amalgamation Archives » CHMA, Voice of the Marshes

RCMP recommends single municipal contract with 3 more officers for amalgamated Tantramar

The RCMP detachment at Sackville. Photo: Erica Butler

Tantramar council will soon decide on the future of the municipal and provincial policing service agreements–the MPSA and PPSA–that govern how the RCMP police the region. Currently, the RCMP are under an MPSA with the former town of Sackville, and a PPSA with the former village of Dorchester and local service districts.

“The federal government has advised us that we cannot have two [contracts],” treasurer Michael Beal told council on Monday. “So we do need to have one contract, either an MPSA or PPSA.”

Beal shared some analysis done by the RCMP ultimately recommending that the town move to an MPSA covering the new area, with an increase in the number of officers in the contract.

Currently the Sackville MPSA calls for ten officers to patrol the former town of Sackville, which had a population of about 6,100 as of the last census in 2021. After amalgamation, Tantramar’s new population was just over 9,000. The physical area of the municipality expanded to a much greater degree, going from about 74 square kilometres to 704 square kilometres.

Councillor Allison Butcher wondered about why the RCMP recommended only increasing their complement by three officers. “A 50% increase in our population, almost 10 times the land mass, yet they think only three more officers will be enough?” wondered Butcher.

Councillor Matt Estabrooks also raised the issue of the ‘cop to pop’ ratio, which would go from 1.64 officers per 1000 people in the Sackville contract, down to 1.44 officers for 1000 people in the new MPSA.… Continue

Social media switch complete: Sackville and Dorchester are now @TantramarNB

It’s official, the social media accounts for the former Town of Sackville and Village of Dorchester have been retired today. The new handle for the amalgamated town of Tantramar is @TantramarNB.

Quite probably the final post on the Town of Sackville NB Twitter account. Screenshot: February 13 2023.

Town staff have been using all three handles since the municipality officially came into being on January 1, 2023, with duplicate postings across the three accounts. But as of today, there will be one handle on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. The town has also changed the name of its YouTube channel to TantramarNB.

At a January meeting, director of Community and Corporate Services for Tantramar Kieran Miller told council that staff allowed for a six week crossover period between the social media identities in order to allow time for followers to make the change.

“Given the large followings for Dorchester and Sackville social media, especially Facebook, we wanted to make sure that residents had enough notice of the switch and adequate time to follow the new channels,” said Miller.

There’s also a change needed for the new town of Tantramar website. Miller told council the plan is to secure a new domain name for Tantramar, and then update the former Sackville site to reflect the expanded territory of the new municipality. Former Sackville treasurer and now Director of Corporate Compliance Michael Beal told councillors he took the initiative last year to reserve some domain names to choose from: Tantramarnb.com,… Continue

Mayoral candidate Bonnie Swift responds to criticism after far-right tweets vanish

Tantramar mayoral candidate Bonnie Swift has responded to criticism after a slew of controversial posts disappeared from her public Twitter account.

Listen to the report that aired on CHMA’s Tantramar Report on Thursday, November 24, 2002.

The social media posts suggested her politics are heavily influenced by the far-right on issues such as anti-racism, abortion and health-care privatization.

*‘LOL’:* *Mayoral candidate Bonnie Swift reacts to news that the U.S. Supreme Court will strike down Roe v. Wade, overturning abortion rights. Screengrab: twitter.com/bonnieswift10*

When local residents and journalists raised questions about her stated views this week, hundreds of tweets suddenly vanished. The first-time politician had previously campaigned on transparency in local government.

Swift says her tweets are being taken out of context, and that her husband deactivated the account without her knowledge because of online harassment.

Reached by phone on Wednesday, Swift told CHMA she “could care less” if residents decided not to vote for her over the deleted tweets.

“I’m not desperate to win this race… I’d be happy just leaving it, not talking to anybody,” she said. She added that she stands by a statement issued to local reporter Bruce Wark, who first reported about the missing tweets.

CHMA collected screengrabs of her Twitter feed before they disappeared. Some of her controversial takes included commentary on reproductive rights.

When one media organization reported that the U.S. Supreme Court was set to overturn Roe. v Wade, striking down abortion rights, she responded: ‘LOL.’ … Continue

What you need to know about voting in Tantramar elections

The first votes in the first-ever election for a new town of Tantramar council will be cast this Saturday at the Middle Sackville Baptist Church.

