SK Economic Fundamentals 2008-08

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Discovery oil well hits pay dirt

REGINA (SNN) -- A new discovery oil well in southeastern Saskatchewan has hit pay dirt, according to a news release issued by Petrostar Petroleum Corp.

The release, issued earlier this week, said the discovery well was drilled in the area of the Missisippian Group of Sands.

The area in southeast Saskatchewan is part of what is known as the Bakken oil play that covers portions of southern Saskatchewan, Alberta and Manitoba as well as areas in North Dakota and Montana.

http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix...cc-aea88147f70e

 

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Ethanol plant holds grand opening

The Terra Grain Fuels plant in Belle Plaine, which held its grand opening Friday, cost $1.3 million to build and it was worth every penny, said company president Tim LaFrance. "It`s good for its proximity to wheat suppliers and has excellent infrastructure for utilities," he said. "In addition, it`s one of the rarest locations in Canada and the U.S. from the perspective it`s tied into two major railways systems."
The plant has an expected output of 150 million litres of wheat-based ethanol and 163,800 tonnes of dried distillers grains annually.

http://www.mjtimes.sk.ca/index.cfm?sid=160711&sc=3

 

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Value of building permits nearly $7 million more this July compared to last

The value of building permits issued in Moose Jaw rose by nearly $7 million compared to the same period last year.
According to a Moose Jaw building permit report, there were 15 more project permits issued for the 31-day period of July in 2008 than in 2007, totalling 43 and valued at about $10.025 million. That`s about $6.911 million more than last July.


http://www.mjtimes.sk.ca/index.cfm?sid=160390&sc=3

 

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Meadow Lake cleans up after the flood

The recent flood of Wednesday July 30 has left many people with water damage in their homes, wondering what to do.
The town of Meadow Lake did what they could to keep the water level manageable.

According to Rosalie Brown, assistant administrator for the town, workers from the Town of Meadow Lake did what they could to make sure everything was working properly. Staff manned the list stations all night and monitored the equipment.

According to Brown there was no equipment failure, there was just so much water the pumps could not keep up.

http://www.meadowlakeprogress.com/This%20W...ess/414111.html

 

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New Melfort pub owners sought city out for establishment

The growth experienced by Melfort and area over the past year has brought entrepreneurs into town as well.
A recent example is the new owners of the Chances "R" Pub, or as it is now known "Eddy`s Pub". Doug and Yvonne Eddy took possession of the Main Street landmark on July 7.
Yvonne Eddy is not new to the business, having been in the business for many years.
"We came out of Martensville, she and her son owned the Adobe Inn in Martensville. Yvonne and her son and daughter-in-law own it," Doug Eddy explained.
"We decided together that we wanted to venture out on our own, so we decided to look around, and this became available."

http://www.melfortjournal.com/Front%20Page/413692.html

 

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Rotary trail slowed by rain but end is in sight

The Rotary Trail is on track.

By the end of the year, 20 kilometres of the 23-km trail is expected to be finished, leaving the projected end date of 2010 reachable.

Ray Morgan, parks and open space manager with the City of Prince Albert, said this summer the trail will connect the riverbank to Highway 302 east and construction will continue west of Central Avenue by the casino to Canadian Tire.

http://www.paherald.sk.ca/index.cfm?sid=160726&sc=4

 

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Stop spending money you just don`t have

When it comes time for spending, I can still hear my dad saying, "Don`t spend money you don`t have."

Unfortunately, spending money we don`t have has become all too common.

Personal debt is rising too fast, and getting credit is easier than ever.

Few people will argue that having too much debt can be financially destructive. Just look south of the border to see what it can do to personal lives, governments and even corporations.

It is important to understand that there are different types of debt, most of them bad but some actually good.

http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix...c1-5c28059311cf

 

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Proposed townhouse development opposed

A townhouse development proposal has met some opposition and it will now face city council`s decision.

On Monday, council will consider a development permit application to build modular townhouse condominiums on Jack Matheson Crescent.

Broxburn Developments, based out of Lethbridge, Alta., has filed the application.

"It would be a townhouse-style development," said a Broxburn employee, who refused to provide his name. "They`d be side-by-side condos."

http://www.paherald.sk.ca/index.cfm?sid=160729&sc=4

 

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Rotary trail slowed by rain but end is in sight

The Rotary Trail is on track.

By the end of the year, 20 kilometres of the 23-km trail is expected to be finished, leaving the projected end date of 2010 reachable.

Ray Morgan, parks and open space manager with the City of Prince Albert, said this summer the trail will connect the riverbank to Highway 302 east and construction will continue west of Central Avenue by the casino to Canadian Tire.

The next place they will venture with the trail will be the field house area.

http://www.paherald.sk.ca/index.cfm?sid=160726&sc=4

 

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New house price increase leads nation

While new housing prices increased at their slowest pace nationally in six years, Regina continues to see the largest gains, according to a recent Statistics Canada report.

From June 2007 to June 2008, contractors` selling prices rose 3.5 per cent nationally, compared to May`s 4.1-per-cent year-over-year increase.

