Latest news with #SaintAndrews
CBC
2 hours ago
- Business
- CBC
Saint Andrews town council votes for Market Wharf refurbishment despite public pushback
The meeting room at the W. C. O'Neill Arena was over capacity on Tuesday night as Saint Andrews town council decided the fate of the Market Wharf refurbishment. In a six-to-one vote, the project will go out to tender, with construction to start as soon as possible. The goal is to finish before next year's tourist season. The vote came after a two-month coastal study from engineering firm Gemtec concluded the proposed infill design "has minimal impact on flow patterns" and "erosion has been mitigated in the design." The study was commissioned because some residents were concerned about environmental impacts from the proposed design. The entire process has attracted a lot of interest and feedback from the community. "We had to turn people away," said Mayor Kate Akagi. "Our bylaw enforcement officer was there to keep people from filling the room." With a line of residents crowding around the door, Akagi said it wasn't typical of most council meetings, which see one or two residents in attendance. "As we already stated before we went through with ... Gemtec, if there was little movement and influx, then we would go forward with the tendering," said Akagi. "And that's what we've done." The study cost the town $25,000. "I'm not a scientist," said Akagi. "I have to go by what they say because we paid the money." After seven years of working on the project, council argued they've had enough consultation and need to get the project started before funding runs out. Residents like Tom Sparling did not agree. After lengthy debate, Saint Andrews moves ahead with wharf revitalization 2 hours ago After almost two hours of debate, Saint Andrews town council voted 6-1 to continue with the tender process for a major wharf revitalization project. "It's never too late to do the right thing," said Sparling. "Lots of projects go through a process and don't get built." Sparling was one of many residents who participated in the initial hearings for the wharf refurbishment. He lives on Water Street, down the coast from the wharf. "It's going to be horrific in terms of what it does visually," said Sparling. "I think it's going to be a scar on the face of a very historic town." When Sparling was asked if he thinks there are any positives with moving forward with the wharf project, he simply said, "No." Resident Steve Saunders agrees. "I've been going out on the wharf since I was little," said Saunders. "This thing that the town is proposing is an eyesore for what people come to Saint Andrews to see." Saunders, who has a background in computational fluid dynamic engineering, made a peer review presentation of the study at the meeting. "What [Gemtec] was asked to do by the town was not rigorous enough from an environmental standpoint," said Saunders. "Their assessment of sediment transport was insufficient, they only took four samples." Gemtec responded to CBC News in a statement and said "adjacent landowners should not be concerned about erosion from this structure." Saunders also presented to the council back in 2023 and pointed out that infill similar to the proposed design is illegal in many states in the United States. However, he ran into a roadblock at Tuesday's meeting. "I'd like to amend the agenda," said Coun. Kurt Gumushel at Tuesday's meeting to "skip tonight's presentation and move to the business at hand." Gumushel argued that Section 21.3 of the Local Governance Act states that without two-thirds of council agreeing, they cannot have a presentation twice on the same topic. They went to a vote and allowed Saunders to present. "I think maybe they were afraid of what I had to say," said Saunders. Council will meet in August to discuss the tendering of the project.
CBC
3 hours ago
- Business
- CBC
After lengthy debate, Saint Andrews moves ahead with wharf revitalization
After almost two hours of debate, Saint Andrews town council voted 6-1 to continue with the tender process for a major wharf revitalization project.
CTV News
11 hours ago
- Business
- CTV News
Saint Andrews town council votes to proceed with controversial infill project
The municipal council in Saint Andrews, N.B., has voted to proceed with the controversial Market Wharf infill project. The municipal council in Saint Andrews, N.B., has voted to proceed with the controversial Market Wharf infill project. In January 2024, town council approved a plan to refurbish the deteriorating wharf with a hybrid of steel and infill at a price tag of roughly $7 million. Wharf People walk on Market Wharf in Saint Andrews, N.B. (Source: Nick Moore/CTV News Atlantic) In June, the final decision on refurbishing the wharf was delayed following the addition of an environmental impact assessment. The final vote Tuesday night was six-to-one, with another councillor abstaining, meaning the project will now go to tender. Councillors who voted yes say there's been plenty of public consultation on the design, and a tender must proceed to meet the deadline for federal and provincial funding. Some residents and business owners have raised concerns, such as the blocking of natural tidal flows, an increased flooding and erosion risk, and the impact to the environment and marine ecosystem. With files from CTV Atlantic's Bruce Frisko. For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.