There are two advanced polling days before election day on November 28, both at the Middle Sackville Baptist Church, which also goes by Church by the Lake, at 14 Church Street.

Advanced polling days

Saturday, November 19, 10am to 8pm, Middle Sackville Baptist Church, 14 Church St
Monday, November 21, 10am to 8pm, Middle Sackville Baptist Church, 14 Church St

Election day on Monday November 28 will mean a second polling station is open in Dorchester, at the Dorchester Veterans Community Centre. Elections NB has also arranged for a shuttle to take people from the Tantramar Civic Centre on Main Street in Sackville, over to the Middle Sackville polling station. That shuttle will run every half hour, and will also bring voters back to the Tantramar Civic Center after they vote.

Election day polling

Monday, November 28, 10am to 8pm, Middle Sackville Baptist Church, 14 Church St
Monday, November 28, 10am to 8pm, Dorchester Veterans Community Centre, 4955 Main St

What to bring

Elections NB says that everyone who is already on the voters list should have received a Voter Information Card by mail, with all the details for advanced and regular polling days.

Voters are not required to show ID to vote, unless they are NOT on the voters list. To get added at the polling station, you will need one or more pieces of ID to shows your name, address, and signature. … Continue

Grassroots efforts to attract nurses to Sackville Memorial Hospital got results, volunteer committee reports

*Former mayor John Higham, co-chair of the Rural Health Action Group speaking to Sackville town councillors on Tuesday, November 8, 2022. Screenshot: Sackville.com/YouTube*

A local volunteer committee says its efforts to recruit health-care workers for the Sackville Memorial Hospital are paying off.

The Rural Health Action Group updated town councillors on a partnership with the regional health authority on Tuesday, and suggested their grassroots approach could become a model for other communities.

The hospital’s emergency department has been operating 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. following service cuts linked to widespread labour shortages in the health-care sector.

In December 2021, Horizon health authority also converted all acute-care beds at the hospital into long-term care, citing the nurse shortage.

On Tuesday, John Higham — who co-chairs the committee with Pat Estabrooks, both of them former Sackville mayors — presented figures that showed improved staffing numbers.

Listen to highlights from the Rural Health Action Group’s Nov. 8, 2022 presentation at Sackville town council:

Higham also confirmed that a highly anticipated return of acute-care beds is happening.

“It’s important to note that the inpatient services are coming back,” Higham said. “Major investment in two operating rooms was announced last week, that’s significant.

“It’s going to be aligned with the waiting list for the region on operations, which is what we’ve also talked to [Horizon] about for quite a while, the Brunswick beds are turning back into inpatients.”

Improved staff vacancy rates in that unit were also noted in background documents circulated among Sackville town councillors.… Continue

These are your candidates for the first Tantramar mayor and council

Nominations have closed on the first elections for a new town of Tantramar mayor and council.

There are five contests for Tantramar elections, and one ward with no contest. The candidates are as follows:

Mayor, Tantramar

Andrew Black (incumbent Sackville deputy mayor)
Shawn Mesheau (incumbent Sackville mayor)
Bonnie Swift

Ward 1, Dorchester (one seat)

Debbie Wiggins-Colwell (incumbent Dorchester mayor)
Robert Corkerton (incumbent Dorchester deputy mayor)

Ward 2, West Sackville-Rockport (one seat)

Natalie Donaher
Barry Hicks
Wendy Epworth
Kevin J. Scott

Ward 3, Sackville (four seats)

Allison Butcher (incumbent Sackville councillor)
Alice Cotton
Joshua Goguen
Virgil Hammock
Charles Arden Harvey
Sana Mohamad
Sahitya Pendurthi
Mike Tower (incumbent Sackville councillor)
Bruce Phinney (incumbent Sackville councillor)

Ward 4, Upper Sackville-Midgic (one seat)

Sabine Dietz (incumbent Sackville councillor)
Matt Estabrooks (incumbent Sackville councillor)

Ward 5, Point de Bute (one seat)

Greg Martin (incumbent on advisory committee for Point de Bute Local Service District)

Screenshot from unofficial list on the Elections NB website, one hour after nominations officially closed. October 28, 2022.

There are a total of 21 candidates for all positions, including nine women and twelve men. Ten of the candidates are incumbents, already holding seats on council or local service district advisory committees.

