Big plans unveiled for Officers' Square reopening

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The long-awaited – and controversial – redo of Officers’ Square will celebrate its official completion with a bang this summer after years of work and delays.

The reopening date of the square is now officially set for June 28, Stacey Russell, manager of tourism and events for Fredericton Capital Region Tourism, told those gathered Thursday morning for an update of the city’s plans for this summer.

The $14-million revitalization project includes the construction of the new skating rink, which opened this past winter, a new stage and improved electrical infrastructure for events.

Russell said the new-look space will “revitalize the downtown core.”

The June 28 opening will kick off a four-day weekend of festivities leading up to Canada Day called Garrison Fest, which will feature days of live music along with community activities, food, games, and fireworks on Canada Day itself, it was announced Thursday.

Opening day will feature acts from Jeremy Dutcher, Muskrat Singers and Dancers, Tony LePage, and Don Basse Band. The rest of the long weekend will have a mix of local, Canadian and international acts which have yet to be announced.

Russell said the Canada Day lineup will be headlined by “major country headliner” who has yet to be announced.

The makeover has been several years in the making. In 2016, the city purchased Officers’ Square from the province for $1. The intended renovation project was estimated to cost nearly $9 million in 2018.

But those original plans went sideways when a public outcry over the removal of several of the mature trees on the site forced the city to modify the project. That was followed by criticisms of the removal of the stone wall that surrounded it, replaced by a more stable modern one, and a sit-in protest by Indigenous grandmothers who feared First Nations artifacts were being damaged by the dig.

All of that and other factors delayed the project’s expected completion date of 2022.

With the end in sight now, plans for Officers’ Square go beyond a Canada Day kickoff party, with several other more permanent events planned for the space, including moving the New Brunswick Highland Games to the site from Government House, where it had been staged.

The Garrison Night Market on Thursdays in the summer is now expected to expand into the square, and the city plans to host concerts on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, and Under the Stars Movies on Fridays.

On Wednesdays, the square will host a community dance with live music called Groove in the Garrison.

Mayor Kate Rogers said the free programming being offered is “out of the park.”

“You literally are going to be able to come to Officers’ Square with just a lawn chair.”

— with files from Nathan DeLong