Official Fredericton, NB projects thread

[cl812]

Too bad, surprising given how far along the project is. Oh well hopefully the delay isnt too long.

[Taeolas]

Originally Posted by OliverD

That's unrelated as those are federal courtrooms.

The ICS ones? That's strange. I had a condo-matter that was heard in small claims court and we were assigned to a court in the ICS building. That's how I discovered there were courts in there. It certainly wasn't a federal matter.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by Freddypop

I didn't read this as cancelled but postponed. The intent is to restart and finish at a yet to be determined date. It will eventually be completed but not within the original time frame. On another note the new school in Hanwell got approved and funded. Not surprising since it is afterall in the Education Minister's riding.

Indeed - postponed, but if Higgs gets re-elected (and I'm predicting now that this will happen, unless the Peoples Alliance has a major breakthrough in the next election), these postponements might be for a very long time.........

And I'm gonna do this just because I can:

10,000 POSTS for the Freddy Thread!!!!

Took you guys long enough.......

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by Freddypop

On another note the new school in Hanwell got approved and funded. Not surprising since it is afterall in the Education Minister's riding.

Or, alternatively, a school was approved in a growing suburban neighbourhood, unlike the cancelled school in Campbellton which is not a growing area.

[Taeolas]

10k posts? Wow that snuck up on us. I thought we were still a year or so away from that.

Gratz Freddy Thread posters. Only 1500 and change posts away from the main SJ thread.

As for the budget cuts, I'm a bit worried that people are getting baffled by Big Numbers. They see Millions of dollars 'thrown' around for these projects and figure "million is too expensive and must be cut". Some of the cuts and delays seem fine, but others seem spiteful and as I said earlier, potentially penny-wise/pound-foolish.

The courthouse and the NB Museum both seem like projects that should have continued, or should restart ASAP.

The courthouse project because so much demo work has already happened; if work doesn't continue relatively quickly, then we'll be left with a half built building in downtown Freddy with the weather taking its toll on it, and the costs of keeping it in the current state (and extending the hold on the rest of the buildings and sites the justice department has around the city) a constant drain on resources.

The NB Museum in SJ is in a better stopping state; but it felt like it was a good investment for SJ, to revitalize the waterfront, and to be a good income earner when it was done; especially with the proximity to the cruise ship terminal (outside money that could be lured in).

[Freddypop]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Indeed - postponed, but if Higgs gets re-elected (and I'm predicting now that this will happen, unless the Peoples Alliance has a major breakthrough in the next election), these postponements might be for a very long time.........

And I'm gonna do this just because I can:

10,000 POSTS for the Freddy Thread!!!!

Took you guys long enough.......

You could be right but if I know government, they will all eventually get done. Just a matter of stretching the dollars out over time so that they can be affordable. They may even decide to go the P3 route and lease instead on some of the postponed projects. In the meantime they can use the funds to pay for "Les Jeux Francophonie"....

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by Freddypop

In the meantime they can use the funds to pay for "Les Jeux Francophonie"....

They'd better not!!!

AFAIK, the organizers of the Jeux have no allies on this file, not even amongst their usual fellow travellers at the UdeM. Most Acadian leaders are frankly embarrassed by the 666% inflation rate of these games.

- Higgs has said he won't spend more than $10M
- The feds will only provide matching funds (another $10M)
- Mayor LaPierre in Dieppe has refused to give any more than the $750K he's already committed.
- Moncton has made no official comment yet but Brian Hicks was just elected in the Ward 3 by-election (by a landslide, after the games announcement). He's a fiscal conservative, and with the pre-existing "gang of three" on Moncton City Council, will now form a new "gang of four" opposition which should prevent Moncton from being any more generous either.

I would say therefore that the organizing committee will only have $21.5M to work with, not $130M. Personally, i think they should just pull the plug on this entire fiasco, especially given the new austerity taking place in the province........

[Freddypop]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

I would say therefore that the organizing committee will only have $21.5M to work with, not $130M. Personally, i think they should just pull the plug on this entire fiasco, especially given the new austerity taking place in the province........

Agreed. I don't have a problem in trying to promote the province on the world stage when and where it makes sense. The $130 M price tag we cannot afford. Too many other needs. I for one would be mad as hell if the province sinks $1 more of tax payers funds into this than the what was originally promised. I have no problem in telling the organizers and the games owners....Thanks but no thanks.

[OliverD]

Frank's Finer Diner is for sale https://www.realtor.ca/real-estate/2...ng-fredericton

[Taeolas]

Sad to hear, but it didn't seem to be doing well in recent years. Food certainly hasn't been as good as I remembered, and I get the feeling they've been having staffing issues. I was surprised to see them closed on a Saturday evening a few weeks back for example, with just a "Sorry we're closed" sign on the door.

Still whoever takes it over should be able to do well if they're smart.

[Taeolas]

I said this earlier in the SJ thread, but this is more appropriate for the Freddy thread:

Originally Posted by Taeolas

For Freddy, I have many issues with putting the justice building on hold.

The biggest issue I have is that significant work has already started on the building; Centennial building is unusable at the moment, especially with its backhalf torn down. The plans are made, I'm sure the contractors were hired, a pipeline of material had been set up for the building construction.

So by putting that project on hold, what are we really saving?

