ARICHAT - Already familiar with Richmond County as a result of his seventeen years of service as a Member of Parliament for the former riding of Cape Breton-East Richmond, the president of Cape Breton University found himself in familiar territory as he appeared before Richmond Municipal Council to update the Sydney campus' latest activities and goals.

David Dingwall, who served as Liberal Prime Minister Jean Chretien's Minister of Health and Minister of Public Works during his final four years of Parliamentary tenure, was joined by CBU vice-president of finance Gordon MacInnis and CBU Department of Development representative Steve Horne during his appearance at Richmond council's Committee of the Whole meeting earlier this month. It was the first in a series of Strait area municipal visits for Dingwall, who will appear before Port Hawkesbury Town Council's regular monthly meeting this coming Tuesday. 

Part of Dingwall's remarks centered on the recent decision by CBU's board of governors to launch a new Centre for Discovery and Innovation, which will replace the "antiquated," asbestos-ridden structure currently housing this portion of CBU. Dingwall described the pending replacement as "a strategic decision for the university" that will not only serve domestic students but also serve as an attraction to international students, which have become key to the growth of not only CBU but the population of Cape Breton as well. 

As he insisted that CBU's presence in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality has added $165 million to Cape Breton's economy, created 175 new jobs and even reversed a longtime downward population trend in CBRM and throughout Cape Breton with the influx of international students over the past 10 years, Dingwall urged Richmond council to consider taking a more active look at supporting the Sydney university and its various programs.