Publication
Come on down! Fredericton teacher wins on The Price Is Right
A family vacation to California turned into a trip of a lifetime for Fredericton teacher Mark Piquette, who went from the audience to the winner’s circle on The Price Is Right. Piquette, a physical education teacher at Bliss Carmen Middle School, won...
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Big jump in capital budget as city looks to catch up
Fredericton city councillors have agreed to a $29.2-million general fund capital budget for 2027 – a big jump from last year’s $24.2-million budget – as the city attempts to keep up with aging infrastructure and planned projects, some of which were...
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Daniel Allain wins PC leadership
Former cabinet minister Daniel Allain is the new leader of New Brunswick’s Progressive Conservatives, after easily defeating Arcadia-Butternut Valley-Maple Hills MLA Don Monahan for the top job. Allain, 55, from Moncton, received 2,543 votes from...
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8 ball diamonds, 2 multi-use fields in plan for new complex
A new multiplex sports complex at Killarney Lake Park is now expected to feature eight ball fields, not four as was previously planned, as well as two multi-use athletic fields. During a presentation to the livable community committee, Bobby Despres,...
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Feds pump big money into planning of Mactaquac refit
Ottawa is pumping $269 million into two big NB Power projects, a move that could help keep costs down for people who are upset about electricity bills that keep going up. The big funding announcement also has implications for the First Nation beside...
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‘It’s out of control’: NB Power slammed for higher bills
the risks,” he added. POLITICAL RISK NB Power got a rough reception at the legislature on Friday after announcing it would again seek steep hikes to electricity rates. The public utility has filed an application to the regulator to raise rates 5.5...
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City being outpaced on immigration, committee told
Fredericton has fallen behind Moncton as a go-to place to live for immigrants, with the Hub City attracting 169 per cent more newcomers than the capital in 2025, a council committee heard on Thursday. And it’s largely because of Ottawa’s focus on...
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Retail gas margins too high, EUB rules
Retail gas margins were too high, the New Brunswick Energy and Utilities Board has ruled, resulting in a very slight cut to how much retailers can collect at the pumps. It means the maximum price of gas in the province is now being dropped a little...
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‘Gang of wild animals’ won’t be jailed for 2024 attack
Three teenagers described by the victim’s sister as “a gang of wild animals” won’t face any jail time for attacking a 41-year-old man in Fredericton’s bar district in September 2024 – an incident that led to his death. The teens, who can’t be named...
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Why a strike has trapped some NBers in their homes
A Maritimes-wide strike by elevator technicians has left some residents of a four-storey Oromocto apartment building trapped inside for over three weeks, and it seems there’s nothing the owner or the province can do about it. The strike began on Sept....
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New friendship centre ‘a home for an entire community’
A 22-year dream born in a 900-squarefoot house became reality on Tuesday as the Under One Sky Friendship Centre officially opened in Fredericton. The 18,000-square-foot facility, at 303 Union St. on the north side, is a New Brunswick first and...
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Heavy water leak causes another shutdown at troubled nuclear plant
New Brunswick’s only nuclear power station has sprung a heavy water leak that’s caused another shutdown at the troubled facility near Saint John. NB Power, the Crown corporation that runs the Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station, says the problem...
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Why Holt may block U.S. mining companies from setting up in N.B.
Premier Susan Holt says her government will be choosy in deciding who is allowed to pursue mining ventures in New Brunswick. The province has the ability to do so, Holt says, as global interest in Canada’s critical minerals sector is at an all-time...
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Food bank distribution gets big boost as food recovery centre opens
A six-year effort to build a new food rescue facility in Fredericton has officially reached the finish line, with the Thrive Food Rescue Centre opening its doors Saturday. Greener Village raised $8 million to build what is Atlantic Canada’s first...
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PREMIER PROMISES SHE HAS ANXIOUS MILL TOWN’S BACK: MINISTER
Premier Susan Holt and three of her senior cabinet ministers met on Tuesday with the elected representatives of Nackawic who are anxious that the big mill that’s the lifeblood of their community could close. John Herron, the minister of natural...
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Hunter Brothers corn maze celebrates women hockey champs
The rise of women’s hockey is being celebrated this fall in a six-acre cornfield at Hunter Brothers Farm. The farm’s 26th annual corn maze opens Sept. 12, with this year’s design honouring the Montréal Victoire and their 2026 Walter Cup championship,...
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AV Nackawic reviewing mill’s operations, says cabinet minister
A mill owner that employs hundreds in New Brunswick is “evaluating all of the strategic options” for the plant in Nackawic and its operations, says the province’s natural resources minister, raising further questions about its future. A day after...
