The Official Saint John, NB Project Thread

[Helladog]

Originally Posted by JHikka

See:







If anyone is honestly wondering what buildings are going up where I would suggest leafing through City Council agendas and minutes. Generally you can find renders and site plans for most projects in the city prior to them happening.

It's usually just easier to ask here. Usually somebody knows something. It does mean some questions get asked multiple times, but that's the unfortunate nature of forums.

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by Helladog

It's usually just easier to ask here. Usually somebody knows something. It does mean some questions get asked multiple times, but that's the unfortunate nature of forums.

Honestly, just cruise through a few of the last few pages if you have a question regarding something going on. Especially if it's regarding a new store or business; we've probably covered it in the Retail thread(s).

[Walk then Run]

Here are some pics (courtesy of moi) of the new ANBL store being built on Somerset. It looks very large, but I would guess it has the same footprint as the Fairville Blvd store.

[Walk then Run]

The new Shannex "Parkland" retierment complex is coming along well (pics by me)

[Walk then Run]

I was quite camera happy today. Below are pics of the new YMCA and of the new apartment complex directly across the street...again pics taken by me. The apartments will have underground parking.

New YMCA:




New 4 story Apartment Building:

[CdnEh]

Ooh yes, that liquor store looks as if it's going to be a copy+paste job of the one on Plaza Ave west.

[Spectre1]

Hi all, I've been told the old northend NB Liquor will be closed in April 2015 when the new one is opened. This is to upgrade from the current class c store to a class b like we have over west.

[Walk then Run]

Originally Posted by Spectre1

Hi all, I've been told the old northend NB Liquor will be closed in April 2015 when the new one is opened. This is to upgrade from the current class c store to a class b like we have over west.

Welcome to the forum Spectre1!

I wonder what a class A is, because if the Plaza Ave West is considered class B, then it must be the size / selection of wine which makes a class A

[Spectre1]

Originally Posted by Walk then Run

Welcome to the forum Spectre1!

I wonder what a class A is, because if the Plaza Ave West is considered class B, then it must be the size / selection of wine which makes a class A

Thanks!

My understanding in regards to the class of the stores is the same as yours. If anyone is interested the store in Rothesay is a class A if they would like to compare. The next time I'm in I'll ask about the criteria of the different classes.

[Walk then Run]

The number of Saint John rinks are under scrutiny again...do we need six or will five do? I don't play hockey anymore nor do my kids, so I'll have to take the word of the parents when it comes to no or very inconvenient ice times at our current number of rinks. IMHO, if any ice rinks were to be taken off the table, it should be either a west or north side rink. The east side is serviced by only one rink, so could we do without a Belyea (west) or a Gorman (north)?

I would rather keep all six as it would help promote a healthy lifestyle for our city, so saying that I think city council can find money elsewhere by cutting or reorganizing a few things.

I've attached the CBC article about this subject. There is also an audio clip inbedded for your listening pleasure:

http://www.cbc.ca/m/news/canada/new-brun...ice-as-city-looks-to-cut-costs-1.2887126

[JHikka]

Mayor Norton wasn't far off in suggesting that it would make more sense (long-term) to build a fourplex facility for financial reasons. Centralizing all of the services at one central location saves a lot of money, namely on ice machines and zambonis, and can also be built to incorporate offices for teams or associations. It costs a lot more to have individual locations spread out which all require the same amount of servicing and funding.

If one were to close I *guess* it would have to be Belyea or Peter Murray, but that is entirely a guess.

[kwajo]

Originally Posted by Walk then Run

I was quite camera happy today. Below are pics of the new YMCA and of the new apartment complex directly across the street...again pics taken by me. The apartments will have underground parking.


New 4 story Apartment Building:

Really? Why is the building set back so far from the road then? I would have preferred them position the structure closer to the roadway to stay consistent with the neighbourhood feel of the Rifle Range if the parking was to be underground, maybe by stepping the 4/5 storey portion back if necessary.

Also, I hope the cladding isn't vinyl, it will look awful at that scale (see Ellerdale St. for a recent example of this).

[Fischbob]

CTV News is reporting that the Port is looking to secure funding for a ~$200M expansion/modernization of its West Side container handling facilities: http://atlantic.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=529000

Rodney Weston spoke in support of the project and hinted that some money is forthcoming. Almost like it's an election year or something...

In addition, Saturday's TJ reported that Atlantic Potash Corp is set to submit the Environmental Impact Assessment for its proposed fertilizer plant within the next 3 weeks. They anticipate the permitting/approval process will take about two years, followed by another 2 years of construction. They appear to be right on schedule based on the timeline given in their 2013 announcement.

No word on whether they're still trying to get ahold of the Sugar Refinery site for the marine terminal component of the project. I'm hoping they've decided to pursue alternate arrangements...

