Fundy Quay site. Image: Submitted, Develop Saint John.
Shovels are finally in the ground and work has begun on the Fundy Quay site after false starts have plagued the development area since 2005.
The current iteration of the project has been tagged at $27 million, including $18.4 million of provincial and federal contributions, and has been in the works since 2019 after a plan for the New Brunswick Museum to use the space fell through the year before.
Construction work this summer will focus on the first phase of the seawall repair on the south section closer to the cruise ship terminal, which will eventually be raised by 1.5 to two metres.
Meanwhile, the city has put out a tender for a ‘reimagined’ Loyalist Plaza. The circular plaza will be reconstructed with a new vision as part of a number of changes to the area near Market Slip.
Development is being handled by the Elias Management Group, which will eventually purchase the land as well.
“It’s a 25-year ground lease, there’s a requirement that it must be bought at the end of that period, but they’re able to buy it at any point in that process,” said Jeff Cyr, an urban planner with the city. “Really, they’re incentivized to do so early.”
The agreement required a $250,000 non-refundable option fee.
Cyr updated Common Council on the timeline of the Fundy Quay project at its last meeting.
Beginning this fall, Phase 2 of the seawall repair work will begin on the north section near Market Slip, and construction will begin to prepare the south section of the site for eventual building construction.
The fall construction phase will also see the demolition and site grading of Loyalist Plaza.
Construction on the new Loyalist Plaza will be part of the next phase, estimated to last from the upcoming winter into summer 2022.
That phase will also feature continued work on the northern section of the seawall, and the developer hopes next summer will also bring about the beginning of the first building construction and the beginning of work to connect the pedway at Market Square.
By 2023, the goal is to have the full site ready for building construction, in addition to the completed Loyalist Plaza redesign, the pedway connection, and the extension to the Harbour Passage trail.
It’s a long timeline, but one that Mayor Donna Reardon said she hoped would give the city time to get this iteration of the Fundy Quay plan right.
“I can’t wait, and we want to make sure (the plans) are fantastic before 2025 when we’re done,” she said.
