A potential LNG terminal at Grassy Point can only be considered good news for the North Coast.
For those unfamiliar with the location, Grassy Point is located at the entrance to Work Channel at the end of Dixon Entrance. It's pretty much kitty-corner to Lax Kw'alaams and significantly closer to Asian markets than any terminal in Kitimat would be.
It's also a pretty remote location, with no road or dock access to the site. To develop any type of project out there would require the construction of a road out to the site. Such a road would do something that the City has been trying to do for years on end, and that is to open up access to the Tsimshian Peninsula. Whether that road is the one envisioned by the City – connected to Prince Rupert through a ferry to Digby Island and a bridge to the Peninsula – or something else – like a bridge crossing near Shawatlan Lake – is fairly insignificant. The bottom line is that people living in Lax Kw'alaams would be able to more-readily access services and job opportunities in Prince Rupert and Rupertites would be able to access the outdoor opportunities in Lax Kw'alaams.
Inter-community access aside, this announcement has the potential to open up a huge patch of land for future residential, business and industrial development. Imagine a new subdivision along the waterfront near Shawatlan Lake and what that could do in terms of the housing stock in Prince Rupert and attracting new professionals to town.
If nothing else, the government's announcement reinforces the message to the world that Prince Rupert is the place to be if you want to access Asia. It's a message that people here have been sending for the past five years and it seems to have taken root given the international nature of the four companies looking at the area.
If Prince Rupert is on the map now, just wait until a Grassy Point development moves forward.