New environmental study delays final decision on Saint Andrews, N.B., wharf
The $25,000 coastal study by GEMTEC will investigate how a refurbished wharf might impact the town's Market Wharf and Market Square shoreline areas, as well as water quality and sedimentation in Saint Andrews Harbour.
The GEMTEC study will take about two months to complete.
Town officials had initially planned for the $7-million wharf refurbishment – a hybrid project using both steel and infill – to be listed for tender before the start of this summer.
In January 2024, town council approved the refurbishment's infill/steel plan out of a total of five options presented in public consultations.
Outgoing mayor Brad Henderson said the GEMTEC study was a compromise to address concerns about the refurbishment, while keeping it on track.
'It also gives us a path forward where we aren't gambling with $5.4 million,' said Henderson, regarding a deadline for government funding. 'We all know we're running out of time with this funding.'
Resident Cindy Kohler said she was happy concerns about the project were being studied ahead of a final decision.
'It would've been a nice thing to start with, but it's nice that it's being done now,' said Kohler, who owns a storefront on Water Street, near the wharf. 'There could be things that have been overlooked, or much more negative impacts than we've anticipated.'
Wharf
People walk on Market Wharf in Saint Andrews, N.B. (Source: Nick Moore/CTV News Atlantic)
For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CTV News
17 minutes ago
- CTV News
Green Light: Quebec City uses AI to manage traffic
Quebec City has turned to Google's artificial intelligence (AI) to synchronize traffic lights, which officials say will improve traffic flow, reduce congestion, and lower greenhouse gas emissions. According to Google Canada, Quebec City is the first city in the country to partner with the web giant's Green Light project. As part of this project, AI analyzes driving trends from Google Maps and combines this data with information on the location of traffic lights in the city. 'The Green Light project uses driving trends from Google Maps and artificial intelligence to map a city's traffic patterns and then make specific recommendations for specific intersections that can be implemented very quickly by city engineers,' explained Laurence Therrien, public affairs manager at Google Canada, in an interview with The Canadian Press. She clarified that AI data won't replace the work of engineers, but rather serves as an additional tool. 'The aggregated and anonymized trends from Google Maps really give a much faster and more reliable overview of a city's traffic than if it were done manually or with existing systems,' she said. Present in some 20 cities The Green Light project is being used in 19 cities on four continents. According to a data analysis conducted by Google in these cities, the project has 'demonstrated the potential to reduce frequent stops and starts by up to 30 per cent and estimated CO2 emissions at urban intersections by 10 per cent.' Google's AI aims to make car traffic flow more smoothly. If a city emphasizes smooth car travel, does it risk encouraging more people to use their cars, to the detriment of active or public transportation? 'If car traffic flows more smoothly, so does bus traffic,' replied Therrien. 'So it encourages public transportation, which is much more efficient than if traffic lights are not automated,' she said. Initial positive results in Quebec City In Quebec City, the project has already made it possible to adjust the timing of traffic lights at 11 intersections in the city, and the initial results are positive, according to Mayor Bruno Marchand's administration. 'An innovative project like Green Light allows us to quickly and effectively optimize our road network, thereby improving traffic flow and efficiency,' said Marchand in a press release. A compelling example In the press release issued Monday morning, the City of Quebec 'gave an example of the project's impact.' The municipal administration explained that during the evening rush hour, traffic lights were 'slightly out of sync' at the intersection of Côte Saint-Sacrement and Semple Street, at the corner of Charest Boulevard, causing delays for drivers travelling down Côte Saint-Sacrement and leading to traffic jams. 'Using the Green Light AI model, Google proposed reducing the gap between the lights by 15 seconds to align the timing with those at Semple and Charest,' and 'northbound travel, which is the most frequent in this area according to 2023 data, is now smoother and better coordinated.' This example shows how AI 'can complement the work of municipal experts by proposing simple, effective, and data-driven adjustments,' according to the city. The Green Light project is available free of charge to cities that wish to use it. - This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Aug. 18, 2025.
