Archibald's Wharf to be sold, Cape Breton council decides

Opponents of selling a slice of North Sydney green space and boardwalk to a vessel repair company have lost their battle as Cape Breton regional councillors voted Friday to sell Archibald’s Wharf.

Canadian Maritime Engineering has been eyeing the property to expand their operations. One of the biggest proponents of the deal has been Mayor Cecil Clarke.

"Part of leading the economic development is charting new waters that many other municipalities, including this one, have not previously been trying to navigate and they are not going to come without some bumps in the road," Clarke says.

The wharf has a field, restaurant and boardwalk and not everyone is in favour of the deal with CME. At Friday’s council meeting, 18 of 30 people who came forward to speak were against the sale.

Some worry how a CME expansion might affect fishing; others fret at losing green space for children to exercise; and there are concerns about secrecy and the pace at which things were moving.

“I'm really sad to see our council do this to North Sydney, and it's a black day on the process of municipal government here in this town,” says Dan Bunbury, chair of a business development group in North Sydney.

Council voted 10-2 in favour of amending the municipality's recreation policy, paving the way for the sale.

Clarke says he expects lawyers will soon begin to finalize a sale agreement for council's approval in the new year.