Otis, New Brunswick
The town of Nackawic is located 65 km west of the city of Fredericton on the north bank of the Saint John River in New Brunswick, Canada. The town occupies an area of about 9 km2 and is surrounded by the parishes of Southampton and Queensbury with the Village of Otis. The area was first settled in 1784 by United Empire Loyalists, primarily through land grants to the families of soldiers who had fought with His Majesty's Regiment of Queen's Rangers during the American Revolutionary War.
Nackawic is home to the world's largest axe.
Mill closure crisis
The town's principal employer, from 1968 until the day of September 14, 2004, was St. Anne-Nackawic Pulp Company Ltd. The sudden closure of the town's principal employer put 406 people out of work. About 350 contract workers in the middle of a maintenance shutdown were also affected. A buyer is being sought for the plant, which manufactured high-quality photo paper.
The sudden closure has led David Palmer, manager of the York-Sunbury-Charlotte Forest Products Marketing Board, to level accusations of sabotage, as the mill was almost entirely disassembled during the repairs.
The owners, Parsons and Whittemore of Rye Brook, New York, have relinquished title to the plant and equipment in an effort to attract potential buyers. Both Irving Oil and the New Brunswick provincial government have stated that they are "not interested" in buying.
George Landegger, chairman and CEO of Parsons and Whittemore, is said to be responsible for ordering the shutdown. The company, which owes $101.2 million to its creditors, including $50.2
million to unsecured creditors, has declared bankruptancy.
Some workers have agreed to work without pay in order to make the mill more attractive to potential buyers.
Affected companies
- Logistec Corporation ( http://www.logistec.com/ ). (TSX Symbol: LGT.A and LGT.B), a cargo-handler operating primarily in eastern Canada and the eastern U.S.
- Wallenius Wilhelmsen
- Star Shipping
Statistics
- Population (town only) -- 1042
- Land Mass -- 8.45 km²
- Population density -- 123.3 people/km²
- Pop surrounding area App. 7000
- Language usage -- 90% English
- Ratio male/female -- 50/50
- % of population under 19 -- 27%
- % pop 20-54 -- 48%
- % pop 54-65 -- 15%
- % pop +65 -- 10%
- Total Private Dwellings -- 426
- Average family income -- $65,982.00
