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Budge Wilson, acclaimed Nova Scotia writer, dies at 93 – CBC.ca

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Acclaimed Nova Scotia writer Budge Wilson has died at the age of 93.

Wilson died Friday evening in a Halifax hospital with a friend by her side. Wilson had been dealing with complications from a fall in early March.

Best known as a children’s author, she wrote more than 30 books for all ages.

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“She isn’t entirely gone,” Andrea Wilson, Budge’s daughter, said Sunday. “She’s left a legacy through her writing, and through the people she’s inspired.”

Wilson began her writing career later in life, publishing her first book in 1984 when she was 56, according to a biography from Dalhousie University, her alma mater and the home to her personal archives.

Andrea remembers how Wilson would curl up with her daughters in the evenings and tell them a story she’d made up that day. It was usually a “continuing saga,” and Wilson always left them on tenterhooks wanting to know what happened next.

“But first my sister and then me, we wanted to read our own books and read ourselves to sleep,” Andrea said.

“So she didn’t have anyone to tell stories to, but they kept on coming. So she started writing them down.”

N.S. author Budge Wilson accepts flowers at her 92nd birthday party held at Halifax’s Woozles bookstore in 2019. (Andrew B. Conrad)

Andrea remembers her mother as a “spitfire,” who stood under five feet tall and was always surrounded by many friends from different generations.

Wilson was always inspiring, real living proof that you could do whatever you wanted to, Andrea said.

She never made the switch to computers, and always wrote long-hand. Andrea said that might have been what attracted Dalhousie to compiling her many notes and drafts, since one can actually trace all the edits and changes that went into Wilson’s finished books.

Her works include The Leaving, a collection of short stories which won many awards, Lorinda’s Diary, and Thirteen Never Changes.

The Leaving is currently being recorded for Unbound, an audiobrook project with Neptune Theatre and the Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia.

“It’s every bit as good as Alice Munro, it’s those coming of age stories that really stick with you,” said Marilyn Smulders, the executive director of the writers’ federation.

Smulders said Budge was not only a gifted storyteller, but supported many younger artists in the province.

One of her most successful recent works, Before Green Gables, is a prequel to L.M. Montgomery’s famous series of books around Anne Shirley.

At 80, Wilson spoke about her work, life and stepping into Anne’s world as part of a series with Mount Saint Vincent University.

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Wilson was born and educated in Nova Scotia, but spent many years in Ontario.

She returned home in 1989, and lived in Northwest Cove on St. Margarets Bay. In recent years, Wilson and her husband, Alan, were living in a retirement facility in Halifax.

Friends and family remember Wilson as spirited, kind, and someone who loved interacting with young people when she visited schools across the county.

A mentor to many Nova Scotia writers, and good friend of fellow Canadian literary icon Margaret Laurence, Wilson was a member of the Order of Canada and Order of Nova Scotia.

A book of poetry, Wilson’s first, about the Swissair crash of 1998 came out just five years ago.

Information Morning – NS9:28Budge Wilson: After Swissair

Jill MacLean, also a Halifax children’s author, said that collection was very important to Wilson, whose former home overlooked the waters where the plane went down. 

She’ll always picture Wilson perched up on her bed with a notepad in a corner room during a writers’ retreat, MacLean said, “writing away with a smile on her face.”

The pair also had a tradition of strolling down Spring Garden Road to have brunch at the Smitty’s, where Wilson always wanted a “warm beer in a wine glass,” MacLean laughed.

The servers got to know her after many visits and always obliged, MacLean said.

MacLean also wrote an introduction to a book compiling people’s memories of Wilson, simply titled Budge, which she shared with CBC.

“She embraces adventure and makes us feel safe,” MacLean said in the introduction. “She redefines what an elderly woman can be. And most of all, her presence clarifies our own stories.”

Halifax author Budge Wilson, centre, attends a Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia event celebrating her work in 2018. Wilson died on Friday at age 93. (Nicola Davison)

In 2003, Wilson was awarded the Municipality of Halifax Mayor’s Award for Cultural Achievement in Literature, and has earned 19 Canadian Children’s Book Centre “Our Choice” awards.

