Latest news with #CapeBreton
CTV News
17 hours ago
- Business
- CTV News
Cheers to ten years: Cape Breton craft brewery marks big birthday
Ten years ago, two young men in Sydney - a consulting engineer, and a teacher - had a dream. 'Myself and Andrew (Morrow) were both home brewers at the time,' said Breton Brewing Co., co-owner Bryan MacDonald on Friday, of the pair's fledgling business idea back in 2015. Bryan MacDonald and Andrew Morrow Breton Brewing celebrates their 10th year anniversary. (Source: Facebook) MacDonald said he and Morrow, who were both starting their families as well, felt an entrepreneurial itch. That's why they left their jobs, and on the final weekend of June 2015 opened the first craft brewery in the Sydney area. Cape Breton Island has two other microbreweries - Big Spruce Brewing in Nyanza and Route 19 Brewing in Inverness. 'It was definitely a leap,' MacDonald said. 'But we had a good business plan and a belief in our idea, so we decided to take that leap.' 'It seems like a whirlwind,' Morrow added. 'The last ten years have been filled with a lot of highs, and a lot of support from the community that we live in.' Breton Brewing's beginnings were relatively humble. The brewery started with just two kinds of beer - Black Angus IPA and Stirling Hefenweizen German wheat beer, growlers only -and a building the two men renovated along the way while selling their first several months' worth of pints. Breton Brewing Co. Breton Brewing brewed a beer specially for their ten-year anniversary. (CTV Atlantic/Ryan MacDonald) Now, their beers are among the best-sellers throughout Nova Scotia and the Maritimes. 'Because of that support, we've been able to increase our staff to about 30 and employ people here in Cape Breton,' Morrow said. 'And that was our main goal, was to keep more people home here in Cape Breton.' There are events happening at the brewery on Keltic Drive in Coxheath all weekend long to celebrate the ten-year anniversary, but the big day is Saturday. The main day of festivities includes an outdoor concert headlined by Jordan Musyscyn, The Tom Fun Orchestra, and Rankin MacInnis & The Broken Reeds. No decade in business is without its challenges, and the past one included the COVID-19 pandemic when Breton - and so many others in the industry - pivoted to make home deliveries. As for what might be in store for the next ten years, the two men say something new could be 'on tap' by as soon as the fall. 'We're working on a downtown location in Sydney,' MacDonald said. 'We have a building that we have been working on retrofitting, so that's kind of the next step for Breton Brewing.' Heading into their big birthday weekend, there seemed to be only one thing left to say. 'Cheers to ten years,' Morrow said. For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
CTV News
a day ago
- Business
- CTV News
Gas prices lower in NS and PEI, higher in NB
Gas pumps are pictured in Halifax on May 16, 2025. (CTV Atlantic) Maritimers will be paying less at the pumps in N.S. and P.E.I., but more in N.B. Nova Scotia The price of regular self-serve gasoline in the Halifax-area fell by 2 cents. The new minimum price is 143.7 cents per litre. The price of diesel fell by 4.8 cents. The minimum price is now 151.6 cents per litre. In Cape Breton, the price of regular self-serve gasoline is 145.6 cents per litre and the price of diesel is 153.6 cents per litre. Prince Edward Island The price of regular self-serve gasoline on P.E.I. fell by 7.5 cents. The new minimum price is 147.3 cents per litre. The price of diesel dropped by 7.5 cents on the island. The minimum price is now 159.6 cents per litre. New Brunswick In New Brunswick, the price of regular self-serve gasoline increased by 0.8 cents. The new maximum price is 147.6 cents per litre. After dropping earlier in the week, the price of diesel increased by 9.7 cents. The new maximum price in the province is 156.4 cents per litre.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
'Warm, toasty' housing development for seniors opens in North Sydney
A Cape Breton housing project that was imagined by a community group as a way to help struggling seniors has officially opened. Members of a local food bank, who had been hearing from retirees having trouble keeping up with their bills, including high rent and food costs, came up with the idea about six years ago following the closure of Seton Elementary School in North Sydney. The organization led the charge to take ownership of the building and transform it into a multi-use hub. Jimmy MacKinnon and his wife Debbie, among the facility's new tenants, had been finding it increasingly challenging to maintain their rural home. The couple lived in Frenchvale, N.S., for 45 years and regularly cut wood to heat their home. "I couldn't do it anymore for health reasons," said MacKinnon. "We were lucky, like I said, to get this. Just the burden of looking after your own place, the upkeep. It was hard and it got harder as we got older." The MacKinnons moved into the complex a couple of months ago. They have since made the space feel like home by decorating the outside of their apartment with wooden signs and colourful flowers. The former school is home to 19 one- and two-bedroom units. Rental fees, with heat and lights included, range from $625 to $800 per month — well below the market rate for similar apartments in the community. The building also contains a community kitchen, food pantry and hair salon. On the grounds are several garden boxes for seasonal vegetables. "[This] is a fully incorporated and encompassed type of facility that the community can celebrate and be part of," said Cecil Clarke, mayor of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality, at an event Thursday to unveil the project. It was built with $1.7 million from the federal government through the Affordable Housing Fund and $1.6 million from Nova Scotia's Department of Growth and Development. Liberal MP Mike Kelloway said housing affordability is an issue his government is trying to address, with the help of organizations like the North Sydney Food Bank Society. "You're the solution," he said. "You're the idea makers, you're the people who are in the foxhole every single day." Lawrence Shebib, co-chair of the food bank society, said there were four times more applicants who were in search of housing than there were available apartments. "So there's a real need in the community for more," he said. MacKinnon said he and his wife have made new friends since moving into the complex and he recommends the style of living to anyone who has reached an age where maintaining their home has become difficult. "There's no stress, there's absolutely none. It is free and easy and warm, toasty," said MacKinnon. "This used to be a classroom, believe it or not. And the job these guys did, the tradesmen, it's unreal." MORE TOP STORIES
CBC
2 days ago
- Business
- CBC
'Warm, toasty' housing development for seniors opens in North Sydney
