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Eastern Charlotte

Eastern Charlotte Council April 1

Eastern Charlotte council sends reprimand over conduct breaches

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By Nathalie Sturgeon, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The St. Croix Courier

Eastern Charlotte Mayor John Craig will receive a letter of reprimand from the council following two breaches of the code of conduct bylaw.

A complaint was lodged by Coun. Lisa McKay after it was reported by CBC New Brunswick that Craig signed a letter in support of J.D. Irving, Limited (JDI), which was requesting permission to log thousands of hectares of protected areas in exchange for conserving lands near those communities.

“Further, in a council meeting held on Feb. 10, 2026, when I raised this matter in my role as an elected representative seeking clarity and accountability, the mayor responded in a manner that I believe was inappropriate for public forum and inconsistent with the respectful and professional conduct expected within council,” she said during a previous meeting.

She told council Craig made comments like “holier than thou” and that he “was not perfect like you” during a Feb. 10 Committee of the Whole meeting. Craig would later say it was his reaction to being asked to resign twice in the same meeting, something he said the council has no authority to call for.

“Yes, I probably should have never said that,” he said. “I was attacked in a public meeting and was twice asked to resign, and I lost my composure and I apologize.”

He also took a trip to Ottawa in partnership with the City of Campbell River. McKay said the trip was taken without prior knowledge or approval.

Craig said the purpose of the trip was to ensure that a formal ban on open-net pen salmon farming scheduled to be implemented by the federal government in British Columbia at the end of June 2029 would not extend to the East Coast.

As mayor, Craig is the spokesperson for the Municipality of Eastern Charlotte and said he regularly attends events on behalf of council.

McKay requested the full accounting of the trip, including associated costs. Craig told the council the trip was paid for by the City of Campbell River, B.C., which invited him to represent the east coast interest in the aquaculture industry, and everything else was paid for out of his own pocket.

“There was nothing Eastern Charlotte paid for,” he said in response to the letter.

He said a full financial disclosure was filed with Eastern Charlotte’s chief administrative officer, Jason Gaudet, who later confirmed that detail.

“It was not a pleasure trip. As anybody knows, I don’t like flying, [and] it was three days of lobbying MPs (Members of Parliament) along[side] Mayor Kermit Dahl for the City of Campbell River,” he said.

Aquaculture and fisheries are significant industries in Eastern Charlotte, with Cooke — an international seafood company — and Connors Brothers, a fish-packing and processing plant, among other major employers.

Cooke employs roughly 1,500 individuals in New Brunswick and 2,500 throughout Atlantic Canada.

The Courier has reached out to McKay, who was not present at the meeting, and is awaiting a response.

It was the first code of conduct meeting to be discussed in open session since the Local Governance Commission issued an advisory stating that councillors and mayors cannot be classified as employees for the purposes of the closed session exemptions in Section 68(1) of the Local Governance Act.

As mayor, Craig serves as the spokesperson for the Municipality of Eastern Charlotte and said he regularly attends events on behalf of council.

It remains unclear which of the three actions were considered a breach of the bylaw, as council went into closed session to discuss the advice of legal counsel under one of the exemptions set out in Section (68)(1) of the Act.

Council did not discuss the legal advice in detail but voted unanimously to send a letter of reprimand. They also voted to send it within the next 30 days.

Craig told The Courier these actions stemmed from his passion for Eastern Charlotte and defending local industry and jobs.

“In my zest to do that, [and] in hindsight, I should have informed the council from the beginning and apologized to council,” he said in a statement to The Courier. We can put this behind us as a lesson learned.”

Craig said he has always been clear this job requires constant learning.

“If I make a mistake, I own it and move on from it … that’s what leaders do,” he said.

Eastern Charlotte Council

Eastern Charlotte puts daycare project on hold over funding shortfall

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Lack of provincial funding has put Eastern Charlotte’s daycare building in limbo.

In a special meeting last Tuesday, the municipality’s council decided to cancel awarding the tender for the construction of the St. George YMCA daycare, citing a lack of provincial funding.

The earliest conception of the daycare dates to before the 2023 amalgamation, when the provincial government approached the community about childcare needs highlighted in the 2023–26 Early Learning and Childcare Action Plan.

In an interview with Acadia Broadcasting last Thursday, CAO Jason Gaudet said that when the project was first proposed, it was understood the province would cover 40 per cent of the costs, the federal government another 40 per cent, and the municipality 20 per cent.

However, the province has now reduced its contribution to $500,000.

The federal government provided $800,000 for the project, of which $270,000 was allocated for planning fees. The remainder was funding designated for the creation of childcare spaces under the federal government’s Canada Early Learning and Childcare Act.

According to Gaudet, with the province’s current contribution, the municipality would have to cover about $1.36-million to complete construction of the daycare if it accepted the lowest bid.

“We didn’t believe at the time that over 50 per cent of the project would come back on the municipality,” he said.

“We were under the believe the province was going to help support this, and we were certainly going to be a partner, we didn’t believe we were going to lead the way.”

