Residential property assessment values increased by 9.5 per cent in Queens County over last year. (Rick Conrad photo)

Nova Scotians should start getting their 2025 property assessments in the mail this week.

Annual notices were being mailed out on Monday, according to the Property Valuation Services Corporation.

It appears assessed house values have cooled a bit from the year before. Overall, total residential assessments in Nova Scotia increased by just over 11 per cent, or $16.1 billion. The value of residential properties in Queens County rose by 9.5 per cent, or $189.3 million.

2024 residential assessments rose by 25 per cent in Queens County, and by 19.6 per cent in Nova Scotia as a whole.

Overall, Nova Scotia commercial property assessments rose by 2.79 per cent, compared to 9.32 per cent the year before.

The independent, non-profit body says 2025 assessments are based on sales and financial data and reflect a market value as of Jan. 1, 2024, and the physical state of properties as of Dec. 1, 2024, including new construction, renovations, demolitions, and impacts from natural disasters.

Municipalities received the assessment roll for their region in mid-December.

Jeff Caddell, director of valuation standards for the Property Valuation Services Corporation, told QCCR on Monday that the residential market cooled in 2023 after the Covid boom, but then rebounded later in the year.

“There was still lots of demand for properties, and a lower supply of properties on the market than we had in previous years. And we saw interest rates starting to creep up in 2023 before stabilizing in the later half of 2023.”

Caddell said they’re beginning to analyze sales data from 2024 now, so it’s too early to know whether there’s any kind of trend.

“We’re monitoring those sales coming in now. It’s hard to say what the trend will be going through 2024.”

This year’s rate for the Capped Assessment Program is 1.5 per cent, the Consumer Price Index for Nova Scotia.

The CAP limits the annual increase in taxable assessment for eligible properties to no more than the annual inflation rate. About two-thirds of residential properties qualify for the CAP in 2025.

People are getting their assessment notices, just as the Nova Scotia government approved changes to limit the capped assessment value of homes rebuilt after the wildfires in 2023.

Premier Tim Houston announced in a news release Friday that people who have rebuilt homes destroyed in the wildfires in Halifax and Shelburne counties won’t see an increase in their capped assessment.

Caddell says assessors are happy to answer people’s questions about their property. 

“There’s lots of property owners that contact us each year and it’s a great opportunity to engage with the property owner and talk about the market in their area, talk about their property specifically. If we can help somebody better understand the process, then we’re pleased with that.”

Residential and commercial property owners have until Feb. 13 to appeal their assessments. 

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Albie Randall with the curling broom he received from curlers Jaelyn and Jim Cotter at the 2025 Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Trials in Liverpool. (Rick Conrad)

The 16 teams at the Canadian mixed doubles curling trials in Liverpool treated fans to a week of impressive curling.

The trials wrapped up on Saturday at Queens Place Emera Centre. 

And one young Queens County curler left his own impression on the father-daughter team of Jaelyn and Jim Cotter from Vernon, B.C.

Seven-year-old Albie Randall of Brooklyn led the Cotters on to the ice during the opening ceremonies last Sunday evening. He was one of the young curlers chosen to escort teams.

The Cotters remembered Albie later in the week after their last game, and gave him one of their curling brooms as a souvenir.

The Cotters with Albie Randall at the mixed doubles curling trials. (Liverpool Championship Host Society Facebook page)

Albie’s father Darren Randall explains.

“The moment from the week that stuck with me is the Cotters, when they went out of the tournament, my son walked down and they gave him their broom from the game, which is super emotional.

“Ironically, we used to live near Vernon and it’s where they’re from also, and then it just kept going and going further in the tournament. We did not know. It was just randomly that he was leading them out. We followed them every game they played, and yeah, it was wonderful.”

As for Albie, he summed it up in one word.

“Awesome.”

That was just one of the special moments from the week of curling at Queens Place Emera Centre, as some of Canada’s top curlers competed for a chance to represent Canada at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.

Jocelyn Peterman and Brett Gallant capped their perfect record during the week by winning the final on Saturday over Rachel Homan and Brendan Bottcher.

After a year and a half of work bringing it all together, organizers were happy with how the week went.

Kim Thorbourne-Whalen is the vice-chair of the Liverpool Championship Host Society, which has brought four major curling events to Liverpool. She said it’s their biggest and most successful one yet.