Some day down the road, the work will have to be restarted, so everything in the works now will have to be restarted, and will probably cost more because of the interruption (inflation alone will guarantee that, but I'm sure the contractors bidding on it will add a Government Stupidity fee in their bids)

In the mean time, the Centennial building will have to be maintained. It will be a cost on the government budget that isn't being used so we aren't getting any bang for our buck there. And with its back half torn off, the maintenance costs will be even higher since it isn't as water tight as a complete building would be.

On top of that, the building was going to consolidate Justice offices from across the city. Now all that space that was going to be freed up needs to be leased/kept for an indefinite time going forward. Hopefully landlords didn't lease out the DoJ space to new tenants too quick.

At least the NBMuseum project was still in the design/development stage. While I don't like seeing it cancelled/delayed, the sunk costs for it isn't as bad. The Justice building renovations was much further along. It should have been untouchable at this stage due to how much physical work has already happened.

[Tridus]

Originally Posted by OliverD

Frank's Finer Diner is for sale https://www.realtor.ca/real-estate/2...ng-fredericton

Was by there the other day and it looked closed. Was wondering about it. Then it looked open the next day. I guess that explains it.

It's been sliding downhill for years, though. Seems like moving didn't work out that well for them, as it was never terribly successful at 2NC which is likely what started the downward spiral. It's been one of the lowest rated restraurants in the city on Tripadvisor for at least a year, which considering how this city loves homestyle food is really saying something.

[cj6286]

Second Cup in Kings Place is closing on December 24th. There is a sign that says "we look forward to serving you at our uptown location".

[cl812]

According to the Daily Gleaner this morning, the judicial complex project is dead. Said they have no plans for a new justice building in Fredericton. Going to back fill the hole and install fencing and security cameras around the site.

I understand and agree with the need to cut capital spending given the province's financial state, but to walk away from a project that has been under construction for over a year and just leave a mess behind is ridiculous in my opinion. If the project hadnt been so far along I wouldnt have an issue with it, it would be disappointing none the less, but understandable. Will be an eyesore downtown for years to come.

[MonctonRad]

Stupid decision, especially since construction was already underway.

I'm a supporter of the NB Museum in SJ too, but a decision to delay there is more understandable since construction hadn't yet started. The justice centre complex however should have gone ahead, especially since both Moncton and SJ already have new courthouses.

A rash decision like this will not do Higgs any good. Go ahead and cut the fat (like the Francophonie Games), and delay projects not already started, but to fill in holes in the ground already dug is silly and mean spirited........

[Dr.Devon]

Originally Posted by cl812

According to the Daily Gleaner this morning, the judicial complex project is dead. Said they have no plans for a new justice building in Fredericton. Going to back fill the hole and install fencing and security cameras around the site.

I understand and agree with the need to cut capital spending given the province's financial state, but to walk away from a project that has been under construction for over a year and just leave a mess behind is ridiculous in my opinion. If the project hadnt been so far along I wouldnt have an issue with it, it would be disappointing none the less, but understandable. Will be an eyesore downtown for years to come.

That'll teach Fredericton South to keep voting Green.

I am ok with some austerity measures, we are in a real debt crunch, but these doesn't seem like it will cost a lot to stop this project at this point.

[OliverD]

Originally Posted by cj6286

Second Cup in Kings Place is closing on December 24th. There is a sign that says "we look forward to serving you at our uptown location".

It's being replaced by a Starbucks with an exterior entrance and patio.

[OliverD]

Originally Posted by cl812

According to the Daily Gleaner this morning, the judicial complex project is dead. Said they have no plans for a new justice building in Fredericton. Going to back fill the hole and install fencing and security cameras around the site.

I understand and agree with the need to cut capital spending given the province's financial state, but to walk away from a project that has been under construction for over a year and just leave a mess behind is ridiculous in my opinion. If the project hadnt been so far along I wouldnt have an issue with it, it would be disappointing none the less, but understandable. Will be an eyesore downtown for years to come.

I wonder if there is an opportunity here for the city to take over the site and develop it properly.

[Taeolas]

Well, I just dropped a letter to all the Freddy area MPP's about it. Not that it will likely do much.

I'm sure Tourism Freddy will love having a derelict 'skyscraper' (by Freddy terms) in the heart of the tourist district. (Midway between the Legislature, the Playhouse and the Market basically)

*Edit* David Coon was quick to answer. He's making a statement on it today as well and forwarded to me.

Members Statement – Centennial Building
David Coon, MLA, Fredericton South
13 December 2018

Mr. Speaker, I am flabbergasted that the government is abandoning the re-purposing of the Centennial Building to provide new law courts in Fredericton. According to Chief Justice Marc Richard there was no consultation with the judiciary. The current law courts are housed in the old Fredericton High School with unhealth air quality, a lack of room for lawyers to meet with their clients, and security and safety concerns for judges. I could understand a decision to reduce the scale of the renovations and new addition to ensure local courthouses in Burton and Woodstock continue to provide services, but $16 million has already been spent, and many more millions will be spent to renovate the old justice building and to break the contract with Pomerleau. To completely abandon the project after so much work has been done is just not reasonable.

[OliverD]

The Bishop's Court shelter was granted approval to operate until the end of March: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-b...sion-1.4943947