The Municipal District of St. Stephen (MDSS) is holding its tax rates amid the ongoing property assessment freeze throughout New Brunswick. Rates will remain at 1.5561 per $100 of assessment for Ward 2 – or the urban area of St. Stephen – and 0.5597 per $100 of assessment for the rural wards. The rural wards […]
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The Courier Editorial Board As the budget season for municipalities gets underway, all to be settled before the hustle and bustle of the holidays, it’s a time to reflect but also to set a vision for the future. A budget is a defining document that sets out the dollars and cents for a municipality’s operations, […]
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New Brunswickers are being asked to continue to conserve water amid “well below normal” levels across the province. As temperatures continue to drop, frost will limit the ground absorption, according to the Department of Environment and Local Government. “Our province continues to experience low rainfall, and, until significant precipitation returns, every drop saved counts,” said […]
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A motion to record the budget discussion process in Eastern Charlotte died on the floor, drawing swift criticism from the public. Coun. Alexa Detorakis made a motion to ask that the working session for the 2026 budget and the committee of the whole meetings be recorded on camera. It also asked for the recordings to […]
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The Local Governance Commission in New Brunswick is recommending the provincial government implement mandatory training for municipal leaders and senior staff. In its first report since being created in the spring of last year, it said this recommendation addressed many of the challenges facing local governments since reform. “These recommendations are grounded in the experiences […]
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About 50 people attended public consultations for the draft municipal plan in Saint Andrews providing feedback for the council to consider before moving ahead. It was an hour presentation by Alex Henderson. He is the planning director for the Southwest New Brunswick Service Commission (SNBSC). The province required municipalities to redo the plans because of […]
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Eastern Charlotte is looking to be reclassified as a town. During amalgamation, a transition facilitator chose to classify Eastern Charlotte as a rural community. Chief Administrative Officer Jason Gaudet said during a meeting in January 2023, that no one from the municipalities administration was part of that decision. “Furthermore, there are questions and serious concerns […]
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Council in St. Stephen defended a decision to allow for an annual cost of living raise amid new and growing pressures for municipal politicians in New Brunswick. At the council meeting on Nov. 27, a citizen questioned the addition of a “cost of living” increase that would automatically be applied every January. “I think that […]
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A new study from the New Brunswick Lung Association shows about 10 per cent of homes tested in Saint Andrews have radon – a toxic gas linked to lung cancer. The organization said the response by the resident was overwhelming during a testing campaign in the community held at the W.C. O’Neill arena complex. “The […]
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