The Official Moncton, NB Project Thread

[Nashe]

I think the report was realistic. A 9,000 PERMANENT seat venue (concerts typically seat another few K on the floor) is about right-sized for Moncton. You can plan for 10-15 years down the road but 40 years (as a poster indicated above) would not be realistic. Any building would be worn out or severely out-dated after four decades, even if the seating was fine (Moncton Coliseum: case in point).

I'd also love to see it downtown for all the spin offs. People coming out of events want a place to eat/drink/relax. Restaurants/pubs will benefit.

PS: I attended all of last night's meeting. Whee...

[MonctonRad]

I attended all of last night's meeting. Whee...

My condolences......:haha:

Do you think there was a lot of information in the report not released at the public council meeting?

[Nashe]

Do you think there was a lot of information in the report not released at the public council meeting?Though I don't run in those circles (and couldn't post it if I wanted to), I'm sure there is a lot not released to the public. Like the presenter said, you don't want to comment publicly on specific sites otherwise you get people snapping up the land and then asking crazy amounts when the City wants to buy it from them. They (the consultant firm) were definitely leaning towards recommending downtown.

[Ray McKigney]

Hey guys, long-time lurker, I felt compelled to give my two cents on this arena issue, mostly because it's the first time I've found myself disagreeing with anything on here!

I spend my day crunching numbers and also happen to be a bit of an arena geek on the side who has seen more arenas than some over-the-hill fourth-line hockey journeymen, so naturally the numerical arena geekness combo leaves me a bit concerned by how many people around town are convinced we need an enormous NHL-sized arena in Moncton to satisfy future growth.

As Myles was saying above, there are 133,000 people in the Metro Moncton area, literally about two bites out of the 12-inch pizza that is the 3.6 million in the Montreal area; the same Montreal that has one of the three largest arenas in the world at just over 21,000 seats.

As we know, Metro Moncton grew by 6.5% from 2001 to 2006, hypothetically if this 6.5% growth rate were to continue over the next 50 years, by 2056 we'd have a population of 236,000, which is less than two-thirds of what Halifax has today, and just over half the population of London, Ontario - home of the now infamous 9,100-seat John Labatt Centre. If 9,100 seats are enough for London and its population of 457,000, why would we need any more here?

We want this proposed building to last us a long time, but realistically we're still a long way from outgrowing the Coliseum in terms of seating capacity. If population keeps growing at 1.3% per year, it'll take a century before we outgrow a 9,000-seater, let alone 15,000.

[Jerry556]

ray, your taking in account with all the people that come here, kose moncton is centralised in the maritime(size of moncton itself is not the only factor). Moncton benefits a lot from it. there a couple million people living 2-3 hours drive from moncton. look at concert at the hill, just how much people its hulling here. its different compared to halifax(extreme end of the maritimes).

[Nashe]

Actually, not millions, more like 700-900k. The problem with a 15,000 seat venue is that to turn a profit, you will have to have a LOT of acts that nearly fill it to capacity... you can't pay for it with 4000-6000 attendee hockey games. You won't GET more than 2 or 3 10,000 attendee events per year anyway, even if they stop bypassing us. Hence 9,000 is just right. For now. You'll need a new building in 30 years anyway, because this one (if it's ever built) will be outdated in more ways than just capacity.

Not to mention that there are other large projects on the go right now that we're already paying for in some way (2010 track, courthouse, casino, fire station, and possibly an up-coming police station)

[StormShadow]

What about from a competition standpoint? Halifax.

If, ___________is on tour and only wants to do one show in Atlantic Canada, they are likely to choose Halifax because it has the largest population base and the largest arena. Now, if Moncton has the largest arena, shows could reconsider their choice of Halifax for Moncton instead. The T&T did mention the report does say that the concert business is a growing one.

[Nashe]

To DIRECTLY compete with Halifax (something the presenter and council indicated they really don't want to do) the venue would have to be significantly larger than the Metro Center to overcome Halifax larger population. How do you pay for a 15-17,000 seat venue with 1/3 the population and only 2 or 3 big acts per year?

[StormShadow]

I'm not saying 15-17,000 though. I'm saying no larger than 12,000. But after reading Ray McKigney's post, it does put things into perspective in terms of what Moncton can really expect.

I'm surprised that city council doesn't think it can or doesn't want to compete (steal events) with Halifax.

[mylesmalley]

Welcome to the boards, Ray McKigney!


---


I know it's tempting to say that we're within X hours of Y people. Maybe that is a factor when it comes to big shopping trips and major concerts. But I really don't see it having much impact at all for the average event. I can guarantee very few people would commute to see a Wildcats game from Fredericton or Miramichi to help fill a 12,000 seat stadium.

[BlackYear]

I would prefer to see a 10,000 permanent seat venue. Most new arenas these days are so well planned out that they are designed to accommodate several different types of sporting event s and shows.

If it’s a hockey game, you have 10k beautiful comfortable seats which should entice fans and newcomers a like to enjoy the event for 2-3 hours. A comfortable stay will have those fans coming back for more. If a hockey game doesn’t sell out, you simply curtain off the bleacher section.

If it’s a concert, the hockey boards are easily removed and replaced with expandable mini bleacher seats. The ice surface is also transformed into nice comfortable seating area. This should provide another 1500 seats.
Basically whatever the event is, the new arena should be able to transform itself into a venue to accommodate whatever act, show or sporting event there is.

Fire Marshall, forget about him. The new venue will be state of the art with plenty of entry and exit points. None of this one door entry crap!

A 10,000 venue should make everyone happy. It’s big enough for now and it should be big enough for the next 25 years. They estimate that the cost will be around $75 million for 9,000 venue. That’s affordable in my eyes. Take a look at the casino, isn’t that a $90 million dollar project? I assume the casino will pay itself off in 20 years. I’m also going to assume that the new arena will pay itself off in 25 years. And when it does, and if Moncton continues to grow at this rate, heck, you just simply blow it up and build another one! Job creation.

One other thing I like to point out, the city can’t delay the thought of building a new downtown arena, they must act now. We’re mid 2009. There’s no proposals, no plans, no architectural drawings, nothing. We only have one company’s study on the matter. By the time Moncton actually has a plan and the go ahead, it will most likely be 2010. By the time and it’s finally built and the ribbons ceremonies are taking place, it will be 2012 or 2013. That’s crazy!

I’ve said enough…I’m tired!

[Wishblade]

What about from a competition standpoint? Halifax.

If, ___________is on tour and only wants to do one show in Atlantic Canada, they are likely to choose Halifax because it has the largest population base and the largest arena. Now, if Moncton has the largest arena, shows could reconsider their choice of Halifax for Moncton instead. The T&T did mention the report does say that the concert business is a growing one.

Well if Halifax builds the 15,000 seat venue like the plan is for the not too distant future, that would be moot.

And honestly, the metro centre has a 12,000 seat max capacity in a 400,000 metro, and Moncton is getting a 9000 seat venue in a 133,000 metro. I don't see what the big deal is? :shrug:

[homebody]

When you talk of Moncton being a hub for big act concerts you are refering to acts that are used to playing in sold out stadiums, not venues that hold 9-12,000 people. Thats why the city has such a success at the hill. Here in good old Saint John we have a place called Harbour Station that holds about 7,200 for a concert, and 90% of the time when an act comes to the maritimes they come here and to Halifax. The reason being our facility here is much newer. Lets face it: the Coliseum -ucks for concerts. What Im saying is bigger is not always better. If you have a good product like we have here they will come. By the way we also draw from Fredericton for events even more-so than Moncton because we are closer. And a further note the size of the arena we have here operates on a deficit every year even with the amout of entertainment we get. Thats even with the 4 suburban communities cost sharing the facility. Good luck supporting an arena the size you are talking.

[MonctonRad]

Hey guys, long-time lurker, I felt compelled to give my two cents on this arena issue, mostly because it's the first time I've found myself disagreeing with anything on here!

I spend my day crunching numbers and also happen to be a bit of an arena geek on the side who has seen more arenas than some over-the-hill fourth-line hockey journeymen, so naturally the numerical arena geekness combo leaves me a bit concerned by how many people around town are convinced we need an enormous NHL-sized arena in Moncton to satisfy future growth.

