News Highlights for Southwest New Brunswick: August 11-18, 2020

It's been nearly a year since the St. Croix riding had an MLA after the death of Honourable Greg Thompson last September. Residents are anxiously awaiting going to the polls for an upcoming byelection--a byelection Premier Blaine Higgs needs to call before October 15th.

After much speculation that Higgs has been planning to call a general election to make the most of his high approval ratings, the Premier made a surprise announcement earlier this week. Higgs asked the opposition parties to sign an agreement letter promising that there won't be a general election in New Brunswick until the next fixed election date in 2022, or until the COVID-19 pandemic is under control. Although the outcome of the upcoming byelections could give the Liberals the opportunity to bring down the Higgs' government if the seats go in their favour, Higgs wants the four parties to hold off on a general election to ensure the stability of the province and the safety of New Brunswickers during the pandemic. Meetings start this week to come up with the details for the agreement. Higgs could still call a general election if an agreement can't be reached. He told CHCO he won't call a byelection until he's certain a general election won't be called instead.

The new wellness centre in Saint Andrews is on track to open this fall. The wellness centre will eventually also include a fitness centre. The town is currently seeking proposals from business operators to set up and run the fitness centre.

"People with interest in operating a fitness centre in the new wellness centre should contact Paul Nopper at the Town Office," said Mayor Doug Naish. 

Finally, the town of St. Stephen and neighbouring bordertown Calais, Maine traditionally celebrate their international sistertown relationship every summer with the annual International Festival. Unfortunately this year, due to COVID-19 restrictions and closed borders, the International Festival could not take place, but that didn't stop the City of Calais from marking the occasion for both communities with a display of fireworks along the waterfront. Locals from both sides of the border lined the St. Croix River to watch the fireworks on Saturday night--congregating, in a way, as a united community despite the border closure.