“It surpassed our expectations. We had a budget for what we were looking for ticket sales and we more than doubled it. So for the final weekend, it’s been pretty well sold out and the final draw today has been sold out completely. So we’re pretty ecstatic about that. It’s been over 1,000 seats sold just for the final draw today.”

Some longtime curling fans, like Rose Anthony of Milton, took in every moment.

“I thought it was super. It was fantastic. I had the whole package and I never missed a draw.”

The curling trials also created some new fans in Liverpool, like Albie’s Dad Darren. 

“Learned so much. (I’m) still learning the rules, but it’s so skillful and I’m into it and I’m like a soccer football guy myself. And I love this.”

Winners Peterman and Gallant will next compete at the World Mixed Doubles Curling Championships in Fredericton in April. That event will determine the countries that qualify for the 2026 Winter Olympics. 

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Jocelyn Peterman and Brett Gallant with their gold medals and Team Canada jackets after winning the 2025 Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Trials on Saturday in Liverpool. (Rick Conrad)

Jocelyn Peterman and Brett Gallant will represent Canada at the 2025 World Mixed Doubles Curling Championship in Fredericton after winning the Canadian mixed doubles curling trials in Liverpool on Saturday.

Their next challenge will be at the world championships to try to secure qualification for Canada and themselves for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.

Peterman and Gallant continued their perfect record into the final on Saturday, beating Rachel Homan and Brendan Bottcher 8-7.

The game wasn’t as close as the final score suggested, with Peterman and Gallant taking control of the game early, going up 4-0 after the first two ends on the strength of some great shotmaking by Peterman. They were up 6-1 after four ends.

“We’ve dreamt of this for a long time,” Peterman said afterward. “In a sense, it feels like it’s kind of the first step. We know we stll have to earn that spot in a few months, but it’s amazing.”

Gallant said he had to “check himself a few times” during the game to make sure he didn’t lose focus on the end goal.

“You’re just never comfortable even with the lead that we had. We knew it was going to come down to the last shot either way. And just thankful we had a strong game and we battled all the way. Lots of different emotions and just proud of how we played.”

Peterman and Gallant, who are based in Calgary, went 10-0 for the whole tournament, including the final.

“We had some really, really close games early and we were really determined this week,” Peterman said. “It was a grind and we’re really proud of it.”

Gallant, who was born in Charlottetown and curled for many years with Brad Gushue’s championship team out of Newfoundland, said he

“The community was just really welcoming for us, the volunteers were amazing, I thought the venue was second to none and we just enjoyed every minute here. And we’re pleased that the world championships are going to be on the East Coast again in Fredericton so it’s great for us. And we had just an amazing time in Liverpool.”

Peterman said now that the trials are over, they’re excited to get home and see their son.

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Sandra Porter-Lowe, Terri Longmire and Meredith Innes are three of the more than 100 volunteers at the Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Trials in Liverpool this week. (Rick Conrad)

To put on a big event like the Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Trials in a small community like Liverpool takes a lot of volunteers.

Organizers have recruited more than 100 people from Queens County and elsewhere to help put on the week-long event, which wrap up with the final draw on Saturday at 2 p.m. 

QCCR spoke to some of the people making sure the curling trials at Queens Place Emera Centre run smoothly.

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Jocelyn Peterman and Brett Gallant during Page playoff 1vs2 qualifying against Rachel Homan and Brendan Bottcher. (Curling Canada/ Michael Burns Photo)

Two teams made a big step toward the finals of the 2025 Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Trials on Thursday night.

Jocelyn Peterman and Brett Gallant and Lisa Weagle and John Epping won their crucial qualifiers to advance to the next round of the playoffs at Queens Place Emera Centre in Liverpool.

They’re fighting for a chance to represent Canada at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.

It was a battle between the top teams in each pool.

Peterman and Gallant continued their unbeaten streak with a convincing 8-4 win in seven ends over Rachel Homan and Brendan Bottcher.

Weagle and Epping got past Brittany Tran and Rylan Kleiter 10-5 in their game.

Peterman and Gallant took control early with a score of three in the first and third ends. And they never looked back.

“It’s fun playing those shots where we know where to hit it and we just get to go for it and you’re all in on every shot,” Peterman said.

“We play a lot together. We know what our roles are on the ice,” Gallant said.

“Jocelyn needs to make those big last ones and she did a tremendous job of that tonight. She made a couple of pistols that kind of turned the game for us. We’ve played lots of games before. The communication is there, the trust is there, we’ve got a great team dynamic out on the ice. So just keep leaning into that and keep positive things going forward.”