As Myles was saying above, there are 133,000 people in the Metro Moncton area, literally about two bites out of the 12-inch pizza that is the 3.6 million in the Montreal area; the same Montreal that has one of the three largest arenas in the world at just over 21,000 seats.

As we know, Metro Moncton grew by 6.5% from 2001 to 2006, hypothetically if this 6.5% growth rate were to continue over the next 50 years, by 2056 we'd have a population of 236,000, which is less than two-thirds of what Halifax has today, and just over half the population of London, Ontario - home of the now infamous 9,100-seat John Labatt Centre. If 9,100 seats are enough for London and its population of 457,000, why would we need any more here?

We want this proposed building to last us a long time, but realistically we're still a long way from outgrowing the Coliseum in terms of seating capacity. If population keeps growing at 1.3% per year, it'll take a century before we outgrow a 9,000-seater, let alone 15,000.

Welcome Ray, thanks for a very intelligent post!

Yes, we should be careful not to overbuild the arena but we should also be cognizant of our need to build for the future. I am frankly a little appalled by the idea of planning for only a 30-40 year lifespan for the new arena. There are not that many prime building lots downtown that can accomodate a good sized arena. It could be that in 30-40 years time, land acquisition for a "new" replacement structure in the centre of the city might be quite difficult. I strongly think the horizon for the lifespan of the new arena should be considerably longer, say 50-60 years. If planned appropriately, this should be feasible.

I am not arguing for a mega-arena but perhaps a slightly larger structure, say about 10,000 seats, would be appropriate.

Regarding the Moncton "catchment area", consider the following table borrowed from the "CFL in the Maritimes" thread.

http://i27.tinypic.com/24vpnwp.jpg

There are 287,000 people within an hours drive of downtown Moncton. I think that many people would reasonably commute up to one hour for hockey games and other "minor" events at the downtown arena.

Most people however would not reasonably drive over two hours to a major event without staying overnight, but this is still 624,000 people. I think that many of the concerts and special entertainment events that could be held at a new downtown venue (eg Cirque de Soleil) could count on this as being a reasonable catchment population. This is not much different than the two hour catchment population of Halifax.

I don't like the "3 hour catchment" figures, that is too large a geographic area and encroaches too much on the catchment areas of adjacent cities.

[mylesmalley]

I'm all for building for the future. I think it's telling that design and construction these days seem to begin with an end date in mind. That said, I doubt a venue like this would have a lifespan of more than 30 years. If Moncton were to have -outstanding- growth of 10% per census, we'd still take a long time to catch up with the average size for cities with stadiums that big.

I think the best decision would be to build something in the 9 to 10k range, and if possible, build in the capacity to expand it by a few thousand when the need arises.

[mmmatt]

Look at this ugly page devoid of all colour tisk tisk! :P

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3538/3623625079_eba883d7e4_o.jpg
credit: OughtToBeShot on Flickr

[ErickMontreal]

Building permits hit $88.5M
Figures more than double total at this time last year

Published Wednesday June 17th, 2009
A1
By Brent Mazerolle
Times & Transcript Staff

With the prime construction season just under way, the City of Moncton's year-to-date building permit values have hit $88.5 million, more than two-and-a-half times what they were this time last year.

As well, thanks to developments like a new Cora's Restaurant coming to Mapleton Road and a second Nubody's gym being fitted up for Main Street, the building starts for May alone have topped $10 million.

The new Cora's, for you breakfast lovers, will be in the new building being constructed by Dr. John McManaman at the corner of Mapleton and Frampton Lane. The Nubody's, for those of you who like to work off your big breakfasts, will be on Main Street at Vaughan Harvey in the Sobey's store complex.

While the value of permits is up, the number issued so far this year, 329, is down from the 382 issued by this time last year.

Kevin Silliker, a business development officer with the City of Moncton, says the 2009 numbers to date reflect, "a healthy mix of commercial, institutional and residential construction permits."

While all development is, of course, good for a community, institutional investments by government are not in themselves a sign of a strong economy. Private investment, however, means people, "look at Moncton with confidence as a solid market to invest in on either the residential or commercial side of things," Silliker said.

In May, the dollar value of commercial and industrial building permits issued held steady at $2.2 million compared to the same period last year, despite dropping from 31 permits issued in May 2008 to the 14 commercial and industrial building permits issued in May 2009.

Residential building permits worth nearly $6.2 million represented about 60 per cent of the total value of permits issued in May 2009.

"That's a really good sign," he said.

There was, however, one new big institutional permit issued in May, and it is not for a project requiring government money. Hillside United Baptist Church has taken out a permit valued at $1,1 million for the construction of a new church. Also issued in May were a commercial building permit on Flanders Crescent, near the YMCA, valued at $428,460, and a $336,000 permit for the construction of a warehouse on Beaverbrook Street.
_________________________________________________________________________________________

Committee to explore Metro Events Centre feasibility
Consultant says a multi-purpose centre will benefit New Brunswick

Published Wednesday June 17th, 2009
A1
By Brent Mazerolle
Times & Transcript Staff

Moncton city council has voted unanimously to appoint a committee of councillors and a cross-section of private citizens to study a consultant's report on the feasibility of a Metro Events Centre for downtown that would serve the entire region.

The committee, whose members have not yet been decided, will report back to council with recommendations by October 15.

The move follows the presentation of a report by IBI Group that found there is a solid and growing market for a multi-purpose entertainment and sports facility in the Atlantic region's fastest growing metropolitan area.

IBI Group's Jonathan Hack told council a 9,000-seat facility designed to modern standards would eschew the big-box style arenas of old for a welcoming community place that would host a range of events and serve the public day to day with retail and other amenities.

With 420,000 people within a 90-minute drive, and with another 530,000 people living within a secondary market area two to 2-1/2 hours away, Hack says there's a niche for Moncton in the events and sport entertainment business that might not seem obvious if you don't look at such a facility as a regional centre.

"It means Moncton has the capacity to punch well above its weight in terms of the population that is strictly within the census metropolitan area," Hack said. "I would emphasize that this is a project that is provincial in nature."

While it might be a valuable addition to an entire region, it is the City of Moncton for the time being that must take the lead. Moncton Mayor George LeBlanc said yesterday the committee will be formed quickly and appointed at the next meeting of city council. He said it would contain a broad cross-section of citizens and, while he is initially envisioning a committee of Monctonians, he allowed there might be room for members with other strong ties to the city, such as those who own businesses in the city.

"You can be a Moncton taxpayer even if you don't live in Moncton," he said.

Saying there wasn't a specific number of members in mind, he mentioned how the citizens taxation review committee formed last year brought in a truly diverse group of ordinary citizens, as well as people from business, labour and other sectors, with the a lot of creative and divergent thinking as the result.

LeBlanc also issued a personal invitation to anyone interested in serving on the committee, saying they should contact his office at 856-4343 if they wish to be considered.

Meanwhile, the mayor said his initial reaction to the consultant's report, "is positive. I think it's a very well-researched and detailed report, and I was pleasantly surprised in a few places."

He said the consultant's insistence that a new facility wouldn't require an operating subsidy was the most obvious welcome news.

Citing examples like the Moncton Coliseum, the Crossman Community Centre-Kay Arena, Capitol Theatre, and Aberdeen Cultural Centre, he said, "the short story is we subsidize a number of facilities for the greater good of the community."

To have what would become the city's premier public place actually turn a profit that could go towards the debt incurred building it is a very attractive idea.

Further, he was heartened to hear the consultants report the experience of other communities that have seen their invested public dollars spur anywhere from a typical six-fold to more than 10-fold investment of private dollars.

"The increased tax revenue alone would offset a lot of the borrowing cost."
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Moncton hotels still have vacancies for concert weekend
150 rooms still available for week of June 24-28

Published Wednesday June 17th, 2009
A3
BY GILEAN WATTS
TIMES & TRANSCRIPT STAFF

There are still plenty of hotel rooms available in Moncton for the June 27-28 weekend, despite the Bon Jovi concert, Atlanticade, and a Jehovah's Witness convention all being held in the city at the same time.