Her books have been frequently read and dramatized on CBC, American and international radio.

Wilson leaves behind her husband, two daughters and grandchildren.

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Calgary breaks all-time record in housing starts but increasing demand keeps inventory low – CBC.ca

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Soaring housing demands in Calgary led to an all-time record for new residential builds last year, but inventory levels of completed and unsold units remained low due to demand outpacing supply.

According to the latest report from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), total housing starts increased by 13 per cent in Calgary, reaching a total of 19,579 units with growth across all dwelling types in the city.

That compares to a decline of 0.5 per cent overall for housing starts in the six major Canadian cities surveyed by CMHC.

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Calgary also had the highest housing starts by population.

“Part of the reason why we think that might have happened is that developers are responding to low vacancies in the rental market,” said Adebola Omosola, a housing economics specialist with CMHC.

“The population of Calgary is still growing, a record number of people moved here last year, and we still expect that to remain at least in the short term.”

Earlier this year, the Calgary Real Estate Board also predicted that demand, especially for rental apartments, wouldn’t let up any time soon. 

Industry can cope with demand, expert says

According to numbers from the report, average construction times were higher in 2023 for all dwelling types except for apartments.

The agency’s report suggests the increase in the number of under-construction residential projects might mean builders are operating at or near full capacity.

However, there’s optimism the construction industry can match the increasing need.

Brian Hahn, CEO of BILD Calgary Region, said despite concerns around about construction costs, project timelines and labour shortages, the industry has kept up with the demand for new builds.

Demand is expected to remain robust, but the construction industry can keep up, according to BILD Calgary region CEO Brian Hahn.
Demand is expected to remain robust, but the construction industry can keep up, according to BILD Calgary Region chief executive officer Brian Hahn. (Shaun Best/Reuters)

“I’ve heard that kind of conversation at the end of 2022 and I heard it in 2023,” Hahn said.

“Yet here we are early in 2024, and January and February were record numbers again.”

Hahn added he believes the current pace of construction will continue for at least the next six months and that the industry is looking at initiatives to attract more people to the trades.

Increase in row house and apartment construction

Construction growth was largely driven by new apartment projects, making up almost half of the housing starts in Calgary in 2023.

The federal housing agency says 9,034 apartment units were started that year, an increase of 17 per cent from the previous year. Of those, about 54 per cent were purpose-built rentals.

Apartments made up around two-thirds of all units under construction, CMHC said, with the total number of units under construction reaching 23,473.

Growth, however, was seen across all dwelling types. Row homes increased by 34 per cent from the previous year while groundbreaking on single-detached homes grew by two per cent.

“Notwithstanding challenges, our members and the industry counterparts that support them managed to produce a record amount of starts and completions,” Hahn said.

“I have little doubt that the industry will do their very best to keep pace at those levels.”

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Ottawa real estate: House starts down, apartments up in 2023 – CTV News Ottawa

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Rental housing dominated construction in Ottawa last year, according to a new report from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC).

Residential construction declined significantly in 2023, with housing starts dropping to 9,245 units, a 19.5 per cent decline from the record high observed in 2022. But while single-detached and row housing starts fell compared to 2022, new construction for rental units and condominiums rose.

“There’s been a shift toward rental construction over the past two years. Rental housing starts made up nearly one third of total starts in 2023, close to double the average of the previous five years,” the report stated.

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Apartment starts reached their highest level since the 1970s.

“The trend toward rental and condominium apartment construction follows increased demand in these market segments due to population growth, households looking for affordable options, and some seniors downsizing to smaller units,” the CMHC said.

Demand from international migration and students, the high cost of home ownership, and people moving to Ottawa from other parts of Ontario were the main drivers for rental housing starts in 2023. The CMHC says rental and condominium apartment starts made up 63 per cent of total starts in 2023, compared to the average of 37 per cent for the period 2018-2022.

There was a modest increase in rental housing starts in 2023 over the record-high seen the year prior and a jump in new condominiums. The report shows 5,846 new apartments were built in Ottawa last year, up 2.1 per cent compared to 2022.