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Mayor of municipality with troubled past abruptly quits
A mayor who had hoped to be the answer to his municipality’s woes has resigned, citing the handling of community engagement and what he considers a negative council environment. In a letter shared online by Sunbury-York South Rural Community Mayor...
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NEW CASINO, HOTEL COMPLEX COMING TO N.B.
Fredericton is getting a new casino, the chief and council of Sitansisk (St. Mary’s First Nation) announced on Monday night. In a message posted on social media, the band council announced that “an agreement has been reached and signed with our...
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What can the city, cops do about e-motorbikes?
The city and police are trying to figure out what to do about the rising number of e-motorbikes on Fredericton’s streets and trails. But exactly what can be done to stop the vehicles, which can’t be legally ridden on roads or city trails, is...
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Holt launches review into lifting ban on shale gas development
The province says it will begin a fivemonth review that ponders removing the moratorium on natural gas development, and make a final decision in January. The move has the opposition Progressive Conservatives accusing Premier Susan Holt of trying to...
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Cops’ return to high schools had a big impact, council told
The return of Fredericton police officers to the city’s two high schools has led to a 63 per cent drop in calls for help, a council committee was told on Tuesday. Const. Stephen Murphy addressed the city’s public safety committee, and spoke at length...
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When will the construction nightmare end? Here’s the list
Five of Fredericton’s road work projects for 2026 have been finished, and a couple more – including a major thoroughfare on the north side – are about to wrap up, according to the city. The next two set to be completed are on Crocket Street in...
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‘Not ready to give up’ on Fredericton elms: city forest technician
More than six decades after Dutch elm disease first arrived in Fredericton, city forestry workers are waging a quiet campaign to cultivate a new, disease-resistant generation of the iconic trees. Since the fungal disease was first detected locally in...
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Environmental fund drying up as province continues search for solution
Groups that do environmental monitoring and education in the province are worried about their future as the funding stream they rely on through the bottle return program has been privatized and the province has yet to announce an alternative. The...
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Who should – and shouldn’t – be allowed to raise their flag at city hall?
Who should be allowed to raise a national flag at city hall, and who gets a proclamation from the city? That was the question discussed by Fredericton’s governance and city engagement committee on Thursday afternoon, and some opinions varied...
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MAN ACCUSED OF MURDERING EX-CHIEF’S SISTER PLEADS TO MANSLAUGHTER
A man facing a second-degree murder charge in the death of Sheri Sabattis in Welamukotuk (Oromocto First Nation) in 2024 has pleaded to manslaughter. Jared Smith, 40, of Burton, was charged with murder after the body of 54-year-old Sabattis — the...
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City says no to military’s building offer
The City of Fredericton won’t take over the militia arms warehouse building on Carleton Street in the Garrison District, meaning the Department of National Defence will tear it down. That decision has been met with disappointment from the Fredericton...
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AV Nackawic temporarily halts wood deliveries
AV Nackawic has temporarily stopped accepting deliveries of wood products due to “sufficient wood inventory to support its near-term operating requirements,” the company said in a news release, but did not say when deliveries might restart. According...
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Ex-premier: N.B. council meeting a ‘Third World kangaroo court’
Former premier David Alward is standing by his criticism of the municipal council his wife serves on, including a social media post calling the events of a recent meeting as “not a democracy but a Third World kangaroo court.” Over several days in...
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N.B.’s king of the wings downs 18 lbs. of poultry
Voracious eater Ben Craig has solved the age-old mystery of what came first, the chicken or the egg – at least in his case. Craig’s friends laugh when he tells them he eats 12 eggs for breakfast. They sometimes follow up with the question of how one...
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Air survey underway to identify mining potential in western N.B.
New Brunswick’s quest to find and extract rare, lucrative minerals from the ground has taken to the skies. Planes are being used as part of a federally funded geological survey aimed at identifying New Brunswick’s critical mineral potential – a major...
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Memorial unveiled to fallen officers, first responders
The City of Fredericton has unveiled Guardian, a memorial to past and present first responders inspired by the two police officers killed in a 2018 mass shooting on Brookside Drive. The memorial “is a beacon of light illuminating a 19th-century...
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Revised zoning plan for outside areas to respect rural needs, says planner
The City of Fredericton is working on revising its municipal plan to incorporate the amalgamated areas that were added to its borders in 2023 to standardize bylaws while respecting the needs of those rural areas. In a presentation to councillors...
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Military regiment pitches in to build Habitat home
Military engineers pitching in recently to help build a Habitat for Humanity home in Fredericton was a “win-win” scenario, says Habitat for Humanity New Brunswick construction director Mike Power. Tradesmen from the 4 Engineer Support Regiment (4ESR)...