"Some of the top brand hotels in the Greater Moncton area still have openings," said Kelly Cain, director of tourism for the City of Moncton. "There's still quite a few rooms left."

This is good news for visitors hoping to swing by Metro Moncton on one of it's busiest weekends of the summer. As of this week, there are roughly 150 vacant rooms for the week of June 24-28.

The Elmwood Hotel, Future Inns, Ramada Crystal Palace, Holiday Inn Express Airport and Magnetic Hill, Moncton Scenic Motel, Super 8 Motel, Restwell Inn, and Prayer Mountain Retreat all have several vacant rooms for the big weekend.

"There are also bed and breakfasts and campgrounds in and outside the city that still have some spots," Cain said.

The Moncton Music Festival, with Bon Jovi headlining, takes the stage June 27 at the Magnetic Hill Concert Site, and is expected to bring inthousands of visitors from across the Maritimes.

The Jehovah's Witness district convention takes place June 26-28 at the Coliseum Agrena.

The third annual Atlanticade is set for June 24-28, and brings in up to 10,000 motorcyclists from across the country.

* Cain said anyone needing help finding accommodations should call Moncton Tourism at 1-800-363-45587.

[MonctonRad]

So, we now have a range of solid figures for the greater Moncton catchment area...........

CMA..........................133,000
60 minute drive...........287,000
90 minute drive...........420,000
2 hr drive...................624,000
3 hr drive................ 1,333,000

I really like the 90 minute figure, I think this is a reasonable commute for most events.

It should be noted that the darkest nether regions of HRM are much more than 90 minutes from downtown Halifax.

[gehrhardt]

And so it begins... Now there's a 4 month study to review the study. I think having this thing built by 2012 is wishful thinking. :haha:

I think 9000 is a good number. It should be built in a way that allows for future expansion, though. Harbour Station was built with supports for extra seats on the west end of the arena. I don't think they have used them yet, but the option is there if down the road they are needed.

As for Harbour Station running a deficit, that can be expected when it is built in an isolated part of uptown (is it even considered uptown?) with nothing more than the arena itself to support it. There is a cliff face, a highway, and 2 overpasses surrounding the building. Even with the pedway, it's still out of the way for most people working uptown.

Not to knock Harbour Station as I think it's a great facility (I even had Flames season tickets, so I've spent a bit of time there) but really, it's completely dead most of the week. I worked uptown until 2005, so maybe things have changed since then, but at that time there was no activity at all during most weekdays except for people coming and going from the paid parking lot (me included).

If this new arena has storefronts and possibly eating establishments in it, along with a square or park, that is a lot of extra income for the facility, making it more viable. Even revenue from a possible parking structure would add to the coffers. :tup:

[benvui]

So we wait again for the next committee review. They already know what should be done, get on with it, get some designs, put out tenders and build it!

As for the debate on the size, I'm thinking between 9000 and 10000 is probably lots. More than likely what will happen is now instead of shows going to to Saint John and Halifax with possible multiple nights in one of those venues, they'll stop at all 3. So saying people from Saint John would come to a show in Moncton is probably a moot point since the show will be at Habour Station too (which in my opinion is one of the nicer arenas around).
What it does mean however, is that with the 3 venues the 3 cities will likely be able to attract a more divers amount of shows. Having 3 venues within 4 hours of each other, it would be cheaper for them to come and do 3 shows rather than just the two they currently are doing.

All in all it should be a big help for the economy not just in Moncton, but Saint John and Halifax as well. I really wish that the cities would stop competing with each other and start working together to make these things happen.

[StormShadow]

And so it begins... Now there's a 4 month study to review the study. I think having this thing built by 2012 is wishful thinking. :haha:

That will lead to the traffic study and site study, or will it be the other way around? :haha:

[MonctonRad]

:previous:

Don't forget the parking study! :haha: :haha: :haha:

[mylesmalley]

And the environmental impact study. Come on, people!

And the official naming commission, soil analysis...

[Nashe]

As to planning for a 60-year-lifespan building, I don't think that's possible, especially in this day and age. Don't just think about seating, that's only one aspect. I regularly work on infrastructure in the existing Coliseum and buildings that were never designed with today's power and IT requirements are a real pain. Plus, stuff just plain wears out.

[MonctonRad]

As to planning for a 60-year-lifespan building, I don't think that's possible, especially in this day and age. Don't just think about seating, that's only one aspect. I regularly work on infrastructure in the existing Coliseum and buildings that were never designed with today's power and IT requirements are a real pain. Plus, stuff just plain wears out.

That's a peculiarly North American approach to architectural design. I know where you are coming from, but there are many public structures in Europe that are hundreds of years old and are still functional. A significant public building such as this should be built with durability in mind.

There are local precedents as well, I work at the Moncton Hospital and there are sections of the complex that are nearly 60 years old and still in full use. Given the state of government health care funding, I wouldn't be surprised if these parts of the hospital will still be around in another 60 years!

[MonctonRad]

There has been considerable progress on the northern portion of the fifth floor of the Casino Hotel. I believe this will be the top floor of the hotel but the rendering of this building had shown a fairly large roof so in the end, this will be an impressively large building. This whole complex will dramatically alter the appearances of this part of Mountain Road. The new hotel dwarfs the adjacent Amsterdam Inn.

According to CBC radio this morning, the cost of the casino complex now tops $100M. Also, The Palladium (the convention centre portion of the complex) is already booking conventions for the summer of 2010. This will be the largest convention facility in metro Moncton.

Finally, there is some activity going on at the Motel 6 construction site; also next to the casino. they appear to be starting to put in the footings at this site.

Magnetic Hill is hopping!! :banana: :banana: :banana:

[Nashe]

There are local precedents as well, I work at the Moncton Hospital and there are sections of the complex that are nearly 60 years old and still in full use.Yeah, I've seen some of them. :D Not sure that helps your argument, in my eyes. :DGiven the state of government health care funding, I wouldn't be surprised if these parts of the hospital will still be around in another 60 years!Quoted for truth!

[JasonL-Moncton]

There is major work now going on on the Costco side of the new bridge over Wheeler at Mapleton...they were erecting some sort of major pillar type structure this morning when I flew by. They had erected some steel girders yesterday...

[mmmatt]

Traffic on Mapleton has become unbearable at lunch and supper time...took me 30 mins to travel from mountain rd to trinity yesterday...they should make the whole street at least 4 lanes so this never happens again (at least for a while).

[mylesmalley]

The city should close Mapleton from Carson to Trinity for the summer. It'd be so much faster if they built the overpass without having to redirect traffic every time something needs to get done on a lane in use. Drivers on Wheeler would still have access to the north side of Mapleton, Trinity etc, and westbound onto Carson and Plaza Blvd. A small inconvenience now will save a lot of people headaches in the future.


As to Matt's point, I'm not sure if the plan is to widen Mapleton to four lanes all the way to Mountain. As far as I know, the road will stay 3 lanes from Carson/Plaza south to Mountain.

[acrew79]

Morning everyone,

just to change the subject a bit.. to get off the "Metro" centre and Trinity issues...

The Porperty ajacent to the Greco Pizza & condos/apartments right accross from Loundsbury's/ Funeral Home has finally sold.. it looks as thought the developer of that new 3 store stripmall .. the one that occupies the Lighting store and the Home Decore store.. is expanding.. and creating 2 more 3-store buildings.. to form sort of a Square Plaza.. parking being in the middle..

The are posting up the signs today.. if you can get through the Mapleton Construction.. the Trinity Confusion and the Mountain Road Resurfassing.. its nice to see..

Cheers !
:cheers:

[C_Boy]

Morning everyone,

just to change the subject a bit.. to get off the "Metro" centre and Trinity issues...

The Porperty ajacent to the Greco Pizza & condos/apartments right accross from Loundsbury's/ Funeral Home has finally sold.. it looks as thought the developer of that new 3 store stripmall .. the one that occupies the Lighting store and the Home Decore store.. is expanding.. and creating 2 more 3-store buildings.. to form sort of a Square Plaza.. parking being in the middle..

The are posting up the signs today.. if you can get through the Mapleton Construction.. the Trinity Confusion and the Mountain Road Resurfassing.. its nice to see..

