Ashley Christian is president of the South Queens Chamber of Commerce. (Rick Conrad)
The Nova Scotia government announced this week that as part of a settlement agreement, Northern Pulp will study the feasibility of opening a paper mill in the Liverpool area.
We asked some people at the South Queens Chamber of Commerce annual general meeting on Thursday for their reaction.
Kim Masland, Queens MLA and Nova Scotia’s public works minister, announces $10.7 million in provincial funding for a $21.5-million water and sewer expansion that gives the green light to two new housing developments in the Liverpool area. (Rick Conrad)
The Nova Scotia government and the Region of Queens are teaming up on a $21.5-million project to extend and improve water and sewer services in the Liverpool area.
Queens MLA Kim Masland on Monday announced $10.7 million in provincial funding to expand water and wastewater service to the Mount Pleasant area. The region will pitch in $10.8 million.
The project means that two new private housing developments will go ahead on more than 60 acres of land. About 325 new housing units will be built for up to 1,200 people. It will be a mix of sold and rented space. About a third of those units could be affordable housing.
Masland, who is also Nova Scotia’s public works minister, made the announcement at the region’s municipal offices in Liverpool on behalf of John Lohr, the minister of municipal affairs and housing.
“We need this funding, we know our community’s growing, we certainly need affordable and more housing stock within our community,” she said in an interview after the announcement.
“We’re attracting people to our community every day, there are med professionals that want to come here. This is a great project. This will allow us to build more houses.”
Masland said a municipal housing needs assessment found that Queens County needs 555 more housing units by the end of 2027. She said it’s difficult to recruit health care staff to move to the area if there’s nowhere to live.
“We need people building faster. We need homes up, we need places for people to live. We are in a housing crisis in the province and we’re going to do whatever we can to make sure we can help.”
The funding will also improve existing water and sewer services to more than 1,200 homes and businesses in the area, and help improve the amount of water available for firefighting efforts.
Region of Queens Mayor Darlene Norman emphasized that the funding will do more than help developers build new homes.
She said the current infrastructure is at or over capacity. The project will improve service for residents in Liverpool, Brooklyn and Milton.
“There are some really crucial repairs that need to be made to our system, so it can expand in all directions. This is not case-specific for specific people.”
The provincial portion of the funding comes from the $102-million Municipal Capital Growth Program. The region applied in December for the funding.
Norman said the region’s finance staff are working now to figure out how the municipal portion will be funded. The region is currently working on its 2024/25 budget.
Adam Grant, the region’s director of engineering and public works, said Monday he hopes the work will be finished in 24 to 36 months.
“So work is already underway. Following the feasibility study, we’ve migrated into some design work preliminary and that’s underway right now, looking at having designs rolled out in the fall and construction starting in the next 12 months ideally.”
The developers behind the two housing projects said Monday they were excited by the news. They’ve lobbied the municipality for the past few years to extend water and sewer services to those areas.
Both projects are near downtown Liverpool.
Larry Cochrane plans an 87-unit development on the old Dauphinee Farm property near Queens General Hospital, which would include a 24-unit apartment building.
He said he will soon begin the design phase of the project.
“I wish it was faster of course, but we’ll take that because there’s lots of work I need to do to get ready to start a project like this.”
Graham van der Pas is a partner with Rumclo Developments. They plan a three-stage development on about 30 acres of land farther up the road from Cochrane’s project.
“We’re very, very excited. We’ve been lobbying for this for the past two years. So it’s amazing.”
The Rumclo development will feature The Point, which will have 124, two-bedroom homes for sale, The Curve, with 22 three-bedroom townhouses, and Birchwood Gardens, 82 affordable rental apartments. Van der Pas said the affordable rentals will be 80 per cent of the median market rate. A one-bedroom would be about $800 a month, a two-bedroom $1,000 and a three-bedroom would rent for $1,200.
A section of The Curve will also be reserved for staff from Queens General Hospital to rent.
“I think a community like this needs it,” van der Pas said.
“I think what our developments will bring to the town is … a significant amount of property taxes. The revenue will go up there, the economic revenue of people potentially starting businesses, new patrons for the businesses that are already existing. It’s significant.”
