Cranes On The Skyline Come With Affordable Housing Challenges For Greater Moncton
MONCTON – It’s been a story of growth for the Greater Moncton Area last year, the mayors of Moncton, Dieppe and Riverview noted during their State of The Tri-Community addresses Thursday.
“It’s been an incredible time to be the mayor of Moncton because the momentum is fantastic and I would like to keep that momentum going,” said Moncton Mayor Dawn Arnold to an audience of nearly 420 people at the Delta Beauséjour.
“Yes, there are definitely challenges we must address, but we are the economic engine of this province, so we need to be successful for all New Brunswickers.”
The value of building permits was again record-breaking in 2019, surpassing $250 million, and building permits issued for the downtown area has tripled since Avenir Centre opened.
Currently, Arnold said there are 16 building permits for 727 new units of apartment. At the same time, the north end of the city has also grown, with new schools added and a new YMCA set to open in September. The city’s three industrial parks have also done well as companies like Organigram continue to grow quickly.
Dieppe also logged record-high building permits, at nearly $97 million, last year. That’s 10 percent more than the last record it set in 2016.
One of the key projects is the UNIplex health and wellness centre that’s expected to open later this year. Dieppe also saw the opening of the new TD offices, with hundreds of workers, in 2019.
The city recently adopted a strategic plan for 2020-2024 to enhance its status as a “welcoming, dynamic, environmentally responsible municipality,” said Mayor Yvon Lapierre. Of the six focus areas of the plan, economic growth and prosperity leads the charge, he said.
“Dieppe has a duty to develop its economy with a focus on its commercial, industrial and tourism potential without compromising its quality of life, quality of environment,” he told the audience, adding that the city is on track to lower its debt ratio from nearly 15 percent to 10 percent by 2026 as part of its long-term financial plan.
In the Town of Riverview, several housing developments are underway, “increasing the apartment stock,” said Mayor Ann Seamans. The vacancy rate in the town hovers around 1.8 percent currently, she said, adding that the town hopes to see new lands in the west end open up for development in the near future.
The Town also plans to build Bridgeville Blvd., a 1.6-kilometre roadway that runs from Runneymeade Rd. to Gunningsville Blvd.
This is part of the town’s effort to mitigate expected traffic congestion when the causeway closes in 2021. With 75 percent of its residents working outside of the town, and 28,000 vehicles expected to add to the 40,000 that crosses the Gunningsville Bridge every day when the causeway closes, “the impact of the closure will be felt by more than just Riverviewers,” Seamans said.
The town expects the project to open up more opportunities for commercial and residential development. The new boulevard will be the location of Riverview’s new recreation complex that’s planned for 2022, as neighbourhoods grow.
All three mayors also noted their focus on population growth, which includes collaborating on a regional immigration strategy. Moncton’s population has grown 10 percent in the last decade, while Dieppe and Riverview also saw significant increases. The second multi-year immigration strategy was launched last year.
The municipalities also teamed up on a by-law that bans single-use plastic bags in businesses. The by-law is set to take effect in July.
Climate change and the environment were highlighted by the three mayors as key considerations for decision making. Last year, Moncton declared a climate emergency. It also continues to focus on its downtown community improvement plan that aims to see the area more dense, vibrant and walkable, with active transport being a key part.
Meanwhile, Dieppe added more electric vehicle charging stations last year, bringing its network of such chargers to 10.
Tourism is key to the region as well. Moncton adopted a tourism accommodation levy that would provide at least $2.5 million for the city to use for event attraction and marketing, Arnold said.
She said the collaboration with Dieppe and Riverview is key to the growth. After all, the region is competing with large cities around the world for talent, she said, and enhancing the quality of life is key to the attraction and retention of people.
“By working together, by growing our collective economy the way we are doing, that gives us a lot more power to be competitive in the global context because we’re not in competition, as the city of Moncton, with Dieppe and Riverview,” she said. “…global talent attraction is a big issue today. People have choices. They can live anywhere they want. So by making sure our local economy is strong and vibrant, we will be able to attract that talent to our community.”
With Growth Comes Challenges
All the growth didn’t come smoothly. Last year was “very challenging” from a social perspective, Arnold said.
There has been progress made by local organizations at the forefront of the homelessness issue, but a lot more needs to be done.
Arnold said she’s “really tired of band-aids,” and wants to see made-in-Moncton solutions that tackle the roots of the “very complex” issue, which include addiction and mental health problems.
While still acknowledging the responsibility of other levels of government in solving the issue, “a lot of it is landing right on our doorstep. So we have to step up and we’re trying to figure out what that looks like,” she said to reporters after her address.
The Rising Tides Community Initiatives Inc., a non-profit launched at the end of last year to buy and turn old houses into affordable units, is one such solution.
“We know that shelters are not the answer. Everyone needs a place to live with wrap-around services necessary for a healthy and productive life,” she said.
In addition, Arnold said the city has increased RCMP presence downtown, and police are paired with by-law officers to patrol the area.
John Wishart, CEO of the Chamber of Commerce of Greater Moncton, says growth is good, but homelessness and security are things that businesses are also very concerned about.
“We’re looking for the entire community to progress. If we’re lifting off in terms of these great [growth] numbers, that we take everyone with us,” he said. “And because we want our reputation as a community that you can live and invest in to be pristine and positive, I think we need to think about that the year ahead.”
With municipal elections set to take place May 11, Wishart said he’s not worried the momentum will be stalled if the mayors change.
“I think the sort of cooperation we’ve seen sort of transcends who is in office. The administrations are pretty closely aligned,” he said. “They still compete for some things, like which industrial park is somebody going to locate in, those sorts of things….but people don’t necessarily see the boundary lines when it comes to business. They see the region.”
Arnold will officially announce her bid for re-election Friday morning. But when asked by reporters whether she’s worried momentum could stall if the dynamics change if she’s not in office, she said, “I plan to be.”
So far, two other candidates have announced their bids – Erik Gingles, founder of the media company BuzzLocal, and Chad Peters, owner of communications firm Lynnwood Strategies.
Riverview Mayor Ann Seamans is also seeking a third term.