CTV News
11 hours ago
- Business
- CTV News
Saint Andrews to proceed with wharf project
Atlantic Watch The municipal council in Saint Andrews, N.B., has voted to proceed with the controversial Market Wharf infill project.
CBC
23-07-2025
- Business
- CBC
Ministers Island is latest tourist site planning to hand keys back to province
Ministers Island is the only tourist attraction in New Brunswick where visitors can drive across the ocean floor, but the tides of change threaten to overtake the historic site in Saint Andrews. The board of the charity that runs Ministers Island says it is unable to keep the popular attraction going with the $100,000 it receives for from the province for its operations budget. "We've tried everything and we've tried everything for 17 years," said John Kershaw, chair of the board of the Van Horne Estate on Ministers Island. "We've decided as a board that unless we get additional investment from the province, we are going to, in August, give six months' notice that we will not operate next year." Ministers Island, accessible only at low tide, was once owned by Sir William Van Horne, who was famous for getting the Canadian Pacific Railway built. With an admission ticket, visitors get to explore the island Van Horne once called his summer home. Popular attractions include the mansion, bathhouse, livestock barn, windmill and walking trails that cross the island from shore to shore. It is one of many historic attractions in Saint Andrews. Kershaw argues that similar historic sites in the province, including Kings Landing, receive significantly more provincial funding even though they attract comparable numbers of visitors. According to its annual report, Kings Landing gets $3.7 million as a provincial operating grant on top of other non-recurring grants from the province. "We just feel that that level of difference is just not fair," Kershaw said. These historic sites are both owned by the province and operated by external boards. Kings landing saw 34,000 visitors last year and Ministers Island saw 24,000. Does 10,000 more visitors justify millions more in funding? The New Brunswick government bought Ministers Island in 1977, and the island was declared a national historic site about 20 years later. Ever since the Van Horne Estate on Ministers Island was set up this century, every chair of the board "has been calling on the government to enhance our level of funding," Kershaw said. The board functions as a custodian for the island, overseeing operations for the province. Operational funding to the island increased to $130,000 from $33,000 in the 2019-2020 fiscal year, then moved down to $100,000 in 2020-2021, where it has stayed each year since. Funding for the island also comes from various donations and non-recurring grants. WATCH | 'We're not fiscally sustainable' Uncertain future for Ministers Island 35 minutes ago The board is only able to hire one full-time paid employee to oversee operations on the island. The rest of the work is stretched among volunteer board members and seasonal employees. Kershaw said this is not enough help to sustain the island. The Department of Tourism, Heritage and Culture did not allow CBC News to interview Tourism Minister Isabelle Theriault and sent a statement instead. Despite the board's concerns, the statement said, the department is "committed to ensuring the continued conservation and public enjoyment of Ministers Island." "We renewed the funding that had been provided in previous years that Ministers Island received in the past," Premier Susan Holt said at a recent news when asked about the site's predicament. "At this point in time, the government doesn't have additional money to put more money into those heritage sites." Holt said that "the cost to operate is going up and that's leaving them with shortfalls. About $900,000 was cut from the provincial tourism budget in March. Not the first historical site to speak out The island's board is not the first to speak out about a lack of funding in New Brunswick. MacDonald Farm in Miramichi had to close because it didn't have the money to stay open. This historical site is also owned by the government but run by the Highland Society of New Brunswick at Miramichi. "We are a completely volunteer committee that operates this site and we just felt that having to fight to keep this site open is not something that we have the energy to do anymore," said society president Dawn Lamkey MacDonald. Impact on Saint Andrews tourism The lack of funding isn't just a worry for the Ministers Island board but also for the Explore Saint Andrews, the town's tourism marketing board. "Heritage and tourism is a big part of what draws people to Saint Andrews," said Explore Saint Andrews board member James Geneau. "I would argue that Minister's Island is an attraction that has lots of opportunity with a huge audience." Ganeau said that closing the island to tourists would have a significant impact on tourism that Saint Andrew's economy desperately depends on. "Losing that is going to be significant in terms of the overall offering that Saint Andrews can provide to tourists," Geneau said. "It's part of a broader offering which makes the area a destination for not just a night, but multiple days." Saint Andrews tourism works as a collective cluster with neighbouring sites such as the Huntsman Marine Science Center, Algonquin Golf Course, and the Blockhouse supporting each other, drawing visitors to stay in town for longer.