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by Fischbob

Rodney Weston spoke in support of the project and hinted that some money is forthcoming. Almost like it's an election year or something...

For people who bemoan Government funding during election years: Would you prefer it not to happen at all? Regardless of election-timing this government has been more than willing to provide funding for projects which they feel help the Canadian economy as a whole.

On the other hand, the taxbreak that the LNG terminal was given in 2005, and the money the City isn't gaining from that (roughly $4.8M/annum), could certainly have gone towards something like a Port expansion if the Feds were not willing to support it as much as they may.

[kwajo]

Originally Posted by JHikka

For people who bemoan Government funding during election years: Would you prefer it not to happen at all? Regardless of election-timing this government has been more than willing to provide funding for projects which they feel help the Canadian economy as a whole.

On the other hand, the taxbreak that the LNG terminal was given in 2005, and the money the City isn't gaining from that (roughly $4.8M/annum), could certainly have gone towards something like a Port expansion if the Feds were not willing to support it as much as they may.

They're different pots of money though, since the port is a separate federal entity and the city does not have the opportunity to share revenue or expenses with them.

[MStuart]

I just heard that the old Falls Restaurant is going to be torn down after they moved out at the end of Dec 2014....can anyone confirm that?

[WharfRat]

Originally Posted by Fischbob

CTV News is reporting that the Port is looking to secure funding for a ~$200M expansion/modernization of its West Side container handling facilities: http://atlantic.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=529000

Not a surprise at all, the port has been reporting strong numbers for a couple of years now….press release from Dec.

http://www.sjport.com/assets/PDFs/2014-1...g-Results-in-Containers-and-Dry-Bulk.pdf

Also there was a story in the TJ this past Friday "Atlantic Potash pushing forward with $350 million fertilizer plant in Saint John", just wondering if anyone had a chance to read the story and if it had any new information??

[Wolkenkratzerliebhab]

I wonder what is going to happen to the space Target is leasing in McAllister Place now that the American company is giving up on Canada? I just hope Sears doesn't follow suit or the mall will become a dead mall in no time.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/target-c...tion-plans-to-close-all-stores-1.2901618

[Helladog]

Originally Posted by Wolkenkratzerliebhab

I wonder what is going to happen to the space Target is leasing in McAllister Place now that the American company is giving up on Canada? I just hope Sears doesn't follow suit or the mall will become a dead mall in no time.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/target-c...tion-plans-to-close-all-stores-1.2901618

Wow, that's a bit sudden. You'd think they'd rethink how to do business in Canada and relaunch before giving up. We really do need someone to compete with Walmart.

[Fischbob]

This month's PAC agenda is hot off the presses, and there are a couple noteworthy items (all images taken from the above document).

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First up is a rezoning and minor variances to permit the proposed residential conversion of St. Vincent's High School that we've been hearing rumblings about:



The plan is for a total of 34 one- and two-bedroom apartments and some shared amenity space. 15 of the units will be provincially-designated affordable housing, while the rest will be market rentals.

The adjoining gymnasium (which I believe is a mid-20th century addition to the original building) doesn't appear to be part of this proposal, and it's unclear what the Diocese intends to do with it at this time.

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The second proposal is from Paul Daeres, and is somewhat complicated.

As I understand it, the proposal is to establish a commercial parking lot on most of the former Paramount site (Lot 14-01 below) in order to sell the remainder of the site and the adjacent former Belmont Hotel site (Lot 14-02 below, currently parking) to Cobalt Properties. Apparently, the intention is then to close off and hydroseed the existing parking area.

Cobalt owns the former Dominion store at the corner of Sydney and King Square North, and this transaction would assemble a decent-sized redevelopment site for them. However, as with their other Uptown land holdings, there doesn't appear to be anything in the works just yet.

Staff have recommended a number of conditions be imposed, most notably increased landscaping requirements for the interface with King Square North.

This is the proposal as submitted:



And this shows the modifications to the landscaped area recommended by staff:



Note that the report does not recommend imposing any requirement for Daeres or Cobalt to decommission/landscape the existing parking area on the former Belmont Hotel site. They've stated that they intend to do it, but my spider senses tell me it might be prudent for PAC to add an explicit condition to that effect.

The complex nature of this proposal certainly doesn't work in its favour, particularly in light of the bad feeling in the community around the Paramount's demolition. I find the current proposal to be reasonable if (and only if) the existing Belmont parking area is closed, but a lot of politicians are now in an awkward position after repudiating the possibility of any parking whatsoever on the Paramount site during the controversy that erupted last summer. Expect lots of public attention on this one and at least two TJ editorials that blame the City for everything.

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Next post is #10,000!!!