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CTV News
08-07-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Final vote passes for Lorneville industrial park expansion
A little over a year after residents first learned about a potential expansion of an industrial park in their own backyards, city council has given the final approval for the project to move ahead. During it's third and final reading at Monday night's Saint John City Council meeting, council once again voted unanimously in favour of the expansion of its Spruce Lake Industrial Park located on the city's west side. Council also voted 9-0 in favour of the project two weeks prior during the first two readings. Despite passing council approval, the project won't be moving forward until the pending results of an environmental impact assessment are completed. There is no timeline for the EIA's completion which is being conducted by the province's environment department. If the project passes the EIA, the city plans to expand it's existing industrial park by 1,500 acres. Saint John Industrial Parks General Manager Ian MacKinnon has previously called the project a 'once-in-a-generation growth opportunity.' Lorneville residents disappointed Residents of Lorneville have been against the project since the start citing fears over impacts to the environment and the idea of industry being located within a few hundred metres of their own backyards. Residents have also recently discovered the forest which sits on the land where the industrial park would reside is home to the province's third-oldest age forest in the province based on the areas 20 oldest trees. One red spruce tree is the fourth oldest tree documented in the province at over 400 years old. 'The past 12 months have shown New Brunswickers that the City of Saint John never really had any intention of actually working with the Lorneville community, they never had any actual intention of meaningfully engaging with the community, and there was no limit to how low they would stoop to get this proposal approved,' says Lorneville resident Adam Wilkins, who is one of the funders of the Save Lorneville movement. 'This long-drawn-out process was nothing more than a tactic, as the city and province bumbled along, making up the rules as they went, for a decision that had already been made years ago. All of this culminated in a completely staged sham of a public hearing unanimous vote on June 16, 2025, where, after over 75 people spoke against the proposal, only 3 people spoke in favour, leaving over 70 questions and concerns unanswered.' Lorneville residents have stated they will continue to fight for their homes and livelihood as they await the results of the EIA. For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.
CTV News
17-06-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Proposal to expand N.B. industrial park passes first and second reading at Saint John council
After multiple public hearings and feedback from dozens of residents, Saint John Council has voted to pass the first and second readings of a proposed expansion of an industrial park in Lorneville, N.B. The proposal, which would transform 1,500 acres of land into use for heavy industry at Spruce Lake Industrial Park, sparked controversy among many residents, who launched the 'Save Lorneville' initiative. Several people could be seen wearing that slogan on their shirts during the council meeting on the proposal Tuesday night. Councillors voted unanimously in favour of the first and second readings of the motion. 'Growth isn't easy, it's always difficult,' Mayor Donna Reardon said. 'We've got to move forward. Density is your saviour for any city. It's not that we make these decisions easily.' At previous public meetings about the proposal in the last month, dozens of people have expressed their opposition to the expansion, noting their concerns it would have on nearby wetlands and wildlife, as well as the potential impact of industrial activity on homes. 'You want economic growth, you want jobs, you want development, but at what cost?' Adam Wilkins, a Lorneville resident, previously told CTV News Atlantic. 'At the cost to health and safety, to residents, at the cost of the risk to the environment, and destruction of so many acres of mature forest and wetlands.' Spruce Lake Industrial Park general manager Ian MacKinnon previously said there was a potential for more than $2 billion in investment for the expansion. 'This is a once-in-a-generation industrial growth opportunity,' said MacKinnon. 'Time is of the essence; we have serious interest now.' -With files from CTV News Atlantic's Avery MacRae and Nick Moore More to come… For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
Hamilton Spectator
06-06-2025
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Industrial park public hearing adjourned for a third time
A public hearing on the Spruce Lake industrial park expansion will be extended to a fourth meeting for proponents of the project after 74 residents weighed in against the proposed rezoning. Saint John common council held a special meeting Tuesday to continue the hearing, which started May 12 and continued May 20 . The proposal would rezone more than 500 hectares of land in the Lorneville area to allow for expansion of the industrial park. The project was first proposed last year but was delayed while a task force of residents, city and provincial representatives met over the winter and spring, with a report posted in April. At the start of the public hearing in May, the park's general manager Ian MacKinnon said the expansion is needed to draw investment from companies ready to invest in the area. The proposal includes a 'pad ready' site measuring 112 hectares, with a total of 510 hectares of industrial development. But the proposal has led to opposition from local residents and a 'Save Lorneville' campaign over concerns that the project will encroach on residential areas in the community, which is located in city boundaries, including worries that a proposed 150-metre park buffer would be insufficient. The new zoning would also include a setback of 250 to 500 metres from residential property lines for industrial or heavy industrial uses. Mayor Donna Reardon said that council had heard 56 speakers against the project across the first two nights, and 18 more took to the podium Tuesday. Council chambers, which seats 94 people, was full at the start of the hearing, with more residents in overflow seating in the lobby. After the last call for speakers against the project, Coun. Gary Sullivan moved a motion to defer the call for speakers in favour of the project to the next council meeting. In the room, a voice from the crowd asked 'why?' 