Cheers !
:cheers:

That would explain why they built that building perpendicular to Mountain road.

[Jerry556]

its nice to see stuff getting built, but am getting tire to see these cheap looking strip malls going up allover the place!!

[MonctonRad]

:previous:

This particular strip mall is actually a nice one and if it is their intention to build two additional buildings in a horseshoe arrangement, it should be quite attractive.

My main concern is that it is located close to a small "rise' on Mountain Road and therefore access I think is a little dangerous.

I agree though, there are way too many strip malls on Mountain road.

[acrew79]

IN addition to what i wrote earlier.. the sign was only Partially on the posts.. and there were two guys working..

now im second guessing and wondering if they were taking it down or putting one up..

i dont recall the sign there having a development picture on it before..
i could be wrong..

hopefully it was being erected rather than torn down.

Sorry for any confusion guys

[MonctonRad]

Casino eyes million visitors a year
Published Thursday June 18th, 2009

Enterprise Greater Moncton touts city's economic success at annual breakfast
BY ALAN COCHRANE
TIMES & TRANSCRIPT STAFF

Metro Moncton's new casino is expected to draw upwards of a million visitors a year, create over 400 jobs and pump many millions of dollars into the local economy.

It will also help change New Brunswick from a "drive-through" province into a destination, developer Michael Novac told about 400 of Metro Moncton's business movers and shakers during a downtown breakfast meeting yesterday.

"The casino will benefit other businesses around it," he said.

Novac, president of the Sonco Group of Halifax, said the casino expects to draw roughly 845,000 visitors in its first year of operation and grow from there as it becomes more popular as a destination for bus tours, conventions and special events. The casino is now under construction near Magnetic Hill and is expected to open next spring.

The complex will include the casino, palladium and hotel/restaurant buildings connected together with such features as a 68-seat restaurant, spa, pool and gymnasium.

Novak said yesterday that developers kept the number of rooms to a rather low 128 so it would spread the benefits to other businesses around it. He said this is a different approach than is used in places like Las Vegas where individual casino complexes do all they can to capture and hold customers (and their money) for the entire length of their stay.

The $100-million casino is being built without government funding but the provincial government stands to get about $25 million a year from the casino's gaming revenue. The province's piece of the action was guaranteed when the Request For Proposals for the casino clearly stated that money from the gambling operations would be split 50-50 between the casino owner and the provincial government.

The situation is the same across the country with the exception of Saskatchewan and Ontario which give a small percentage to the municipalities.

Mayor George LeBlanc says it would be nice if the city could get some of that money and put it toward fixing roads or perhaps building a new downtown Metro Events Centre. The casino project promises to give the city about $1.62 million a year in property taxes, but LeBlanc says the responsibility still falls on the city to provide police, fire protection and other infrastructure to support it.

When it opens next spring, the casino complex will employ about 400 people, many of whom will be moving to Moncton. The palladium will include an entertainment complex capable of seating about 1,800 people but the seats will be removable to accommodate an even larger standing crowd for concerts and shows. The casino is partnering with a booking agency to bring in about 60 shows a year.

Novac said the casino will promote itself as a destination to tourists, convention planners and tour operators in Canada and especially in Maine, which, in turn, should help Metro Moncton. Other casinos, like the one in Halifax, regularly offer cut-rate bus tours to attract visitors on day trips.

The casino will be the first of its kind in New Brunswick and be complete with an iconic lighthouse tower as part of its design. He said Moncton was best suited for the casino because of it is a positive and forward-thinking progressive community that is investment friendly.

Novac was guest speaker yesterday as Enterprise Greater Moncton staged its ninth annual Community Development Breakfast, celebrating the city's ability to continue booming in the shadow of economic crisis.

[MonctonRad]

IN addition to what i wrote earlier.. the sign was only Partially on the posts.. and there were two guys working..

now im second guessing and wondering if they were taking it down or putting one up..

i dont recall the sign there having a development picture on it before..
i could be wrong..

hopefully it was being erected rather than torn down.

Sorry for any confusion guys

No confusion at all acrew, I drove by there this evening and can confirm that they have erected a new sign on the site showing three adjacent buildings in a horseshoe arrangement around a central parking area. The new buildings will be the same style as the existing building.

I think it will be quite nice looking and of high quality (for a strip mall). :tup:

[mmmatt]

No confusion at all acrew, I drove by there this evening and can confirm that they have erected a new sign on the site showing three adjacent buildings in a horseshoe arrangement around a central parking area. The new buildings will be the same style as the existing building.

I think it will be quite nice looking and of high quality (for a strip mall). :tup:

exactly...Its easily one of the nicest strip mall designs Ive seen in town and it actually looks a heck of a lot better than most of the surrounding architecture, so I say go for it.

[benvui]

Is it me or did they paint the lines wrong on the Dieppe traffic circle?

[Sony500]

:previous: I am not sure if its wrong, or if they changed it. Kind of sucks if you ask me. Here they go again changing stuff because they think its dangerous or something.

[Sony500]

Hotel levy to fund Metro Events Centre?
Moncton city council, hoteliers discuss possible surcharge on rooms.
By Brent Mazerolle
Times & Transcript Staff

A two per cent hotel room levy, standard in most jurisdictions, would have brought more than $1 million into Metro Moncton in 2008 had one been in place here.

With Moncton city council and the local hoteliers association having met this week to explore the idea of a room levy, and a new report on the possibility of generating tourism with a downtown Metro Events Centre presented to Moncton city council this week, there's a collision of ideas in the air.

Could a hotel levy help raise money for a new multi-use entertainment centre or pay down the costs of running the Coliseum Agrena complex? Or should it be spent on marketing and subsidizing events?

Whatever the purpose, there appears to be a general consensus it's an idea whose time has come.

The Delta Beauséjour's Ray Roberge, who leads the area's hoteliers association, says, "the majority of municipalities in the free world have them. We're behind on this."

Having said that, he noted his organization met with the City of Moncton's administrative and legal affairs committee this week at the city's request, not the other way around.

Meanwhile, Moncton Mayor George LeBlanc, said, "I think it's a positive thing. It hasn't hurt any of the places that have one. Nobody ever argues it."

Most jurisdictions around the globe have room levies of one sort or another, and while each jurisdiction may have different purposes and breakdowns for how the money is spent, the money, be it dollars or dinars, typically goes to fund tourism marketing or tourism infrastructure.

We've all seen similar fees almost anywhere we've travelled in the world, but for a few local examples, there's Halifax's two per cent rate, which usually adds about $5 to a hotel bill because of much higher room rates, as well as the two per cent charged in both Saint John and Charlottetown and the flat $1.50 fee charged in Bathurst.

In St. John's, it's three per cent and two-thirds of the funds raised go to paying for the city's Mile One Stadium.

In 2008, 477,849 hotel rooms were sold in Metro Moncton, (more than one-quarter of the provincial total). Using Moncton's $110 per night "ADR" -- as the average daily room rate is known in the travel industry -- and adding a two per cent levy, which is typical, means more than $1 million would have been raised last year had a levy been in place.

Mayor LeBlanc, who has said since he campaigned for mayor that he would seek creative ways to fund a multi-use entertainment complex for downtown, expressed interest in the experience of St. John's, where part of the money funds the city's key events centre.

"I would like to see a portion go to a capital reserve fund for things like the Coliseum or a Metro Centre. For instance, with a downtown Metro Centre, if we had had a tourism levy in a capital reserve, we'd be in a much better position now."

Back in 2002, Moncton city council led by Mayor Brian Murphy looked at the idea of a levy to fund expansions to the Coliseum Agrena complex or to fund a convention centre, but the idea stalled.

By some very rough math that assumes compound interest would offset slightly less hotel room sales between 2002 and 2006 (2007's numbers were slightly better than 2008's), you could estimate a hotel levy would have raised $7 million so far, had council acted at the time.

But council couldn't act then and apparently can't act now, as the Municipalities Act does not give New Brunswick cities the authority to collect such fees. The fees collected in Saint John and Bathurst are done by area hospitality associations and are not entrenched in any municipal bylaws, the way fees are in Charlottetown, Halifax and St. John's, all in provinces whose provincial laws are more up to date.

