Cape Breton Regional Municipality (often referred to as simply "CBRM") is the Canadian province of Nova Scotia's second largest municipality and the economic heart of Cape Breton Island. As of 2016 the municipality has a population of 94,285. The municipality was created in 1995 through the amalgamation of eight municipalities located in Cape Breton County.
The region is home to a significant concentration of government services, social enterprise and private sector companies, including the Canadian Coast Guard College, Cape Breton University, NSCC Marconi campus, and New Dawn Enterprises. The rural areas of the municipality continue to host resource industries such as agriculture, fishing, mining, and forestry. CBRM is host to many cultural landmarks and institutions such as the historic Savoy Theatre, the Celtic Colours International Festival, the Cape Breton Centre for Craft, the Highland Arts Theatre, and Holy Angels Arts & Cultural centre, currently undergoing a $12-million renovation.
The area hosts one of Nova Scotia's premier tourism destinations, the Fortress of Louisbourg national park site, operated by Parks Canada as a living history museum. The site stands as the largest reconstruction project in North America. The Port of Sydney was projected to welcome a record 135,000 cruise ship visitors in 2017, a 67 per cent increase on 2016. The Trans-Canada Highway terminates in North Sydney where Marine Atlantic ferries connect to both Channel-Port aux Basques, Newfoundland and Labrador, where the highway starts again, and Argentia.
Government
CBRM Council Chambers in City Hall, Sydney, Nova Scotia
The Cape Breton Regional Municipality is governed by Cape Breton Regional Council, which is composed of a mayor elected at-large and 12 councillors each elected to represent a separate district. Regional Council is responsible for all facets of the municipal government, including police, fire, library, transit, and water. The municipality oversaw an operating budget of $146 million and a combined capital and water capital budget of $32.375 million in the 2016/17 fiscal year. The current mayor is Amanda McDougall. Council and its committees meet at least once a month.
Municipal governments in Nova Scotia are elected every four years and the most recent round of elections took place on October 17, 2020. The provincial legislation that creates and empowers the municipality is the Nova Scotia Municipal Government Act. Under former Mayor John Morgan, the council authorized several studies regarding fairness and equity, fighting for a larger share of the federal equalization funding from the province, including an ultimately unsuccessful legal challenge in 2004. Nova Scotians for Equalization Fairness is a citizens group that continues to argue for a greater share of equalization payments paid to CBRM, arguing that CBRM receives $15 million in equalization and should receive $239 million, based on per capita distribution of federal equalization to the province.
In addition to municipal government there are two First Nations in CBRM operating under band government, the Eskasoni First Nation and the Membertou First Nation.CBRM is represented by seven ridings in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly. The municipality shares representation by two ridings in Canada's House of Commons, as well as by Senator Michael L. MacDonald, who identifies as representing the Senate Division of Cape Breton.
The building
The Cape Breton Regional Municipality is established in the former Cape Breton Regional Municipality Civic Centre building. The name change for Cape Breton Regional Municipality City Hall around 2017. In 2019, the Cape Breton regional council approved a five-year lease for a new pub in the municipality's Community Hall, also known as the round room. In the late 1990s the Community Hall was briefly used as a fish and chips lunch venue but has not housed a restaurant since then.
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