A Cape Breton housing project that was imagined by a community group as a way to help struggling seniors has officially opened. Members of a local food bank, who had been hearing from retirees having trouble keeping up with their bills, including high rent and food costs, came up with the idea about six years ago following the closure of Seton Elementary School in North Sydney. The organization led the charge to take ownership of the building and transform it into a multi-use hub. Jimmy MacKinnon and his wife Debbie, among the facility's new tenants, had been finding it increasingly challenging to maintain their rural home. The couple lived in Frenchvale, N.S., for 45 years and regularly cut wood to heat their home. "I couldn't do it anymore for health reasons," said MacKinnon. "We were lucky, like I said, to get this. Just the burden of looking after your own place, the upkeep. It was hard and it got harder as we got older." The MacKinnons moved into the complex a couple of months ago. They have since made the space feel like home by decorating the outside of their apartment with wooden signs and colourful flowers. The former school is home to 19 one- and two-bedroom units. Rental fees, with heat and lights included, range from $625 to $800 per month — well below the market rate for similar apartments in the community. The building also contains a community kitchen, food pantry and hair salon. On the grounds are several garden boxes for seasonal vegetables. "[This] is a fully incorporated and encompassed type of facility that the community can celebrate and be part of," said Cecil Clarke, mayor of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality, at an event Thursday to unveil the project. It was built with $1.7 million from the federal government through the Affordable Housing Fund and $1.6 million from Nova Scotia's Department of Growth and Development. Liberal MP Mike Kelloway said housing affordability is an issue his government is trying to address, with the help of organizations like the North Sydney Food Bank Society. "You're the solution," he said. "You're the idea makers, you're the people who are in the foxhole every single day." Lawrence Shebib, co-chair of the food bank society, said there were four times more applicants who were in search of housing than there were available apartments. "So there's a real need in the community for more," he said. MacKinnon said he and his wife have made new friends since moving into the complex and he recommends the style of living to anyone who has reached an age where maintaining their home has become difficult. "There's no stress, there's absolutely none. It is free and easy and warm, toasty," said MacKinnon. "This used to be a classroom, believe it or not. And the job these guys did, the tradesmen, it's unreal."
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
CBU researchers say housing crisis in 2 communities worse than federal stats suggest
A new study out of Cape Breton University suggests the housing crisis in two local communities is much worse than what's been officially reported in federal statistics. The study, by political scientists Jan Hancock and Andrew Molloy, says the number of people living in unaffordable housing in those Cape Breton Regional Municipality communities is double the number identified by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. "It was quite shocking to see the extent of unaffordable housing, but these are stories that we hear all the time," Hancock said in an interview. "The CMHC is underreporting the affordability crisis in the CBRM." Hancock said according to the CMHC, 15 per cent of CBRM residents cannot afford housing, but the researchers conducted a survey of just Glace Bay and New Waterford residents and found 30 per cent have housing affordability problems. He said the CMHC does not distinguish between renters and homeowners and its surveys do not include those renting a suite in someone's home or commercial space, which is considered the secondary housing market. The primary market includes buildings with more than three units, such as apartment blocks. The CBU study — conducted with help from the Town House Glace Bay Citizens Service League, which serves vulnerable populations in Glace Bay and New Waterford — found that homeowners in those two communities are mostly satisfied with the affordability of their housing. However, more than half of renters there are in the secondary housing market and 90 per cent of them say their housing is unaffordable, Hancock said. "Interestingly enough in our survey, the most unaffordable housing was being paid by tenants in the secondary market and of course the CMHC doesn't collect those statistics," he said. Hancock said the federal housing agency's data includes average rental costs, but the survey is based on larger urban centres such as Halifax Regional Municipality, and without local data, the numbers are not reliable. "The CMHC give levels of housing costs at approximately $850 to $1,000 per month on average for rental properties, but if you look on Kijiji today, you won't find a one-bedroom apartment or two-bedroom apartment in New Waterford or Glace Bay available for $850," he said. "It's just impossible." Results not a surprise The federal numbers also do not reflect the rental market in Nova Scotia because there are two types of renters, Hancock said. Some are in rent-controlled units, paying 30 to 40 per cent under the market rate. But others are not under rent controls and the lack of housing availability in Glace Bay and New Waterford has driven up the price of what is available, he said. Town House executive director Patti McDonald said the CBU study results were not a surprise to her. "That's what we've been hearing [from clients]," she said. "That's why we wanted to participate in this research, because there wasn't any information specifically about Glace Bay-New Waterford. It was all very general." McDonald said clients are suffering in housing units that are not suitable, but they can't afford to move. "If you own a home, your mortgage is probably lower than what people are paying for rent, and so the data is definitely backing up what we're seeing and hearing." According to a provincial study, CBRM needs at least 1,000 new housing units by next year to ease the housing shortage. Earlier this month, planning director Tyson Simms told council that more than 900 units will have been started or built by the end of this year. Survey to expand across CBRM New housing is being built in Glace Bay, but it hasn't yet increased the availability or affordability for Town House clients, McDonald said. However, some private developers are now approaching Town House and asking the community about its needs, which is a good sign, she said. "We are seeing the needle move a little bit, but nothing's ever enough until folks are in the type of housing they need to be in." Meanwhile, Hancock said he plans to expand the survey across the CBRM to help target affordable housing in communities where it's needed the most. MORE TOP STORIES
