The weather isn’t currently impacting concert plans for the Avenir Centre in Moncton.
The Offspring is scheduled to perform on Monday night as part of their Supercharged tour.
In an email to our newsroom at 11:15 am Monday, Centre spokesperson Sarah Terry says the show is still going ahead, “If the centre receives notice from the tour that their travel has been interrupted due to weather, or if we receive direction from the municipality that conditions are unsafe at the time of the show, all ticket purchasers will be notified.”
The show is scheduled to start at 7:30 pm on Monday.
She adds that if weather disrupts travel for the tour, or if the City of Moncton says conditions are too unsafe at the time of the show, all ticket purchasers will be notified.
“If a cancellation were to occur, the venue would work with the show to determine whether a rescheduled date or a full cancellation is necessary, based on several factors,” Terry stated.
The Greater Moncton Homelessness Steering Committee is defending the tremendous efforts of frontline workers.
Community Coordinator Andrea Anne says at a recent City Council meeting, comments were made when speaking to the joint action report on homelessness and downtown security, that ‘Nothing has been done’.
“That comment hurt my heart for the frontline workers in the organizations that are doing this work,” Anne added.
She says there has been much coordination and a tremendous amount of work.
“Frontline workers of the organizations and departments that sit around the table at the Greater Moncton Homeless Steering Committee carry extraordinary burdens. They respond to overdoses. They sit with individuals in mental health crises. They navigate addiction treatment wait lists. They help people secure identification and income supports. They search for housing in a market with almost no vacancy or very little deeply affordable housing. They mediate landlord conflicts. They attend critical incidents. They often go home carrying the emotional weight of what they have witnessed,” Anne stressed.
She also stated that stories can be shared of the individuals who have been living outdoors for more than five years.
“That it took outreach, trust building and coordination between community organizations to support those individuals to finally move into stable housing. And it didn’t happen by accident. It didn’t happen because nothing was done. It happened because multiple organizations worked together with persistence and compassion,” Anne stated.
She told council members that the GMHSC is not where they need to be yet, and that the pressures are increasing, but saying nothing has been done fails to acknowledge the progress and the work being done every day.
“Progress in this sector is often measured in stabilization. One person housed, one crisis de-escalated, one eviction prevented, one individual diverted from incarceration into supports, and these outcomes matter. Frontline workers and organizations deserve recognition because if we diminish their work, even unintentionally, we risk undermining morale in a sector that is truly already stretched thin.”
Anne also stressed that the work is not finished, but it’s very much underway, and it is measurable.
The investigation into the death of a Moncton woman has now been ruled a homicide.
New Brunswick’s RCMP Major Crime Unit says the body of the 39-year-old woman was discovered in a garbage bin on High Street near a walking trail on February 15.
“Members of the public may continue to see police activity at both the High Street and Norwood Avenue locations as they continue to investigate,” Corporal Hans Ouellette told our newsroom on Tuesday afternoon.
There’s no word yet on the identity of the woman or how she died.
Chris Coosemans, a spokesperson and rider for Barbegazi, initially planned on doing tricks in front of the crowd this weekend.
Coosemans was one of the riders performing in Ottawa’s Winterlude earlier in the year when he had a mishap during a run.
“We ended up finding three riders who were available or not hurt, including myself. Then, unfortunately, in Ottawa, I actually ended up having a crash, so I will be out this weekend as well,” said Coosemans.
“I fractured my ankle and have some damage to my back and wrist. I’ve got some other things popping up as days go on, but I’m surviving. It could have been a lot worse.”
Submitted: Chris CoosemansSubmitted: Chris Coosemans
Coosemans also brings the equipment for Barbegazi shows and organizes the riders that will be performing.
The event will bring his fellow riders, Rasmus Johansson and Daniel Shaffer, to New Brunswick.
Coosemans and Shaffer both reside in Ontario and recently made their rookie appearances in the 2026 Aspen Colorado X-Games.
Johansson is from Sweden. For him, Aspen was his fifth X-Games appearance.
“Rasmus, I mean, his tricks are going to speak for themselves. He can do some of the biggest tricks in the world that he will be doing in Moncton. For example, like doing a backflip into hanging upside down off of the snowmobile,” said Coosemans.
The Swedish rider placed 5th in the X-Games snowmobile speed and style event, just behind Coosemans in 4th and ahead of Shaffer, who placed 7th.
“Dan, he does a lot of very good upright tricks. He used to do backflips, and then he had a couple injuries that started to scare him, so he started focusing on (upright tricks).”
Coosemans got into snowmobiling young and built his first ramp at 13 years old.
“I have just been practicing and getting better ever since, and I am at a point where I can call this my part-time job,” he said.
A standard jump from the ramp to the inflatable landing for these athletes is 70 feet. Coosemans says the equipment they use kept him safe during his crash.
