Demolition begins on 1 of 6 silos at old Bathurst mill site

A 5,000-pound wrecking ball taps the top of a silo on the old Smurfit-Stone mill property in the middle of Bathurst as residents look on from parked cars.

It's the moment many have been waiting for since the paper mill unexpectedly ceased operations in 2005, putting hundreds out of work.

Bathurst Redevelopment Inc., a subsidiary of U.S.-based"green" cleanup company, Green Investment Group, bought the property five years later but abandoned it because contractors had stripped the property of valuable materials and equipment and left it "looking like a war zone," according to some residents.

The company was fineda "symbolic sum" of $150,000 for breaching a ministerial order to clean up the property to standards set by the Department of Environment and Local Government.

New owner plans cleanup

Ray Robichaud, a businessman from northern New Brunswick, bought the property in 2016 with a pledge to the city that he would be the one to clean it up and bring change to the site.

"We're taking downthe top area at the moment,"Robichaud said at the demolition site."Once the top is down, we'll be hitting on the sides and we'll see how the 5,000-pound ball works out.

"And if it's not strong enough, which it seems like it might be able to do the job, I have an 11,800-pound ball. But I'll need a bigger crane to handle it."

Work began at the site around 9 a.m. Monday, after the crane and other equipment warmed up enough to operate at about -20 Celsius. By late afternoon, the silo remained, save a few chunks off the top. Work will continue into Tuesday, until the entire structure is down.

Only one of six silos will be demolished.

"I have to have itanalyzedto make sure there's nocontaminantsin there," Robichaud said. "If there's no contaminants we'll use it as fill. If there are contaminants we'll have to transport it to a site approved by the Department of Environment."

Phase 1 of many

Robichaud had originally pledged to have the silos down in July, but the project is taking much longer than he anticipated.

"It's costing a lot more when it's cold, so we might wait until spring and do [the rest]after. We'll do the first one and see how it turns out," he said.

Robichaud's plan is to develop the former mill site intoluxury condos, a strip mall, parking lot and gas bar.

"I signed with a big petroleum company," he said. "Going to be a Petro-Can. We hope to open it by June. There will be a doughnut shop with that and another fast food outlet."

The site of the gas station will be across the road from the silos, on a separate piece of the former mill site

"I'm very thrilled It's moving along," Robichaud said. "Alot slower than I anticipated, but it's moving."

Fascinated onlookers

A dozen parked cars lined Mainand Bridge streets so passengers could get a better look at the slow demolition of the silo.

Matt Rogers, Matthew Gracie and Kyle Arseneau, part of a film crew documenting the saga of the mill property, drove up from Fredericton to capture video of the work.

"I've been shooting a documentary about the mill site for the last couple years, just the contemporary story around what's going on with the mill," said Rogers, the lead filmmaker on the project.

"I'm glad we're up here for it today."

Rogers, who grew up in Bathurst, has a keen interest in the history of the mill and the use of the space since Smurfit-Stone shut down. His assistant, Kyle Arseneau, hails from nearby Miramichi.

Part of Bathurst life

"I do think it's important that people remember it was here once upon a time and was a big part of life for many people here in Bathurst," said Arseneau.

Others were on hand to document the demolition for their own personal photo collections.

"Photography's an interest of mine," said Denis MacLellan, who wanted to see how the silo would come down and document the process.

She, along with many others in Bathurst, hope to see some green space take the place of the old mill.

"After they clean up, maybe make a nice park, you know, for kids or people with dogs," MacLellan said. "They can let their dogs run around."