Boys and Girls Club will run Grand Manan park

The New Brunswick provincial government announced on May 21 that the Anchorage Provincial Park, whose closure was announced in April, will operate for the 2013 season after all, under the management of the Grand Manan Boys and Girls Club. The planned closure had elicited a storm of protest and was seen as a huge blow to the island's tourism business. The province quickly sought a third-party operator to take over management; the park will remain provincially owned.
Tourism Minister Trevor Holder says his department has had considerable success with such arrangements at other heritage sites such as Sheriff Andrews House, Parlee Beach and Hopewell Rocks. Private operators bring "new ideas and new marketing strategies," he says. "A new operator can breathe new life into [a site] and provide new activities."
Village Councillor Jayne Turner was invited to be on the evaluation committee, which included Deputy Minister Kelly Cain and Acting Director Brigitte Donald of the Department of Tourism, Heritage and Culture. The submission package required a business plan, demonstration of relevant experience and capital, and applicants were given a numeric score for each section. The five committee members then had to reach a consensus on the scores.
"It was a very fair and effective evaluation process," Turner says. All the members had input via conference call, and only objective scores were considered; any personal opinions she or others had of candidates were not permitted. She is happy with the outcome. "The fact that they already have an organization in place with staff" helped the Boys and Girls Club's score. "It's an organization that has proven itself, that the island has proven they will support."
Boys and Girls Club Executive Director Pete Sesplankis says, "I'm really excited; I think that's fair to say. The last few weeks have been a bit of a whirlwind."
When the province asked for expressions of interest from potential operators, several people told him they thought it would be a good fit for the club. It would mean a lot more work, and he didn't give it much thought at the time. "I had my village councillor's hat on, thinking what we could do" about the issue. But when the campaign to save the park began, with its petitions, letter-writing and community picnic, "It was like a mantra I heard repeated everywhere," he says. "I began to think, 'Maybe we [the club] can save the park.'" His winning application acknowledged all that has been done at Anchorage in the past and proposed building on that, as well as moving the Boys and Girls Club's nine-week summer camp there. The tourist campground will operate as usual. Contrary to rumours, he will not be opening a restaurant or store.
"We're probably going to break even this year," he estimates. "Realizing $10,000 would be a dream." There are fixed expenses for things like mowers and insurance, which cost about $34-36,000. The province's employee cost "doesn't work for us," so former employees were not part of his original plan. With the club's Seed funding for workers, he will have eight students and two adults, and thinks they can operate without wages coming out of park revenue. The province will employ the former maintenance supervisor. "The concept was never to displace jobs," he says. "It was to get the park open. There's not a lot of wiggle room to hire people."
The contract has an option to renew at the end of the season if all parties are willing. Otherwise there will be time for others to apply for 2014. "If we can break even, that might be all it takes for me to decide to continue," Sesplankis says. "We've got a wonderful asset on the island for youth," and he sees the potential to expand on children's and youth camps in the future.
Gail Ingersoll, a former employee and vocal supporter of the Save Our Anchorage campaign, is "disappointed with our government for eliminating our jobs. But I don't blame Pete. I'm very pleased that he saved Anchorage this year. I hope he does well and wish him the very best."
Mayor Dennis Greene says he is "pleased the government acted so quickly to select the Boys and Girls Club" and that the season was not lost. He and other village officials were in Fredericton for the announcement and were welcomed by Premier David Alward, MLA Rick Doucet and Tourism Minister Holder. "The atmosphere was totally different" from their previous meetings. He says the village understands the province's current fiscal situation and supports their decision.
The Anchorage website is back online at. The season will run from June 7 until approximately September 8. For information about the club's summer camp, contact the Boys and Girls Club at 662-3653.