The Saint John Port Authority is calling on the provincial and federal governments to share the costs of an $18.5-million expansion project that would allow the port to host larger cruise ships at two berths.


The $18.5-million expansion project would involve the construction of so-called mooring dolphins, structures that jut out of berths like arms and extend their length.
Stephen Campbell, chairman of the port authority, said Friday that cruise liners are increasingly shipping larger vessels, more than 300 metres long, but the port can accommodate just one at the Marco Polo terminal.

Should two or more large vessels call on the port at the same time, officials may have to turn some away - and that could spell bad news for a regional tourism industry that depends heavily on cruise ships, Campbell said.

The port is asking the federal and provincial governments to each invest about $4.6 million on expansions that would allow Long Wharf and Pugsley C terminal to host larger vessels. The port would spend nearly $9.3 million, half of the project's value.

"The money that we're throwing in just taps us out - we've taken it to the level that we can take it," Campbell said during an editorial board meeting with the Telegraph-Journal.

"The major beneficiary of this is not the Port of Saint, it is the regional economy. And it's time for people to say, do they want this to continue to grow or don't they?"

The port had earlier applied for funding under federal and provincial stimulus programs, but was denied. This time around, the port applied under the Atlantic Gateway program, also jointly funded by both levels of government.

A committee of officials from Ottawa and Fredericton reviews all projects and it would be premature to comment on funding, New Brunswick Transportation Minister Denis Landry's office said in a written statement.

Maryse Durette, spokeswoman for Transport Canada, said she could not provide a public response to the port's request in time for Friday's press deadline.

Campbell said Saint John's cruise ship industry is booming and the benefits spill out to the regional economy. The number of passengers calling on the port has jumped by about 140 per cent over the past four years.

This year alone, the port expects to host 78 cruise ships with 214,000 passengers. By 2015, passenger volumes are expected to balloon to more than 300,000.

The port authority says its calculations show that cruise business this year is expected to generate $30 million in economic spinoffs for restaurants, museums and other tourism operators across southern New Brunswick.

The $18.5-million expansion project would involve the construction of so-called mooring dolphins, structures that jut out of berths like arms and extend their length. The port would also build additional gangway, or walkway, systems for passengers.

The port would build these structures at Long Wharf, where Irving Oil Ltd. had proposed to build its new headquarters, and at Pugsley C, located near the new cruise terminal on Water Street.

After the expansions, Long Wharf could accommodate vessels about 300 metres long, while Pugsley C could take on ships that stretch about 320 metres.

The port authority also wants to build a foot bridge from Long Wharf to the end of Smythe Street, allowing cruise passengers to quickly reach uptown.

The expansions would allow the port to continue to grow its cruise ship business, but without the investments the business might begin to slide, Campbell warned.

"If one of the lines says, 'This is the schedule we want' and if we can't accommodate these three larger ships, they could say, 'That's not good enough so we're going to cancel Saint John as a port of call'."

"And they can do that on a dime."