Ashley Christian, president of the South Queens Chamber of Commerce, said she’s happy that such a big investment is being made in Queens.
“We have been advocating through the chamber of commerce for more housing for a couple of years. So we’re so excited to see this huge investment, especially made by the municipality, really impressed by that.”
Christian said she’s especially happy that half the funding is coming from the province. She said she hopes that means the project won’t be a big burden on municipal taxpayers.
Kim Masland, Queens MLA and Nova Scotia’s Public Works Minister, says chronic ER closures in her riding are worrisome. (Rick Conrad photo)
By Rick Conrad
Queens MLA Kim Masland says the Nova Scotia government is making progress in its efforts to keep the emergency department at Queens General Hospital open more often, but she admits there’s more work to do.
“I know right now we’ve been open pretty much 50 per cent of the time which is very, very concerning,” Masland said in an interview this week.
“We need to make sure that our ER is open and available to people when they need it. We’re 30 minutes away from Bridgewater, we’re further away to the next ER.”
She pointed to efforts by the Queens General Hospital Foundation and Nova Scotia Health recruiters to bring more health care workers to the area.
“We are making progress. We’ve recruited six (ER and family practice) doctors in the last year which is absolutely fabulous. But it’s a staffing issue. We need to make sure that we can recruit and then retain. So we’ll keep working at it.”
Masland and Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston were asked about the ER closures during a Q&A session at an event in Liverpool on Wednesday organized by the South Queens Chamber of Commerce.
The ER in Liverpool was closed all last weekend. And this week, it is open most days only from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. It will be closed all day Saturday. According to Nova Scotia Health, the ER was closed for part or all of the day for 13 days in November, 15 in December and 15 in January. A Nova Scotia Health official told QCCR in January that the Queens General ER needs 10 more nurses to be open more often.
Houston told the crowd Wednesday that the province has made many changes to how health care is delivered. He pointed to the expanded scope of practice for many health care workers, including pharmacists, nurse practitioners and others who are now able to do more of the duties once restricted to doctors.
“Our pharmacies did, since we started opening up this access path, almost 19,000 strep tests over the last three or four months. I can tell you where pretty much every one of those 19,000 people would have went if not for a pharmacy.
“So we’re really trying to mobilize everyone. … Then we can take a little bit of pressure off everyone else. And if we can take a little pressure off everyone else, then we can start to attract more people who want to be part of an innovative, leading edge health care system.”
Houston said that while there’s no quick fix, it’s important that people know that they don’t always have to wait in an ER for treatment.
“So we want to make sure that everyone knows where they can go to access the health care that they need. And it might be the emergency department and we want it to be open, but it doesn’t always have to be the emergency department for everything … when there’s something else that will work just as effectively.”
Masland says the province’s focus is on recruiting more health care professionals to the area.
“We’re very committed to improving health care and that’s where our focus is going to remain.”
Kim Masland, Queens MLA and Nova Scotia Public Works Minister, and Premier Tim Houston take questions at a business luncheon in Liverpool on Wednesday. (Rick Conrad photo)
By Rick Conrad
Opponents of a proposed fish farm expansion near Liverpool got a big morale boost on Wednesday as Premier Tim Houston told a business luncheon that he personally opposes the plan for more fish farms in Liverpool Bay.
“I think some areas are great for aquaculture and I think that some others are maybe not the best place for it.
“On this specific question on Liverpool Bay, … I personally don’t think Liverpool Bay is a suitable place for it,” Houston said to applause.
“That’s my personal opinion. I respect the process, the independent review board will do their process and will have hearings. They’ll do their thing. But my personal opinion is I don’t think Liverpool Bay is a suitable place for it.”
About 80 Queens County businesspeople and others were at the Best Western Plus in Liverpool for the event, which was organized by the South Queens Chamber of Commerce, and featured the premier and Queens MLA and Public Works Minister Kim Masland.
The premier’s comments came during a wide-ranging question and answer session, in response to a question about Kelly Cove Salmon’s application to expand its operations near Coffin Island, and to add two new sites off Brooklyn and Mersey Point.
