The Margaree Environmental Association(MEA) accuses the Inverness Municipality of using bogus numbers and fear tactics of tax increases, in dismissing the proposed aquatic centre for western Cape Breton.
The MEA completed a $100,000 feasibility study in 2023, with 75% funding from the Dept of Natural Resources & Renewables, which concluded that such a facility is indeed feasible, provided that it is energy-neutral, thereby reducing the annual operating costs by $300,000 - $400,000 below those of the East Hants Aquatic Centre.
“I was both surprised and disappointed that the County disregarded the results of our feasibility study,” says Brian Peters, co-chair of MEA. “We hired one of the top engineering firms in the province to conduct the energy analysis, yet the County has chosen to ignore our findings, and instead presented numbers that are nonsense, and intended to scare the public.”
In addition, the MEA challenges the County’s capital cost figures. The County exaggerates the Municipality’s contribution to the construction of the facility. “We have said all along that a state-of-the-art aquatic centre, being energy-neutral, would cost about $30 million, with the Federal and Provincial governments contributing 90%, leaving $3 million for the county’s portion, not the $14.4 million stated by the County,” said Neal Livingston, also co-chair of MEA. “This $3 million could be significantly reduced with creative marketing, such as naming rights.”
Since completing the feasibility study in 2023, the MEA developed operating and maintenance cost estimates with professional accountants, which show Inverness County’s annual contribution to likely be in the range of $100,000 after user fees for residents and visitors, not $1 million that the County has said.
Since 2024 began, the MEA has repeatedly requested a meeting with the CEO and other Inverness County officials, to discuss the aquatic centre proposal, and the estimated development and operating costs. County officials continue to refuse to meet, and instead generated their own bogus figures in a vacuum, designed to frighten residents, by threatening increased taxes if an Aquatic Centre was built.
Public support for an aquatic centre has been overwhelming;
- Inverness County released a public survey in 2022 where an aquatic centre was the top choice of county residents.
- In 2024 Cape Breton University through their Community-Student Research Connections Program surveyed over 500 residents of Inverness County, and found that 98% believed that an aquatic centre would benefit our communities.
The MEA demands that County officials meet with the MEA, and the newly formed Cape Breton West Aquatic Centre Society, to explore opportunities for funding with the Federal and Provincial governments, to develop costs that fairly represent the financial realities of the proposed aquatic centre, and to respect the expressed wishes of county residents.
For more information (and there is more to know about) contact:
Brian Peters MEA Co-chair 902-248-2211
Neal Livingston MEA Co-Chair 902-456-2004