CBC
17 minutes ago
- CBC
Horse racing community blindsided by Surrey, B.C., racetrack closure
Social Sharing The local horse racing community is in shock following the closure of the Fraser Downs racetrack in Surrey, B.C. The news came just weeks before Harness Racing B.C. races were set to start. Kelly MacMillan, spokesperson for the group, said there was no prior warning about the closure. "It was just a complete shock. We had no idea this was coming," MacMillan said. "We were expecting to start racing on September 4 and people have ... incurred great expenses, just have that pulled out at the 11th hour." Great Canadian Entertainment, which owns and operates the track, said Friday the closure takes effect immediately, though the adjacent Elements Casino Surrey will remain open. The decision follows notice from the City of Surrey, which owns the Cloverdale Fairgrounds where the racetrack is located, that it is terminating the lease. Fraser Downs was B.C.'s only standardbred horse racing facility and had been in operation since 1976. While the grandstand and adjacent Elements Casino will remain open, the racetrack, stables and backstretch will be shut down. Development plans In a statement, Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke said the decision allows the city to begin critical planning to "revitalize the Cloverdale Fairgrounds and Town Centre." It's part of a broader redevelopment plan for Cloverdale Fairgrounds, which include new housing, a $3 billion hospital, public spaces, cultural facilities and expanded recreation amenities. However, it is unclear what exactly will be built at the nearly five-hectare site. MacMillan and others in the industry argue the decision fails to consider the impact for workers, horse owners and breeders. "Some of the staff are going to be on the street," he said. "The people that support horse racing [like] feed stores, hay stores, they've just lost a huge client without notice and no ability to plan around it." WATCH | Horse racing at one of the two remaining racing tracks in B.C.: Fraser Downs closure shocks B.C. horse racing community 13 hours ago Horse racing at one of the two remaining racing tracks in B.C. has come to an end after the City of Surrey revealed its plans to redevelop the land for housing and other public amenities. As Sohrab Sandhu reports, the news has come as a huge shock to the racing community. Doug McCallum, the former mayor of Surrey and former CEO of Harness Racing B.C., is calling the closure "a devastating blow to Surrey's economy, heritage and working families." "Locke has steamrolled an entire industry in Surrey," he said in a statement Monday. "Trainers, breeders, jockeys, and workers with unique skill sets are now out of work. These aren't jobs that can be replaced overnight." Surrey Coun. Linda Annis supports the city's decision, stating that housing is desperately needed for the city's rapidly growing population. "The city needs to look at what we can do with the lands that would be best for the residents of Surrey, what can we do to better utilize the lands there in terms of housing, improving public spaces," she said. Locke says the redevelopment will help protect Old Cloverdale as a "historic precinct," but critics question how ending a nearly 50-year-old racing tradition achieves that. "What better way to preserve the early way of life in the heritage than to continue on racing?" said David Milburn, president of the Horsemen's Benevolent Protective Association of B.C. "It's only five hectares we're talking about here …they can go ahead with their development and still continue the race track there." One remaining racetrack in B.C. Milburn says his association has "great sympathy" for the standardbred community and plans to help them find new racing opportunities. With Fraser Downs closed, Hastings Racecourse at the Pacific National Exhibition (PNE) fairgrounds is B.C.'s only remaining track. The lease for Hastings is set to expire in May 2026, and there has been talk of redeveloping the site for a potential Whitecaps stadium, but Milburn remains confident about the track's future. "We're of the view that [the Hastings] lease is going to get renewed," Milburn said. "We believe we're on solid ground here at Hastings." Fraser Downs faced uncertainty earlier this year when Great Canadian Entertainment ordered the closure of its stables to deal with a longstanding rat infestation. The society challenged the move in court, arguing it would cause irreparable harm to the industry. However, the B.C. Supreme Court ruled in May that the temporary closure for pest control did not meet that threshold. WATCH | Rat infestation shuts down popular Surrey horse racetrack: Rat infestation shuts down popular horse racetrack and training facility in Surrey 3 months ago A rat infestation has shut down a popular horse racetrack and training centre in Surrey. Horse owners have filed a lawsuit in hopes of keeping the facility open while the pests are exterminated. As CBC's Jon Hernandez reports, it's one of the only horse training facilities of its kind in the province. No horses have been stabled at the site since late May but the racing community had held out hope for a September return. "Had we been given notice, we could've prepared," MacMillan said. Despite the setback, he says the association is exploring alternatives.
