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August 6, 2025

Inverness Oran, Letter to the Editor

Dear Editor,

    Something doesn’t pass the sniff test in Inverness County, from decision-making to spending. The county is using nearly 10 per cent of its annual budget, approximately three million dollars, and more to be spent soon, so that Warden Bonny gets her pickleball and other ball courts, while the rest of the county is left without needed recreational infrastructure. 

    In February 2023, the Margaree Environmental Association (MEA) completed a feasibility study to have a zero energy, world class, year-round aquatic and recreation centre centrally located in the county. The study was applauded by both the federal and provincial governments. MEA proposed that this facility would not cost the county more than 3.5 million dollars; a 10 per cent share of the capital budget, with 90 per cent being provincial and federal assistance. With zero energy costs, the operating budget would be 35 per cent lower than existing facilities, admission would be reasonable, and there would be no significant impact on our municipal taxes. 

    MEA held public meetings to explain the Cape Breton West Aquatic Centre study. Our first meeting had over 120 people in attendance in February 2023. More public meetings were held in central Inverness County. Cape Breton University did an arms-length public opinion study, where more than 500 residents responded that they wanted the aquatic centre to become a reality. A new association was formed, the Cape Breton West Aquatic Centre Society.

    After the MEA presented the feasibility study to several County Council meetings, Claude Poirier, the councillor from Cheticamp, told the media that an aquatic centre would cause a 40 per cent tax increase. MEA responded in a media release that this was false, and totally ignored the substance of our feasibility study. Then, in the spring of 2024, CAO Keith MacDonald reported to council that an aquatic centre in western Cape Breton would cause a 17 per cent increase in taxes. This prediction ignores both federal and provincial levels of assistance, and the zero energy cost, thereby reducing the yearly operating costs, which CBCL Engineering studied, designed, and calculated in MEA’s feasibility study.

    We were shocked by the county intentionally scaring the public with such bogus numbers.

    This spring, the MEA executive again met with CAO Keith MacDonald and the head of recreation, Jason Calder, with the simple request to ask the county to direct staff to look into whether or not there was federal and provincial funding available, and if so, how much. We followed up the meeting with emails and phone calls, all of which have never been returned. 

    In addition, the MEA repeatedly asked for the county to release the January 2023 Physical Activity and Recreational Master Plan, that REC consulting had been hired to do by Inverness County. In 2022, the county had released the results of the public opinion part of this study, which indicated that an aquatic centre is the top priority the public. In spring 2025, with the county still refusing to release the Recreational Study, we applied under Freedom of Information, and the county released the study to us. The summary, and the body of the report, states “overwhelmingly” that the public wants and needs a year-round indoor Aquatic Centre. Outdoor ball courts were considered, only if they were to be a “low cost” option.

    Warden Bonny MacIsaac and CAO Keith MacDonald have stated that the county is stressed with costs of sewer and water, and garbage, and cannot do recreational infrastructure projects. 

    This year the MEA wrote to the ministers of health and education, and Nova Scotia’s recreation minister responded, praised our study, and directed his senior staff in Cape Breton to meet with us. At that meeting, we heard that there are funds available from the province and the federal government, with recent examples of a multi-million-dollar recreation infrastructure project in Baddeck, and a curling rink in Sydney. The message is clear; if the county were on our side, an aquatic and recreation centre centrally located to serve the whole county could become a reality.

    While the county withheld the release of the Inverness County Recreational Master Plan, it was announced that Inverness would be getting a pickleball court, the “Inverness County Multi-Use Recreational Courts” including tennis, basketball, and pickleball. The question is, is this a facility for the whole county? Would it meet the health and recreational needs of a wide range of citizens? Would people even travel from Cheticamp, Port Hood, Whycocomagh, Mabou, and Margaree to play pickleball, basketball, and tennis, in Inverness?

    The information given to the public was that these courts were being 100 per cent funded by the federal and provincial government, and the county would not be contributing. However, this July, the county complied to a second MEA Freedom of Information request, which confirmed that the federal government will be contributing $1.8 million, the provincial government $614,000, and the county $2.3 million.

    The MEA agrees that the village of Inverness, and other communities, could use some ball courts, but the process that the municipality followed to address the recreational needs of its citizens has been shady. Why was the planning for these courts not a public process, with honest financial numbers? Why did the county release bogus information about the cost of an aquatic centre for Western Cape Breton, claiming the development would raise taxes? Why did the county ignore the recreational master plan for which it spent more than $54,000; a strategy that supports the development of a year-round indoor aquatic and recreation centre? 

