Provincial government taps newly minted consulting firm for Yarmouth ferry study
Yarmouth MLA and Liberal Leader Zach Churchill fears 'the fix is in'
The Nova Scotia government has announced the company that will analyze the economic impact of the ferry service between Yarmouth and Maine and it has the Liberal leader fearing "the fix is in" to eventually end the run.
Public Works Minister Kim Masland said 21FSP would do the work, valued at $180,000, and deliver its report sometime in the fall of 2024.
"We understand how important the ferry is to tourism and to communities in the area," she told reporters at a new conference in Halifax on Wednesday.
"As minister of public works, I also understand that Nova Scotia taxpayers invest a substantial amount of money into this service. That's why we need this report."
21FSP was selected from 16 companies that submitted bids on the work. Of those, 21FSP was one of only two that made it through to the second round of evaluation.
Masland and Bonnie Rankin, the director of policy for Public Works, would not provide details about the unsuccessful bids. They did confirm that 21FSP was the low bid out of the two that reached the second phase of evaluation.
Rankin said unsuccessful tender bids are considered private information, although reporters could submit freedom of information applications to try to get additional details. The process is "very different" than tenders for road work, where all submissions are publicly listed along with the amount companies bid on a job, said Rankin.
"The proposals that were submitted would be very, very detailed."
21FSP is a new firm, so new that it has no discernible web presence. It registered with the province's registry of joint stock companies on July 28. Its principals are Tom McGuire and Ron L'Esperance, the founders of consulting firm Group ATN. L'Esperance is also a former deputy minister with the provincial government.
Masland said the company might be new, but the players are "two very reputable people in our province."
"They know the area, which I think is very important, and they are clearly forward thinking, which I think is exactly what is needed."
Liberal Leader Zach Churchill, who is also the MLA for Yarmouth, took a different view on Wednesday's announcement.
"I don't have confidence in this process and I'm worried that the fix is in on the international ferry to Yarmouth," he told reporters.
"You're telling me that out of all the applicants they've gotten to do a consulting report on this they picked one that nobody's heard about?"
'Give me a break'
Churchill said Premier Tim Houston's criticism of the service dates back to before he was leader of the Tories and he said the government's commitment to fiscal responsibility seems to be selective. Churchill pointed to this week's public accounts report that showed the government spent $1.7 billion outside its budget last year and the decision to spend $34 million on an unfinished hotel to convert it to a health-care facility, as evidence.
"But on this one issue, this is the one issue [where] they really care about the taxpayers? I mean, give me a break."
Masland disputed the suggestion that the government has made up its mind on the issue.
The contract with service provider Bay Ferries runs until March 2026. If the government saw no value in the service, they wouldn't take the time to conduct the study, said Masland.
"I live on the South Shore," said the minister, who represents the district of Queens. "I certainly understand and I don't take lightly the concerns of people living in southwest Nova."
Ticket sales up over last year
Last year's subsidy for the service was $17.6 million. Masland said the government needs to know if that's a good investment. She said the study would look at data from the previous sailing seasons and determine whether the service boosts businesses, job creation and tax revenues in the province.
"This study is not just going to focus on what the service delivers to southwest Nova, this is going to focus on what this delivers to us as a province and I believe that Nova Scotians deserve to know that."
Unlike the ferries that sail from Nova Scotia to P.E.I. and Nova Scotia to Newfoundland, the service to Maine receives no federal funding. Masland said it "would be fabulous" if Ottawa contributed toward operating costs.
Also on Wednesday, Bay Ferries released updated numbers showing 38,655 tickets have been sold for the service between Yarmouth and Bar Harbor, Maine, as of Sept. 11. That's an increase of about 2,000 over the same time last year. The ferry runs from May to October,
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