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‘Stupid’: Owner slams gas theft inaction
Ask Richard Ng about gas thefts, and he’ll get fired up pretty quickly. Ng, the longtime owner of the Irving gas station at 1769 Lincoln Rd., didn’t mince his words when Brunswick News sat down with him on Tuesday morning to understand how he deals...
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Where’s the beef? It might have been priced off your table
Have you recently suffered sticker shock at the price of steak, eventually opting for a cheaper cut or choosing a different meat altogether? You’re not alone – and you might be having similar feelings about the price of ground beef, pork, and...
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Minister takes blame for virtual care headaches
New Brunswick’s health minister says he’ll take the blame for promising a “seamless transition” when the province switched virtual health-care providers, admitting that the changeover has led to a delay in prescription renewals. Dr. John Dornan held a...
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Couple stand strong in face of some hate-fuelled Pride comments
A same-sex couple who posted an uplifting photo and message on social media about last weekend’s Pride parade in Fredericton say they weren’t surprised by a few nasty, homophobic responses – including one expressing hope that they’d suffer violent...
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Social media blamed for sleeping practices that kill babies
An alarming number of New Brunswick infants have died due to unsafe sleeping practices, with authorities pointing the finger at social media as a culprit. The province’s child death review committee and the office of the chief coroner released a...
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Major projects threatened by labour strikes: province
A pair of striking unions have resulted in “disruptions” to multiple projects, the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure (DTI) has confirmed. “The Department of Transportation has experienced disruptions to some of its projects as a result...
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Family loses home, pets to fire just months after father died in crash
A mother and her two young sons from a small community near Nackawic, west of Fredericton, are starting over after a fast-moving fire destroyed their Davidson Lake Road home in Dumphries Sunday afternoon – not even three months after the children’s...
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E. coli sparks no-swim advisories at three summer hot spots in N.B.
Having Mactaquac Provincial Park’s main beach to himself and his family on a gorgeous summer Monday morning seemed too good to be true for Moncton’s Marcel Poirier. As it turned out, it was. Poirier, his wife and their two young children left their...
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Tobique Valley faces legal threat over council prayer practice
A humanist group has warned the District of Tobique Valley it could face legal action over its continued use of the Lord’s Prayer at council meetings, arguing the practice conflicts with a Supreme Court of Canada ruling on religious neutrality. The BC...
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NURSING HOME STAFFING LEVELS IDENTIFIED AS TOP SAFETY ISSUE
BARBARA SIMPSON New Brunswick nursing home operators are continuing their push for increased staffing levels in their facilities, with a meeting planned with the provincial government in the coming weeks. According to a new provincial report,...
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HORIZON HITS ALL-TIME HIGH OF ALC PATIENTS
Facing a growing backlog of patients in need of long-term care, Horizon Health Network doesn’t expect to see significant relief in the short term through the Liberals’ new nursing home bed plan, according to a regional health authority...
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Former shelter head says waning empathy a troubling trend
In the 1990s, Patricia Carlson, better known as Pat, wound up at the helm of Fredericton Homeless Shelters after being downsized from her job at the provincial government. In 1995, out dancing on the town, a friend mentioned the shelters were looking...
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N.B. MP accuses Beaverbrook gallery of ‘recycling a controversy’
A Conservative New Brunswick MP is accusing the Beaverbrook Art Gallery of “recycling a controversy that peaked long ago,” stating a move to exhibit one of the most controversial art works of the 1980s this summer “is not brave.” Instead, John...
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Motel fire ‘a big setback for a small village’: mayor
A fire that burned throughout the morning reduced a portion of Taylor’s Motel to rubble and likely made the rest of the building unlivable, says Doaktown’s new mayor. Carl Price spoke with Brunswick News just before a noon meeting at the Prospect...
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A shrunken head, a decades-old fruit cake and other estate sale finds
A Civil War-era prosthetic leg. A mummified bat preserved in a baby food jar. A costume once worn by Cher. Those are just a few of the unusual items uncovered by a Fredericton-area estate sale company that spends its days sorting through the contents...
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Tenants move into new supported housing model
Two people moved into a north-side duplex on Monday, joining two others already in an another apartment, the first of four phases Fredericton Homeless Shelters is taking in partnership with Social Development to reimagine how it handles the homeless...
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Researcher says changes needed after her dog ate methadone on walk
After her dog Zelda somehow ingested methadone on a walk along Fredericton’s trails, a neuropsychologist is calling for systemic changes, and for governments to stop slapping bandages on growing social crises across Canada, fearing a total loss of...