According to plans shared by the municipality, the building was expected to have 82 spaces in total, including 52 childcare spaces for children aged one to five and 30 after‑school spaces for children aged five to 12.

The municipality had partnered with the YMCA of Southwestern New Brunswick, which was going to provide programming based on the National YMCA Playing to Learn curriculum.

According to a press release shared by the municipality in May 2025, construction was planned to start in March 2026, but council has now decided to put the project on hold until it can secure more funding from either the province or other investors.

Gaudet said council does not believe it could secure the remaining costs through fundraising and is not willing to borrow money or raise the tax rate to pay for the building.

At the meeting, council also explored the option of building a smaller daycare, but Gaudet said nothing has been decided.

He said that if council chooses that option, the project would need to be retendered, which could take a significant amount of time.

Gaudet said council recognizes the need for childcare, based on resident feedback and the government’s study, but believes most of the project’s cost should not fall on the municipality.

“Municipalities are not looking to address childcare gaps. It’s usually not within our mandate. However, we sat at the table with the province and said, ‘How can we help?’”

Gaudet said the municipality has asked the province to consider increasing its contribution, but at the time of the interview, it had yet to respond.

In an email statement Monday, Department of Education and Early Childhood spokesperson Diana Chávez said the Regional Development Corporation — the provincial Crown corporation responsible for supporting communities and driving economic growth across government departments — would “entertain” keeping its 40 per cent contribution above the $500,000.

She said this would depend on the municipality providing a sustainable business plan for the childcare centre and outlining how it will raise the remaining funds.

She added that the province’s Child Care Connect waitlist guides the allocation of designated childcare spaces.

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Fundy Health Centre to receive $1.5 million expansion

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Horizon’s Fundy Health Centre, located in Blacks Harbour, will receive a provincial investment.

The major renovations are being planned with an anticipated completion time of 18 to 24 months.

They will increase the facility’s clinical space, which will improve patient flow and access. The new expansion also makes room for another nurse practitioner and three administrative support positions.

These positions will work alongside the existing team at the Fundy Health Centre, currently comprised of a physician, three nurse practitioners, seven registered and licensed practical nurses, a social worker, a pharmacist, a dietitian, and four administrative staff.

“This expansion reflects the Fundy Health Centre’s decades-long commitment to providing high-quality, accessible, and patient-centred care in this community,” said Horizon President and CEO Margaret Melanson. “This collaborative care team is receiving essential resources, enhanced supports, and redesigned clinical space to continue onboarding patients and serving the region now and into the future.”

The Fundy Health Centre has been operating for 25 years and currently serves 4,159 patients. This funding should ensure every unattached resident in Eastern Charlotte has access to a primary care provider.

The centre currently provides primary care services, transitional care services, discharge planning, Extra Mural (known as hospital without walls), and follow-up care.

“This investment means that every person currently on the NB Health Link waitlist in the Eastern Charlotte region will be connected with a primary care provider,” said Premier Susan Holt. “By upgrading the Fundy Health Centre and strengthening its collaborative care team, we’re making sure families have reliable, timely access to care close to home, where and when they need it most.”

1,138 people are currently on the provincial waitlist for primary care in the community. The centre plans to begin patient onboarding once renovations are complete.

“Shifting to a collaborative, community-based system is how we are transforming primary health care in New Brunswick,” said Health Minister John Dornan. “Enhancing the Fundy Health Centre means more residents in Eastern Charlotte will benefit from the integrated support of a collaborative care team.”

Eastern Charlotte Mayor John Craig Jan 5 2026

A look back at 2025 with Mayor John Craig

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By Nathalie Sturgeon, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Courier

John Craig said when amalgamation happened, he knew he needed to spend more time in the newly incorporated areas – making himself accessible to the new constituents of Eastern Charlotte. 

It has been one of his biggest commitments through 2025. With a new council, and a renewed focus, the issues of the Blacks and Beaver Harbour water supply came to a boiling point, the increasing demand for childcare, and a greater need for affordable housing. 

“When I go out to all these areas and talk to people, whether it’s birthday parties, anniversaries or just church services, it gives them accessibility to me,” he said, speaking to The Courier. 

In the last year, the council has built a pavilion in Riverside Park – an area poised for both recreation and events. It has become the home of the Eastern Charlotte Night Market. 

“I expect it to be used a lot and maybe for weddings, receptions, birthday parties, anniversaries, and graduation parties. I can see a lot of that happening there, right by the river, is a beautiful spot, and so we’re quite proud of that this year,” he said. 

The town worked on paving this past year. Craig said the challenge is that there is only so much money to go around. 

“Paving is always a must, and it’s not easy, because when you do certain streets, we can’t do them all at once,” he said. “We did the Hospital Street, which was falling apart. The reason we did that is because everybody in Eastern Charlotte uses that.” 

Blacks and Beaver Harbour water supply 

Craig said the biggest priority for the current council–and the one he hopes to lead in 2026– is improving the water quality for residents in Blacks and Beaver Harbour. 