If successful, Kelly Cove’s operation would grow to 60 pens from its current 14. It would mean about 1.8 million salmon would be farmed in the bay, compared to the current estimated 400,000. Kelly Cove would also farm trout at its operation at Coffin Island.
The Nova Scotia Aquaculture Review Board has public hearings scheduled for Liverpool beginning March 4.
The grassroots group Protect Liverpool Bay is one of five groups granted intervenor status at the hearing. The others are the Region of Queens, the Brooklyn Marina, a group of 23 lobster fishermen, and Kwilmu’kw Maw-Klusuaqn, which is representing the Acadia First Nation.
In an interview afterward, Houston said he wanted to make sure those gathered for the event knew where he stood personally.
“The review board will do their process and we certainly respect that process, but on a personal level I believe that there are places where aquaculture makes sense and great opportunities in this province. There are other places where it doesn’t make sense. And I don’t think Liverpool Bay is one where it makes the best sense.”
“The hearings will start in March, people will have their chance to have their say. That’s my personal opinion. There will be many other opinions shared through that process and the board will take those all in and look at the science and make their decision. I just thought for this room here, it was important that they knew where I personally stood.”
Masland repeated her opposition to the fish farm expansion. She had spoken against it as an opposition MLA.
“I think my position has been communicated very well from the very beginning,” she told the crowd. “I take this job as your MLAs very seriously and I always take the time to listen to the constituents within the area I represent.”
In an interview, she said she was happy with the premier’s comments.
“We do have a process that needs to be followed. I do understand that. But certainly we have a premier who listens, and understands and respects the value of people’s voices in the community and I think that was shown today by his comment.”
Jeff Nickerson, business development manager for Cooke Aquaculture, which owns Kelly Cove Salmon, was at the event on Wednesday. He did not want to comment on the premier’s remarks. He referred media questions to Cooke spokesman Joel Richardson.
“We’ve been going through the provincial review process for the Liverpool Bay project for many years, since we first submitted the application in 2019 and we look forward to going through the government’s review process,” Richardson said in an interview.
“As the applicant that is bringing the Liverpool Bay project forward, we appreciate that the premier respects the aquaculture review board process.”
Brian Muldoon, president of Protect Liverpool Bay, said he was surprised at the premier’s comments. Protect Liverpool Bay is one of five intervenors at the upcoming hearing.
“I was really impressed. I didn’t expect that he would come out and actually say personally that he is against having open net pen fish farms here in Liverpool Bay.”
Region of Queens Mayor Darlene Norman said she understands it’s only the premier’s personal opinion, but that it is welcome news.
“It’s wonderful to know that he believes they are not suited for our bay,” she said in an interview.
“I think his personal views and the separation from the ARB are very distinct but it does sort of give you that at least the premier understands and is of our same mindset.”
Members of the public can also have their say on Kelly Cove’s application. The review board is accepting public submissions until Feb. 12.
Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston and Queens MLA Kim Masland will be speaking at a luncheon in Liverpool on Feb. 7. (Tim Houston Facebook page)
By Rick Conrad
Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston and Queens MLA Kim Masland will be speaking at a luncheon organized by the South Queens Chamber of Commerce on Feb. 7.
The two-hour event is being held at the Best Western Plus in Liverpool. The chamber says it’s a “prime opportunity” for Queens County’s business leaders and others to talk with the two politicians about the area’s future.
Houston and Masland, who is also Nova Scotia’s minister of public works, will speak about rural economic development. In addition to the speeches, the event will feature success stories from local businesses.
Attendees will get to ask Houston and Masland questions in a Q&A session. The chamber wants questions submitted no later than Feb. 1 to secretary@southqueenschamber.com.
Brian Muldoon protests the proposed fish farm expansion. QCCR file photo
A local environmental group is gearing up to fight a proposed fish farm expansion in Liverpool.
Protect Liverpool Bay was recently granted intervenor status to appear at the Nova Scotia Aquaculture Review Board hearing into Kelly Cove Salmon’s proposed plan to expand their operation in Liverpool Bay.
