I lost track of how many times participants in Tuesday’s “CBRM Forward” discussion used the words “excited” or “exciting.” Literally everyone who spoke was either excited to be there or excited at the prospect of overhauling the municipality’s planning strategy and land-use by-law or excited to be drafting an economicRead More

Peter McIsaac, chief of the Cape Breton Regional Police Service (CBRPS), revealed this week that he is leaving his post after a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). McIsaac , who has been on medical leave since July 2019, told the CBC’s Tom Ayers that he’s come to understand he’sRead More

For thousands of years, the diverse marine life in the southern part of the Gulf of St. Lawrence prospered as the waters of the Atlantic Ocean mixed with those of the Gulf. The ebb and flow of huge volumes of salt water brought food and myriad whales, fish, lobster, crabRead More

Editor’s Note: Sydney’s casino turned 25 this summer and to mark its quarter-century, Rob Csernyik has been taking an in-depth look at the promises — and realities — of casino gambling in Cape Breton. In this fourth and final piece, he contrasts the CBRM with a community (within its ownRead More

Europeans and others who arrived in North America adopted the idea of taking as much of the natural resources (lumber, minerals, fish, etc.) as they possibly could. They have continued to do exactly that for hundreds of years, thanks to individuals and corporations and the forces industrialization and capitalism. WhatRead More

Membertou First Nation goes to the polls to elect a new chief and council on Thursday, October 22. There are only two candidates for chief — incumbent, Terrance Paul, who has held the office for 36 consecutive years, and challenger Edwin LaPorte — but there are 66 candidates vying forRead More

On Thursday, September 25, in St. Peters on Cape Breton Island, Gilbert Boucher, president of the association that represents fishers in southern Cape Breton, commented on the Potlotek First Nations intention to begin a moderate livelihood fishery. The Chronicle Herald quoted him as saying “They are just exercising their right,”Read More

Beggaring belief So, it’s done — Albert Barbusci of Sydney Harbour Investment Partners (SHIP) has completed his work and all that stands between the Port of Sydney and a multi-million dollar terminal for ultra-large container vessels is our decrepit railway. Barbusci told the Cape Breton Post‘s David Jala (who describedRead More

Premier Stephen McNeil has been visiting Nova Scotia Chambers of Commerce — Halifax, Yarmouth, Sydney — to discuss the State of the Province with people who have paid to listen to him. The Sydney event — a Cape Breton Regional Chamber of Commerce “member-exclusive” gathering (billed as a ‘fireside’ discussionRead More

Each week, I pick a subject and do my research and try to give some sort of coherent account of what I’ve learned but this week — I give up. I’ve been trying to make sense of the latest developments in the Sydney container port saga and I am utterlyRead More