Dalhousie looks to escape financial downturn with new jail's construction

The construction of a new jail will go a long way in helping Dalhousie recover from the crippling closures of its paper mill and other businesses in 2008, the northern town's mayor said.

There are few communities in New Brunswick that have been harder hit in the last year than Dalhousie. When the AbitibiBowater mill shut its doors at the end of January, it put 330 people out of work. The news only got worse for the community of 3,600 when Olin Corp. closed two of its chemical plants in March, eliminating another 100 jobs.

'It's also going to create jobs. This is the first time that I see Dalhousie benefit from that kind of announcement from the province.' — Dalhousie Mayor Clem Tremblay

Not only did the closings throw hundreds out of work, it also cut hundreds of thousands of dollars in tax revenue from the town government.

The provincial government is setting aside $16.2 million for a new correctional facility in Dalhousie.

Mayor Clem Tremblay said the new jail will become the biggest investment to land in the north shore town in decades. He said it will help make up for some of the losses, but there is still a big hole to fill.

"An infrastructure of that nature, of $16 million plus and it's also going to create jobs. This is the first time that I see Dalhousie benefit from that kind of announcement from the province," he said.

The new jail is expected to create 35 to 40 jobs.

When Finance Minister Victor Boudreau released his 2009-2010 capital budget last Tuesday, he said the Liberal government would use the $661 million in spending to spur the slowing economy.

For Sandy MacLean, whose 15-year term as mayor ended in 1993, the facility was a long time coming.

MacLean had been lobbying for the jail when he was mayor, so he's pleased that it is finally coming.

"The bottom line is, now all the years have gone by and it looks for real this time," MacLean said.

Dalhousie hardest hit by property tax decline in 2009

When Service New Brunswick released the annual property tax base assessments, it revealed how Dalhousie was the dealt the biggest blow by falling revenues. New Brunswick's total tax base will grow by 7.34 per cent in 2009, but Dalhousie is taking a 9.14 per cent hit.

Local Liberal MLA Donald Arseneault, the province's post-secondary education minister, said the new jail will pump $378,000 into municipal coffers when it opens, up substantially from the $21,000 that the existing facility offers the town in taxes.

Arseneault said many residents are excited about the new jail, though he admits there is a lot of cynicism because the project has been on the books for so long. The local MLA said there have been three separate sod turnings for the new facility, but it has never been built.

A new jail will not replace the number of high-paying jobs at the mill, but Arseneault said it's a start toward adding new jobs in different sectors.

"It's the start of a diversification that we badly need in the town," he said. "We are working hard to diversify the economy. We are working hard to replace all the jobs we lost."