Police Chief Robert Bruce will retire when his contract ends in July 2026, bringing his 38‑year policing career to a close.
Bruce will leave the role at the end of his current term and did not accept a three‑year extension, according to a release from the Saint John police.
He said he has fulfilled the commitments he made to the board, the community and members of the police force.
When he accepted the position in 2021, Bruce committed to living in Saint John for three to five years and intended to guide the organization through what he described as significant transformation.
The force faced challenges during his tenure, including turnover in senior leadership, the absence of a deputy chief for much of that time and resistance to change, according to the release.
“It has been a distinct honour to serve the City of Saint John and the members of the Saint John Police Force,” Bruce said in the release.
Bruce highlighted progress in improving service delivery, supporting members and increasing engagement and visibility in the community.
He said he is confident the current senior command team is positioned to continue that work.
Bruce was not made available for an interview with Acadia Broadcasting.
No details have been released yet on how the next chief will be selected.
Deputy chief appointed
Saint John police appointed Neal Fowler as deputy chief on May 11 following what it described as an extensive selection process.
Deputy Chief Neal Fowler. Image: Saint John police media release
Fowler has more than 22 years of experience with the Saint John Police and has held several leadership roles.
“Deputy Chief Fowler’s extensive experience, commitment to excellence, and deep understanding of our community make him an outstanding choice for this role,” Bruce said in the May 11 announcement.
The Town of Hampton is losing a local taproom at the end of the month, but one co-owner won’t be out of business for long.
Luke MacGregor co-owns both The Gridiron Brewery and The Porch Taproom.
He said as The Porch prepares to close on March 31, Gridiron will return to its former home on Main Street.
“It’s disappointing that it didn’t work out, but we are pretty optimistic that things will move forward to move onward with the Gridiron,” he said.
The Porch was a partnership that combined MacGregor’s Gridiron Brewery and Hampton’s Ole Foggy distillery, owned by Christina Campbell-Murray and her late husband, Aaron Murray, in one location.
As part of the partnership, Gridiron moved from its former space at 1051 Main St. to 370 Main St., where Ole Foggy is currently located.
The establishment offered Gridiron’s craft beer menu along with Ole Foggy’s spirits and cocktails, plus an assortment of activities such as trivia night, open mic, karaoke, among others.
MacGregor and the Murrays opened the business last summer, and during the process Campbell-Murray’s husband, who was battling cancer, passed away on July 18.
After Murray’s passing, Campbell-Murray took over Ole Foggy, MacGregor explained.
He said the closing of The Porch stems from Campbell-Murray’s decision to step away from the business and close Ole Foggy, which was announced last week in a social media post.
MacGregor added that things weren’t the same after Murray’s passing.
“I think [she] just sort of lost the desire to be part of it with Aaron’s passing,” he said.
However, MacGregor said there are no grudges against Campbell-Murray, and he added he is excited for the next chapter.
MacGregor said The Porch will continue to operate until its closing date, when it will host a farewell party.
In the meantime, MacGregor is focusing on reopening Gridiron, now as a fully solo venture.
Before the opening of The Porch, Gridiron operated alongside craft BBQ restaurant Beer Daddy BBQ, which now has a new home in Sussex.
MacGregor said the reopening of Gridiron will come with several new additions, such as its own take on pub food and an original cocktail menu.
MacGregor estimates Gridiron won’t be open until June, but despite the disappointment from the closure of The Porch, the Hampton community has been extremely supportive of his decision to move back to 1051 Main St.
“We have had a lot of very good response,” he said. “People, I think, are quite excited to see sort of the Gridiron return to it’s roots.”
MacGregor added that several patrons have already reached out to offer help, as he expects the summer will be quite busy with the move.
He said the kitchen project may take some time, so in the meantime he will obtain permits for food trucks.
According to Realtor.com, the former Porch/Ole Foggy space was listed for sale last week, with an asking price of $625,000.
Acadia Broadcasting reached out to Campbell-Murray for comment but did not receive a response.
An investment fund that operates generating stations in Fort Frances, Atikokan and Kenora is selling off its U.S. operations.