“Lots of people see the inflatable landings that we use and think it’s almost a dumbed-down or safety version of what we should be landing on, but in reality, it does add quite a bit of safety. If we did not ride to those in Ottawa, I would not be in very good shape right now,” said Coosemans. “Those landings make it pretty easy for us to set up, tear down, and crash as bad as I did and walk away from it.”
Coosemans is hoping for clearer skies this weekend after having to cancel their Friday night performance in Ottawa due to snowfall.
“Lots of people say, ‘How do snowmobiles and snow not mix?’ but setting up on the street, we have our snowmobiles set up specifically to not ride on snow. As soon as we get snow and freezing temperatures, it starts to freeze the equipment that we use to give us traction. It makes our entire setup unpredictable and unsafe.”
“It seems like an oxymoron, but we do set up everything specifically to ride on pavement,” he explained.
Coosemans, Johansson, and Shaffer are prepared to put on a show this weekend, with performance times at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. on Feb. 13 and 14.
There will be meet and greets hosted at The Pit Stop/The Bunker at 9:30 p.m. both nights.
The city’s upcoming winter event is set to begin on Feb. 13 and features activities both in downtown Moncton and the city’s Centennial Park.
Moncton’s manager of events and festivals, Chad Gautreau, says the event is built around the Family Day long weekend and is meant to serve both residents and visitors.
“We wanted to direct the event to make it more of a tourist product while also maintaining that service to residents. We want to be able to drive tourism in the offseason, and this is a way for us to do that while also supporting local.”
The first night takes place downtown in front of the Avenir Centre, where a new addition to PolarFest will be showcased.
Barbegazi, a snowmobile stunt show, will make its PolarFest debut this weekend. The inspiration to include Barbegazi in PolarFest came during the summer of 2025, from its inclusion in other events across Canadian cities, such as Mississauga, Fort McMurray, and, most recently, Ottawa.
Riders who will be performing this weekend have made prior appearances in the X-Games.
“It will be a very controlled, professional show with defined spectator areas and on-site oversight,” said Gautreau.
The City of Moncton asks that spectators respect marked viewing areas, barriers, signage, and city staff direction.
The stunt show will be held on Main St. in front of the Avenir Centre.
Barbegazi’s equipment setup began on Thursday morning. Friday afternoon into evening will be set aside for practice runs.
Gautreau advises that you arrive at the event early. It kicks off at 5 p.m. on Friday, and Saturday it goes until 10 p.m. The stunt shows are scheduled for 6 p.m. and 8 p.m., with meet and greets scheduled for 9:30 p.m. on both nights at The Pit Stop/The Bunker.
There will be other activities downtown, such as live music and a beer garden at Flying Boats Brewery.
“We will see what the future holds. This is something we definitely want to see. We are focusing a lot of our efforts on some of this offseason programming to stimulate the tourism impacts that come with it, so we want to make sure that our downtown businesses, as well as businesses throughout the city, are sustained throughout those slower months; this is a way for us to do that,” said the director.
Gautreau says the city has a three-year agreement for this event. He recommends snowmobile enthusiasts mark it on their calendars for 2027 and 2028.
“We certainly encourage people to come down here, have supper downtown, stay at a hotel, make a full weekend out of it. Take part in some of the activities at Centennial Park as well.”
An upcoming festival in downtown Moncton will impact traffic.
PolarFest and Barbegazi will be held from February 12 to 15.
Main Street between Weldon Street and Highfield Street will be closed from 8 am on February 12 to 8 pm on February 15.
Main Street from Highfield to Bonaccord Street will close from 8 am on February 13 to midnight on February 14. Canada Street will also be partially closed.
Further details about Polarfest and Barbegazi can be found HERE.
“You’re going to be able to go to YourGreaterMoncton.ca to see all of the local news that you’ve become accustomed to, but also things like every single event that’s going on, stories about the culture that exists in that region, everyday life living there, obituaries, you name it. It’s the one-stop shop to connect the people of Greater Moncton with local news events, culture, and everyday life,” Acadia Broadcasting Corporation President Shelley Snodgrass says.
She adds that this is a portal for residents and visitors to the tri-communities.
It’s also an opportunity for members of the community to get involved, “Anyone interested in being a part of it, maybe through creation of content that you already have and you’d like to improve the distribution, or you want to just be a content contributor to help tell the stories of people in that region, please reach out on our contact form,” Snodgrass explained.
“It’s a combination of information, entertainment, and education, and all things related to living in that region, whether you’re in Moncton, Dieppe, Riverview, it really doesn’t matter. There’s something for everyone.”
Tuesday’s launch comes after months of planning and development of the portal, but Snodgrass adds there is still more work to do, “We’re not at the finished product. As more people get involved and want to be a part of making the community better, we really believe as a company that if we’re going to be doing business in our community, the community should be better for it. This is just one of those initiatives that we see improving the lifestyle of living in Greater Moncton.”
