Bedford, NS - Blog

Hammonds Plains Baseball Association 2012

paulette.upshall@century21.ca — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

From the Preseident - Holly

Good evening everyone

Welcome to the 2012 baseball season with Hammonds Plains Minor Baseball. We are proud to be the largest association in the province. My favorite claim to fame is we have the highest number of female baseball players in the entire country. The national average enrollment in 10% - HPBA is sitting at 25%.

As of today there are 175 rookie players and I expect that to grow to over 200 by the time we hit the field in early June. If you are talking with anyone who has not yet registered – please let them know that I never turn away a child. All the information they would need is located on the websitehttp://www.eteamz.com/hpba/

Expect to see schedules emailed to you after the long weekend in May. The season will start early June and run until the third week in August.

Below are some indoor camps we are offering out to the Rookie age players – boys and girls – to be held at theLakeshore Curling Club – attached to theSackville Sports Stadium in Sackville.

There are two separate sessions – Space is limited –30 players per session – cost is $10 dollars for one session

· Rookie 1 Tuesday- May 1 6pm to 7pm

· Rookie 2 Saturday - May 5 10am to 11am

We can always use the help during the camp – so please let me know if you can assist.

Two items that are free with your registration are:

team photos (which will happen during the first few weeks in June)
An outdoor camp onJune 2nd – 1pm to 3pm at the Highland Field. This camp is host by our Nova Scotia Youth Selects – which is our all-star 17 and under provincial team. I will be sending you along reminders over the next few weeks along with directions to the field etc, but for now I just want you save the date in your calendar.

Finally – I will be sending you and email with regard to Senior Rookie vs Junior Rookie, the evaluation process etc mid week.

Thanks

Holly Holly.Lapierre@bellaliant.ca

New "Environmental Cleanup" Rules for HRM

david.yetman@century21.ca — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Overdue rules governing environmental cleanups will make it much simpler to redevelop valuable land in HRM

The site of a former Ultramar gas station at the corner of Chebucto and Elm streets on the Halifax peninsula sits empty many months after the station closed. New provincial regulations will actually make it easier to clean up and redevelop such places. (ERIC WYNNE / Staff)

Reposted from the Chronicle Herald

Cleaning up contaminated sites in Nova Scotia is going to get easier and a lot more straightforward.

Earlier this month, the province announced new regulations surrounding site remediation and the qualifications of individuals to do the work.

"The fact that Nova Scotia now has some regulations around contaminated sites and now has some procedures is welcome," said Mark Butler of the Ecology Action Centre.

The process of cleaning and redeveloping sites will be faster, thanks for the new rules, Environment Minister Sterling Belliveau promised in a release.

The regulations were a long time coming, Butler said.

"The deadline in the (Environmental Goals and Sustainable Prosperity) Act was 2010."

A lot of consultation went into developing the guidelines, the release states.

"The regulations reflect current best practices, are based on sound science and will be a strong enabler to ensuring health and environment goals are achieved, while encouraging contaminated site redevelopment," said George Vincent, senior regulatory affairs adviser for Imperial Oil. Sites such as abandoned gas stations, including a former Ultramar property on Chebucto Road and a former Shell property on Purcells Cove Road, may benefit from the new cleanup rules.

"Contaminated lots don’t benefit anyone, (particularly) having . . . contaminated lots lying empty in already developed areas," Butler said.

"We certainly would support the development of brown fields (former industrial sites) once they have been cleaned up and there’s no risk to human health. . . . We’ve been involved in a campaign to increase density in already developed areas. It just makes sense for so many reasons."

As well as laying out site remediation guidelines, the regulations will ensure that site professionals are qualified and will allow property owners to get a release from further enforcement by the department once a site is cleaned up to provincial standards.

The announcement also states that the regulations support the creation of an online registry of contaminated properties.

Butler would like to see a registry established not just of contaminated sites, but for it to be part of a larger online environmental registry.

"I hope the accessibility of information around contaminated sites and . . . all environmental permits and approvals . . . will be, or should be, available," he said.

In his experience, Butler said getting information about such sites has been a "real challenge," and often involves filing requests through the province’s Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.

The new rules will come into effect in July 2013.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

sandra.johnson@century21.ca — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 00:00:00 GMT

March 17^th – the day when everyone is Irish and everyone loves the color green! St. Patrick’s Day dates back to the early 17^th century and is a celebration of Irish culture. Today, St. Patrick’s day is probably the most celebrated saints day all over the world.