The sale by PSP Investments to Hull Street Energy, a U.S.-based private equity firm, includes hydroelectric generation, energy storage and renewable assets operated by FirstLight in Massachusetts, Connecticut and Pennsylvania.
The deal is subject to regulatory approvals.
FirstLight’s Canadian portfolio includes H2O Power and Hydromega.
They remain with PSP Investments and are guided by the existing Canadian management team.
Plans for a solar project in Fort Frances are also unaffected by the sale.
“This transaction reflects our disciplined approach to portfolio management and return optimization while preserving exposure to projects in Canada with long-term, inflation-linked cashflows,” states Andrew Alley, Managing Director and Global Head of Infrastructure Investments at PSP Investments, in a release.
“We will continue to leverage our global expertise here at home to seek out new opportunities in the Canadian power sector.”
The Fort Frances solar project, under development in partnership with the Lac Des Mille Lacs First Nation, was recently awarded a 20-year agreement to provide power back to the Ontario grid.
FirstLight is completing design and permitting work, with installation expected in the next couple of years.
PSP Investments, which manages the federal pension plan funds, acquired FirstLight in 2016.
Two more names have been added to the list of candidates interested in a seat on Fort Frances council.
Councillor Kaleb Firth and Gary Cousineau have filed nomination papers for councillor.
Councillor Bill Morrison and Nathan Galusha filed their intentions earlier this month.
No one has yet filed for the position of mayor that becomes vacant with Andrew Hallikas’ announcement at the start of the year that he would not be seeking a second term.
Nominations for this October’s election will be accepted until August 21st.
Nominations are now being sought for the 2026 inducation into the Kenora Sports Hall of Fame.
Bruce Johnson sits on the committee and says it’s not just a hockey hall fame…all sports are represented.
“If you know of someone or some group that you would like to nominate for the Hall of Fame, we would certainly like you to pick up a form, and it’s certainly self-explanatory,” says Johnson.
Johnson adds that there still a couple of weeks to get your nominations in.
“The deadline is June 15th for the nominations. There are many sports activities over the years in Kenora…the lawn bowlers by the Kenora Curling Club…little league baseball…guys who ran that.”
Nomination forms can be picked up at Johnson’s Pharmacy, the Keewatin Medical Clinic and the Moncrief Construction Sports Center.
The actual induction banquet will take place in the fall.
More than 400 support workers with the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) Local 740 launched a strike on Monday outside of Community Living Thunder Bay (CLTB) on John Street.
The workers of OPSEU Local 740 are striking alongside about 4000 other workers across Ontario as part of the Worth Fighting For campaign, which aims to earn retroactive pay raises to make up for the Ontario government’s Bill 124.
In 2019, the bill imposed a wage freeze, capping raises at one per cent annually for provincial public sector workers.
The bill was repealed in 2024 after the courts deemed it unconstitutional.
Ontario public employees in other sectors were eventually able to secure 6.5 per cent retroactive wage increases to make up for Bill 124, but Developmental Support Workers (DSWs) are the only group of provincial public sector workers who have never seen the retroactive pay returned.
“We’ve let the Ford government know that we are worth fighing for, and we want what every other public service worker in Ontario got,” says Cindy Mazan, president of the Local 740 branch of OPSEU.
Mazan makes clear that the Worth Fighting For campaign’s target is the Ontario government, not employers.
“It’s not necessarily breakdowns with our employer, it’s breakdowns with the government,” she explains. “We are going after the government for this money because we know that our organizations don’t have the money to pay for us.”
Striking support workers with OPSEU/SEFPO Local 740 cheer on honking cars as they pass by. PHOTO: SAM GOLDSTEIN/ACADIA BROADCASTING/MAY 25, 2026
DSWs are poorly paid for the work they do, which can entail physical injury and high levels of stress.
“Many of us have two or three jobs in order to get by, so this money is really important,” says Mazan. “It’s for quality of life. Our members deserve it. we take care of the most vulnerable people in the community.”
Erin Smith, a member of Local 740 and a Regional Executive Board member for OPSEU, echoes the words of Mazan, and questions why the wages of her and her colleagues have failed to keep up with the cost of living.