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COON TO RESIGN AS N.B. GREEN LEADER
David Coon has announced he will step down as the leader of the Green Party of New Brunswick after 14 years at the helm. The politician said at a news conference in Fredericton on Thursday morning he would remain as leader until the party holds a...
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Watchdog takes aim at literacy failures in schools
New Brunswick students didn’t meet a single literacy assessment target from July 2022 to June 2025, and the seven school districts aren’t setting targets aligned with the provincial strategy, according to a new report from auditor general Paul...
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New mayor highlights spending, public safety as he takes office
Mayor Steve Hicks highlighted the need for responsible spending and public safety, both at the centre of his election campaign, as he and the rest of city council were sworn into office Monday night. In an address following the swearing-in ceremony,...
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SUPREME COURT REFUSES TO HEAR TITLE CLAIM APPEAL
The Supreme Court of Canada has refused to hear the Wolastoqey Nation’s appeal of a lower-court ruling that prevents them from getting back privately held land in their massive title claim for more than half of New Brunswick’s territory. As is...
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Dead man found in car was brother of Portapique victim
The brother of a man killed in the April 2020 Portapique shooting has died, the latest person connected to a victim of the crime to do. Clinton Ellison’s brother Corrie was killed by the gunman after he went to investigate the glow from a fire....
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COMPANY PROVIDED INCOMPLETE INFO ABOUT TOXIC SPILL: DOCUMENTS
The chrome plating company that leaked nearly 1,000 litres of chemicals along 14 kilometres of the Trans-Canada Highway and neighbouring Fredericton roads in March did not initially provide provincial officials full information about its contents,...
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Covered Bridge chips sues insurer, brokers after devastating fire
The Covered Bridge Potato Chip Co. is suing its insurer and two insurance brokers, alleging it was underinsured when fire destroyed its flagship potato chip plant in 2024. The fire on March 1, 2024, levelled the company’s Waterville production...
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Gas price regulations don’t work: PC critic
Should New Brunswick scrap its fuel price regulations? With the cost for regular gasoline inching close to $2 a litre, Don Monahan thinks so. The Progressive Conservative opposition finance critic says the regulations, 20 years old now, have done...
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Facing Parkinson’s, man turns diagnosis into provincial action
Now what do I do? It’s a question Mark Taylor faced when he was handed a life-changing diagnosis at the age of 44. His answer would come with time, some grit and a community rallying around him. Three years ago, Taylor was diagnosed with Parkinson’s...
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Base Gagetown preparing for $1-billion transformation
One of Canada’s largest military bases is preparing for what its commander describes as a oncein-decades transformation, with hundreds of construction projects, new military capabilities and thousands more personnel expected at Base Gagetown over the...
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Baby delivered in cold outside hospital doors
A baby was delivered on the sidewalk outside the Fredericton hospital last month because labour and birth services were unavailable at the Upper River Valley Hospital more than an hour away. Lauren and Nick Atkinson welcomed their daughter, Charlotte,...
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HICKS WINS FREDERICTON MAYORAL RACE
Longtime city councillor Steve Hicks is Fredericton’s next mayor, winning the seat by more than 1,600 votes in Monday’s municipal election. Hicks greeted a packed crowd at Rustico on Monday night, joined by his wife, Angela Hicks, who handily won the...
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Majority of responding Fredericton council candidates question NBEx expropriation
A large majority of Fredericton council candidates who answered a Brunswick News survey don’t believe the city should have acted to expropriate the NBEx lands for development. And included among those who think council made the right decision are all...
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‘I WAS TERRIFIED HE WASN’T GOING TO MAKE IT’: MOTHER
A western New Brunswick woman who gave birth at the side of the Trans-Canada Highway last month said she was worried about the risk after her local hospital once again announced birth services there were unavailable due to a staffing shortage. Mariah...
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RCMP officer found not guilty of assaulting woman during arrest
An RCMP corporal charged after a woman suffered serious facial injuries during an arrest near Woodstock was found not guilty Friday. Before a packed courtroom of more than 40 people, Justice Christa Bourque ruled prosecutors had not proven Cpl. Andrew...
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IRVING OIL CHARGED IN BIG DIESEL SPILL
Charges have been laid in the case of the underground fuel leak at the Murray’s Irving gas station in Woodstock, believed to be one of the worst such disasters in Canada. On Wednesday, the provincial government said it had laid two counts the day...
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BELOVED ELDER’S YOUNG MURDERER GETS MAXIMUM YOUTH SENTENCE
A man who was a youth when he murdered an Indigenous elder in 2024 has been sentenced to four years behind bars - the maximum for a young offender. But the offender - who cannot be named due to the Youth Criminal Justice Act - has only 14 months of...
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