The Official Saint John, NB Project Thread

[EnvisionSaintJohn]

Originally Posted by adamuptownsj

My dad was an ornamental horticulturalist and I've picked up some skills from him. The city's tree management is not good. All the recently rebuilt blocks uptown have trees under power lines, trees planted within 10' of existing trees in yards, no sense. They should also be shelling out for older saplings that can take more of a beating in the winter. Anything on the south side of the street spends its life in heavy shade where setbacks are minimal and end up kind of stunted.

Even King Square got maples to replace storm damage. We need a much greater variety. If they're starting to move towards native-heavy planting, good, but it doesn't seem to be in full effect yet.

Lindens have wide-spreading and deep root networks which can screw up anything from water mains to sidewalks; plus they're prone to growing incredibly wide which results, uptown at least, in having to chop them back from front facades regularly. They also hang much lower than most cars are tall. They're also barely native to NB. I like how quick they grow and how dense, but they need active management.

Norway Maples or native maples as DarkHarbour thought they’ve switched to? Even a budding horticulturist such as yourself could find out what kind of maples they are by simply taking a picture… even if it’s a seedling or sapling.



Norway Maples are mighty common in Saint John, though. Your gripe would be pretty valid if the city is, in fact, continuing to plant non native, Norway Maples, despite now knowing they can be problematic trees. (Especially in terms of wind damage) Would not find it at all surprising, unfortunately.

[adamuptownsj]

My issue with King Square is maples, period. We should be shelling out the dough for oaks, chestnuts, and so on.

[EnvisionSaintJohn]

Originally Posted by adamuptownsj

My issue with King Square is maples, period. We should be shelling out the dough for oaks, chestnuts, and so on.

I agree we shouldn't be so averse to spending more on a greater diversity of trees, but what's the problem with maple trees native to New Brunswick? I'll have to check them out next time i'm in King Square and see if they are, in fact, Norway Maples.

I think it's really hilarious Halifax's council did an experiment with palm trees and they all ended up dying. Here in Saint John, with our abundance of fog, we'd probably have a better chance keeping some coastal redwoods alive than Halifax's little palm tree experiment, since coastal redwoods pretty much only survive and thrive in the foggiest of regions. We certainly have no shortage of fog. ... and our winters are getting milder and milder each year.

[DyAm00394]

Saint John Energy seeks developer for new solar farm

"Saint John's electric utility company is looking for developers to submit proposals to build and maintain a solar farm somewhere in the city.

"We have certainly had our eye on solar technology for quite some time, and the costs have been quite high," said Glen Fillmore, executive director of growth and transformation at Saint John Energy.

But as costs of solar have come down and technology has continued to advance, "we think the time is right to explore whether this project would make sense for Saint John Energy and most importantly for our customers," Fillmore said.

A press release from the utility on Thursday said the call for proposals comes with their "zero30 initiative," which aims to bring the utility to zero emissions by 2030.

Saint John Energy is seeking a developer to build, own and operate a solar farm capable of producing up to five megawatts of electricity and enter a 25-year purchasing agreement with the utility. That capacity would power about 375 homes, the utility said".

Fillmore said the utility expects to make a decision on the winning proposal by this fall, and hopes to begin construction in 2025 for a 2026 opening.

"In terms of the location, we're relying on the developers and the location that they bring forward to select a location," he said, adding that the utility wants the facility to be within Saint John.

Fillmore admits that the port city is known for being foggy, but that won't ruin plans for solar.

"While that can decrease the efficiency of solar panels, solar remains a very effective source of renewable energy and the modern panels and technologies are certainly capable of generating electricity even in low-light conditions, such as foggy days," he said.

Shediac solar farm a success, mayor says

The aim for a solar project comes after Saint John Energy's recent investment in the Burchill wind project in Lorneville.

But Saint John isn't the only New Brunswick community to get in on solar.

For the past year and a half, Shediac has run a large solar farm that keeps two government buildings in town net zero.

"I understand it's been performing even better than expected, which is great news," said Shediac Mayor Roger Caissie.

The solar farm managed by N.B. Power has about 5,000 panels and powers the town's multipurpose centre and the federal government's pension centre.

Caissie said the solar farm is only the start of Shediac's goal to be net zero. The town is still working to establish a timeline for this, but Caissie claims it would be the first in the country to do so.

"The goal is a lofty goal, but it's a unique goal. There is no other community in Canada that can do this at this time," he said, adding that Shediac's small size makes the move more realistic.

"It keeps with Shediac's goal in being a good steward of the environment."

N.B. Power spokesperson Dominique Couture said in an email that the Shediac solar farm is continuing to grow capacity, and has ranged between producing 100,800 and 267,800 kilowatt hours. That would power between 74 and 198 residential homes, she said".

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-b...oper-1.7234107

[EnvisionSaintJohn]

Originally Posted by DyAm00394

Saint John Energy seeks developer for new solar farm



https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-b...oper-1.7234107

Interesting. Not sure where the best location is within the city limits in terms of lack of fog and the most sunshine hours for a legitimate solar farm, but it's good to see Saint John Energy continue to be more proactive than NB Power.

