The mayor of a New Brunswick town is speaking out about an infrastructure funding announcement from the provincial government, that he says came with a hidden cost.
“You hear all of these announcements about the levels of government getting together, I always cringe a little bit,” Chris Melvin, the mayor of Hanwell, N.B.
Last spring the township approached both levels of government to partner on Hanwell’s new municipal office and a much anticipated community centre.
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The federal government kicked in more than half of what was needed for the $3-million facility, while the province allegedly agreed to partner but then invoiced the town for a parcel of land.
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“It was a painful pill to swallow because you’ve got almost a $3-million project that the province wanted $40,000 for a piece of land. It was a challenge, but we stood up and moved on,” said Melvin.
Liberal Leader Brian Gallant danced around the topic when pressed on aspects of the funding Tuesday.
“I think it’s really important to underline whenever somebody asks for some type of infrastructure investment that we are the party that increased investments in our infrastructure so we can update and modernize,” said Gallant.
Melvin says that municipal government is the one closest to the people, and that he’d like to see barriers broken down not just between municipalities and the province, but cities as well.
It’s his hope that the removal of such barriers will eliminate bureaucratic red tape so that projects like the planned Hanwell community centre can get off the ground faster and efficiently.
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The news comes on the heels of an announcement by the Progressive Conservatives, that suggests reform is needed between how the province deals with municipal issues.
The facility is expected to be fully up and running by next spring.