Country music singer Jeff Carson dies in Tennessee

All quiet on the Hellebuyck front

Pull up a chair, folks, as we address the elephant in the room. Or, to be more precise, the decorated goaltender who is not in the room. Or on the ice. Or even in the city.

Not surprisingly, the Connor Hellebuyck situation took centre stage Tuesday as members of the Winnipeg Jets held their first media session following an informal, pre-training camp skate.

“We’re definitely going to get asked about it. That’s no chirp to anybody. I think that’s just the reality of the situation,” admitted veteran defenceman Dylan DeMelo, who took part in an hour-long practice at Hockey For All Centre that involved nearly every member of the organization.

With one very notable exception, of course.

South Winnipeg neighbourhood will be first to go geothermal

A new neighbourhood in south Winnipeg will be Manitoba’s first to use a shared, large-scale geothermal system to heat and cool hundreds of homes over coming decades.

The province is giving up to $4 million to the developers of Southwood Circle, just north of the University of Manitoba’s Fort Garry campus, for a district geothermal system as part of the NDP’s goal to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

“It means a whole neighbourhood can tap into geothermal, which means low-carbon heating and cooling for at least 1,000 homes,” Premier Wab Kinew said at a news conference Wednesday.

Geothermal systems, equipped with pumps and pipes, use underground temperatures to heat and cool one or more buildings. Proponents point to long-term energy and cost savings compared with conventional heating and cooling systems.

Country music singer Jeff Carson dies in Tennessee

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Country music singer and songwriter Jeff Carson, who scored hits with “Not On Your Love,” and “The Car” before becoming a police officer, has died in Tennessee, his publicist said. Carson was 58.

Carson died of a heart attack at a hospital in Franklin, said Jeremy Westby of 2911 Media.

Carson was born Jeffrey Lee Herndon in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 1963, Westby said in a news release. Carson sang in church and formed a band in Rogers, Arkansas, before moving to Branson, Missouri, where he wrote songs and played locally, the news release said.

Carson moved to Nashville and recorded demos for Tracy Lawrence, Reba McEntire, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill and other country stars.

Letters, Sept. 10

So, Coun. Browaty, do tell, when should we start to panic? What is your magic number? Is there one?

Vote for your local trustees

It’s the start of a new school year, but not just any school year. It’s also school board election year. Nominations are public knowledge and close on Sept. 22 and, on Oct. 28, new or continuing trustees will be elected, re-elected or acclaimed.

Premier tells grieving parents site of fatal collision under review

Premier Wab Kinew promised to pursue safety improvements at an Interlake intersection when he spoke to parents of some of the four teens who died in a crash at the site on the Labour Day weekend.

The collision at Highway 8 and Provincial Road 229, just west of Winnipeg Beach, prompted a review by Manitoba Transportation and Infrastructure, which is standard after a fatal crash, while some of the victims’ families and community leaders publicly called for changes.

“When you see the loss of these beautiful young lives, any parent, any Manitoban feels a sense of loss. On behalf of the whole province, I send my condolences to these families,” Kinew said in Winnipeg Wednesday.

“I did so directly earlier today, and I heard some of the parents’ suggestions for how we could make this safer for everybody. I committed to them that we’re going to take those actions — both stuff we can do relatively quickly and some longer-term fixes, as well.”