Future of two N.B. historic sites in the air over lack of provincial funding

Two New Brunswick sites are struggling to stay open without government aid.

A thick Friday fog covered Ministers Island in Saint Andrews, N.B., for much of the day.

According to Van Horne Estate on Ministers Island (VHEMI) board chair John Kershaw, it’s an ominous sign of what could be on the horizon for the island.

“We’ve been lobbying for additional funds for a number of years,” says Kershaw. “The board has decided that in the absence of getting the additional money we need, we’re going to have to relinquish the lease that we have with the province and eventually dissolve the organization itself.”

While the island itself is owned by the province, VHEMI is in the midst of a 25-year lease which began in 2008 to operate the heritage site. Since the 2020-2021operating season, New Brunswick’s Department of Tourism, Heritage and Culture has provided a $100,000 operating grant to the island operators.

Kershaw says they are lobbying for a boost to a $500,000 grant. He says other historical sites like King’s Landing, which Kershaw says has a comparable number of visitors, gets $3.7 million yearly from the province.

“That money would be used to invest in new attractions,” says Kershaw. “Right now, part of our challenge is that people come to the island, see the buildings, and then why would they come back?”

While Kershaw points out some events that bring in both locals and tourists annually, he says the island can’t just be a property people visit once.

The board chair also notes the unique challenge of sporadic operating hours caused by the Bay of Fundy tides. The island is only accessible by foot or car during low tide when the seabed road is exposed.

“In comparison to the other venues we have, we can operate about 40 per cent of the time,” Kershaw says.

The Department of Tourism, Heritage and Culture failed to acknowledge CTV Atlantic’s request for an interview, but it did send an emailed statement.

“The Department will continue to work with VHEMI through any and all decision making process on their continued stewardship of Minister’s Island and to ensure the continued conservation of Ministers Island as a meaningful place for New Brunswickers,” the statement reads.

Barn doors closed for 2025

While the future for Ministers Island remains shrouded in the Bay of Fundy fog, the barn doors have closed for another historic site in the province.

Earlier this week, the Highland Society of New Brunswick at Miramichi announced the MacDonald Farm Provincial Heritage Site would not be operating this year due to “inadequate funding support” from the province.

“What’s going to happen to these important heritage sites for the province?” questions Dawn MacDonald, president of the Highland Society of New Brunswick at Miramichi. “It’s a huge question that people have on their minds.”

Since 2012, the Highland Society has rented the farm with a provincial grant that was provided annually.

MacDonald says each year they had been given $60,000 to cover costs, which include paying staff, general maintenance, caring for the animals and more. Last year the two sides agreed to a grant of $100,000 for the year.

In March, MacDonald says she reached out to the province in March to arrange a meeting to shore up this year’s grant, but she didn’t receive a meeting date until the end of May. By that point she says it was too late to start arranging plans for the tourist season.

The decision was then made to end the partnership with the province and return the keys to them.

“The grass has grown up, the buildings are sitting idle, there’s no animals there, there’s no children running around enjoying the site,” MacDonald says. “It’s just abandoned now.”

MacDonald says the decision is even more disappointing considering the geo-political climate with many Canadians electing to take there summer vacations within the country.

“It’s sad to know that people are driving by, seeing the sign that we have at the road that says closed due to inadequate funding support,” MacDonald says.

The Department of Tourism, Heritage, and Culture told CTV News over email they respect the society’s decision to cease operations at historic site. They say they will now review and determine a path forward for MacDonald Farm.

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