Saint John residents rally against industrial park expansion

Leah Alexander grew up in the Saint John coastal community of Lorneville with three generations of family behind her who did the same.

After getting a notice on July 3, informing her that the nearby Spruce Lake Industrial Park is poised to expand, she fears for the future of her community and its surrounding natural habitats. She and others are pushing back.

"This community means everything to me. I've spent all of my 32 years here," Alexander said.

"It's an extremely tight-knit community There's the same generational families that have been here for years."

The city, according to the plan's pageon Shape Your City a site which details various municipal projects is looking to expand the Spruce Lake Industrial Park to make it "development ready" because the city "doesn't have the space for big new businesses to set up their operations."

WATCH | Residents say expansion will threaten local environment:

Lorneville residents speak out against industrial park expansion

2 months ago

Duration 1:44

The city of Saint John wants to drive economic growth by creating more space for new businesses in its west side industrial park. Many residents are not happy about it.

The long-term aims are economicgrowth and "better infrastructure."

The consultation period for the project during which Saint John residents can send written objections to the city began in a council meeting on July 8 but residents of the area launched a petitionon the same day pushing back against the project citing environmental concerns.

"I think the big thing right now is we need to get this information out," Alexander said.

"Lorneville is a very small community. We are a blip. And if something big goes into Lorneville, it's going to affect not only the people of Lorneville, it's going to affect people on the west side. It's going to affect people in all of Saint John."

The city has requested 1,591 acres, or 643 hectares, from the province's Regional Development Corporation for the expansion near the existing Spruce Lake Industrial Park.

The park, largely located off of King William Road,is currently home to a number of tenants such as Saputo Dairy Products, Day & Ross Freightand Fundy Fencing.

According to letters sent to nearby residents like Alexander, the initial phase of this process, slated to start this year, will involve "clearing and constructing a development ready pad on approximately 110 hectares of the property."

"That pad is behind people's houses and they want to develop it on a piece of property that's 50 per cent wetlands," Alexander said.

"So a big concern is where is that water going to go? What about the creatures that live in that area the trees, the birds, all of those things?"

Immediate push back

According to the project page,the city also needs to change the designation of 1,040 acres, or 420 hectares, of that area to "employment area and heavy industry." This would allow it to be developed for industrial use.

The letter to residents says that "at least a 30 m buffer" will be maintained around the perimeter of the development.

"When you look at what 'heavy industrial' means in the zoning bylaws, it says that it should be an adequate distance from non-industrial sites for public safety," Alexander said.

"And I would think 'non-industrial' sites would mean our houses, our well waters. And to me, 30 metres is not adequate and we're fighting that rezoning."

The petition gathered over 500 signatures within a day and is currently at over 800.

The city says an Environmental Impact Assessment, which will look at things like water and air quality, wildlife habitats, vegetation, wetlandsand more, is being done by Dillon Consulting Ltd. on behalf of the Regional Development Corporation, to ensure the project meets regulations.

The New Brunswick Department of Environment and Local Government will then decide if the project may proceed and under what conditions.

City needs to be development-ready, mayor says

Saint John Mayor Donna Reardon said the city needs to grow to meet its costs and to do that it needs space for businesses to develop.

"If we want to attract industry then we need to be pad-ready. That's the bottom line for today," Reardon said.

She said the proposed expansion property currently sits outside of the city's "primary development area."

"The primary development area would have roads, water, sewerage sidewalks, trees, etc.," she said.

"So this will bring it into the primary development area with the plan amendment and then we'll put some of those amenities there as well."

Reardon said extending city water to businessesin the area would leave local well water for the residents to use.

"That's why we would bring the water system. So that that wouldn't impact their wells," she said.

"For the loss of vegetation, well, I guess there would be a loss of vegetation The land is Crown land and it's been sent to RDC. So yes, it would have to be cleared if we want to do development just like anything else."

Mayor hopes to work with residents

Reardonhopes to work with residents and saidpublic hearings are for residents to voice their concerns.

"But we do want to grow our industry," she said.

"We need to balance that as we go forward. We need to be cognizant of what people are feeling and we need to be sure that we can answer their questions that's what this whole process is really all about as we go forward."

In an emailed statement, Department of Environment and Local Government spokesperson Clarissa Andersen saidthe the project's environmentalimpact assessment is currently being reviewed.

"An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is an interactive and iterative process through which the environmental impacts potentially resulting from a proposed project are identified and assessed early in the planning process," the statement said.

The process also requires the proponentto conduct "engagement activities" and submit a summary of issues raised by the public and how they were addressed. Engagement sessions are scheduled to be held at the Lorneville Community Centre on July 17, one at 1 p.m. and another at 6:30 p.m.

Residents can send their letters of objection until Aug 7. The project will come before Saint John city council again on Aug 19.