Representatives from Acadia First Nations, Brooklyn Marina, 23 Fishermen of Liverpool Bay and the Region of Queens Municipality were also granted intervenor status in the hearing set to begin Feb 05, 2024.
The aquaculture board denied requests to intervene from several residents along with the South Queens Chamber of Commerce and the Ecology Action Centre.
President of the Protect Liverpool Bay Association Brian Muldoon argues the pens are too large and the water too shallow to safely operate a fish farm in this location. He says it’s not a question of if but when the farmed salmon will escape into the wild.
“I witnessed from Hurricane Lee three weeks ago, four weeks ago, whatever, that the nets were ripped apart here,” said Muldoon. “The actual feeding barge got ripped right off all the feeding lines and moved. Those fish weren’t even being fed for days.”
Muldoon says there is overwhelming opposition to the existing fish farm and the community has made it clear they do not want to see it expanded.
“You get the lobster fishermen, you get the Acadia First Nations who are saying no, you get Queens County who say no, we don’t want you, you get the Marina for navigational and recreational boating no, you say all of the members of PLB from beachgoers to homeowners all the ones that live in the area say no, so why are we even having this discussion?” asked Muldoon.
Protect Liverpool Bay is being represented at the board hearing by lawyers from Ecojustice. Muldoon says the board will not listen to repetitious arguments, so Ecojustice is working with other intervenors to ensure everyone has an opportunity to speak and present evidence.
“You want to have expert witnesses to come forward and you want to be able to make sure that they have all the, you know you may hire an oceanographer, or you can hire someone from the wild salmon,” said Muldoon. “You know, as PLB, we don’t have to talk about the eight deciding factors. You could pick two or three and focus on them.”
In their application, Kelly Cove Salmon explains the change is being requested to “fully encompass existing cages, mooring lines, and anchors within lease boundaries. The lease boundaries will incorporate six (6) additional cages resulting in a 2 x 10 configuration in addition to an increase in production to ensure the long term environmental and financial stability of this site.”
Hearings into the application will be held February 5 through 9 at the Liverpool Best Western Hotel.
The proposed site for the new library at Queens Place lies at the end of the driveway beside the sledding hill. Photo Ed Halverson
Members of the Astor theatre want permission to pursue grants for a new air conditioning system and councillors are concerned about ballooning costs for the new library at Queens place.
The late additions made for an exciting agenda at Tuesday’s Region of Queens council meeting.
The meeting got underway with presentations from the property valuation services corporation or PVSC. The organization explained how they assess properties before providing that information to municipalities to use when collecting property tax.
The next presentation was an update from the recreation and healthy communities department.
During the public comment portion of the meeting, members of the Astor Theatre made their case for why they want permission to install air conditioning. They say climate change has led to uncomfortably high temperatures during the summer months making the space an unsafe work environment. Because the Astor Theatre is a tenant in the Town Hall Arts and Cultural Centre, they need permission from the municipality to make any changes.
During the recommendation portion of the agenda councillors approved the placement, design, and size of the new outdoor pool which is proposed to be built alongside Queens Place. Council also took the extraordinary step of allowing the pool committee to research and write grants on behalf of the municipality. Grants will still need to be reviewed, approved and submitted by municipal staff.
A study on the feasibility of servicing two new proposed subdivisions in Mount Pleasant will go ahead. Councillors approved spending up to $21,000 for CBCL engineering to undertake a six-week study to determine if there is the capacity to handle water and wastewater flow and demand to the proposed developments. The results of that study are expected to come back to council sometime in April.
Next, councillors debated and ultimately approved the Astor Theatre’s request to apply for grants to install air conditioning. We’ll have more on this story in the coming days.
Eight items were on the agenda for the discussion portion of the meeting.
Council received updates on their implementation report and a financial review for the third quarter.
The province of Nova Scotia is conducting an economic study on the ferry service from Maine to Nova Scotia and approached municipalities in southern Nova Scotia for feedback on the evaluation criteria.
Council was informed environmental documents pertaining to the Mersey River wind farm project can be viewed at the regional administration office and the Thomas Raddall library. The project includes plans to install 35 wind turbines on the site.