The issue has been impacting residents for many years. The system is privately owned by Connors Brothers, a fish packing and processing plant. 

“I know it’s frustrating for the people of Blacks Harbour,” he said. “It’s safe, but I see the frustration there, but it is moving ahead.” 

In November, Englobe–the engineering firm responsible for trying to find a new water source for the area–said a new water main-flushing schedule would help with the deposits being left by manganese and iron coming in contact with chlorine. 

He said the biannual flushing schedule isn’t enough to move the deposits along. 

“The transmission line we know that’s got to be replaced,” Craig said. “They’re doing the final study on that. The province is not going to give us (Eastern Charlotte) money until they’ve done those studies.” 

He said the next step is for council to form a separate committee to work on the water supply quality in Blacks and Beaver Harbour 

“[The] council wants a separate committee,” he explained. “It’d be sort of a communication committee, where they can communicate what’s going on better to the public, and let people know and try to get the information out there.” 

The engineering firm is working on determining the legality of going on to private property, which can often be a complicated process. 

“We have to keep pushing and pushing to make sure this gets done,” he said. 

Child-care in Eastern Charlotte

For several years, the council has also been working toward a new child-care facility in partnership with the Southwest New Brunswick YMCA. 

In April, the YMCA said it had seen an increase in usage. 

“We’re going to keep the momentum going, offer more programming,” Paige Scott said, speaking to the council in April. “We’re a small, but mighty team. We put our heart and soul into everything that we’re doing.”

It has faced challenges with finding a location for the facility, and it currently operates out of the Eastern Charlotte Recreation Complex. 

Craig said the municipality is waiting on drawings for what the new facility could look like, which should allow them to put it out for tender. 

“We [have] got to see what the final prices are going to be and that’s kind of where it is at the moment,” he said. “Child-care is very important, because if you don’t have a place for your children to go to, you end up moving away and moving to a place where there is child-care.” 

Increase in medical calls

The fire department in Eastern Charlotte has also been facing an increased number of medical calls throughout the year, prompting the municipality to seek assistance from the province in advocating for better response times from Ambulance New Brunswick (ANB). 

Jason Gaudet, the municipality’s chief administrative officer, said in February that officials have been going back to Ambulance New Brunswick – operated by a private company – and the province to ask why this is happening. 

“We’re looking for some assistance from the province on their end to look into it as well, and to come up with some answers long-term,” he said. 

With increasing medical calls also comes additional costs, Gaudet explained. 

“There’s also an additional cost for training firefighters, not just now for fighting fires, but also in regards to just responding to health and medical calls,” he said.

According to ANB, in November 2025 it responded to 94.7 per cent of 9-1-1 emergency calls in Blacks Harbour within the 22-minute rural response requirement. 

Between April and November, ANB responded to 9-1-1 emergency calls for Blacks Harbour on average 86.6 per cent of the time. 

Craig said the fire department has a list of medical calls that it responds to. 

“I think they’ve taken some things off that list to try to keep the call numbers down a bit,” he said, adding they still respond to more serious 9-1-1 calls. 

ANB said in February that the company was contacted by Eastern Charlotte Fire Chief Justin Johnston to join its Medical First Responder (MFR) program, in which ANB and individual fire services mutually agree on the types of medical calls a particular fire department will respond to. The Courier has obtained that email and viewed its content to confirm that request. 

When the criteria are met, ANB will request assistance from the fire department through its dispatch agency. It said requests for the MFR program are not always made by ANB, but can also be made by the Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP).

“In those instances, PSAP advises ANB that they are sending MFRs. In these instances, calls do not always meet the agreed upon MFR criteria,” it said in a statement. 

Craig believes the fire department has the situation under control. 

“I have to talk with the fire chief and our manager too, I think they seem to have a pretty good handle on it, really, at the moment,” he said. 

On Dec. 17, the council unanimously adopted a new policy related to medical calls. The policy outlines what calls the fire department should respond to, including cardiac arrest, accidents, and respiratory arrest.

It said only two members of the department should respond to medical calls, who are properly trained. Firefighters are directed to leave the scene once Ambulance New Brunswick arrives and has control of the situation, unless otherwise request for additional assistance.

Looking ahead to 2026

Craig said the main focus going into 2026 will be housing, the Blacks and Beaver Harbour water supply, and maintaining the tax rates. 

“We’re going to hold the line on taxes, and the council is voting on that to make sure that we hold the line on taxes,” he said. He also noted the provincial property assessment freeze, which is creating uncertainty on local governments. 

“We’re not going to have as much capital money to do as much capital work next year, but we’re going to pick and choose what we can do, and live within our means,” Craig said. 

As for the mayor’s future and the upcoming election in May 2026, Craig said his name will go back in the hat for one last time around the horseshoe. 

“I feel things still have to be done,” he said. “And I’d like to see it through. And if I do go one more will be my last time. I want to see some of these projects through.  I have a great council down there.”