Volunteers at SDH, construction numbers up, PTSD discussion

Morning Coffee – By Aaron Hall

Weather forecast for Wednesday, January 10, 2018

Today – Mainly cloudy. Periods of rain beginning this morning. Risk of freezing rain late this morning. Fog patches dissipating early this morning. Wind south 20 km/h gusting to 40. High 6.

Tonight – Drizzle. Wind south 20 km/h gusting to 40. Temperature steady near 6.

Volunteers needed at Sydenham Campus

The Sydenham Campus of the Chatham-Kent Health Alliance has several vacancies at their information desk and in the gift shop.

Volunteers work either a morning shift or an afternoon shift once a week or every second week.

For more information, call Kathryn Kielstra, volunteer resource specialist, at 519-352-6401 ext. 6485 or email kkielstra@ckha.on.ca.

Construction jump in Chatham-Kent last year

The value of construction in Chatham-Kent during 2017 rose by more than $53 million to top the $144 million mark.

Municipal officials say final figures for the year showed although permits declined from 995 in 2016 to 969 last year, the total value was significantly higher than 2016’s mark of $95.1 million.

The biggest single increase was in the industrial category where 71 permits valued at $41 million were issued as compared with 32 permits for $3.3 million issued the year before.

Even without the jump in industrial construction, the community saw an overall increase on the strength of residential work which grew from $46.8 million to $62.7 million. Included in that number were 127 new dwellings with a value of $38.7 million.

Slight increases were seen in the commercial category ($14.7 million up from $14.2 million) and institutional ($7.6 million from $7.4 million).

The value of agricultural construction declined from $19.3 million to $18.2 million.

Wallaceburg veterans holding discussion about PTSD

First Baptist Church and the Wallaceburg Veterans and First Responders and Families Support Group is co-hosting a round table discussion about PTSD, depression and other mental health issues.

The group is inviting people to attend their discussion.

It will be held on Jan 27 at 1 p.m. at First Baptist Church.

For more information, contact Rob Simpson via e-mail at robthegolfnut@yahoo.ca.

IODE supports the Hospice

Presenting the cheque to Jodi Maroney are Nancy Reissner – Education Officer; Cathy Reaume –Treasurer and Marianne Johnstone – Event Co-Convener (Submitted photo)

The Captain Garnet Brackin IODE Christmas House Tours have been sharing the beauty of the season while supporting local causes for the past 13 years.

Members of the House Tour Committee recently presented Chatham-Kent Hospice Foundation with a cheque for $6,000.

“We are so appreciative to the IODE for their support as well as the support from the participating florists, the featured homeowners and those who attend the tour,” stated Jodi Maroney, Chatham-Kent Hospice Foundation Executive Director.

“This gift will be used towards our ongoing operational expenses not covered by government funding.”

The group are already planning for next year’s tour which will take place on November 17 and 18, 2018.

For more information about the tours or to express interest in featuring your home in the tour, visit the IODEFacebook page.

Competition Bureau reaches settlement with HarperCollins in ebooks case

The Competition Bureau announced on Tuesday that it has reached an agreement with publisher HarperCollins which the Commissioner expects will restore retail price competition for ebooks in Canada.

This agreement follows a Bureau investigation that concluded an anti‑competitive arrangement between HarperCollins, competing publishers and Apple ultimately led to higher prices for Canadian consumers, government officials say.

The consent agreement with HarperCollins follows similar settlements reached with Hachette, Macmillan, Simon & Schuster and Apple in January 2017 to resolve competition concerns related to their conduct in the market for ebooks.

As part of the terms of the consent agreement, HarperCollins will also make a $150,000 charitable donation in ebooks and print books to promote reading in Canada.

The consent agreement with HarperCollins has been registered with the Competition Tribunal and its implementation is pending the resolution of Kobo’s challenge of the January 2017 agreements.

Tuesday’s consent agreement also ends the Commissioner of Competition’s ongoing litigation against HarperCollins at the Competition Tribunal.

“I am pleased that we were able to settle our ongoing litigation with HarperCollins,” stated John Pecman,
Commissioner of Competition, in a press release.

“I expect that (Tuesday’s) consent agreement will result in greater competition in the marketplace by enabling retailers to offer discounts on ebooks, which will directly benefit Canadian consumers.”

Federal officials say the Commissioner concluded that the publishers entered into distribution agreements with individual ebook retailers that prevented them from offering discounts on ebooks.

The Commissioner is committed to promoting competition and innovation in a rapidly evolving digital economy that is redefining the way Canadians consume goods and services, government officials say.

World news

If you have a suggestion, story idea, column idea, or if you want to say hello… drop me an e-mail at aaron@sydenhamcurrent.ca.

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