The City of Mount Pearl made its official pitch Wednesday night to annex a parcel of land that currently belongs to neighbouring St. John's.

Mount Pearl Mayor Steve Kent says it would be easier for his city to service the land, once it is developed.
(CBC)

"Mount Pearl's garbage trucks, Mount Pearl's salt trucks, Mount Pearl's snowplows drive by this area practically every day," Mayor Steve Kent told commissioner John Roil at a public meeting.

"This is a statement the City of St. John's cannot make."

The Newfoundland and Labrador government appointed Roil to consider Mount Pearl's bid for the largely undeveloped land, which it says is necessary for its economic future.

St. John's calls the request nothing more than a land grab. A hearing will be held in St. John's next week.

Kent, who spoke for about an hour, said the land — which is near an experimental farm on Brookfield Road, and once housed the notorious Sprung Greenhouse — makes for a better fit for his city.

The city of St. John's says a patch of land sought by Mount Pearl will be worth millions of dollars in long-term taxes.
(CBC)

"As part of Mount Pearl, the newly developed neighbourhood would be integrated in the urban fabric of Mount Pearl that immediately surrounds the area, rather than an isolated and distant subdivision of St. John's," Kent said.

James Barrett, who lives in the disputed area, said he would rather be a resident of Mount Pearl.

"We go to Mount Pearl for everything," he said. "We [would] like to go with Mount Pearl, because with St. John's, we got nothing. It's like were out in no man's land."

Harvey Hodder, a former mayor who represents Mount Pearl district in the house of assembly, said Mount Pearl has greater historical ties with the land.

"I note that water services to the Sprung development were provided by the City of Mount Pearl," he said.

"It was Mount Pearl which incurred substantial losses when the business closed, with the water bills still unpaid."

The Sprung Greenhouse opened in 1987 as a massive, enclosed structure intended to grow cucumbers and tomatoes. The hydroponic business collapsed in 1989, having cost as much as $22 million in provincial government subsidies.

The City of St. John's will make its case to Roil at a public meeting next week. St. John's Mayor Andy Wells has already said he hopes Roil will consider amalgamating the two cities altogether.

Roil, a lawyer with a specialty in municipal affairs, will have 45 days after that to file a report with the provincial government.