Funding announced for Shelburne Marine Terminal
Passengers disembark in Shelburne during a 2018 visit by the cruise ship Marina. Eastern Shelburne County,” said Shelburne Mayor Karen Mattatall. “Shelburne Harbour is the third best natural harbour in the world and we support the growth and diversification of employment opportunities through enhancements that improve our ability to attract visitors and business to our area. The Town of Shelburne has determined that opportunities for port growth reside primarily in the marine tourism sector, through cruise ships, super yachts and other sailing vessels. Diversification of the Shelburne Harbour economy is seen as key to increasing the region’s resiliency and overall viability of port operations.”
The Town of Shelburne is also contributing $200,000 for a total project cost of more than $800,000, said town CAO Darren Shupe.
Marine Terminal infrastructure enhancements will include the replacement of the concrete deck, installation of concrete curbs and reinstallation of bollards, and will help ensure the terminal can support the development of key visitor and marinebased sectors, diversify the port’s business offerings, increase tourism in the historic town and create well-paying jobs.
“The main focus is to make it safe and ensure all the space alongside is able to be used to its full extent,” said Shupe. As it is now, about 50 per cent of the stem part of the wharf is under weight restrictions. “This will help with structural stability and safety of the whole structure.”
With a focus on marine tourism as well, and keeping in mind the town wants to diversity the economy of the port by providing facilities that will work for cruise ship mega events and tall ships, Shupe said the town will “be working with Develop Nova Scotia to make sure we have the appropriate facilities” for those types of vessels going forward.
Shupe said he expects the tender for the work to go out within the month.
“This kind of gets the ball rolling with the marine terminal. It’s been paused now for a little while to secure funding and now that we have funding,” the town will be pursuing other things that can be done to improve the port to attract more marine visitors.
The Port of Shelburne has hosted several cruise ship visits in the past three years and expects at least three more cruise ships in the 2019-20 season. It has also hosted the Tall Ships Nova Scotia festival, Nova Scotia’s Bluenose II and other local events. The port also supports a range of marine operations from commercial inshore and offshore fisheries and marine safety and enforcement, to a growing regional aquaculture sector.