'It was a very strange way to end the meeting,' Adam Wilkins, a Save Lorneville organizer, told reporters. He said that with the meeting starting at 5 p.m. with only one item on the agenda, he assumed they would have finished the hearing and proceeded to a vote. 'It's ending at 7 p.m. and we'd gone to 11 or later before, so it was a surprise,' he said. 'It was never explained that it would stop.' Reardon said she hadn't expected a decision at the meeting, saying she thought it would run longer. She said that there had been a lot of topics raised, and that staff would need time to respond. When asked if she thought people in the room were frustrated about not having a decision, Reardon said, 'I will guarantee this, I will not allow the yeas to go for any longer than three nights, to be fair to the nays.' At the start of the meeting, Reardon read a list of issues that had come up previously, including concerns over the process, engagement issues, loss of wetlands, environmental impacts, insufficient job creation, the size of the 150 metre park buffer, environmental oversight and who is in charge of responding to leaks, in addition to other issues. 'We're looking for something different,' she said during the hearing, also asking for residents of the Lorneville area to speak first, saying 'I want to make sure that Lorneville's voice is heard.' Michael Lynch said that with automation, many proposed industrial sites may not result in new jobs, saying there's 'no guarantee' to back up job promises. Sarah Galbraith, also of Lorneville Road, said in a recording played by another resident that for those with high-stress jobs, 'the ability to come home to a peaceful area is not a luxury' but a matter of mental health, resilience and quality of life, saying her family would have to move if the development was approved. Bruce Martin, a Lorneville Road resident with two businesses in the industrial park, said he's not against an expansion, but likes 'the way Lorneville is now.' 'For an expansion, keep it away from our little community,' he said. Barbara Gilliland of Lorneville Road read a list of what she called 'unanswered questions,' which ran as long as 71, with a second resident picking up the list once she was called for time. The questions addressed a number of topics including the business plan for the proposal, how it is being paid for, the timeline for the project, what the city will do if groundwater wells are affected, water consumption and who will pay for it, and questions on other topics as well as points of information. Emma Palmer, of Lorneville, said she hopes there are plans for flooding and its impact on wells, asking council to see it as not as a 'once in a generation opportunity for development' but a 'once in a generation opportunity to save wetlands.' Sabine Jurgens of Quispamsis raised issues of a 'piecemeal' environmental impact assessment by the province, saying it only tackles the initial project area, and raised issues with watercourse buffers proposed in the project. When Wilkins spoke, he called the process of having the task force a 'complete sham.' 'It's clear that the city had no real interest in serious and honest engagement from the community, it was just a tactic to cool the temperature,' he told council, saying the resulting document was a 'biased report.' Wilkins said 'for the most part' people were able to express their concerns, including a mix of people they knew and people they hadn't heard from before, 'It was good to have the community show their support,' he said. When asked what she thought of the discussion Tuesday, Reardon said the city was 'making a list and checking it twice.' She said they need to 'sort through' the concerns raised, including the list of questions. 'Some of those questions are suitable for this team,' she said. 'Some of them are provincial questions and some of them are business questions and some of them are others.' She said that there will be more information involving the provincial environmental impact assessment process at the next meeting, saying the purpose of an EIA is 'not to stop a project but look at ... what the impact is and to mitigate that and make it better.' Wilkins said there are parts of the city's bylaws relating to the environment, but the city was 'quick' to defer questions to the province. 'It always seems like it's left in the wind with each level of government saying the other one has to go first, so it doesn't leave you believing there's any teeth to the EIA,' he said. Both Wilkins and Gilliland referenced deleted comments in a blog post made by Coun. Brent Harris, with Harris interjecting to ask to explain what had happened and Reardon asking the residents to continue, saying questions from council come later. Wilkins told reporters afterwards that the comments had been to the effect that a 'hydrogen and ammonia processing plant' was one of the potential businesses looking to move into the park, which is not information the task force had. At the first meeting, MacKinnon had mention a green manufacturing project and a data centre as possible tenants for the new commercial space. Harris told Brunswick News that in the post, he had incorrectly identified the hydrogen plant as a possible proponent, confusing it for one of the possible uses listed in MacKinnon's report, and that he had fixed the error when notified. He said the blog post was meant to offer 'transparency' in laying out his thought process following the first meeting of the public hearing. 'The whole point of posting that blog was really to try to reflect where things are at for me personally,' Harris said. He said there's been 'a lot of tension' and in the post said he was balancing the concerns raised by residents against the support during the federal election for the promotion of 'shovel ready projects' as Canada seeks to reshape its economy. Gilliland's questions also addressed whether the two councillors on the industrial park board were in a conflict of interest position. Reardon said that councillors sit on a wide range of the city's boards and commissions, including the police board of commissioners, Saint John Transit and other committees. 'They're on council, they're here to hear what's happening on the board, to be able to offer support as well,' she said, saying that they are appointed by council and represent council on the board. Wilkins said that while there are other boards, the scale of possible environmental and economic impact made it a 'another scale than all those situations.' Reardon said whether a decision is made at the next meeting on June 16 depends on who speaks in favour of the project and what topics are brought up. After the proponent and supporters speak, she said councillors will get the chance to ask questions of staff. - with files from Paul Hutchings Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