Housing starts in Ottawa by year. (CMHC)

Big demand for condos

The CMHC said condo starts reached a new high in 2023, increasing 3 per cent from 2022 numbers.

“As of the end of 2023, there were only 13 completed and unsold condominium units, highlighting continued demand for new units,” the CMHC said.

Condominum starts increased in areas such as Chinatown, Hintonburg, Vanier and Alta Vista, as well as some suburban areas like Kanata, Stittsville, and western Orléans. Condo apartment construction declined in denser parts of the city like downtown, Lowertown and Centretown, the report says.

Taller buildings are also becoming more common, as the cranes dotting the skyline can attest. The CMHC notes that buildings with more than 20 storeys accounted for nearly 10 per cent of apartment structure starts in 2022 and 2023, compared to an average of 2 per cent over the 2017-2021 period. The number of units per building also rose 7 per cent compared to 2022.

Apartment building heights in Ottawa by year. (CMHC)

Single-detached home construction down significantly

The number of new single-detached homes built in Ottawa last year was the lowest level seen in the city since the mid 1990s, CMHC said.

“The Ottawa area experienced a slowdown in residential construction in 2023, driven by a significant decline in single-detached and row housing starts,” the CMHC said.

Single-detached housing starts were down 45 per cent compared to 2022. Row house starts dropped by 38 per cent compared to 2022, marking a third year of declines in a row.

“Demand for single-detached and row houses also declined in 2023. Higher mortgage rates and home prices have led to a shift in demand toward more affordable rental and condominium units,” the report said.

There were 1,535 single-detached housing starts in Ottawa last year, 208 new semi-detached homes and 1,678 new row houses.

The majority of single-detached and row housing starts were built in suburban communities such as Barrhaven, Stittsville, Kanata, Orléans and rural parts of the city.

“Increased construction costs resulting from higher financing rates and inflation that occurred in 2022 and 2023 contributed to the decline in construction in the region,” the CMHC said. 

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Trump’s media company ticker leads to fleeting windfall for some investors

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A man looks at a screen that displays trading information about shares of Truth Social and Trump Media & Technology Group, outside the Nasdaq Market site in New York City, U.S., March 26.Brendan McDermid/Reuters

Possible confusion over the new stock symbol for former President Donald Trump’s Truth Social (DJT-Q) saw some investor brokerage balances briefly jump by hundreds of thousands of dollars on Tuesday, the first day Trump’s “DJT” ticker traded.

Several people complained on social media about briefly seeing the value of their DJT stock holdings on Charles Schwab platforms inflated to figures more in line with what they would be worth if the shares traded at the level of the Dow Jones Transportation Average.

Some users said they faced a similar issue in pre-market hours on Morgan Stanley’s E*Trade trading platform.

Shares of Trump Media & Technology Group opened Tuesday at $70.90, while the Dow Jones Transportation Average started the session at 15,937.73 points.

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For one trader, the Schwab brokerage balance jumped by more than $1 million due to the error, according to a screen grab shared on social media platform X. Reuters was unable to contact the trader or independently verify the brokerage balance.

“It sure was nice seeing millions in the account, even if it wasn’t real,” another person, going by the username @DanielBenjamin8, who faced the issue in his E*Trade account, posted on X.

Two X users and one on Reddit surmised that the inflated balances were due to the ticker symbol for the company being nearly identical to the index.

A spokeswoman for Charles Schwab said that certain users on some of Schwab’s trading platforms saw their brokerage balances briefly inflated due to a technical issue.

The issue has been resolved and investors are able to trade equities and options on Schwab platforms, she said. Schwab declined to describe the exact cause of the issue.

E*Trade did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside of regular business hours.

Trump Media & Technology Group and S&P Dow Jones Indices, which maintains the Dow Jones Transportation Average Index, did not immediately comment on the issue.

While social media users said the issue appeared to have been resolved, many rued not being able to cash out their supposed gains from the error.

“I better go tell my boss that I’m actually not retiring,” the trader whose account balance had briefly jump by more than $1 million, wrote on X.

Trump Media & Technology Group shares surged more than 36% on Tuesday in their debut on the Nasdaq that comes more than two years since its merger with a blank-check firm was announced.

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