National Post
an hour ago
- National Post
Jesse Kline: Air Canada strike brought to you by the Liberal government
For years, the Liberals have worked to increase the power of Canada's labour unions, and the monster they created is now coming back to bite them as Air Canada's flight attendants walk off the job, grounding hundreds of flights. But Ottawa can start to fix the mess it created by opening the airline market to more competition, thus lessening the impact that strikes have on consumers. Article content Article content It's no coincidence that the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), which represents more than 10,000 Air Canada employees, chose this moment to go on strike and throw the country's air transportation network into chaos. Article content Article content Article content The contract between the airline and its flight attendants ended in March, but the union waited until the height of the summer travel season to walk off the job, in a move that has so far affected around 500,000 travellers. Article content Thanks to legislation passed last year that banned the use of replacement workers in federally regulated industries, including air travel, the union knew the airline would have little recourse if its members hit the picket line. And given the Liberals' penchant for intervening in labour disputes, CUPE could also be fairly certain the government would try to order the striking flight attendants back to work, after doing so in disputes involving Canada's major railways and postal service last year. Article content And so it was that after Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu ordered the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) to force the flight attendants back to work and send the parties to binding arbitration on Saturday, Mark Hancock, CUPE's national president, tore up the back-to-work order and vowed to challenge it. Article content Article content On Monday morning, the CIRB declared the strike 'unlawful' and ordered workers back on the job 'immediately.' As of this writing, it's unclear whether the union intends to continue to defy the mandate. Article content Article content The situation highlights the catch-22 the Liberals now find themselves in: their interventionist, pro-labour policies have reduced the incentive for unions to settle disputes at the bargaining table, forcing Ottawa to step in to alleviate the resulting political headache caused by major disruptions in markets that are dominated by a few large players. Article content It's a classic case of the state stepping in with Big Government policies to fix problems caused by other interventionist measures. But it's also an opportunity for the Liberals to read the room and enact reforms that will attract foreign investment, make the country more competitive and reduce prices for consumers. Article content To do that, the government should follow the advice of its own Competition Bureau, which released a report in the spring advocating for more competition in Canada's airline market. Article content To be sure, there have been some noticeable improvements in recent years. According to the competition watchdog, thanks to upstart airlines like Porter and Flair, market concentration dropped by 10 per cent between 2019 and 2023. Article content But Air Canada and WestJet still account for between 56 and 78 per cent of all domestic passenger traffic departing from Canada's major airports. This is a direct result of government policies that favour incumbent carriers, increase costs and limit foreign ownership and competition. Article content One of the major barriers faced by new airlines, according to the Competition Bureau, is the high cost of government taxes and fees that are tacked onto ticket prices. Article content Some of them are designed to ensure the cost of running Canada's air transportation network is paid by travellers, which makes perfect sense. But ticket prices are also affected by fuel taxes and high airport fees, which Ottawa simply treats as a cash cow. Article content This assertion is backed up by research released Monday by the Montreal Economic Institute (MEI), which found that the exorbitant rents the federal government charges airport authorities is significantly driving up the cost of air travel. Article content Article content According to MEI, airports sent Ottawa close to $500 million in rental fees last year, which is up 68 per cent since 2014. Article content All told, the think tank found that the average airport improvement fee paid in Canada is four times higher than in the United States. Airport security charges and fuel taxes are also far higher in Canada than in peer countries, such as the U.S. and Australia. Article content These costs make it harder for discount carriers to compete based on price. The Competition Bureau says that taxes and fees constitute 30 per cent of the ticket price on major carriers, but that those 'costs take up an even higher share of what passengers pay for flights on ultra-low-cost carriers,' which makes them less profitable. Article content New carriers are also constrained by airport procedures, which often favour incumbents. Smaller, secondary airports in major cities can provide consumers and airlines with more options, but are hamstrung by the size of their runways and legal restrictions that only allow one international airport in certain regions. Article content Article content A good example is Toronto's Billy Bishop Airport, which is often cheaper and more convenient than Pearson Airport, but was prevented from hosting long-haul flights when the Liberals kiboshed plans to extend its runway to accommodate passenger jets in 2015. Article content Yet the biggest impediments to airline competition are the government's restrictions on foreign ownership and its prohibition on foreign carriers flying domestic routes. Article content In 2018, Ottawa increased the share of Canadian airlines that foreigners are allowed to own, but the Competition Bureau doesn't think it went far enough. Article content It recommends the rules be changed so that a single foreign investor can own up to 49 per cent of a Canadian carrier, and that the government create a new class of airline that can only serve domestic routes but can be fully owned by non-Canadians. Article content The competition watchdog also suggests Ottawa start allowing 'airlines from partner countries to fly domestic service within Canada.'
