Dunkeld expected to open in Spring 2023

East River Road, New Glasgow – Construction has begun on a 79-unit mixed use, multi-residential building in the East River Business Park.

The Dunkeld, owned by Somerled Properties, features one- and two-bedroom residential units, as well as 11,000 square feet of commercial space on the complex’s ground level facing East River Road. The new property, scheduled to open in spring 2023, will consist of 56 per cent two-bedroom and 44 per cent one-bedroom residences, attracting a mixture of tenants that include both families and seniors.   Its commercial space will appeal to a range of retail and business professionals, such as lawyers and doctors.

The building is named after the ship The Dunkeld, which carried passengers from Scotland to Pictou in 1791. Some of those immigrants were ancestors of Somerled President and CEO Donald MacDonald, whose roots run deep across the county. MacDonald is the owner and operator of a trio of companies collaborating to build multi-unit residential buildings in various parts of the province.

“Our goal is to respect the local landscape while helping address the housing crisis here in Nova Scotia,” says MacDonald, President and CEO of Somerled Properties, Eastcut Wood Building Solutions and DORA Construction.

In addition to supplying new residential units to the market, over 30 per cent of The Dunkeld’s spaces are targeted for affordable housing. “We are interested in making a positive impact in Pictou County and across the Maritimes,” says MacDonald, adding that Somerled is working with other businesses and organizations to assist with easing the housing crisis.

MacDonald says the East River Business Park is an ideal location for the new complex because it fills a need for accommodations and affordable rentals in a central location close to a busy commercial area.

The 17-acre East River Business Park is owned by the Town of New Glasgow and the Municipality of Pictou County. It is located off Exit 25 on the TransCanada Highway and strategically placed on the busiest roadway in Pictou County – East River Road.

“We like the fact that East River Road is the gateway to New Glasgow,” he says. “It’s a significant employment hub, through the Aberdeen Hospital and Glen Haven Manor, so when we started talking with the park’s business development officer Frank MacFarlane and the New Scotland Business Development Inc., they also saw the benefits of having a multi-residential building in this area.”

MacFarlane notes that his discussions with Somerled Properties began in 2019 for the two-acre parcel of land in the East River Business Park. “Once Somerled agreed to dedicate a percentage of the ground floor to commercial development, we started moving forward with them in earnest,” says MacFarlane. East River Road is a major commercial corridor in the region and is home to many major employers, such as the North Nova Education Centre, Nova Scotia Health and Crombie REIT.

MacFarlane says the process to date has been fairly seamless. “Considering the complexity of a mixed-use development, particularly of this scale, it really helps to have a point person in place to support the developer and builder in managing the municipal processes … from site selection and pre-construction to occupancy.”

MacDonald agrees that working by collaboratively with New Scotland Business Development Inc., the permitting process with local municipalities has been positive. “There have been challenges logistically in terms of dealing with the world demand for supplies and an ongoing labour shortage, but Somerled has found a way to build The Dunkeld, as well as other projects across the province, more efficiently.” 

Somerled’s sister company, Eastcut Wood Building Solutions, which specializes in panelized construction, is manufacturing the walls and floors for The Dunkeld at its Trenton location.  Once this work is complete, it will be trucked to the East River Business Park, where DORA Construction, another sister company of Somerled, will put the pieces together to create the complex.

The fabrication facility opened a year ago. It currently employs upwards of 30 employees and features a low carbon approach to manufacturing, allowing for more efficient building construction year-round.  “By building in a controlled environment at our Eastcut facility, we are reducing construction site waste by approximately two-thirds when compared to a traditional stick build,” says MacDonald, adding the company will soon need to hire additional staff to meet the growing demand for its services.

Visit www.thedunkeld.com for additional information about residential and commercial spaces available at The Dunkeld. Advertising signage will soon be on-site.