Ocean Choice is pleased that its development plan for Long Pond Harbour has been approved by the Conception Bay South Town Council

June 30, 2021

After an extensive regulatory process with the federal, provincial and municipal levels of government, Ocean Choice is extremely pleased to learn that its revised development plan for Long Pond Harbour has been approved by the Conception Bay South Town Council. On Tuesday, June 29, the Town of Conception Bay South held a special meeting in which council members voted in favor of Ocean Choice’s revised development plan.

“We are extremely pleased to learn that the Conception Bay South Town Council voted in favor of our revised development plan at their public meeting held online last evening,” says Blaine Sullivan, President, Ocean Choice. “Since last August, we have been engaging with area residents, business owners and the Town Council to listen to their concerns and address their questions relating to our development plan. Our revised plan released on June 3, is a reflection of this feedback. We look forward to investing in the Town of Conception Bay South and to being a long-term contributing member of the community.”

Ocean Choice’s plan includes the development of 1.7 hectares of new land that will house a 90-metre long finger pier, a laydown and parking area and cold storage infrastructure to support the company’s five offshore fishing vessels.

The revised plan moves the development significantly to the southwest corner of the harbour towards Terminal Road, the industrial area of the harbour. Key updates to the plan are as follows:

• Moving the development to the west provides recreational boaters from the inner pond with a more open harbour to the east of the property.
• Moving the development back to the southern corner of the harbour preserves the openness of the harbour, providing existing commercial and recreational users with abundant room to navigate safety in the basin.

Last week, the Town of Conception Bay South released the findings of an independent coastal engineering study completed by Stantec Consulting Ltd. The study reviewed Ocean Choice’s revised development plan to determine if there would be any potential impact to the hydrology within Long Pond Harbour – to the currents, waves and sedimentation – as a result of Ocean Choice’s development. Stantec has determined that Ocean Choice’s development will have marginal impact on waves, small changes to currents, and small changes to sedimentation of the harbour. The report also states that there will be no impact to existing ice conditions within the harbour.

“Throughout the consultation process, we heard from a few property owners in the immediate area of the development site that they were concerned that our development could negatively impact the hydrology of the harbour,” states Blaine Sullivan. “Stantec’s report confirms the findings and advice that Ocean Choice has received from several expert engineering and coastal engineering firms over the last several years, including a report that was completed by CBCL for Ocean Choice’s Land Use Impact Assessment Report  – that our development will not have a significant impact on the Harbour.”

Quick Facts

• Significant Local Investment: Between $15 and $20 million in capital investment.
• New Job Creation: 30 to 40 new jobs created once the cold storage facility is operational.
• Spin-Off Business Opportunities: Millions of dollars in spin-off business opportunities for supply services in the area, economic benefit to other local businesses in the area as 300 crew travel to the area for work, and the potential relocation of people to the community.
• Local Spending: Increased spending at local businesses (i.e., gas stations, restaurants, etc.) as over 300 crew travel to the area for work.

For more information pertaining to Ocean Choice’s Long Pond Development visit: www.oceanchoice.com/longpond.

About Ocean Choice
Ocean Choice is a family-owned and operated Newfoundland and Labrador company that employs over 1,700 people in over 300 communities throughout the province. The company operates five fish processing facilities and five offshore fishing vessels, and it sources seafood from over 1,900 independent harvesters from across the province. With sales offices around the globe, the company sells a diversified range of seafood to over 400 customers in 30 countries around the world.