Weagle and Epping had a closer contest with Tran and Kleiter over the first six ends before scoring two points in ends seven and eight to close it out.

Epping said he’s savouring the win.

“It’s pretty exciting,” he sad. “I’ve never been in this position. My trials record so far (over my career) hasn’t been very good. So it’s nice to have this opportunity especially with Lisa. We’re playing really well right now and looking forward to good things to come.”

Weagle said she loves the challenge of big games like Thursday night.

“I love these moments. This is why I curl. It’s for big games and big moments, and to test ourselves in competition. And to get to do it with John, … this is probably one of our best team games ever, in one of these big moments. but we’re really happy with how we played and how we supported each other.” 

Both teams will now get a bit of a rest. They’ll face each other Friday evening at 7 in the 1-2 playoff game. The winner of that game goes directly to the final on Saturday afternoon at 2. The loser will play in the semifinal on Saturday at 10 a.m.

Homan and Bottcher will play Jim and Jaelyn Cotter in Friday afternoon’s playoff qualifier. And Tran and Kleiter will take on Jennifer Jones and Brent Laing in the other afternoon qualifier.

The winners of those games will play in the 3-4 playoff on Friday at 7 p.m. for a spot in Saturday’s semifinal.

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Brett Gallant raises his broom after a shot by partner Jocelyn Peterman in the sixth end of their game on Wednesday morning at the 2025 Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Trials in Liverpool. (Rick Conrad)

Jocelyn Peterman and Brett Gallant rang in the new year with a convincing win on Wednesday morning at the 2025 Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Trials in Liverpool.

Peterman and Gallant improved their record to 5-0 with the 8-1 victory after six ends over Jim Cotter and Jaelyn Cotter.

Gallant said after the game that they’re happy with their start to the tournament.

“We’re where we want ot be and we’ve been tested most games so it’s been a really good start,” Gallant told QCCR.

“We’re just feeling more comfortable with the ice conditions and with how we’re playing, so just try to keep it going forward. Jocelyn made a really nice shot for two in the first end and it got us off to a really nice start and we made a lot of nice draws after that and we were able to take control.”

They’re at the top of their pool and are one of only two undefeated teams so far as the playoff picture starts to take shape.

Peterman said they haven’t let themselves think yet about the playoffs.

“I think our heads are still on the round robin. We have two big matchups still in our pool so we’re focused on that right now.”

MORE COVERAGE: 2025 Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Trials

Other winners in the morning draw were Lisa Weagle and John Epping, Kadriana Lott and Colton Lott, and Jennifer Armstrong and Tyrel Griffith.

Rachel Homan and Brendan Bottcher are the other undefeated team at the top of their pool, with a record of 4-0.

Homan and Bottcher’s perfect record will be challenged in the 1:30 draw on Wednesday as they take on Brittany Tran and Rylan Kleiter, who are right behind the leaders in second.

The top three teams in each of the two eight-team pools go on to the playoffs, which begin on Thursday evening.

All teams are on the ice on New Year’s Day for the last full slate of draws in the round robin.

Draws take place Wednesday at 1:30 p.m., 5 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. at Queens Place Emera Centre.

Full results and standings are available on the Curling Canada website.

And live streaming for afternoon and evening games is on the Curling Canada YouTube channel.

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Rachel Homan and Brendan Bottcher are one of two undefeated teams at the 2025 Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Trials in Liverpool. (Curling Canada/ Michael Burns Photo)

Two teams remain undefeated going into Wednesday’s draws at the 2025 Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Trials at Queens Place Emera Centre in Liverpool.

Rachel Homan and Brendan Bottcher, and Jocelyn Peterman and Brett Gallant are at the top of their respective pools with a record of 4-0.

MORE COVERAGE: 2025 Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Trials

Homan and Bottcher curled to two convincing wins on Tuesday, while Peterman and Gallant capitalized in an extra end over Melissa Adams and Alex Robichaud in an afternoon draw before beating Lisa Weagle and John Epping in the evening draw.

The top three teams in each of the two eight-team pools go on to the playoffs, which begin on Thursday evening.

All teams are on the ice on New Year’s Day for the last full slate of draws in the round robin.

Draws take place Wednesday at 10 a.m., 1:30 p.m., 5 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. at Queens Place.

Full results and standings are available on the Curling Canada website.

And live streaming for afternoon and evening games is on the Curling Canada YouTube channel.