Roberge, who has personally seen such levies managed well and managed badly in his hotel career across Canada and in Japan and Bermuda, says the association wants something enshrined in law before moving forward.

For while Roberge and LeBlanc don't seem to agree on the use of levy funds -- Roberge rejected the idea of an automatic percentage going to fund municipal infrastructure -- they do seem to agree that no one will move forward unless the province provides enabling legislation.

The hotel association is also cautious to insist the money raised by a levy must be extra revenue to use for marketing, and shouldn't end up replacing the level of support given to such initiatives now.

What's at stake? Looking at how the local numbers might shape up in the months to come, the negative side is the local trade is down 25,000 room nights in the first five months of 2009. The bright side is Casino New Brunswick, which will open next spring, is expected to draw 845,000 visitors in its first year and rise steadily to the one million mark from there. While all those visitors won't be spending the night, the casino will be an undeniable draw for people across a broad region of Atlantic Canada, and the state of Maine, according to Sonco Group CEO Michael Novac.

Some jurisdictions in North America actually have room levies of three per cent, and the multiplication factors are obvious, should this area follow their lead. In Alberta, where there is no provincial sales tax, the rate is four per cent province-wide, with an extra percentage point tacked on in Edmonton and Calgary.

What's being talked about in our region is a levy being collected and managed by a non-profit board, a Destination Marketing Organization, or DMO, set up by the hotel industry. Again there's a split in how levies are handled elsewhere, with some being managed by the hospitality industry and others managed by municipalities or larger political entities.

[David_99]

Speaking of Strip Malls, I noticed all of the tenants, minus M&M Meats, has moved out of the strip mall across from Champlain. Is Dieppe finally going to widen Paul St?

[josh_cat_eyes]

Speaking of Strip Malls, I noticed all of the tenants, minus M&M Meats, has moved out of the strip mall across from Champlain. Is Dieppe finally going to widen Paul St?
My guess is yes, but they are likely just waiting for the lease to run out.

[MonctonRad]

from "the Sleuth"

As news junkies will know, there has been much discussion recently about ABU, the Atlantic Baptist University, which has ambitious expansion plans, hopes to become an English-speaking counterpart to our French-speaking Université de Moncton, and has received considerable government funding despite being a private institution. But are there plans afoot to change? To gradually turn ABU into a public institution? Some inquiring minds think it may be possible, something the administration is inching towards. With that in mind, Sleuth finds it intriguing that this week he received an anonymous tip that there is a rumour going around town that ABU is considering changing its name to Crandall University, after William Crandall, a Salisbury-born Baptist pastor who was instrumental in the growth and life of the church in the Maritimes and New Brunswick in the early 19th century, and who from 1836 to his death in 1858 he was president of the New Brunswick Baptist Education Society. It'd be a fitting name, but is it going to fly? This wouldn't be the first time a name change was proposed, only to see the idea wither away. . .

For ABU to become fully accepted as Moncton's "anglophone" university, there will have to be several changes take place.

An expanded campus with increased course offerings is mandatory. Happily this is taking place and within a few years, there will be at least five buildings on campus. Science offerings however will still be dodgy, with only a B.Sc. in biology available. This will have to be addressed.

The university will have to seperate itself somewhat from it's religious origins. This does not mean that these origins should be ignored. Mt. A. has it's origins in the Methodist faith and is still affiliiated with the United Church. The United Church Conference is still held at Mount Allison every spring. St. F.X. and St. Thomas are Catholic institutions, Acadia University is Baptist and UNB started as an Anglican institution, although in the latter case, there is little left of this original affiliation.

What ABU has to do is embrace inclusiveness in it's mandate and to seek operational funding from the Maritime Provinces Higher Education Commission. This will necessarily mean ABU becoming a publically funded university but this will also allow the university to grow and flourish and to become the true anglophone alternative to U de M that Moncton needs.

A more inclusive name is also a good idea but I'm not sure I like Crandall University, I prefer something a little more "sexy".......something like University College of the Petitcodiac. :)

[gehrhardt]

:previous: What, Sexy like the isotope crisis? It had to be said... :jester:

Since I live in Salisbury, Crandall University sounds good to me. I doubt ABU will distance it's name too far from it's Baptist roots, however.

[mylesmalley]

I sure hope they change their name. If they want to be seen as a credible public institution anywhere outside of new brunswick, they're going to need to adopt a more 'secular' name. I don't mind Crandall University. I think it sounds distinguished. Barring that, maybe Westmoreland University, Atlantic University, Codiac University...

[JasonL-Moncton]

I would love to see ABU become a full fledged English university and the name change would be great. Crandall University sounds fine, and keeps their connection to their religious beginnings.

JL

[MonctonRad]

Old jail property key to city's growth
Published Monday June 22nd, 2009

Moncton Detention Centre will likely be declared surplus when it is replaced by new jail in 2011
BY ALAN COCHRANE
TIMES & TRANSCRIPT STAFF

It's still a couple of years away but property developers are starting to think about the opportunities and possibilities for the old Moncton Detention Centre building after it is shut down and its services moved to a new provincial jail in the Shediac area.

With a new provincial jail being built in Shediac, many are wondering when the current jail property in downtown Moncton will become available for redevelopment. "I think a lot of people have their eyes on it but they're waiting to see the nail down date on when it will be available, but once it's gone it will be a prime spot for development. It could be spot of our new Metro Centre, who knows," says Downtown Moncton Centre-Ville executive-director Daniel Allain.

"That is definitely prime property and I'm confident it won't remain vacant very long. It will see development but right now it's too early to say," says John Thompson, CEO of Enterprise Greater Moncton.

Located on Assomption Boulevard downtown, the Moncton Detention Centre lies smack-dab in the centre of a prime redevelopment area behind the 20-storey Assomption Life building next to the site of the new courthouse now under construction. It's a busy downtown spot near the Assumption Building which is home to businesses offices, services, local courtrooms and the Service New Brunswick centre. Just a stone's throw away is the Blue Cross building, which is also filled with offices and the Moncton Public Library, so people walking through the parking lot often give a wide berth to the aging brick building surrounded by a chain link fence topped with razor wire.

In recent years the detention centre has often been looked upon with scorn by developers and planners who were trying to make use of the valuable land.

Thompson said several developers, both locally and from away, have expressed interest in the property but haven't made any real proposals. However, he said the courthouse and other buildings around the area indicate that there will be a need for perhaps more office space, condominiums, restaurants and other services as the downtown continues to grow in the future.

"The detention centre land is owned by the province and we would hope to pick it up when the detention centre is vacated," said Moncton Mayor George LeBlanc. "It certainly is a key piece of the downtown core and a vibrant downtown is one of our priorities, so we would be looking for a way to make that fit in with future downtown development and a way to use that property in a way that promotes vibrancy and prosperity downtown, but we don't have any specific plans at this time."

The detention centre was first constructed in the 1960s as the Moncton Police Station and became a provincial jail when the police force moved to its current building in 1980. The detention centre is a provincial jail serving southeastern New Brunswick where male inmates are held on remand as they wait for a court appearance, and serve sentences of under two years. Offenders who are sentenced to more than two years are carted off to a federal institution. The Department of Public Safety says the jail has a staff of about 60 people and goes through about 1,200 inmates a year. But the jail is overcrowded and will be replaced by a new facility in Shediac which is scheduled to open in 2011. The new jail will be substantially larger and have a capacity for up to 150 inmates. While it is occupied by the Department of Public Safety, the building is actually owned and managed by the Department of Supply and Services.

"Once the client vacates the premises, it will be inspected and valued and offered to other government departments. If no other government departments want it, it will be offered to the municipality. If the municipality doesn't want it, then it would go out to public tender and a private developer could obtain it," Supply and Services spokeswoman Chrystiane Mallaley said.

When it was built in the 1960s, Assomption Boulevard was known as Commercial Street and looked very different than it does now. In recent years, the back street along the river has been transformed into a waterfront park with new condominiums, office buildings, and recreational facilities like the skateboard park. And the old Commercial Street fire station across the street from the jail is now being transformed into a youth centre.