We do have quite a lot of buildings with large roofs currently unoccupied by solar panels. That seems like a logical place to start for solar panels.

[TitleRequired]

Originally Posted by EnvisionSaintJohn

Interesting. Not sure where the best location is within the city limits in terms of lack of fog and the most sunshine hours for a legitimate solar farm, but it's good to see Saint John Energy continue to be more proactive than NB Power.

We do have quite a lot of buildings with large roofs currently unoccupied by solar panels. That seems like a logical place to start for solar panels.

In general, a rough estimate for the land area needed for a solar farm is about 4 to 6 acres per megawatt (MW) of installed capacity.

Considering this range, a 5 MW solar farm would require approximately 20 to 30 acres (8 to 12 hectares) of land. Keep in mind that these figures are rough estimates and the actual land requirement for your specific project may differ. -- https://www.powertechenergy.com.au/a...-mw-solar-farm



This location would be barely outside of the fog belt, for example.

[DyAm00394]

In the upcoming PAC meeting on June 18th is a proposal for 910 Fairville Blvd on the west side.

60-unit residential building with 2 ground floor commercial spaces. The applicant is Islamic Society of New Brunswick and are proposing 50% of the units will be affordable housing.

[DyAm00394]

Another proposal in the upcoming PAC meeting on June 18th. Located at 1750 Sandy Point Road is the construction of two 60-unit residential buildings.

Disclaimer: this rendering was included in the packet to show what type of design they are looking at. Not actually the rendering for the project.

[sailor734]

Anybody know how to find lot sizes online? I found this site but the numbers don't seem to make sense. I assume (doesn't specify units) that they would use Sq meters for area but my lot comes out much larger than I always thought it was.

https://www.arcgis.com/home/item.htm...84d657b42d04a8

[darkharbour]

Seem like two very good proposals, and I love seeing the Islamic Society developing their property West! Hopefully the growth of apartments on Fairville Blvd kickstarts improvements to pedestrian improvements to the road, which is incredibly wide and lacks sidewalks on both sides.

I will say though, the rendering of the Sandy Point Road development looks so much more urban than the site reality, which is basically out in the woods

[sailor734]

Looks like the higher north facing units on Sandy Point might have pretty nice river views. Too bad they wouldn't go 10 or 12 story.

[EnvisionSaintJohn]

Originally Posted by darkharbour

Seem like two very good proposals, and I love seeing the Islamic Society developing their property West! Hopefully the growth of apartments on Fairville Blvd kickstarts improvements to pedestrian improvements to the road, which is incredibly wide and lacks sidewalks on both sides.

I will say though, the rendering of the Sandy Point Road development looks so much more urban than the site reality, which is basically out in the woods

Biking from the Carleton Peninsula to Fairville Blvd shopping is a bloody mess.

Somehow Riverview Drive, with barely more than a dozen houses has an a pedestrian overpass in addition to it's overpass, but there's no such pedestrian/bicycle overpass at the logical crossing point at Montreal or Molson avenue, which would directly connect Fundy Heights with the Fairville Plaza shopping. A pedestrian overpass would be huge, especially for the people who live close enough to Sobey's to see it from their driveway, but would never consider walking to get groceries, because it's 25 minutes each way.



We need a pedestrian overpass to cross the throughway at a much more useful location than at Riverview Drive. One of the more confusing planning decisions on the West Side, which is long overdue to be corrected. The land at Molson Avenue seems to be owned by the province... should be a no brainer to build a pedestrian overpass there.

[Monctoncore]

Originally Posted by DyAm00394

Another proposal in the upcoming PAC meeting on June 18th. Located at 1750 Sandy Point Road is the construction of two 60-unit residential buildings.

Just want to mention the Render you see here.. I don’t think is for this project. If you search Porthouse Charlottetown on google images, you will find that exact same photo. It was proposed a few years back and that was the most recent render of it.

[DyAm00394]

Originally Posted by Monctoncore

Just want to mention the Render you see here.. I don’t think is for this project. If you search Porthouse Charlottetown on google images, you will find that exact same photo. It was proposed a few years back and that was the most recent render of it.

I know. The image was included in this proposal packet to show the type of design they are thinking of. But I edited the post to add a disclaimer so people don't get confused.

[adamuptownsj]

Originally Posted by EnvisionSaintJohn

Biking from the Carleton Peninsula to Fairville Blvd shopping is a bloody mess.

Somehow Riverview Drive, with barely more than a dozen houses has an a pedestrian overpass in addition to it's overpass, but there's no such pedestrian/bicycle overpass at the logical crossing point at Montreal or Molson avenue, which would directly connect Fundy Heights with the Fairville Plaza shopping. A pedestrian overpass would be huge, especially for the people who live close enough to Sobey's to see it from their driveway, but would never consider walking to get groceries, because it's 25 minutes each way.

