Digby Puts the Community First: Vital Housing Project Cleared for Takeoff!

The West Nova Chamber of Commerce extends its most sincere congratulations to the Town of Digby Mayor and Council for their unwavering dedication and tenacity in guiding the pivotal 76-unit residential development, known as Sunset Village, through a protracted and unnecessary legal challenge. With the Nova Scotia Regulatory and Appeals Board (NSRAB) concluding the appeal process on October 30, 2025, the path is now clear for this essential housing project to move forward and provide homes for the people who desperately need them.

The Unacceptable Cost of Delay

While we celebrate the ultimate success of the Town’s vision, we must acknowledge the significant and frankly harmful costs imposed by the appeal process on the developer, 4576251 Nova Scotia Limited. This legal resistance, fueled by local objections to change, inflicted damage across three critical areas: momentum, financing, and reputation.

Any delay in a development of this scale is a massive setback to momentum. Construction timelines, procurement, and labour scheduling are complex, and stalling a project for months not only causes substantial frustration for the builder but pushes completion further into the future.

More critically, the financial burden of carrying the project’s finances during the appeal—including interest payments, professional fees, and general holding costs—is enormous. These costs represent a direct, punitive tax on the builder simply for trying to invest in our community. Such delays send a chilling signal to other potential developers considering West Nova, suggesting that investment here is fraught with unpredictable and costly risks. This is a narrative we must collectively work to change.

Deterring the Workforce We Need

The true tragedy of this unnecessary delay lies not just in the balance sheet, but in the human cost to our region. West Nova is grappling with a severe housing shortage that threatens our entire economic ecosystem.

We are struggling to recruit and retain the talented professionals, essential service workers, and skilled tradespeople who form the backbone of our economy. Why? Because when they look to move here, they can’t find a place to live. The doctors, nurses, educators, mechanics, and technicians we desperately need are often deterred by the lack of quality, multi-unit housing. Every day this 76-unit project was tied up in court meant another day where 76 potential families or individuals, many of them members of our crucial workforce, were denied a home.

The Town of Digby Mayor and Councilors understood this urgency. They recognized that responsible growth sometimes means making difficult decisions that face local resistance. Their decision to approve this development agreement was a clear-eyed commitment to regional economic development and to solving the housing crisis that impacts us all.

A Clear Mandate for Progress

We applaud the leadership in Digby for standing firm against local resistance to change. The Town Council demonstrated a clear understanding that the Municipal Planning Strategy (MPS) exists not to simply maintain the status quo, but to provide a framework for responsible, sustainable growth that benefits the entire community.

The successful conclusion of this appeal should serve as a powerful signal across the entire West Nova region: economic progress and housing solutions are priorities, and our local governments are prepared to champion necessary development. The time for delay is over. We urge the developer to move forward now with urgency.

The West Nova Chamber of Commerce stands ready to support the Town of Digby and 4576251 Nova Scotia Limited as they finalize this vital project, turning an approved development agreement into much-needed homes. Let’s work together to build a thriving, welcoming, and housed community.