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

Shelly Panczyk is the chairwoman of the Queens County Food Bank in Liverpool. (Rick Conrad)

Queens County has one of the highest rates of child poverty in Canada.

A new report on child and family poverty in Canada ranks Nova Scotia as the worst in Atlantic Canada and one of the worst in the whole country in reducing child poverty. And Queens is a top problem spot in the province. 

The 2024 Report Card on Child and Family Poverty in Nova Scotia looked at household incomes from 2022, based on tax filings.

Lesley Frank, the co-author of the report from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, is also the Canada research chair for food health and social justice at Acadia University.

She told QCCR that the province doesn’t have a great track record on child poverty.

“Nova Scotia has had a lacklustre performance in child poverty reduction,” Frank said. “We’ve typically over the last several years had the highest child poverty rate in Atlantic Canada, the fifth highest in Canada including the territories, third highest provincial rate.”

The report found that more than one in five children live in poverty in Nova Scotia, or 23.8 per cent. That amounts to 41,500 kids, an increase of 16 per cent over the year before.

Frank and her co-authors say that’s the biggest increase in a single year since 1989, when the federal government promised to eradicate child poverty by the year 2000.

In Queens County, the numbers are even worse, where 31.5 per cent of children live in poverty, the fourth highest rate in Nova Scotia. That’s a 10 per cent increase over the numbers from 2021, representing 510 children in Queens County.

The rate is higher still in Liverpool at 32.8 per cent.

“Typically if you look at Canada as a whole, generally there tends to be higher poverty rates in urban areas as opposed to rural,” she said. “That doesn’t really hold for Nova Scotia. There are a lot of high rates in rural Nova Scotia. … There’s a rise in rates in western Nova Scotia in general.”

The numbers are no surprise to Shelly Panczyk, the chairperson of the Queens County Food Bank.

She said they see about 240 families a month, a 30 per cent increase over previous years. Combined with the numbers who use the Community Food Resource Network in Caledonia, Panczyk estimates more than 300 Queens County families rely on food banks every month.

She said she and other food bank volunteers served 85 families on Tuesday alone, the last pickup day before Christmas.

“That’s a lot of families in a small community. I don’t see it getting any better for the next little while. It’s going to get worse before it gets better.

“About 20 per cent of our clients are two-income families.”

Panczyk points out that there are few opportunities for high-paying jobs in Queens. And low wages directly lead to family poverty, including food and housing insecurity.

Frank says governments know how to fix the problem.

She points to the federal and provincial programs offered during the pandemic. Those had a marked impact on lifting families and children out of poverty.

“We have demonstrated that we can swiftly reduce child poverty with adequate income supports. We just didn’t stick with it,” Frank said.

“We really shouldn’t be that surprised that the child poverty rates increased in 2022 in such a dramatic way because all those benefits that were there two years ago that lowered it were gone. If you do nothing, you can expect that to be the outcome. That’s why it keeps happening. We don’t do the things that we know will work.”

Frank and her co-authors call on the provincial government to create a poverty elimination plan to reduce poverty rates by 50 per cent by 2027.

That would include things like making the Nova Scotia child benefit available to more families and have it indexed to inflation.

The plan would also address social assistance rates, create a living wage standard and establish a child and youth advocacy office.

“Children have a right to food, and those that are living on government transfers only as their only source of income it’s shockingly immoral on how much those families are receiving. A one-parent family with one child has to live on $21,000 a year in Nova Scotia for all its needs. It’s impossible.

“Many of these children are living in families with full-time working parents so that has to do with establishing conditions for decent work and quality job creation, bringing incomes to living wages so people can afford basic necessities of life and have quality of life.”

The food bank’s Panczyk said all governments – municipal, provincial and federal – have a responsibility to lower child poverty.

“They have to make it that it’s affordable for people to live. It’s like anything: Do I eat? Do I pay rent? Do I pay some on my light bill?

“Everybody has to step up in the government and try to help in some way.”

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Region of Queens councillors want to try to find a way to resurrect the Coastal Protection Act. (File photo by Talla Corkum)

Region of Queens councillors want to work with other neighbouring municipalities to pressure the province to resurrect the Coastal Protection Act and possibly to come up with their own version.

The Nova Scotia government under Tim Houston killed the long-dormant Coastal Protection Act in February. Supporters of that legislation said it would beef up safeguards for coastal areas around Nova Scotia.

