Haut-Madawaska
Haut-Madawaska is an incorporated rural community in Madawaska County within the province of New Brunswick, Canada. It is located in the New Brunswick Panhandle and was formed in 2017 through the amalgamation of four villages with five local service districts and a portion of a sixth local service district.
Haut-Madawaska | |
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Rural Community of Haut-Madawaska | |
Haut-Madawaska Location within New Brunswick. | |
Coordinates: 47.308°N 68.497°W | |
Country | Canada |
Province | New Brunswick |
County | Madawaska |
Rural community | July 1, 2017[1] |
Population (2016)[2] | 3,714 |
Time zone | UTC-4 (AST) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-3 (ADT) |
Website | Official website |
History
In a 2016 plebiscite, the residents of five local service districts (the parishes of Baker Brook, Clair, Lac Baker, Saint-François, and Saint-Hilaire), part of a sixth local service district (the parish of Madawaska) and four villages (Baker Brook, Clair, Saint-François de Madawaska and Saint-Hilaire) voted 493 to 299 in favour of incorporating a new rural community under the name of Haut-Madawaska.[3] The incorporation took effect July 1, 2017.[1] The plebiscite was the second in as many years. In 2015, a similar plebiscite was held that also included a fifth village, Lac Baker. The residents of all communities involved voted in favour of incorporation as a rural community with the exception of Lac Baker's residents, thereby defeating the proposal.[4]
Economy
The region's economy is focused on two industry sectors with some of the main players outlined below:
1) Food industry (Saint-François-de-Madawaska is known as the province's Chicken Capital)
- Groupe Westco (an integrated poultry
- Nadeau Poultry (a poultry processing plant, part of the Maple Lodge Farms company)
- Sunnymel (a poultry processing plant, partnership between Groupe Westco and Olymel)
- Les Industries Corriveau (a processing plant for buckwheat flour)
2) Wood products (part of the Northern New Brunswick wood products cluster)
- JD Irving Hardwoods (a hardwood grading and kiln drying facility, part of the JD Irving Group)
- Waska (a manufacturer of cedar shingles)
- JMN Enterprises (a manufacturer of kitchen accessories, BBQ accessories, and hardwood components)
- Fiready (a manufacturer of kiln dried firewood)
- Canusa Cedar (a manufacturer of cedar shingles)
The region is known for its hardworking labor and close to full employment with recurring periods of zero or negative unemployment.
Other companies active in the local economy are listed on the website of the Chambre de Commerce Haut-Madawaska
Demographics
The population of the Rural Community of Haut-Madawaska in Canada's 2016 Census of Population was 3,714.[2]
The region offers financial incentives for new families that settle in the region of up to $10,000 (over 3 years) for a family with children.[5]
The current Mayor is Jean-Pierre Ouellet (former Minister in the provincial government) and here is the local government website.
Haut-Madawaska population breakdown[2] | ||
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Former municipality or local service district |
Former status |
Population (2016) |
Baker Brook | Parish | 275 |
Baker Brook | Village | 564 |
Clair | Parish | 283 |
Clair | Village | 781 |
Lac Baker | Parish | 5 |
Saint-François | Parish | 606 |
Saint-François de Madawaska | Village | 470 |
Saint-Hilaire | Parish | 478 |
Saint-Hilaire | Village | 252 |
Total population | — | 3,714 |
References
- "New Brunswick Regulation 2017-3 under the Municipalities Act". Government of New Brunswick. March 20, 2017. Retrieved February 25, 2018.
- "Interim List of Changes to Municipal Boundaries, Status, and Names Up to January 1st, 2018" (PDF). Statistics Canada. November 14, 2018. pp. 23–24. Retrieved December 27, 2018.
- "Miramichi picks Adam Lordon as new mayor". CBC. November 14, 2016. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
- "No amalgamation for Sussex area, Haut-Madawaska". CBC. November 9, 2015. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
- iClic (www.iclic.com). "Un programme d'incitatifs pour attirer des familles dans l'ensemble du Haut-Madawaska". infoweekend.ca (in French). Retrieved November 5, 2020.