Marystown mayor frustrated by lack of progress at former shipyard

There's growing frustration in Marystown over the fate of the town's former shipyard, as a plan to transform the facility into a service and supply centre for the aquaculture industry is thrown off course by some serious head winds.

"We are a hurting environment here now. The economy is bad and we can'trely on broken promises no more," Marystown Mayor Brian Keating told CBC News.

A new company called Marbase Marystown acquired the 30-acre property four years ago. Marbaseis a partnership between St. John's businessman Paul Antle and a Norwegian aquaculture investment company called Amar.

Marbase paid $1million for the shipyard, after the provincial government spent roughly twice that amount to carry out an environmental cleanup.

Marbase pledgedto create hundreds of jobs through the development of a supply and service hub for the salmon farming industry, including the establishment of a hatchery for lumpfish.The hatchery, which would be the first of its kind in Canada, was touted as anatural solution to the problem of sea lice in salmon cages.

But the world has changed since the hype was created during a news conference in St. John's four years ago, when officials with Marbase, municipal and labour leaders, and the provincial government appeared so hopeful about the project.

"These are serious investors. I think they'll build a big footprintand they'll employ people. They'll make money and they'll feed their children," said thenMarystown mayor Sam Synardat the time.

Four years later, the current mayor is not so upbeat.

"Right now you can see the doubt in residents' minds," said Keating. "It's almost four-plus years and one employee one permanent employee at this facility."

Marbase chairman and CEO Paul Antleadmittedthere have been delaysbut said the partners have made "tremendous progress."

"We are keeping our commitment," he said.

He said thepandemic, serious supply chain upheaval, inflation and setbacks in the local aquaculture industry have combined to weaken the economic model behind the original plan for Marbase.

"There are no broken promises," said Antle. "We committed to Marystown back in 2019 and that commitment hasn't changed. We're doing everything we can to move things along."

But instead of a busy hub for aquaculture, Marbase is mostly quiet. The site serves as astorage warehouse for salmon feed, but not much else.

Keating doesn't like what he sees when he looks daily from the town hall to the Marbase site.

"We don't see no contracts, we don't get no big information what is coming here. We just want to know, what are you going to do at Marbase to employ people on the Burin Peninsula, Marystown, in the surrounding areas? We need answers."

Paul Antle said "millions" has been spent to upgrade the facility, and like many major projects, they are looking at ways to reduce development costs.

And they've expanded their vision, with plans for a wolffish hatchery to help fill what Antle says is a growing demand for thehigh-quality seafood product.

"It's coming together, but it's just not coming together as fast as we would have liked," said Antle.

• Sale of Marystown shipyard raises hopes for aquaculture growth, job creation

And there's a new player at the table. In January, Marbase signed a memorandum of understanding withMiawpukek First Nation, one that could see the Conne River-based Indigenous group become a majority owner of Marbase.

"We have to be responsible and we have to look at the sustainability of the project, sustainability of the investment and that's what we're doing," said Antle.

Antle addedMarbase is "part of my life every day in a week."

But there'sone thing Antle won't do, and that's give any timelines.

"We are active intrying to get everything to a point where you know we can pull the trigger and until we get everything in line, I mean it's just going totake more time," he said.

The mayor is not satisfied with that.

"We want this to happen," said Keating."But it's time for them guys to step up and tell us when, and what and how you're going to do things and give us times and dates,not promises."

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