“It makes us feel like we are disrespected, that we’re not given the credit we deserve, that we’re overworked, we’re underpaid, and we’re underappreciated,” she says in a voice thick with emotion.
As a board member of a regional OPSEU body, Smith is privy to the wider situation across the province for support workers.
She describes a picture of workers enduring violence, mental health challenges, and burnout.
“It’s not an easy job,” she says.
DSWs are trained to support individuals with developmental disabilities, which is no simple task.
“They can be challenging, they can be unpredictable, but they can be sweet as pie. You have to be on your toes all the time,” Smith describes.
The underfunding of the sector only complicates matters.
Smith says across Ontario, over 63,000 adults are on a waitlist for developmental services.
She explains that “most of the people who do come in for service are on a crisis list. So we’re seeing high needs people coming in and not enough staffing.”
OPSEU/SEFPO Local 740 member Erin Smith, left, at the picket line. PHOTO: SAM GOLDSTEIN/ACADIA BROADCASTING/MAY 25, 2026
Hiring replacements
Several workers on the picket line could be seen bearing signs criticizing CLTB for contracting “scab” workers to fill in for the strikers.
“We were just letting the public know that Nurse Next Door, which is a private, for-profit company, is actually taking our tax dollars and hiring scabs to replace us while we are on strike,” says Mazan of the issue.
Mazan is concerned that the replacement workers may not have the same training as the full-time employees who normally work with CLTB.
“We also know that a lot of these workers that were hired are newer to Canada, which means they may not understand what it means to cross the picket line,” Mazan explains. “So we truly feel that Community Living Thunder Bay and Nurse Next Door has exploited these workers.”
An OPSEU/SEFPO Local 740 worker marches along the picket line with an anti-scab sign. PHOTO: SAM GOLDSTEIN/ACADIA BROADCASTING/MAY 25, 2026
Smith, meanwhile, feels CLTB should be on standing alongside its workers on the picket line.
“I would much prefer that my employer stood up to the hand that feeds them,” she says. “Their jobs and the money that they make every day is dependent upon us. We are the backbone of the agencies… It’d be great if they could stand up against the government and say ‘they’re right, we need more funding, they do deserve more money.'”
Cindy Mazan says the 740 branch has the full support of OPSEU, and is prepared to strike for as long as it takes to get the 6.5 per cent retroactive pay bump.
At the time of publication, Community Living Thunder Bay and Nurse Next Door had yet to respond to requests for comment. This story will be updated should they respond.
Premier Tim Houston has called a byelection for the new riding of Chéticamp-Margarees-Pleasant Bay.
Voters in the western Cape Breton constituency will head to the polls on June 23.
According to Elections Nova Scotia, early voting will begin Wednesday at the returning office on Old Cabot Trail Road in Grand Étang, while candidate nominations must be submitted by June 3.
The riding was officially created earlier this year after the provincial government announced plans for a new “exceptional riding” designed to improve representation for Acadian voters in the region.
The constituency was carved from the existing riding of Inverness.
Nova Scotia already has several other exceptional ridings aimed at protecting minority representation, including Argyle, Clare, Richmond and Preston.
With the addition of Chéticamp-Margarees-Pleasant Bay, the Nova Scotia Legislature now has 56 seats, up from 55 previously.
The Progressive Conservatives currently hold 42 seats, followed by the NDP with nine, the Liberals with three and one Independent MLA.
The first water utility price hike in over 20 years is planned for Richmond County and Port Hawkesbury soon.
Town of Port Hawkesbury Director of Finance says inflation is to blame for the first increase in the Landrie Lake Water Utility since 2002.
Brian Luciano shares with us that another public hearing will be held before bills go up for Port Hawkesbury Water Utility customers.
“With inflationary pressures, all costs have risen in general life, which the Landrie Lake utility would not have been excluded from. So just the overall general increase in cost for the utility needed to be taken into account for the price of water that we sell to the customers,” he explained.
“The Landrie Lake Water Utility supplies raw water to the Town of Port Hawkesbury Water Utility, the Town of Port Hawkesbury Water Utility then treats that water and distributes it to the residents and businesses in the region.”
