Tantramar council has agreed to investigate a community building for Ward 4 after a councillor argued that rural communities lack accessible public spaces for recreation and gatherings.
Councillor Kristen LeBlanc brought forward the motion at the October 13 meeting, proposing a facility that could also serve residents during emergencies.
“I’m not asking council to approve construction or commit funding today,” LeBlanc told council.
She said some residents in her ward felt their taxes had increased after amalgamation without receiving comparable municipal benefits. LeBlanc argued that the municipality should consider providing a public building for activities currently dependent on churches and other privately owned spaces.
For families in Ward 4, getting to activities elsewhere in Tantramar can mean a considerable drive. LeBlanc put the round trip at approximately 30 kilometres and questioned how parents without the time or money for gas could regularly take their children to events. Walking isn’t much of an alternative either, she argued, particularly along Route 940 to reach Silver Lake.
During the discussion, LeBlanc referred to community halls in Nova Scotia that offer bingo nights, activities for seniors and space for family events. She would like Ward 4 to have something similar, with rentals helping to cover the cost of running it.
Power outages were another reason LeBlanc gave for having a public building in Ward 4. She said some households lack generators and could use somewhere to get warm when the electricity goes out. She also raised the possibility of keeping a defibrillator on site and allowing emergency services to use the building.
Councillor Alyssa Greene questioned the timing of the proposal, pointing to work already underway on Tantramar’s recreation master plan. She identified several venues in Ward 4 that deserved consideration, as well as community-run halls in the Butternut Valley area where she said bookings were increasing.
“We need to know what the inventory is of all of our facilities, both publicly and privately owned,” Greene said.
LeBlanc said some of the buildings Greene mentioned were difficult to access, particularly when organizers depended on someone returning a call to arrange entry. Other halls, she said, were no longer operating as active community spaces.
Councillor Haidee Robertson asked whether LeBlanc had explored renting existing facilities before proposing a new building. LeBlanc said some inactive halls would likely require renovations, and the cost of renting other spaces still needed to be examined.
Councillor Allison Butcher supported the motion, describing Tantramar as having twice the population and ten times the geographic area it had before amalgamation. She called for an inventory of community spaces across the municipality, an approach Deputy Mayor Josh Goguen also supported.
Councillor Tori Weldon questioned wording that would require staff to treat the building as a strategic priority before completing their investigation. LeBlanc accepted an amendment making that direction subject to staff findings and council discretion.
Council approved the amended motion with two votes against. The proposal can be considered in Tantramar’s 2027 or 2028–29 capital budgets, although any funding would still require council approval.