So, just how do people celebrate St. Patrick’s Day? In Halifax the bars and pubs are gearing up for one of their busiest days all year. Many will open their doors to patrons for breakfast at 8:00AM and continue well into the wee small hours of the morning. One article I read stated that some bars have doubled their orders for beer and food in order to handle the volume. There will be lots of music and celebrations in the pubs and bars all over the city.

In other celebrations, the 5^th Annual St. Patrick’s Day parade will take place through the streets of north end Halifax beginning at the Hydrostone Market. The parade winds its way through to the 125 year old, historic St. Patrick’s Church on Brunswick St where an Irish Lunch of Shepherd’s Pie and beer will be served up with lots of music and entertainment. There’s lots of activities for all on St. Patrick’s Day in Halifax, check out some of the fun things to do here http://www.thecoast.ca/gyrobase/EventSearch?sortType=title&eventSection=1364652&eventCategory=1546712&page=1

A Happy and safe St. Patrick’s Day to all! Sláinte!

How to Sell a home when there is a tenant in it

david.yetman@century21.ca — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 00:00:00 GMT

If you rented out your home to a tenant instead of selling the house during a slow market, you might be ready now to put it on the market. The effort to sell a home can be complicated by the presence of a renter.

While many real estate agents recommend waiting until your lease expires and selling your home without a renter in residence, not all landlords can afford to have their home vacant for a few months during the transition. In addition, local regulations can impact the process of selling an investment property.

"The first thing any landlord should do is to check out the local tenant-landlord rules," The rules vary from one jurisdiction to another.

It is suggested that homeowners start the sales process by communicating clearly with the tenants and asking if they want to buy the home.

There are some exceptions and some great tenants that keep a place in good condition and are cooperative. But in general, having a tenant can have a negative impact on a home that's on the market. Normally, the home drops in value because of the condition of the home and the lack of access for agents and prospective buyers.

Kennedy says many real estate agents are reluctant to show buyers a tenant-occupied home because they expect resistance to allowing visitors into the property and assume the condition will be less than optimal. "Smart tenants can hold up a sale for as long as year if they don't want to move," she says.

Selling a vacant home has some drawbacks as well, including a lack of rental income while the home is on the market.

An empty home can be staged with some furniture and plants," The bigger issues are the lack of income and the fact that the homeowner will have to pay utilities. Depending on the location of the home, there may also be concerns about security and about things like pipes freezing.

Tenant cooperation

For those homeowners who do choose to sell with a tenant in residence, Landlords need to communicate clearly and try to get the tenant to cooperate.

It's one thing if the tenant already wants to move, but a tenant who doesn't want to move can be hostile, the owners need to explain what they are doing and why, and they need to set up a protocol for how and when the home will be shown.

Tenants should be told the keys won't be just handed out to anyone who wants to see the place, and that an agent or the owner will accompany prospective buyers.

Anyone who has sold a home knows the stress involved with keeping the home constantly neat and clean, along with vacating whenever a buyer wants to see it, but at least homeowners have the incentive of making a sale. Realtors suggest providing an incentive to tenants to get them to cooperate.

Money always talks, says Dave Yetman, a broker Century 21 All Points in Halifax Nova Scotia. "You can offer to give the tenants 50 percent off their rent for a month if they'll keep the place clean and let in prospective buyers and their agents."

Yetman often recommends offering something such as a gift certificate for dinner for two during each month the home is on the market. "You need to ask the tenants to keep the beds made and dishes out of the sink, but you also need to remind them to keep cash, jewelry, firearms, prescription drugs and anything embarrassing out of sight of prospective buyers," he says. "Giving them some type of incentive should encourage them to cooperate with buyers."

Yetman says reassurances about the safety of the tenants and their belongings should be given along with an incentive such as a rent rebate at settlement. "Landlords need to recognize that the tenants see the property as their home, not a commodity," he says.

Yetman also recommends offering a free hotel room for the renters on the weekend of an open house or some other perk that might make life easier for them.

"Rental rates have gone up in many areas, so offering to pay the difference in rent for a couple of months or finding them a rental agent and providing recommendations can also encourage cooperation," Yetman says.