Saint John approves moratorium on Rockwood Park development

Saint John city council narrowly passed a motion on Monday night to halt a proposal to build 48 townhouses next to Rockwood Park.

By a slim 5-4 decision, the council endorsed Coun. Patty Higgins's motion to halt the development of four hectares of property into a townhouse complex in the Sandy Point Road area, which is beside the park.

Rockwood Park is considered Canada's largest urban green space with 890 hectares of wetlands and forest.

The vote sparked a brief fight among councillors but members of the Friends of Rockwood Park, a community group that wants to keep the large green space free from development, were relieved that the development has been pushed back.

"The whole community is going to have to get together and see that this [development] isn't done, because we're tired of the park being sold off," said Ernestine Rooney after the council meeting.

City acquired land in 1967

The land where the developer is seeking to build the townhouse complex is currently owned by the city.

Ken Forrest, the city's commissioner of planning, said Saint John acquired the land in 1967.

"It is not part of the park, and the city can then decide what to do with that piece of property on a go-forward basis," he said.

City staff had been recommending selling the property and approving the development.

Coun. Peter McGuire said he'd like to see the development and the $200,000 in new taxes that it would generate.

"Lovely housing in a lovely part of the city I really don't see anything wrong with that," McGuire said after the council meeting.

Higgins, the councillor who pushed for the moratorium and a former member of Friends of Rockwood Park, said the ban on development will last until everyone is comfortable with the proposed construction.

"I'm not sure [how long themoratorium will last], it depends on how long it takes to see what's what," Higgins said.

This latest fight to save the park comes about two years after the Friends of Rockwood Park failed to block Emera from running a natural gas pipeline through the park.