Residents call public hearing a ‘sham’ after councillors approve industrial park expansion [video]

Controversial plans to expand the Spruce Lake Industrial Park moved forward at Saint John city council this week, as eight bylaw amendments necessary for the project passed third reading, receiving unanimous support from city councillors. 

A provincial Environmental Impact Assessment is still pending before the project goes forward. 

Residents of the neighbouring Lorneville community — who have expressed virtually universal opposition to the project — reacted quickly to the news, with the group Save Lorneville saying they were “extremely disappointed” by the news. 

“The greater Lorneville community is united and resilient, as they remain motivated to keep fighting this proposal,” the group said in a press release.

“Lorneville residents have consistently stated they are not opposed to development; however, it must be sensible and reasonable.”

The grassroots organization called the public hearing process a “completely staged sham.” 

READ MORE: City of Saint John to expand industrial park despite local opposition
READ MORE: Lorneville residents speak out against industrial park expansion 
READ MORE: More opposition to industrial park expansion at third session of public hearing

The City of Saint John “never really had any intention of actually working with the Lornevillle community,” the statement said, adding that there was “no limit to how low they would stoop to get the proposal approved.”

Lorneville residents had asked for additions to the Monday evening’s agenda, according to Chris Watson, an opponent of the project.

Those requested additions included “relevant letters from First Nations,” a new report from tree ring expert Ben Phillips, and answers to 71 questions which he said remained unanswered.

Those requests were apparently disregarded by city council, which passed the various motions without further discussion on Monday evening. “That completes third reading for Lorneville,” Mayor Donna Reardon remarked.    

The disappointment of residents was on display at the council meeting, as video footage showed that much of the audience left after the motions regarding Lorneville passed.

Residents have expressed concern over issues including the destruction of wetlands and old-growth forest, potential damage to residents’ well water, and Indigenous title over the land. 

The city has said the project will create jobs in a city vulnerable to American tariffs, and that it’s focussing on “green and clean economic” sectors. City staff argued that the industrial park must be expanded as outlined in Saint John’s municipal growth plan, known as PlanSJ. 

Geoff Martin, Assistant Professor of Politics and International Relations at Mount Allison University, said there’s a tendency in New Brunswick for certain areas to be treated as “sacrifice zones” for industrial development.

“I think not enough effort is typically made to work with people or to accommodate their concerns or their issues, because it’s just sort of like full-speed ahead,” said Martin, who has expertise in municipal politics, in an interview with the NB Media Co-op. 

He said municipal governments must consider deviating from their economic growth plans, notably in the context of widespread opposition and the “serious information deficit” that typically exist about those kinds of plans.

“It’s not like we really have a strong sense of consent,” he said. 

The city had established a Lorneville community liaison committee, but “if you’ve got residents complaining about this model, then it needs to be made more effective,” Martin added. 

Ben Phillips, an environmental lecturer at Mount Allison University, recently stated that the fourth oldest tree on record in New Brunswick had been located in the area slated for development, and that the forest should “be immediately protected.”

The project is still pending an Environmental Impact Assessment by the provincial government, but many residents regard the process as a rubber stamp. 

Martin said those processes tend to exist “for performative purposes,” as governments prioritize development. 

He added that he’s “not terribly optimistic” about a change of course based on the environmental assessment. “I don’t think that’s really how things work in New Brunswick,” he said. 

‘Divide-and-conquer tactics’ 

Earlier, the Caribou Club, a land-based treaty education group, held a walk-through at the site of the planned expansion near Saint John, which is also known as Menahkwesk. 

The group invited Mayor Donna Reardon and city councillors to attend the walk, which took place on June 26, but they declined, according to an open letter from the group addressed to the decision-makers.

“Sometimes, when cities or provinces are building plans and pursuing opportunities for development, they fail to see what has already developed over the lifetime of a 400-year-old spruce tree,” the letter stated. “There is already so much development in this forest.” 

“You have considered the economic value but not the cultural or spiritual value of this forest,” the letter continued. “You cannot assess the impact of an industrial development on values and rights that have been neither understood nor considered.”

The Caribou Club added that it acknowledges “the presence of numerous industrial stakeholders” but emphasized that “divide-and-conquer tactics employed by industry are all too familiar and have been historically used to undermine our collective strength.”

Wolastoq Grand Chief Ron Tremblay — also known as Spasaqit Possesom or morningstar burning — had previously expressed opposition to the project. 

But city staff suggested at a meeting last month that Tremblay was not consulted because he “is a traditional chief from an old system of government appointed by grandmothers but he is not an elected chief or councillor of a First Nation.”

The Caribou Club responded in their letter by stating that “he represents the grassroots, the voices of individuals like us who walk this land. To discredit the Grand Chief is to undermine the wisdom of the Grandmothers whose counsel he upholds.” 

The group added: “Under treaty, it is not your prerogative to assess or interfere in our governance structures or to determine who within our nation holds authority,” citing the Peace and Friendship Treaties and UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

Martin, the Mount Allison professor, said that “municipal governments are inclined to be picking and choosing which Indigenous leadership they want to listen to,” depending on who will be more cooperative. “So there’s a bit of perhaps divide and conquer going on here as well.” 

Updated with video at 4:55 p.m. on Thursday, July 10, 2025. 

Lucas Reynolds is a student at Mount Allison University and a summer intern at the NB Media Co-op. David Gordon Koch is a journalist with the NB Media Co-op. This reporting has been made possible in part by the Government of Canada, administered by the Canadian Association of Community Television Users and Stations (CACTUS).