Council then discussed property tax exemptions and set a date of March 3rd to begin discussing their 2023-24 budget.
The South Queens Chamber of Commerce asked the Region to assume responsibility for the hanging flower baskets on display on posts in Liverpool. Council discussed taking on the project but determined in fairness, it should be expanded to include Caledonia as well. Staff will investigate the specifics of the request and bring a report back to council.
Finally, council discussed the construction of the new library at Queens Place.
Around the table councillors say they’ve been hearing concerns from residents that the Region has not looked for other sources of funding for the project. Some also feel the location at Queens Place was misrepresented as the best option.
Councillors who had opposed siting the new library at Queens Place dropped their opposition when they believed it would be the most cost-effective option. During the discussion it was revealed the construction of the road and other infrastructure leading to the library could add over $900,000 to the cost.
Council will be looking for staff to provide more information and a clearer accounting of all costs when the library is brought back for discussion at the next meeting.
That meeting will take place Tuesday February 28th at 6:00 PM in council chambers.
Performers at the 2022 Liverpool International Theatre Festival. Photo courtesy LITF. Credit Chris LaRocque
Organizers of the 2022 edition of the Liverpool International Theatre Festival are hailing the event as a great success.
Over the weekend, audiences enjoyed performances by seven troupes from around the world.
Festival chairperson Jean Robinson-Dexter said from the outset the community rallied behind the event.
“Opening night and having the block party and sunset market on main street in front of the theatre, the town arts and culture centre. That was the work of our South Queens Chamber of Commerce and just gave a totally different kind of kick off to the festival but really engaged the community and folks are still talking about what a good time they had that evening,” said Robinson-Dexter.
Adjudicator Paul Fowler had a tough job to determine how to allocate the awards but, in the end, named The Italian Movie Factory performed by Avanzi di Scena Cultural Association as the Outstanding International Production.
Robinson-Dexter said it’s an unenviable task to be the one judging such unique talents.
“My gosh, what a difficult experience it must have been for him because the plays were so, so different.,” said Robinson-Dexter. “As he said, it’s subjective. Folks may not agree with the choices that he made but those were his choices on that day, and I would say, he got it pretty correct in terms of the choices and the awards that were presented on Sunday night.”
The festival didn’t go off without some adversity. Three of the scheduled 10 troupes booked to perform couldn’t get into Canada due to visa issues.
Robinson-Dexter said it is something they will need to keep in mind for the 2024 edition.
“I guess it’s the way of the world now in terms of folks getting visas to come to Canada. That’ll certainly be something that we’ll be looking at.”
Robinson-Dexter said the Liverpool International Theatre Festival team will take some time to review what went well, what could be improved upon and what changes they would like to see from this year as they begin to make plans for the next festival in 2024.
Entrance to Region of Queens council chambers. Photo Ed Halverson
A pair of public hearings to determine land-use issues in Milton led into Tuesday’s Region of Queens council meeting.
The first was an application for a development agreement to allow Samantha Corner and Robie Leigh Murphy to establish an automobile repair shop at 16 Edward Street.
Several letters supporting the application were received and no one in the gallery rose to speak against.
In session, Council voted unanimously to enter the development agreement.
The second public hearing involved a zoning change to permit the construction of a multi-unit building on the former Garika land on the corner of Highway 8 and Bridge Street in Milton.
Several people rose to speak in opposition to the project citing road safety issues, loss of a public view of the river and the need for fire departments to have access to a dry well on site to fill trucks.
Mayor Darlene Norman says council discussed the fact the road is already at the lowest speed limit permitted of 50km/h and there are no passing lanes along that stretch of highway.
Norman also indicated Milton already has several public park areas including the outdoor pool and Pine Grove Park and is well serviced in that regard.
Norman says council listened to Planning and Development Director Mike MacLeod when he said fire department and public access to the site would be guaranteed when the sale agreement is finalized.
“Ensuring that there’s access for fire departments to that dry hydrant as well as there’s a public boat launch on that site and public access to that will also remain,” said Norman.