Assomption Boulevard has become a major link between Main Street and the new Gunningsville Bridge to Riverview. The new courthouse, now under construction and expected to be ready for next year, will likely spur more development in the area but the final location of a new Metro Events Centre is still unknown.

Has anyone else noticed that the T&T is starting to call the proposed downtown arena the "Metro Events Centre" rather than Metro Centre?

[David_99]

Has anyone else noticed that the T&T is starting to call the proposed downtown arena the "Metro Events Centre" rather than Metro Centre?

Yep and they are still throwing a mention of it in every article they can.

[mylesmalley]

Yes. As if that's some kind of big improvement.

[mike4190]

I am from the Moncton area and have been living in Calgary for the past 6 years. I read this forum each day to keep up on the current construction in Moncton. I was wondering if it would be possible to have some pics from assumption place as were posted earlier. The view from the web camera is not the best.

Thanks

[mylesmalley]

Welcome to the boards, Mike!

[MonctonRad]

So.......Royal Oaks Golf Course is now in receivership.

Is anyone out there interested in buying some newly available pastureland off of Elmwood Drive/Irishtown Rd.? :haha:

[StormShadow]

Looks like Bing (formerly MS) updated the Moncton aerial map. Google still 5 years behind.

[mylesmalley]

I agree the maps are more current than those used by Google, but I don't think MS has updated the maps. They look to be identical to the ones I use in my project maps.




EDIT

...although I intentionally made the ones I stitched together darker for readability/usability purposes.

[MonctonRad]

They've erected the fake lighthouse at the casino!!!!!

:notacrook: :banana: :tomato: :rock: :dancing: :banger: :thrasher:

[MonctonRad]

And on a more serious and less preposterous note......

Former Governor-General Romeo LeBlanc died today.

Given his stellar credentials as an ex MP, federal cabinet minister, senator, speaker of the senate and Governor-General; I would not be at all surprised if, within the next 18-24 months, we will witness the renaming of the Greater Moncton International Airport to the Moncton-Romeo LeBlanc International Airport, just along the same lines as the Halifax-Robert L. Stanfield International Airport.

[mylesmalley]

Isn't it already HRM Queen Elizabeth II International Airport? I remember hearing that some time ago when she visited...

[MonctonRad]

:previous:

I don't believe so.

HRM The Queen certainly officially opened the GMIA, but I don't think the facility was named for her. In fact, at the time, I remember some talk about naming the airport for Romeo even then. It was felt however to be inappropriate to name a public facility such as an airport after a living person. Now that he is dead, all bets are off.

[riverviewer]

Isn't it already HRM Queen Elizabeth II International Airport? I remember hearing that some time ago when she visited...

As I recall, the Queen's visit was timed perfectly for the official naming of the Airport. At that time, Roméo LeBlanc's name was rumoured to be the choice to honor the Airport. This was stopped by an issue with protocol. It was not considered appropriate to name the facility after a living politician. If this be true, it makes sense that this honor may now be bestowed, post mortem.

I, for one, support it.

[riverviewer]

Hey, MonctonRad, I just saw that you had said the same thing many hours earlier. I need to remember to refresh my browser before replying :)

On a different topic, there is a new hole being dug in Riverview's Findlay Park. Looks like a foundation is being prepared on the lot behind the Esso/Tims on Pinewood. Does anyone know what might be going on there?

[mylesmalley]

:previous: Ahh. Makes sense. I can certainly see some protocol-related issues arising from a monarch naming a facility after a direct subordinate - living or not. He held the highest position in the land, but still 'technically' had to report to the big girl across the pond.

[gehrhardt]

That fake lighthouse is quite large. After seeing it yesterday, I think they should just leave it as is. The white framing looks really cool! :D

They should put a big spotlight on the top of it, shooting straight up. :)

[MonctonRad]

:previous:

You never know.......maybe they plan to have a rotating searchlight at the top sort of mimicking a real lighthouse! :haha:

[mylesmalley]

Don't even joke about that...

[Sony500]

They fixed the lines going around the traffic circle, they had to use black paint to make the broken lines
I really don't think the Detention center property would be big enough for an events center

[MonctonRad]

Hiring climate in Metro Moncton is red hot
Published Saturday June 27th, 2009

Construction jobs lead the way in nation's fifth hottest job market
By James Foster
Times & Transcript Staff

Moncton area employers expect an optimistic hiring climate for the third quarter of 2009, according to the latest Manpower Employment Outlook Survey.

http://harvest.canadaeast.com/image.php?id=319057&size=500x0
Workers work on the foundation of the new courthouse on Westmorland St.

Survey data reveals that 30 per cent of employers plan to hire for the upcoming quarter (July to September,) while 10 per cent intend to reduce their workforce, says Mindy Stoltz of Manpower's Moncton office. Another 60 per cent expect to maintain their current staffing levels for the coming quarter.

That means Moncton, with its Net Employment Outlook of 20 per cent, boasts the fifth most active job market in Canada, down from last year's figures for the third quarter but up over the previous quarter of this year. The NEO is calculated by subtracting the percentage of employers who plan to lay off staff from the number of employers who plan to hire.

"Moncton's third quarter Net Employment Outlook of 20 per cent is a 27 percentage point decrease from the same time last year when employers reported an outlook of 47 per cent," Stoltz says.

"However, it is on par with the outlook reported in the previous quarter indicating a steady hiring climate for the third quarter of 2009."

The Moncton area's hiring climate outpaces the national rate significantly, particularly in the construction sector.

Nationally, Moncton's net employment outlook of 20 per cent is topped only by Fort Erie, Ont. (22 per cent); Victoria (23 per cent); Fredericton (23 per cent); and Charlottetown (24 per cent.)

The quarterly survey suggests that for the Atlantic region, the most jobs available later this summer will be in the Construction sector, with an employment outlook of 36 per cent.

Hiring is also expected to be brisk in the Public Administration sector, with an outlook of 32 per cent, as well as Wholesale and Retail Trade, which boasts an NEO of 30 per cent.

The service sector in Atlantic Canada reports an outlook of 24 per cent, while Finance, Insurance & Real Estate estimates a 20 per cent outlook.

The gloomiest outlook lies in Manufacturing, at minus 14 per cent, Manpower says.

A quarter-to-quarter comparison shows that hiring intentions are up in Mining, Transportation, Public Utilities and some other sectors. Year-to-year comparisons show declines in Manufacturing and Mining, in particular.

Hiring is expected to be slower nationally, on average, than in Metro Moncton.

"This quarter's national Net Employment Outlook indicates that the modest hiring climate reported in the previous quarter will continue," says Lori Rogers, VP Staffing Services for Manpower Canada.

"Canadian employers are indicating that they will expand their payrolls but at a weaker pace than in the previous quarter."

Of the 10 surveyed sectors nationally, employers in the Public Administration sector report the most encouraging results for the July to September period of 2009 with a projected Net Employment Outlook of nine per cent once seasonal variations are removed from the data.

In the Finance, Insurance and Real Estate sector employers anticipate a mild quarter with a seasonally adjusted outlook of eight per cent, and with a seasonally adjusted Net Employment Outlook of six per cent, employers in the construction sector, nationally, prepare for a modest hiring climate later this summer.

The worst outlooks for the Atlantic region were found in Saint John and St. John's, both at 13 per cent.

In the survey, employers are asked "How do you anticipate total employment at your location to change in the three months to the end of September, 2009, as compared to the current quarter?"

The margin of error is not greater than plus or minus 3.9 per cent and the margin of error is plus or minus 2.2 per cent.

The data is seasonally adjusted.

[C_Boy]

Does anyone know what is going on in front of Valhala Plaza ? (Northern end of Mountain rd) There is a house there that I noticed they were expanding. But now I see that there is a huge cinder block wall as well as some tall corner piece. It doesint look like it is going to be a house anymore....Maybe not... anyone know ?

[MonctonRad]

:previous:

No idea........it is indeed a mystery building, and an ugly one to boot! All you can see when driving inbound on Mountain Road is this large cinderblock wall.

Whatever it is, it is commercial.

[Sony500]

Just want to say that the Magnetic Hill Music Festival was an awesome concert. Lots of compliments from Burton Cummings on the site!