    Next, there is the issue of major overages in the Inverness project. Did the county first do a geotechnical survey on the county land used for the court to determine if the site was suitable? They had to spend an extra $541,000 on fill and gravel because of high water table. They had hardly begun to build, and the courts were already 35 per cent over budget. Other expenses are suspicious: the $1 million paved parking lot; a gravel one would have cost about $50,000; the half-million dollar lighting system, when solar lighting would likely be one tenth the cost. 

    Why, with significant budget overages on Phase 1, and it not yet completed, would the county start Phase 2? Phase 2 is a $2.2 million surprise addition to the project. At nearly $5 million, the Inverness court facility is way over budget. Had these costs been within reason, there would have been money to build courts in other parts of the county, or to contribute to an aquatic centre development.

    Why was Councillor Claude Poirier in Cheticamp, who raised a false alarm about our taxes going up 40 per cent for an aquatic centre, not jumping up and down about the county spending nearly 10 per cent of its annual budget on Phase 2? Why was Councillor Blair, not supporting an aquatic centre in his area, while keeping silent on the Phase 2 overspend on the Inverness courts; or all the other councillors? Why did we, the public, never hear that the county would build and pay for Phase 2? 

    There is more county spending coming soon on these ball courts. The July 30th issue of the Inverness Oran printed information that Inverness County has commissioned the design for a building at the ball courts. The design and build will likely be a significant addition to the cost of the project, which is not shown in the current budget. 

    In the July Freedom of Information release the MEA received from the county, CAO Keith MacDonald deflects this overspending by stating that there may be sponsorship and naming rights to offset the costs to the county. The same strategy could occur with an aquatic centre; our councillors chose to ignore a wide range of opportunities to make a year-round indoor aquatic and recreation centre affordable. 

    What is going on here? Why were we led to believe that the county is building the courts in Inverness without spending any of our tax dollars? At the same time, why was the MEA feasibility study ignored, and the aquatic and recreation centre proposal dismissed with bogus numbers and scare tactics? 

    Something at Inverness County does not pass the sniff test. It smells of cronyism, making poor decisions to spend our tax money, while hiding the truth from the public.

    But, in the end, Warden Bonny got her pickle and the rest of us, not even a crumb. 
   

            Brian Peters
            Neal Livingston
            Co-chairs
            Margaree Environmental Association

August 6, 2025

Inverness Oran, Letter to the Editor

Dear Editor,

    Something doesn’t pass the sniff test in Inverness County, from decision-making to spending. The county is using nearly 10 per cent of its annual budget, approximately three million dollars, and more to be spent soon, so that Warden Bonny gets her pickleball and other ball courts, while the rest of the county is left without needed recreational infrastructure. 

    In February 2023, the Margaree Environmental Association (MEA) completed a feasibility study to have a zero energy, world class, year-round aquatic and recreation centre centrally located in the county. The study was applauded by both the federal and provincial governments. MEA proposed that this facility would not cost the county more than 3.5 million dollars; a 10 per cent share of the capital budget, with 90 per cent being provincial and federal assistance. With zero energy costs, the operating budget would be 35 per cent lower than existing facilities, admission would be reasonable, and there would be no significant impact on our municipal taxes. 

    MEA held public meetings to explain the Cape Breton West Aquatic Centre study. Our first meeting had over 120 people in attendance in February 2023. More public meetings were held in central Inverness County. Cape Breton University did an arms-length public opinion study, where more than 500 residents responded that they wanted the aquatic centre to become a reality. A new association was formed, the Cape Breton West Aquatic Centre Society.

    After the MEA presented the feasibility study to several County Council meetings, Claude Poirier, the councillor from Cheticamp, told the media that an aquatic centre would cause a 40 per cent tax increase. MEA responded in a media release that this was false, and totally ignored the substance of our feasibility study. Then, in the spring of 2024, CAO Keith MacDonald reported to council that an aquatic centre in western Cape Breton would cause a 17 per cent increase in taxes. This prediction ignores both federal and provincial levels of assistance, and the zero energy cost, thereby reducing the yearly operating costs, which CBCL Engineering studied, designed, and calculated in MEA’s feasibility study.

    We were shocked by the county intentionally scaring the public with such bogus numbers.

    This spring, the MEA executive again met with CAO Keith MacDonald and the head of recreation, Jason Calder, with the simple request to ask the county to direct staff to look into whether or not there was federal and provincial funding available, and if so, how much. We followed up the meeting with emails and phone calls, all of which have never been returned. 

