U-Haul says it intends to purchase the property at 1382 Hickey Road to create a self-storage facility for the Saint John region. This follows the approval of zoning amendments by Saint John City Council earlier this month.

U-Haul Co. of Atlantic Canada’s president, Devin Mitchell, says that with the recent zoning changes approved by council U-Haul is “one step closer to finalizing the sale and beginning construction.”

“U-Haul does not yet own the Saint John property. However, we are working closely with the city and neighbors to make sure we’re creating a product that works for everyone,” he explained in an email exchange with Huddle.

The site is currently a U-Haul rental partner, East Side Car Wash and Access 24 Self Storage.

Mitchell says the plan is to create an approximately 20,000-square-foot, drive-up self-storage facility. It’s a process he estimates will create at least 15 temporary construction jobs.

Once the facility is fully operational, U-Haul intends to hire at least 10 Team Members to staff the new store. U-Haul will look to hire locally to promote job growth within Saint John.

In addition to the storage space, the plan proposed a new commercial space at the site, as well as a 42-spot parking lot.

City council rescinded the decision to restrict the building of a storage facility “to the southeastern portion of the site, to the area rear of the existing car wash building,” following a public hearing with no speakers.

This previous restriction was imposed in 2003 pursuant to section 59 of the Community Planning Act, and was removed as the “proposed expansion is an appropriate use of the site and is in compliance with the Zoning by-law.”

Mitchell says the company is noticing New Brunswick’s steady population growth and sees market opportunity here.

“U-Haul is in growth mode in New Brunswick. We are always exploring opportunities for growth and are pursuing means to better serve the needs of our customers.”

Last August, Huddle reported that U-Haul planned to open a new facility at Trinity Drive in Moncton.

In January U-Haul released its Growth Index, which found New Brunswick was the top growth province of 2022, “seeing the largest net gain of one-way U-Haul trucks of any province”.

It was a dramatic turnaround for the province, which had ranked 10th the previous and had the most one-way out-migration.  That honour was reserved for Alberta in 2022, which also saw a complete reversal from 2021 when it had been the province receiving the most one-way U-Haul traffic.

Prince Edward Island ranked 4th up from 7th the previous year, Nova Scotia ranked 5th up from 9th the year before, while Newfoundland dropped to 8th from 6th in 2021.

Saint John was ranked the 14th top “Growth City” by the company, which also identified cities that were net-gain destinations for one-way U-Haul traffic.

“Saint John has long been underserved when it comes to quality moving and self-storage services. This new U-Haul facility will enable us to serve a growing community. The growth in New Brunswick means an increased demand for quality self-storage. We are known for providing a one-stop shop for the moving and storage needs of our neighbors,” Mitchell says.

Alex Graham is a reporter with Huddle, an Acadia Broadcasting content partner.