[stephan.richard]

@Champlain will we have to wait two years to see who will fill the buck or two location or the stokes temp location in th Champlain place?

[MonctonRad]

ABU Expansion Plans

Depicted below are images acquired from the ABU Capital Campaign website detailing their plans for the future expansion of the campus.

Please note that they have included a rough plan for even more expansion in the future that would include an additional academic building on the north side of the athletic field, that would virtually encircle the track facility.

http://www.futurefoundations.ca/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/abu-site-plan.jpg
Site plan - note shaded area to the left for future expansion

http://www.futurefoundations.ca/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/abu-teaching-facility.jpg
Overview - the new arena is just out of view to the top left

http://www.futurefoundations.ca/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/abu-facility-renewal.jpg
Entrance to the new academic building

http://www.futurefoundations.ca/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/abu-apt-complex.jpg
New student residence

http://www.futurefoundations.ca/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/abu-arena.jpg
New arena

[mylesmalley]

...ambitious. It'd be nice to see the new athletic building a little closer to the rest of the facility. All in all though, it looks like they're off to a good start.

[MonctonRad]

:previous:

Perhaps they want the new arena close to the Trans Canada Highway in order to give increased visibility to the campus.

[mmmatt]

Wow, ABU has some awesome plans! I hope they see this all to fruition :)

Love the glass in the new academics building for sure and the pedway/courtyard are cool...gives it a lot more of a "university feel".

[C_Boy]

Yes I agree, very nice. I really hope this all takes place and it turns into a top notch university that we can be very proud of one day. We really need a good big english University in Moncton.

[mylesmalley]

I still say they're going to be limiting themselves if they don't move towards being a more secular institution.

[C_Boy]

I still say they're going to be limiting themselves if they don't move towards being a more secular institution.

Like others mentioned before, there has to be a name change and as well as a few other things changed. Becoming public will finalise it if the other necessary changes are made. There is definitely a lot of potential.

[Jerry556]

just noticed today that they already installed second and half of the third floor of the office building on the corner of main st and vaugh harvey. too bad they chopped a floor off the project. lots of dirt piles and excavation vehicle at the proposed condos, apartments(robichaud condos), does anybody know if they re starting or are these just roadwork crew equipment??

[mylesmalley]

There have been piles of dirt there for a while, but I don't recall there being any heavy equipment there before. Maybe they're just doing some site cleanup. As far as I know, they still haven't brought anything forward to city council.

[C_Boy]

I know it's not development and it sort of classifies to be in the Maritime Concert Scene Thread due to the stage and music, but since it was downtown I thought I would talk about it here. I'm assuming some of you went downtown yesterday. I was really impressed this year. They had a good set up and there was a lot of people. More than what I expected, aside from the fireworks of course! They had those bouncy castles, face painting and games for the kids and food vendors along with the stage and bleechers.

[mylesmalley]

I didn't make it downtown yesterday, but I the half-hour traffic jam on Coverdale Rd at 10:30pm should be a good indicator as to the popularity of the fireworks. I've never been a fan of the proposed Bridgedale Blvd, but I can certainly concede having that road in place would have made things a lot easier in Gunningsville last night.

Admittedly though, the fireworks weren't as good as in years past. I guess the city is trying to cut back.

[Britishbulldog]

I didn't make it downtown yesterday, but I the half-hour traffic jam on Coverdale Rd at 10:30pm should be a good indicator as to the popularity of the fireworks. I've never been a fan of the proposed Bridgedale Blvd, but I can certainly concede having that road in place would have made things a lot easier in Gunningsville last night.

Admittedly though, the fireworks weren't as good as in years past. I guess the city is trying to cut back.

My family were trying to figure out when they were over. After the second stall my son and I were sure they were finished only to see the fireworks start up a third time.

Here's to next year!

[mylesmalley]

Welcome to the boards, Bridgebulldog!

I didnt' mention the start/stopping but you're absolutely right. After the second gap a lot of the people around us started heading out. I'm more inclined to think that was due to technical difficulties though.

[Sony500]

My daughter said they took the time to sing O Canada before the finale.
I was sitting on my roof watching them from 3 kms away so i couldn't hear.

[mylesmalley]

Sorry Britishbulldog! Turns out it's harder to read compound words when you've had a few too many down at the Pump House.

[mylesmalley]

From the Sleuth today:

Sleuth's sources in the Elmwood Drive area slipped him a juicy bit of rumour this week.

It's no secret the huge tract of land that houses Les Filles de Jesus religious congregation on Elmwood Drive has been coveted by developers for many years. That section of the city is growing rapidly as housing pushes out Irishtown Road.

Now comes word the ink is freshy dry on a new deal by the nuns to sell their mother house to the folks from Sobeys. Sleuth's operatives in the T&T have tried to confirm this rumour without success.

Let's just say the nuns have taken a vow of silence. And Sobeys is also being tight-lipped.

But Sleuth hears the grocery giant has plans to tear down the convent and build a new Lawton's Drug Store and possibly a new Sobeys store. The nearest Sobeys outlets are located in Dieppe and Trinity so there is a built-in customer base for another store.

The remaining members of Les Filles' congregation, meanwhile, are due to be moved to seniors' homes and other smaller religious houses around Metro Moncton.

The mother house is a massive and majestic building but far too large for the dwindling congregation to keep up.

Stay tuned for more details on this development as the summer unfolds.

__________


Gotta say, Sobeys is really starting to get on my nerves. It was bad enough that they built that monstrosity on Main St. Now they want to tear down an iconic building in the city's east end to put up another massive box store? It's a terrible shame to see the city's nicest areas get blighted with big box stores. There are dozens of places in town that would be just as suitable and with a close proximity to a growing customer base.

[Jerry556]

how do you put photos on here without putting them on a website??

[BlackYear]

how do you put photos on here without putting them on a website??

You can't, not on this forum. Some web forum will allow you to upload your photos to their server, but not skyscraper.

You'll need to upload your photos to a web site somewhere. There are plenty of free photo hosting/sharing web sites out there. ie: photobucket.com

Once you have created an account and uploaded your photo, you will normally see a URL code, image code or whatever. Simply copy/paste this code in your post. ie: enter URL image code here

You must enter the code between the tags . There are more instructions in the bbCode Guide of this site when creating a post, just above the Smilies section.

You can also right click any image on this forum to see the URL location of the pic.

That's it. Now post them pics!

[gehrhardt]

Besides tearing down that nice looking building, putting a Sobey's/Lawtons there would leave some other vacancies. Just down Elmwood is the Price Chopper grocery store that would most likely close, since it's owned by Sobey's. There is a Lawtons along that stretch too that would close.

All in all, I hope the rumours aren't true.

There's plenty of room to build the Sobey's off of McLaughlin, close to L'Odysee school. Why tear down a building for it? :koko: Remodel and turn it into offices or apartments.

[MonctonRad]

I don't know what to make of this Sobey's news.......

There are already five Sobey's supermarkets in Greater Moncton (Dieppe-2, Moncton-2, Riverview-1). There is also a new Sobey's being built not far away in Shediac.

There are rumoured plans for a Sobey's on Harrisville Blvd. and now this new rumour of a Sobey's on Elmwood.

Add to this the rumours about relocating the Riverview Sobey's to Findlay park.......

What gives? :shrug:

[josh_cat_eyes]

I don't know what to make of this Sobey's news.......

There are already five Sobey's supermarkets in Greater Moncton (Dieppe-2, Moncton-2, Riverview-1). There is also a new Sobey's being built not far away in Shediac.

There are rumoured plans for a Sobey's on Harrisville Blvd. and now this new rumour of a Sobey's on Elmwood.

Add to this the rumours about relocating the Riverview Sobey's to Findlay park.......

What gives? :shrug:

They need to do something about having 2 locations within walking distance too (champlain place and paul st.)

[Wishblade]

There are I think 6 Sobey's in Dartmouth alone. It just seems to be something they've been doing recently. It's pretty wierd.

[MonctonRad]

:previous:

If all this transpires, there could be as many as eight Sobey's in Greater Moncton and Shediac..........perhaps their plan is to overwhelm the opposition by shear numbers. There are only three Superstores in the GMA.

