29 May 2020
Premier Blaine Higgs
Chancery Place, P. O. Box 6000
Fredericton, NB E3B 5H1
Dear Premier Higgs
Re: Request for Commercial Lease Eviction Protection Extension
I am writing today to request an extension of the commercial eviction protection previously implemented by your government and set to expire on 31 May 2020.
The application for the Federal Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (CECRA) for small businesses started this Monday (25 May 2020). The program has only been available to landlords for four days and there are only three days left before the eviction protections on commercial leases provided under the mandatory orders are over (section 19, protection are there until 31 May 2020).
Furthermore, New Brunswick is in the fledgling stages of the reopening process. Some businesses are not yet permitting to be open, most that are operating are well under normal sales and capacity levels. The same conditions that existing when the order was originally made still exist for most of the businesses that are protected by the order.
While we have members that are commercial landlords, it is our position that overall this protection is in the best interests of the business community and the provincial economy. We are asking your government to extend the deadline for eviction protections for commercial and non-residential leases to protect small businesses. Thank you for your government’s continued work with the province’s business community through this crisis – we look forward to getting New Brunswick’s economy back on track.
Sincerely,
Krista Ross, CEO,
Fredericton Chamber of Commerce
cc: Hon. Mary Wilson, Minister of Economic Development and Small Business
cc: Cheryl Hansen, Clerk, Executive Council
cc: Louis Leger, Chief of Staff, Office of the Premier of New Brunswick
cc: Mike Comeau, Deputy Minister, Department of Public Safety
