Calgary Firm Hired To Develop Plan For Fredericton Exhibition Grounds
FREDERICTON – The Fredericton Exhibition Limited (NBEX) and the City of Fredericton have moved to the next stage of developing the Site Development Plan for the exhibition grounds.
“The committee members are very dedicated,” said Jeff Melanson, president of the NBEX board of directors in a release.
The next steps in this development include hiring a consultant to prepare a plan and the approval of a contribution agreement to pay for the site development.
Both parties agreed to hiring the O2 Planning + Design to prepare the site development plan. O2 Planning + Design is a Calgary-based studio that works with landscape architecture, ecology, urban design, and planning.
According to the contribution agreement, the NBEX will pay for land development, preparation and marketing costs from land sales or lease proceeds. The City has agreed to provide upfront funding to be recovered as property is sold or leased.
“The Joint Land Development Committee have been meeting regularly to work on the various aspects of this important project,” said Mayor Mike O’Brien in a release.
The Joint Land Development Committee is a committee that brings NBEX and the City of Fredericton together to work as partners in the development of the exhibition grounds.
“The level of cooperation between members of the committee has been inspiring, and I’m excited to begin a community conversation about the transformation of this area and reimagining of the iconic NBEX,” O’Brien said in a release.
The NBEX board approved the consultant choice and contribution agreement on July 20 and the Fredericton City Council approved both the consultant and the agreement on July 27 at their Council meeting.
“We have been listening and learning about each other’s thoughts and visions for the site and have really started to think about the ‘art of the possible’ for the exhibition grounds,” Melanson said in a release.