The project to develop the former Canadian Coast Guard site down by Market Square still hasn’t come to fruition and that’s bringing up some frustration around the Saint John council horseshoe.
After a presentation by the Saint John Development Corporation at council’s latest meeting on Monday evening councillor David Merrithew pointed out that three and a half going on four years ago council was told that this project, called Fundy Quay, was just around the corner. He says we have to see revenue from this:
“We can’t be spending that kind of money. I don’t wanna be coarse with my language but this property has been pie in the sky for four years now and we haven’t seen it.”
General Manager Kent McIntyre says this is a very active file and they’re not ready to step away from the developer at this point because—he claims—there’s currently very good progress happening. He says major projects take years and this is not uncommon.
“He is not necessarily cautious but he is very much diligent,” says McIntyre, “and when he’s ready to pull the trigger which he is now securing an anchor tenant will see this thing move foward.”
Councillor-at-large Gary Sullivan, who was first elected in 2008 and then elected again this year, also spoke out about the Fundy Quay project delay asking when do we stop making another plan for something when the plan already in place still hasn’t been completed.
“The Coastguard site, which is key, I had that presentation and a lot of optimistic talk the last time I was on council.”
It’s a $200-million project and it’s said it represents an estimated 500 jobs each year during the construction period with a tax revenue for the city of over $4-million a year.
But the frustration isn’t just coming from council—McIntyre admits that there’s a sense of frustration coming from the corporation’s side as well.
“There is a level of frustration with us too—that we keep producing fantastic things to do and we involve hundreds of people in putting these together and we rush off and we find that we always get two out of the three willing to commit funds” says McIntyre. “Maybe we need council to start helping us drive certain projects in certain directions.”