CHMA hopes to bring you interviews with all candidates, as well as coverage of the All-Candidates’ Forum being held at the Middle Sackville Baptist Church on November 12, 7pm-9pm.… Continue

UPDATED: More candidates, just one ward with no contest unless more candidates come forward by Friday deadline

Updated at 10am Wednesday, October 26, 2022 to reflect new candidates

New candidates have put their names forward for Tantramar municipal elections to be held on November 28, 2022. Nominations close on Friday at 2pm.

Barry Hicks and Wendy Epworth have both declared their candidacy for Ward 2, which includes parts of the old town of Sackville such as Frosty Hollow, as well as Westcock, British Settlement and the Rockport peninsula.

Incumbent Sackville councillor Bruce Phinney has also put his name in the hat for central Sackville, Ward 3. And on Tuesday, a new candidate, Charles Arden Harvey, entered the race in Ward 3, central Sackville.

That means the four seats in Ward 3 will be up for competition between at least five candidates.

Ward 5 Point de Bute is the one remaining ward with no contest. Candidate Greg Martin is in line to win the council seat by acclamation unless other candidates come forward before this Friday at 2pm.

So far, there are five contests for Tantramar elections:

Mayor, Tantramar: Current Sackville mayor Shawn Mesheau and Deputy Mayor Andrew Black compete for the top job.
Ward 1, Dorchester: Current Dorchester mayor Debbie Wiggins Colwell is running against her deputy mayor Robert Corkerton.

… Continue

‘Be part of this historic initiative’: Allain tries to drum up more candidates for municipal elections

There is just one week to go for candidates to nominate themselves for municipal elections in New Brunswick, and so far there are just eight candidates registered with Elections NB for the new town of Tantramar.

Tantramar Candidates according to Elections NB unofficial list

Mayor
Shawn Mesheau

Ward 1 (Dorchester) – One councillor seat available
Debbie Wiggins-Colwell
Robert Corkerton

Ward 2 (West Sackville/Rockport) – One councillor seat available
None

Ward 3 (Sackville) – Four councillor seats available
Mike Tower
Josh Goguen
Allison Butcher

Ward 4 (Upper Sackville/Midgic) – One councillor seat available
Matt Estabrooks

Ward 5 (Point de Bute/Aulac) – One councillor seat available
Greg Martin

Current Sackville councillor Sabine Dietz says she will be running in Ward 4 (Upper Sackville/Midgic) though she has yet to register.

Two current Sackville councillors have informed CHMA they will not be running: Bill Evans and Ken Hicks. Others are expected to declare candidacy soon, including Andrew Black and Bruce Phinney.

Counting Dietz as a candidate, there are just two actual elections guaranteed to take place in Tantramar, with no contest so far for Mayor, councillors in Ward 3 (Sackville), and councillor in Ward 5 (Point de Bute). There are no candidates whatsoever for councillor in Ward 2 (West Sackville).

There are also no candidates for the elected advisory committee for the new Southeast Rural District which is spread over eight distinct areas of the region, from north of Midgic to the Canaan Bog to the edges of Fundy National Park.… Continue

Tantramar to pony up about $60k of starter $1.5 million budget for new mandated regional services

The region covered by the South East Regional Service Commission extends from Alma to Shediac to Cape Tormentine. Image: 2020 SERSC annual report

Economic development is the biggest ticket item in the list of new mandated services to be delivered by regional service commissions in New Brunswick, at least in the southeast of the province.

As part of Minister Daniel Allain’s local government reform plan, commissions such as the South East Regional Service Commission (SERSC) will expand the number of services they provide, for which municipalities like the new town of Tantramar are required to pay.

Currently, the SERSC operates Eco360 and Plan360, handling garbage disposal and planning services for the municipalities in the region. But as of 2023, the commission will expand to include regional economic development, social and community development, regional transportation, tourism, and regional recreation infrastructure.

Earlier this month, chief financial officer Stephanie Thorne presented the commission’s draft budget for 2023, including an additional 1.5$ million ‘starter’ allocation for the new mandated services. The town of Tantramar portion of those costs will be about $59,000 in 2023, but that cost is expected to grow considerably in future, once the new services are defined and start to be delivered.

“It’s a prudent budget, we didn’t want to jump all in on the new mandated services,” Thorne told Sackville town council. “We really want to take this year to build strategies and figure out where the gaps are that we can fill.”… Continue