Instead, the province said it would pass that responsibility onto municipalities to come up with their own bylaws to protect the coast from development, climate change and other threats. It offered to create sample bylaws that municipalities could adapt.

But many municipalities say they don’t have the resources to enforce such wide-ranging rules.

District 3 Coun. Courtney Wentzell said he heard from a lot of residents during the municipal election campaign who were concerned about coastal protection. And he said it was clear from the recent provincial election that the province has no interest in taking it on.

He said he wants the Region of Queens to discuss banding together with other regions like the Municipality of the District of Lunenburg to come up with a common set of rules.

“Some of you might have witnessed the leadership debates where the government is not backing down on coastal protection, they’re leaving it to municipalities,” Wentzell said.

“The answers that I heard was that there is going to be assistance in the form of money or manpower to help municipalities create their own (bylaws). I think that’s the reality we’re dealing with. And I do think coastal protection is a big, big item with us. We all heard it on the campaign trail.”

The issue came up at a recent meeting of the Nova Scotia Federation of Municipalities.

NSFM President Pam Mood, who is also the mayor of Yarmouth, called on the re-elected Houston government to institute provincewide rules and enforcement.

Mayor Scott Christian said working with the federation to pressure the province is a good first step.

“The NSFM is an augmented voice, so it’s a lot stronger. If we join forces with the NSFM and say we need resources and support to enact an effective approach to the Coastal Protection Act. It’s an avenue we can explore to be supported throughout it. It’s not the entirety of the picture, but it’s an important first step.”

Queens councillors decided to write a letter of support to the federation, and to meet with other municipal politicians to come up with ways to enhance coastal protections.

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Kim Masland was re-elected Tuesday as MLA for Queens in Nova Scotia’s provincial election. (Rick Conrad)

UPDATED Nov. 27, 4 p.m.

It’s a threepeat for Kim Masland, who will once again represent the riding of Queens in the Nova Scotia legislature.

The Liverpool resident easily won re-election on Tuesday night. It’s her third win in a row.

Masland told QCCR on Tuesday night that she doesn’t take any election for granted. 

“It’s fabulous, I’m just so grateful to the voters of Queens who have put their trust in me to represent them again in the Nova Scotia legislature,” she said.

“I do not take the position of MLA lightly. I know it comes with great responsibility and I’m just absolutely humbled and consider myself very blessed to once again represent the people of Queens. And I will keep working hard for us.”

The former Public Works minister and government House leader will again be part of a Progressive Conservative majority government.

Masland garnered 79.93 per cent of the vote. Turnout in Queens was 46.91 per cent.

In the 2021 election, Masland won the riding with 70.4 per cent of the vote. Turnout in 2021 was 57.8 per cent.

Liberal Cathy De Rome of Beach Meadows was in second, while the NDP’s Brian Skabar was in third.

De Rome told QCCR on Wednesday that she wasn’t surprised by Masland’s win and she wishes her well. 

“I was so happy to be able to talk to so many people and the response I received and the encouragement was very positive. Unfortunately, all the words of encouragement did not translate into more votes. … And hey, we knew it was an uphill battle from the get-go. We were disappointed but yet we’re pleased with what we did.”

Skabar could not be reached for comment.

The Progressive Conservatives under leader Tim Houston won their second majority government with 43 seats. The NDP will form the official Opposition with nine seats, while the Liberals held onto two.

Masland said she knocked on more than 6,000 doors and logged more 880,000 steps during the campaign. 

She credited her team with working hard to put her back in the legislature.

“I had an absolutely amazing team behind me here in Queens County. My campaign manager is Grant Webber, he’s been with me since the beginning.

“And you can’t win an election campaign by yourself. It takes hard work, it takes people believing in you. The people on my team they put their lives on hold to be part of this team for the benefit of Queens County, their own community. I’m very grateful for them and really glad that I can spend this evening celebrating with my team and my family.”

She said the late John Leefe, who was a longtime PC MLA for Queens and a former mayor of the Region of Queens, gave her advice that has stuck with her.

“As my dear friend and mentor John Leefe always said to me, you run a campaign as if you’re one vote behind. And that is how we have run this campaign. We never give up. We did not stop until the polls closed tonight, and I’m just very, very pleased with the campaign that we’ve run here.”

Turnout across the province appears to be lower than in 2021. Elections Nova Scotia hasn’t released official numbers yet, but it appears that turnout was around 45 per cent, compared to 55.1 per cent in 2021.

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