Developer pushes hotel ahead of apartments on Sydney's downtown waterfront

Cape Breton Regional Municipality has cleared the way for the construction of a new hotel on the downtown waterfront in Sydney, N.S.

Council voted Wednesday to close a pair of old road plans that were never built and declare some property surplus in the area where the Royal Cape Breton Yacht Club used to be.

Before the vote, CBRM Mayor Amanda McDougall told Mainstreet Cape Breton that the legal moves will allow Doucet Developments of Bedford to buy the property and get shovels in the ground by late this summer or early fall.

"In eight years on council, we've seen projects proposed to us time after time," she said. "The fact that this is moving forward and shovels are going to be hitting that ground soon, I'm so happy, I'm so proud and it's just going to transform our waterfront."

The developer has not said which hotel chain is looking at the location and was not immediately available for comment.

McDougall said the hotel will include some commercial space and underground parking.

CBRM Mayor Amanda McDougall says the development is good news, because it will generate new tax revenues that will help pay for municipal services. (Tom Ayers/CBC)

It will displace some seasonal businesses on the boardwalk next to the marina, but the mayor said the construction project will help the municipality grow.

Doucet Developments had said its first phase would erect residential apartments and commercial buildings on property between the proposed new hotel and the cruise ship terminal, where a gravel parking lot is currently located.

McDougall said those will now come in later phases of construction, but it appears the unnamed hotel chain is eager to open a new location as soon as possible.

"This is a revenue generator for the municipality," she said.

"We currently own those lands so we don't pay taxes on them. Now, we're going to see commercial taxes and residential taxes and that means more revenues for your services."

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