During the session council voted to allow the zoning changes by a margin of 6-2 with Councillors Brown and Fancy voting against.
Council started their session by approving a tender for bulk salt trucking.
They accepted a submission by Van Dyk Excavation and Trucking in the amount of $49.95 plus HST per metric tonne.
Director of Engineering & Public Works Adam Grant said every municipality across the province is experiencing large increases for salt delivery and Queens is no different as the $49.95 approved by council is roughly $8.50 per tonne higher than last year.
Next council voted to send the province the results of the Municipal Electoral Boundary review.
As previously reported, the review recommends keeping council composition the same with 7 councillors and one mayor but realigning the districts so the former Town of Liverpool will now only have representation from two councillors.
Council then approved a request from the South Queens Chamber of Commerce to allow alcohol consumption on municipal property as part of the Liverpool International Theatre Festival opening night festivities.
A review of job descriptions for public works employees was the next item on the agenda followed by a funding request from the Greenfield Community Park Society.
The organization is developing a community recreation area behind the Greenfield recreation centre and school, starting with a walking trail.
Council agreed to contribute $9,400 from the community investment fund to the project.
The two public hearing items were then discussed and decided before council voted on a new deputy mayor.
Councillor Jack Fancy was elected to serve in that role for the last two years of this council’s mandate. Fancy replaces outgoing Deputy Mayor, Kevin Muise.
The Deputy Mayor receives no additional pay and fills in for the mayor when they are unavailable.
In the discussion portion of the session, council received a report from staff on the Lost at Sea Memorial being proposed for Fort Point Park.
Staff raised concerns about disturbing underground infrastructure on the site and the removal of trees from the park.
Members of the Diversity and Inclusion team also recommended that proponents of the memorial consult with local Mi’kmaq regarding their inclusion on the memorial.
Council then discussed a request from Yarmouth Mayor Pam Mood asking Region of Queens to forward on to the province a letter of support for the Maine Ferry.
Finally, council added an agenda item to discuss whether traffic safety studies should be included by developers looking for permission to build in Queens.
Staff will contact other municipalities in Nova Scotia to determine what common practices are in place and bring a report back to council.
According to the Region’s Calendar, the next council meeting will be on the road in Port Medway.
The meeting will take place at the fire hall starting at 6:00pm.
Belgian troupe Lucky Leo performing their play, The Raise. Photo courtesy Liverpool International Theatre Festival
The play’s the thing once again in Liverpool.
After four years the Liverpool International Theatre Festival is returning to the Astor Theatre.
Nine acts from around the globe will walk the boards in what is considered one of the top ten amateur theatre festivals in the world.
Chairperson of LITF Jean Robinson-Dexter says given the international nature of the performers, one of the things the selection committee looks for are plays that can be understood whether acted in English or not.
“It can transcend the language barriers. We’ll often look for plays that are less verbal or not language heavy, so to speak, so that they can make that crossover so that folks can understand what’s happening,” said Robinson-Dexter.
The festival has been held every two years since it began in 1992.
The last edition of LITF was scheduled for 2020 but like so many other events, was cancelled due to COVID.
This year the festival will start Thursday October 13 with a parade of flags down Main Street leading to the opening ceremonies in the Astor Theatre.
LITF has partnered with the South Queens Chamber of Commerce to round out opening night with a block party featuring live music and events beginning at 8pm.
The weekend will be jammed with performances followed by social evenings at the Liverpool Curling Club.
The 2022 edition of Liverpool International Theatre Festival will also see the return of the ever popular “Coffee Critique” which is open to all performers and all-access pass holders.
Robinson-Dexter says the critique started as an opportunity for performers to discuss their work amongst themselves but has become one of the most unique and popular components of LITF.
“Our audience very quickly wanted to be involved in that. They wanted to hear it and they wanted to ask questions,” said Robinson-Dexter. “It’s usually a jam-packed room. People are just so engaged in learning about how theatre happens in other countries.”
Sales of the all-access passes ends Wednesday October 5, but Robinson-Dexter says there are still multi-performance packages and individual passes available through the Astor Theatre box office.
The Liverpool International Theatre Festival runs from October 13-17.