However, prices in Regina skyrocketed, increasing by 28.5 per cent from last June.

http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/new...dc-5dc7a4bef260

 

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Natural gas hike less than forecast

The hike in natural gas bills may not be as high as anticipated now that SaskEnergy has updated its application to the Saskatchewan Rate Review Panel.

The price of natural gas for winter has dropped, prompting the Crown utility to lower the rate it was seeking to have approved by the rate review panel.

"We`ve got a better picture now than even three or four weeks ago. It is difficult as a utility to nail those prices," said Dave Burdeniuk, spokesman for SaskEnergy.

http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/new...ea-24d31bc518de

 

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Court sides with Enbridge

Attempts by the Standing Buffalo First Nation to use a pipeline in southeastern Saskatchewan to press its fight for treaty rights have hit a legal roadblock, but not ended the court battle.

The Federal Court of Appeal recently dismissed the First Nation`s application to quash a decision allowing Enbridge Pipelines (Westspur) Inc. to expand a pipeline in the Weyburn area.

In its written reasons, the court said it had no jurisdiction to consider Standing Buffalo`s judicial review application, agreeing with arguments put forward by Enbridge when the case was heard in Regina in June. The court rendered its decision later that month, but only recently posted the ruling on its Web site.

http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/new...da-d203a40929fa

 

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Merrill Lynch report refuted in Saskatchewan

Members of Saskatchewan`s housing industry are refuting a recent report`s claims that homes in Regina are overvalued and that the market is headed for a decline.

Last week`s Merrill Lynch report on the Canadian housing market predicted that while the national market is headed for a plateau, the western provinces are at risk for outright decline. The report also stated that homes in both Regina and Saskatoon were overvalued by almost 50 per cent. However, industry leaders in the province see the opposite as being true.

http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/new...0e-44ef7de324e2

 

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Big-box developer adds land

The developer planning a west-side big-box mall will buy another 7.9 acres without having to outbid the competition.

City council approved Monday, without discussion, the sale of three small serviced parcels in the Blairmore area at 22nd Street and Highway 7 to Smart Centres.

The B.C. company had earlier won a tender to buy 30 acres nearby.

http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix...d9-6a56e6262348

 

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Contentious rezoning approved

After lengthy debate and consideration, council consents to an East Flat rezoning.

On Monday, council approved the rezoning of a parcel of land directly east of Bauer Crescent from single-family dwelling residential (R1) to two-unit dwelling residential (R2).

http://www.paherald.sk.ca/index.cfm?sid=161549&sc=4

 

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City calls in its debts

Council passed a motion Monday to collect overpayments made to past and present members of council in 2006.

The mayor and city councillors have their remuneration calculated with a formula that is based upon the pay of provincial cabinet ministers, wrote Joe Day, acting director of financial services, in a report to council.

In 2006, a rise in salaries for cabinet ministers was announced, but never implemented.

The city erroneously overpaid elected officials.

http://www.paherald.sk.ca/index.cfm?sid=161468&sc=4

 

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Twinning takes time

Highways and Infrastructure Minister Wayne Elhard provided a rough timeline and financial estimate on the Highway 11 twinning project Monday.

At a media press conference and construction site tour, Elhard estimated that turning the two-lane highway into a separated four-line route would cost about $140 million.

"The problem with that is construction costs are escalating so rapidly that $140 million today might be $160 before Christmas," Elhard said, citing funding as the biggest obstacle to the project`s timely completion.

http://www.paherald.sk.ca/index.cfm?sid=161470&sc=4

 

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Neighbours distraught with odour

Neighbours of an Avonlea slaughterhouse say the summer heat has not helped the stench and want something done about it.

"We are separated by rows and rows of trees, but basically he`s right next door," explained Joy Brennan.

When Brennan and her common-law husband Lyle Clarke purchased the property 31/2 years ago they had some concerns about being in such close proximity to a slaughterhouse. However she said there was no problem with odour until last fall when the owner of the slaughterhouse began using pits to dispose of refuse rather than having it shipped off the property.

http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/new...9e-2d07e455b3a0

 

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Landlord-licensing proposal draws criticism

The North Central Community Association would like to see a mandatory rental unit licensing program introduced that would curb slum housing in Regina.

But the president of the Regina Landlords Association said property owners should not be held responsible for sub-par housing conditions, which are usually the fault of tenants who damage the rental properties.

At today`s executive committee meeting, the community association is to make a presentation asking the City of Regina to consider instituting rental unit licensing, which would require landlords to apply for an annual licence for every rental property they own. The city would then conduct an inspection of the property before granting the licence.

http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/new...a4-da2410d9d7d2

 

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FNUniv numbers remain stable

An official with the First Nations University of Canada said its numbers contradict media reports that the institution`s student enrolment has nose-dived in the past few years.

Earlier this month news stories appeared quoting provincial government figures that said enrolment dropped from a high of more than 2,500 students in 2004 to 848 last year. That number, however, does not include standalone programs -- such as the nursing program -- or visiting students, a government source said.

"Those (lower figures) are outrageous numbers,`` said Al Ducharme, the university`s vice-president of administration.

http://www.canada.com/reginaleaderpost/new...1b-9dc19199683e