I don't mind the new Sobey's on Main Street. It was built on a parking lot for the Terminal Plaza office complex so it isn't like anything of architectural significance was lost due to it's construction.

There should be a supermarket downtown to service the people living there and Sobey's did at least pay partial lipservice to city council by including additional storefrontage (Shoe Tree and Nubody's Women) along Main Street to create a streetscape where none existed before.

The new Ashford building across the street on the northeast corner of Main and Vaughn Harvey will do a lot to diminish the dominance of the new Sobey's building on that corner. Now that the structural steel is up, you can see just how less visible and partially obscured the Sobey's is when you travel southbound on Vaughn Harvey.

Now, all we have to do is get Robichaud's condominium project built and to develop the southwest corner of Main/Vaughn Harvey to increase the density/height of the neighbourhood. :)

[gehrhardt]

From CBC News (July 7, 2009):

The Moncton Hospital's new $47-million ambulatory centre is now aiming to open its doors to patients in late fall, two years behind schedule.

'You're probably looking at two to three months following the turnover. I don't mean to be vague but it's really hard to pinpoint an exact date.'— Jeff Carter, vice-president RHA B

The massive new building designed to house a number of clinics was supposed to be completed by the fall of 2007 but has been plagued by delays, including the need for new floors because the original ones didn't meet specifications.

The Department of Supply and Services is planning to hand the building over to Regional Health Authority B in a few weeks.

Jeff Carter, the vice-president of operations and support services for the health authority, said once the building is turned over there will still be a lot of work to do.

"You're probably looking at two to three months following the turnover. I don't mean to be vague but it's really hard to pinpoint an exact date and say this is when we will be opening. All I can give you are timelines that we have based on our projections," he said.

Carter said the centre will require extensive cleaning that will likely take about two weeks and then they need to install equipment.

"And staff will have to be orientated to the new work space and to the new equipment, so once all of that takes place, the new ambulatory care centre would be open to the public," Carter said.

Carter said the new centre will reduce wait times for some procedures.

He said there's a new lab that will help provide test results faster.

And there will be 175 additional parking spaces to deal with the congestion and parking problems around the hospital.

[mylesmalley]

Two years overdue? Even for the government that's pretty excessive.

[MonctonRad]

:previous:

The actual building of the ACC went quite smoothly. It was only in the latter stages that things went awry with the flooring. I don't know why it took so long to replace the flooring. I agree, it is ridiculous that the building is two years overdue. Without the flooring issue, we should have moved in last spring!

There is still lots to do even after the move is complete and the ER/Trauma Centre, outpatient clinics and lab have taken up residency in their new digs. This will require millions of dollars for additional renovations to the existing hospital. This has already been partially budgetted.

The old ER will be cleaved in half by a corridor connecting the existing hospital to the new ACC. The old ER thus will be subdivided into two. To the west of the new corridor, Medical Imaging will inherit some of the space for future expansion. Some additional office space will also be created. To the east, space will be created for new medical/surgical ICU units and also some space will be given over for an expansion to the OR suites. I believe that the neuro, pediatric and neonatal ICU's will stay where they are currently.

The old section of the hospital where the existing lab and clinics are located will likely be demolished for additional staff parking. I don't think this has been firmly decided yet, but this section of the hospital is over 50 years old. It would be nice if they considered a parking garage for this location if this were to happen. :)

[MonctonRad]

http://harvest.canadaeast.com/image.php?id=324311&size=500x0

This is a picture from the T&T today showing structural steel going up at the new Ashford office building at Main and Vaughn Harvey.

Hey mmmatt, I think it's about time for a new Moncton construction phototour........What do you think? ;)

[mylesmalley]

Moncton High makes danger list
Published Wednesday July 8th, 2009

Heritage Canada Foundation adds 'magnificent sandstone landmark' to its Top 10 list of endangered heritage sites
A1
By Brent Mazerolle
Times & Transcript Staff


http://harvest.canadaeast.com/image.php?id=325025&size=500x0
First Moncton had one of Canada's 10 most endangered rivers. Now added to that dubious distinction we have one of the nation's 10 most endangered heritage sites.



Greg Agnew
Moncton High School has been named one of Canada’s Top 10 Most Endangered Places by the Heritage Canada Foundation.
But while New Brunswick's provincial Liberal government has acted decisively to save the Petitcodiac River, the jury's still out on the future of Moncton High School.

And that's a shame, says the Heritage Canada Foundation, which has included the endangered, "magnificent sandstone landmark," on its 2009 Top Ten Endangered Places List.

Moncton East MLA Chris Collins, whose riding includes the 75-year-old school, said yesterday, "it's ridiculously premature to call it endangered" but welcomed the attention as a means of helping him and fellow area Liberal MLAs ensure one of Moncton's greatest architectural jewels is preserved.

"To have a federal organization like this come forward encourages me. That might help us source federal dollars," he said.

Collins suggested the national attention could even help get the school a formal designation as a federal heritage site, which could help it be protected. Currently it has a municipal heritage designation, but not a provincial or federal one.

And, ironically enough, though it is New Brunswick's provincial Heritage Act that enables the City of Moncton to declare it a heritage property, the province itself is exempt from the heritage bylaw. It could, in fact, legally bulldoze Moncton High School into the ground today if it so chose, with no explanations necessary other than the political ones the public would demand.

The Heritage Canada Foundation does have a profile that would merit federal government attention. It is a national non-profit organization founded by the Trudeau government in 1973 under the ministerial leadership of Jean Chrétien.

Its mandate is to, "preserve and demonstrate and to encourage the preservation and demonstration of the nationally significant historic, architectural, natural and scenic heritage of Canada with a view to stimulating and promoting the interest of the people of Canada in that heritage."

The Foundation says of Moncton High, "the future of this landmark building -- an outstanding example of Normandy Gothic Revival style architecture in New Brunswick -- is at risk due to the province's lack of commitment to maintain and invest in existing schools."

The foundation argues the building matters because, "it is considered to be one of the most important architectural landmarks in downtown Moncton and a symbol of permanence in the city."

The citation accompanying the addition of Moncton High School to the list notes, "the $25-million cost estimate for a new school does not include many elements that exist at MHS, such as the auditorium. Economics aside, the environmental impact of abandoning this building and replacing it with a new structure would be staggering."

The decision about the future of Moncton High rests with the province, but Moncton City Council has come out firmly on the side of protecting and preserving the structure.

Its Heritage Preservation Review Board hired Jim Bezanson, a professional planner and architectural consultant, to review the findings of the studies commissioned by the province on the structural condition of the high school and Bezanson questions the extent of the costly structural changes recommended.

His findings were presented to the District Education Council and School District 2 in June. As a result, the district staff recommendations in favour of new construction presented to the DEC that evening have been removed from the table with an order to "go back to the drawing board."

Since then, the area Liberal MLAs have spoken up to oppose the demolition of the school and Collins insisted yesterday "there is no wrecking ball headed in that direction."


_______________

Metro building permits climb to $17.8M
Published Wednesday July 8th, 2009

FREDERICTON - The value of building permits issued for Metro Moncton increased this spring.

New figures from Statistics Canada show the value of permits issued in May was $17.8 million, up from $16.4 million the previous month.

In January, the value of permits was roughly $10 million. That jumped to $68.8 million in February. The value of permits issued in both March and April was $16.4 million. In comparison, the value of permits issued in May for Saint John was $16.4 million, down from $39.7 million. Provincially, $73.1 million in building permits were issued in May, compared to $100.9 million in April.

_______________

[MonctonRad]

Moncton High makes danger list
Published Wednesday July 8th, 2009

Heritage Canada Foundation adds 'magnificent sandstone landmark' to its Top 10 list of endangered heritage sites
A1
By Brent Mazerolle
Times & Transcript Staff


http://harvest.canadaeast.com/image.php?id=325025&size=500x0
First Moncton had one of Canada's 10 most endangered rivers. Now added to that dubious distinction we have one of the nation's 10 most endangered heritage sites.





Good..........This will make it a lot more difficult and more embarrassing for Shawn Graham to attack MHS with a wrecking ball.

This is actually huge. I am beginning to have some hope for the future of this architectural masterpiece.

:banana: :banana: :banana: