Feds, province contradict town on wharf, square timeline

The federal and provincial governments have contradicted a deadline publicly shared by staff from the Town of Saint Andrews on the rehabilitation of Market Wharf and the expansion of Market Square. 

In June, council was told by town staff the money needed to be spent and the project underway by March 2026, which was one of the reasons the council pushed ahead with the project despite feedback from the community. 

“We can continue doing the project if it is in place and moving forward past the March 2026 deadline, because we’re showing we’re finishing the project,” said Paul Nopper, the town’s former clerk. “But basically we’ve been told, March 2026, if you haven’t done anything, you lose the funding.” 

The project is being funded through the federal department of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada (HICC). It is then distributed to the provinces and territories through bilateral agreements. In New Brunswick, the Regional Development Corporation (RDC) is in charge of that money. 

“​​The Canada-New Brunswick Integrated Bilateral Agreement for the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP) requires that all ICIP projects in the province be substantially completed by October 31, 2033 and that all final expenditure claims be submitted by December 31, 2033,” said a statement from HICC to The Courier. 

It said it is contributing more than $878,000 through ICIP’s Green Infrastructure Stream to support the enhancement of Saint Andrews’ Market Square, and more than $2.2 million through ICIP’s Green Infrastructure Stream to support the rehabilitation of Market Wharf.

This agreement, according to the documents available on the Government of Canada’s website, was last amended in 2022, to say projects under Green Infrastructure Stream should be “substantially” completed by October 31, 2033. 

“We can confirm that Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada has not imposed any deadline on the projects in Saint Andrews, other than the 2033 dates mentioned in the Bilateral Agreement,” the statement reads. 

The RCD also confirmed the deadline for the Market Wharf and Market Square is not March 2026, saying it is March 31, 2027. 

“This deadline may be adjusted based on project progress or delivery, provided the applicant submits a justified reason,” a statement said. 

It said the town wouldn’t lose the money if the deadline is missed, “provided they submit a timely justified reason and a revised timeline (extension application).”

The Courier reached out to the Town of Saint Andrews for comment but did not receive a response by deadline.

During a staff-led meeting on Sept. 8, Chief Administrative Officer Chris Spear told the council he’d recently spoken to the president of the RDC Joel Dickinson. 

“We do have some extra time potentially but it doesn’t change the underlying facts,” he told the council in the meeting. 

He reiterated some of the same points expressed before by both staff and some members of the council, including the risk of possibly losing the wharf, wanting to protect the summer tourism season. 

Spear said he was held fast to the previous deadline and did not believe it could go longer. 

“It wasn’t what I thought it was a month ago,” he said. “They have a little more flexibility.” 

He argued the council could not look at the funding timeline in isolation, despite many councillors voting based partly on the fact the deadline was approaching in just five months. 

Spear warned the council that without some repairs the risk of losing “something” could possibly remain, adding if the project stalls for some reason, another engineering assessment would be needed to assess its structural integrity. 

Coun. Steve Neil asked if the council could take a step back on the project and consider divvying up the project – which would help avoid the impact to tourism season as well. 

The tenders are expected to come to the council on Wednesday. Council is expected to vote on the tenders on Sept. 15.