Relocating Department of Fisheries and Land Resources Offices in Corner Brook to Save Taxpayers $560,000 Annually

  • Fisheries and Land Resources
  • Transportation and Works

August 24, 2018

The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador has awarded a contract to Marine Contractors Inc. for customized office space for Department of Fisheries and Land Resources staff in Corner Brook. This initiative will save taxpayers approximately $560,000 annually. The proponent will provide 30,000 square feet of office space on Wheeler’s Road, near the future site of the new Western Memorial Regional Hospital Campus. Construction on the Marine Contractors-owned building will begin in September. Department of Fisheries and Land Resources staff members are expected to move into the building in June 2019. Seventeen divisions of the Department of Fisheries and Land Resources currently occupy 60,600 square feet of office space in three separate leased buildings in Corner Brook. Allowing the department’s staff in the city – approximately 250 individuals – to share office space will achieve more effective and efficient operations and also reduce the Provincial Government’s overall footprint by more than 30,000 square feet. This initiative supports commitments outlined in The Way Forward: A Vision for Sustainability and Growth in Newfoundland and Labrador to reduce the Provincial Government’s leased space by 10 per cent — 77,750 square feet — by March 31, 2018. Government exceeded that initial goal prior to March 31 with a reduction of more than 92,000 square feet since 2016 and savings of $2.7 million annually. The Provincial Government has set a new goal to reduce leased space by 130,000 square feet in 2020. Since its formation in February 2017, the Department of Fisheries and Land Resources has made considerable strides in aligning the province’s natural resources of fisheries, aquaculture, forestry, wildlife, agriculture and agrifoods, and Crown Lands. The department has successfully launched a number of important initiatives, including improving hunting access to persons with disabilities, reducing the legal hunting age to encourage youth participation, improving Crown Lands Division service delivery, redeveloping the former Wooddale Provincial Tree Nursery into the Centre for Agriculture and Forestry Development – a state-of-the-art forestry and agrifoods research facility – and securing 64,000 hectares of land for future agricultural use. Quotes “Uniting the staff of Fisheries and Land Resources together under one roof is the next step towards an even more focused approach to supporting economic development and growth in Newfoundland and Labrador’s renewable resource industries. Our accomplishments within this new department over the past year and a half have been many, and I look forward to bringing our talented staff together to continue to build on these achievements.” Honourable Gerry Byrne Minister of Fisheries and Land ResourcesM “Our government is finding ways to provide high quality services while also considering our fiscal responsibility to taxpayers. Moving coworkers from numerous buildings into the same building together will help us lower costs, reduce our leased space and provide an operational advantage for Department of Fisheries and Land Resources staff in Corner Brook.” Honourable Steve Crocker Minister of Transportation and Works

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Learn More The Way Forward: A Vision for Sustainability and Growth in Newfoundland and Labrador: thewayforward.gov.nl.ca Follow us on Twitter: @GovNL@TW_GovNL and @FLR_GovNL Media contact Linda Skinner Fisheries and Land Resources 709-637-2284, 632-8167 lindaskinner@gov.nl.ca Rod Drover Transportation and Works 709-729-1758, 730-4607 rodneycdrover@gov.nl.ca
2018 08 24 11:10 am