make that particular intersection safer. It is currently one of the most dangerous intersections in western HRM, at least within the area of provincial responsibility.

Finally, I have been out knocking on doors in the constituency over the past month. It is always enlightening for me to hear directly from residents about their questions and concerns. As usual, the top concern is traffic. No matter what street I’m on, I hear that there are too many cars and they’re driving way too fast.

So let’s slow down and have a great summer.