Meubles St-Arthur nets C$600,000 in federal, provincial grants to acquire, improve abandoned sawmill in St-Arthur, New Brunswick, for production of doors, outdoor furniture

Wendy Lisney

ST-ARTHUR, New Brunswick , November 9, 2011 (press release) – Federal and provincial government investments totalling more than $600,000 will allow Meubles St-Arthur Inc. to acquire and improve an abandoned factory in St-Arthur. The company will use the factory to specialize in the production of solid wood doors and dried hardwood outdoor furniture.

"Investing in the value-added wood industry is important for creating jobs and economic development opportunities in northern New Brunswick" said Economic Development Minister Paul Robichaud. "Our government is committed to investing in all regions of northern New Brunswick, including the St-Arthur and Restigouche region."

Meubles St-Arthur Inc. is a wood processing manufacturer that operates under a single shareholder, Corporation de Développement de St-Arthur Inc., an organization that has the mandate to promote economic development in the St-Arthur region.

"This investment will bring new life to the wood processing industry in the Restigouche region,” said Minister of State for Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) and La Francophonie Bernard Valcourt. “Thanks to Meubles St-Arthur Inc., new specialty products will be available on the market, increasing the manufacturing of value-added wood products in New Brunswick. An investment like this will create jobs and stimulate the economy of the region, which is the priority of our government."

The funding will allow the company to acquire the abandoned Coopérative des Travailleurs Forestiers de McKendrick factory in St-Arthur, demolish an outdated 930 sq. metre (10,000 sq. ft) section and replace it with a new 1,115 sq. metre (12,000 sq. ft) building. The project will also help the company acquire equipment.

"The Corporation de développement de St-Arthur was founded by people from the community to develop sustainable employment following the closure of the local sawmill in 2008," said Dany Roy, president of the corporation. "We are pleased and proud to see one of our projects take shape and we would like to take this opportunity to thank our financial partners, ACOA and the Northern New Brunswick Economic Development and Innovation Fund for their assistance in this project."

The federal government, through ACOA's Business Development Program, is contributing $445,000 to the project while the provincial government is contributing $162,000. Meubles St-Arthur Inc. is investing $328,000.

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