Rural areas north of Fredericton debate amalgamation

A movement to combine the Village of Stanley and two local service districts in central New Brunswick into a single community with its own local government is well underway.

The proposed Nashwaak Rural Community would be created by amalgamating Stanley, Estey's Bridge and St.Mary's.

The group held its first meeting on Monday night at the Penniac Rec Centre with about 60 people in attendance.

• Committee wants to form rural community outside Fredericton

More meetings are scheduled for January and may be followed by a feasibility study that willdeterminethe fate of the local service districts.

"Communities have changed," said Mike Chamberlain, the chair of the St. Mary's local service district, who supports amalgamation."Interests have changed and it's time for a restructuring."

Chamberlain said the amalgamated community north of Fredericton would function as a municipality,consisting of a mayor, councillors and wards. This wouldallow the community to control its own local government, he said.

Under the present set-up, the minister of environment and local government heads the local service districts that exist in rural areas acrossthe province, he said.

"Presently, the minister is our mayor," Chamberlain said. "We don't have any control over our own affairs with the current system."

Higher taxes

Some of the concerns raised at Monday night's meeting include a potential tax increase if the rural areas were joined.

Chamberlain said there would be a small bump to taxation but not much of one.

Residents are "worried about taxes going up and that's what this feasibility study is all about," he said. "Basically, local governments want to know if they have the support of the communities before they go ahead with this feasibility study."

Public consultations will take place throughout this month.

"Depending on public participation and what the public wants, we can proceed," he said.