We need a pedestrian overpass to cross the throughway at a much more useful location than at Riverview Drive. One of the more confusing planning decisions on the West Side, which is long overdue to be corrected. The land at Molson Avenue seems to be owned by the province... should be a no brainer to build a pedestrian overpass there.

It's not a confusing planning decision: there was no reason for any pedestrian access to the middle of Fairville Boulevard until the Sobeys plaza was built, which was wasn't that long ago. The Bleury overpass adequately connected Fundy Heights pedestrians to the consumer-facing businesses between Simm's Corner and O'Brien St.

Riverview Drive's overpass was built AFAIK at the same time as the throughway. I assume it was a consolation prize for being sliced off from the rest of the city's street network. Some quality townhouse construction is going on there, and some parcels of land at the north end of the street have been snatched up. Despite the odd location, waterfront property is appealing, especially with Harbour Passage extension and improvements coming.

[cdnguys]

Originally Posted by DyAm00394

In the upcoming PAC meeting on June 18th is a proposal for 910 Fairville Blvd on the west side.

60-unit residential building with 2 ground floor commercial spaces. The applicant is Islamic Society of New Brunswick and are proposing 50% of the units will be affordable housing.

The likelihood of this being built is about the same as “The Landmark” getting built. This group does not have the financial resources to pull off such a large project, especially with 1/2 of units being subsidized. IMO just another time waster announcement.

[Helladog]

Originally Posted by EnvisionSaintJohn

Biking from the Carleton Peninsula to Fairville Blvd shopping is a bloody mess.

Somehow Riverview Drive, with barely more than a dozen houses has an a pedestrian overpass in addition to it's overpass, but there's no such pedestrian/bicycle overpass at the logical crossing point at Montreal or Molson avenue, which would directly connect Fundy Heights with the Fairville Plaza shopping. A pedestrian overpass would be huge, especially for the people who live close enough to Sobey's to see it from their driveway, but would never consider walking to get groceries, because it's 25 minutes each way.



We need a pedestrian overpass to cross the throughway at a much more useful location than at Riverview Drive. One of the more confusing planning decisions on the West Side, which is long overdue to be corrected. The land at Molson Avenue seems to be owned by the province... should be a no brainer to build a pedestrian overpass there.

While on the topic of pedestrian crossings/overpasses, there should be a pedestrian tunnel between McAllister Place and Walmart on the east side.

[EnvisionSaintJohn]

Originally Posted by adamuptownsj

It's not a confusing planning decision: there was no reason for any pedestrian access to the middle of Fairville Boulevard until the Sobeys plaza was built, which was wasn't that long ago. The Bleury overpass adequately connected Fundy Heights pedestrians to the consumer-facing businesses between Simm's Corner and O'Brien St.

Riverview Drive's overpass was built AFAIK at the same time as the throughway. I assume it was a consolation prize for being sliced off from the rest of the city's street network. Some quality townhouse construction is going on there, and some parcels of land at the north end of the street have been snatched up. Despite the odd location, waterfront property is appealing, especially with Harbour Passage extension and improvements coming.

It is confusing why they still don’t build a pedestrian overpass across to Fairville Plaza though, which is all that I’m getting at here, I’m not trying to crap on Riverview drive, it’s a great little tucked away gem of the West Side, I’m trying to use it as an example. They built a pedestrian overpass to connect barely more than a dozen houses on Riverview Drive, which already has an underpass at the other end, but there remains no pedestrian overpass to get to Fairville Plaza from directly from the Molson Avenue across the throughway. Sobeys and Canadian Tire have been there well over a decade, no?

I know you’re not a big bike guy, but I remember you saying you grew up in the area… you ever try biking across Bleury and then left up Fairville Blvd? It’s a huge pain in the ass. You either gotta go way out of your way, or illegally cross the street and try and make it there on the dirt paths (which don’t connect the whole way), or make a left turn with traffic and ride up the road, the last option is what I usually do, but most people won’t, and I’m sure I piss off some cars.

Crossing at a pedestrian overpass at Molson avenue wouldn’t really make it quicker for me on a bike, but it would sure make it safer and less stressful. We should be trying to make the neighbourhoods more walkable and bicycle friendly. For the most part I feel safe riding my bike around the west side, getting to Fairville Plaza on my bike is one of the routes where I don’t feel the safest, and feel quite let down by the city’s lack of planning foresight and disregard for bicyclists and pedestrians. Like you said, the Riverview Drive overpass was built around the same time as the throughway. Sobeys and the rest of the shopping has been there for a long time now, what’s the delay building a second overpass?

https://paol-efel.snb.ca/paol.html?lang=en&pan=01684213


The land directly across from this property isn’t clickable on SNB, so I assume that means it’s owned by the province? DOT should step up and build a pedestrian overpass here, I think we can agree it would be more useful than the current lone pedestrian overpass connecting Riverview Drive.

[EnvisionSaintJohn]

Originally Posted by Helladog

While on the topic of pedestrian crossings/overpasses, there should be a pedestrian tunnel between McAllister Place and Walmart on the east side.

Also seems like a no brainer.