'We need a lifeline': The small Nova Scotia town that nobody wants

Mulgrave isn't Nova Scotia's smallest town,but it may be the province's most desperate.

The community of just over 700 peoplesits on the Strait of Canso, surrounded by the Municipality of the District of Guysborough and overlooking the Town of Port Hawkesbury.

The main road is crumbling and needs more than $7 millionin repairsa number thatwould "scare anybody off," admits Mayor Ralph Hadley.

The town office was demolished this fall after support beams gave way.The handful of town employees are now squeezed into a strip-mall unit on Main Street, while council holds its meetings at the fire hall.

"We're struggling," Hadley said in a recent interview."We need a lifeline."

Findings from a CBC News analysis of council sizes and costs for towns and municipalities across Nova Scotialeaveno doubt that Mulgrave is pinching pennies.

The mayor makes $7,375 a year andis the lowest paid in Nova Scotia. Even finding five willing candidates to sit on council has been challenging.

Seeking amalgamation

There would be no otherbetter lifeline out there than amalgamating with a larger nearby municipalitya tactic several other Nova Scotia towns have turned to in recent years.

But on that front, Mulgrave has faced only failure.

Guysboroughfought Mulgrave'sNova Scotia Utility and Review Board application over concerns about the cost of repairing the town's main road.

WhenMulgravewent looking farther afield for a willing partner,AntigonishCounty and PortHawkesburyboth said no.

"They didn't rule it out," saidHadley. "But they said not right now. It is tough times;we're struggling the worst."

The town's former chief administrative officer, Kevin Matheson, said Mulgrave's predicament is a cautionary tale for other small Nova Scotia towns that maintain their independence instead ofjoining neighbouring municipalities.

"You can end up looking at ittoo late," said Matheson. "And that's when you are not attractive to another place."

As a municipal manager for hire, Matheson was brought in to help Mulgrave work through dissolutionwhen it appeared a deal with Guysborough was in the works.

He also worked with Hantsport and Bridgetown as they transitioned through amalgamation with West Hants and Annapolis Countyrespectively.

Any town with fewer than 1,500 people, he said, "should seriously be looking" for a merger.

Mulgrave barely has enough money to cover day-to-day operations, the mayor said, let alone replacethe aging underground pipes or thesewage-treatment plant.

There's more bad news on the way.Despite "fighting the decision tooth and nail,"Mulgrave'sonly school with 19 students and three teachers will close for good in June.

Provinceurges sharing ofservices

With no appetite at the provincial level for forced amalgamations, Mulgrave's options are few.

Municipal Affairs Minister Derek Mombourquette said he understands the town's challenges and wants to help find a solution. Provincial staff are working with Mulgraveand he's confident municipal workers are being paid.

But he emphasizes that his message to towns and counties across the province is to work together and share services.

For now,Mulgrave has no choice but to keep treading water. It's hired a new part-time CAOwho's also agreed to be the town'sfinance manager for the next two years. It's also signed a deal to have Guysborough collect the town's garbage.

And local officials are holding out hope for an economic boost from the proposed Melford container terminal, which will be located south of town if it goes ahead.

"That would bring back a lot of our families back that used to live here years ago," saidHadley.