    In addition, the MEA repeatedly asked for the county to release the January 2023 Physical Activity and Recreational Master Plan, that REC consulting had been hired to do by Inverness County. In 2022, the county had released the results of the public opinion part of this study, which indicated that an aquatic centre is the top priority the public. In spring 2025, with the county still refusing to release the Recreational Study, we applied under Freedom of Information, and the county released the study to us. The summary, and the body of the report, states “overwhelmingly” that the public wants and needs a year-round indoor Aquatic Centre. Outdoor ball courts were considered, only if they were to be a “low cost” option.

    Warden Bonny MacIsaac and CAO Keith MacDonald have stated that the county is stressed with costs of sewer and water, and garbage, and cannot do recreational infrastructure projects. 

    This year the MEA wrote to the ministers of health and education, and Nova Scotia’s recreation minister responded, praised our study, and directed his senior staff in Cape Breton to meet with us. At that meeting, we heard that there are funds available from the province and the federal government, with recent examples of a multi-million-dollar recreation infrastructure project in Baddeck, and a curling rink in Sydney. The message is clear; if the county were on our side, an aquatic and recreation centre centrally located to serve the whole county could become a reality.

    While the county withheld the release of the Inverness County Recreational Master Plan, it was announced that Inverness would be getting a pickleball court, the “Inverness County Multi-Use Recreational Courts” including tennis, basketball, and pickleball. The question is, is this a facility for the whole county? Would it meet the health and recreational needs of a wide range of citizens? Would people even travel from Cheticamp, Port Hood, Whycocomagh, Mabou, and Margaree to play pickleball, basketball, and tennis, in Inverness?

    The information given to the public was that these courts were being 100 per cent funded by the federal and provincial government, and the county would not be contributing. However, this July, the county complied to a second MEA Freedom of Information request, which confirmed that the federal government will be contributing $1.8 million, the provincial government $614,000, and the county $2.3 million.

    The MEA agrees that the village of Inverness, and other communities, could use some ball courts, but the process that the municipality followed to address the recreational needs of its citizens has been shady. Why was the planning for these courts not a public process, with honest financial numbers? Why did the county release bogus information about the cost of an aquatic centre for Western Cape Breton, claiming the development would raise taxes? Why did the county ignore the recreational master plan for which it spent more than $54,000; a strategy that supports the development of a year-round indoor aquatic and recreation centre? 

    Next, there is the issue of major overages in the Inverness project. Did the county first do a geotechnical survey on the county land used for the court to determine if the site was suitable? They had to spend an extra $541,000 on fill and gravel because of high water table. They had hardly begun to build, and the courts were already 35 per cent over budget. Other expenses are suspicious: the $1 million paved parking lot; a gravel one would have cost about $50,000; the half-million dollar lighting system, when solar lighting would likely be one tenth the cost. 

    Why, with significant budget overages on Phase 1, and it not yet completed, would the county start Phase 2? Phase 2 is a $2.2 million surprise addition to the project. At nearly $5 million, the Inverness court facility is way over budget. Had these costs been within reason, there would have been money to build courts in other parts of the county, or to contribute to an aquatic centre development.

    Why was Councillor Claude Poirier in Cheticamp, who raised a false alarm about our taxes going up 40 per cent for an aquatic centre, not jumping up and down about the county spending nearly 10 per cent of its annual budget on Phase 2? Why was Councillor Blair, not supporting an aquatic centre in his area, while keeping silent on the Phase 2 overspend on the Inverness courts; or all the other councillors? Why did we, the public, never hear that the county would build and pay for Phase 2? 

    There is more county spending coming soon on these ball courts. The July 30th issue of the Inverness Oran printed information that Inverness County has commissioned the design for a building at the ball courts. The design and build will likely be a significant addition to the cost of the project, which is not shown in the current budget. 

    In the July Freedom of Information release the MEA received from the county, CAO Keith MacDonald deflects this overspending by stating that there may be sponsorship and naming rights to offset the costs to the county. The same strategy could occur with an aquatic centre; our councillors chose to ignore a wide range of opportunities to make a year-round indoor aquatic and recreation centre affordable. 

    What is going on here? Why were we led to believe that the county is building the courts in Inverness without spending any of our tax dollars? At the same time, why was the MEA feasibility study ignored, and the aquatic and recreation centre proposal dismissed with bogus numbers and scare tactics? 

    Something at Inverness County does not pass the sniff test. It smells of cronyism, making poor decisions to spend our tax money, while hiding the truth from the public.

    But, in the end, Warden Bonny got her pickle and the rest of us, not even a crumb. 
   

            Brian Peters
            Neal Livingston
            Co-chairs
            Margaree Environmental Association