Commonwealth Plywood sawmill reopens in Pontiac village

Rapides-des-Joachims, Que. -

More than 10 years after closing operations in the Pontiac and Ottawa Valley, Commonwealth Plywood Co. Ltd. reopened its sawmill in Rapides des Joachims, Que.

"We closed 10 years ago," said company president Bill Caine Jr.

"As a 16-year-old boy, I worked here and it's always been important to me that one day we would be able to restart this mill."

The mill officially reopened in January, but its presence in the village of roughly 100 people, known as "Swisha", was celebrated Wednesday.

"It's been our history, it's what made the Pontiac famous and very successful," said Jane Toller, warden of the MRC Pontiac.

"Usually, if a mill closes, after 10 years it never reopens. This one has."

The sawmill brought back roughly 70 jobs to the region, with 50 workers out cutting in forests and 20 people working in the mill.

If business goes well, Caine Jr. is hoping to add a second shift at the sawmill, bringing the job total close to 100.

Caine Jr. Expects to do $6 million a year in red and white soft pine lumber sales. That could double to $12 million with an additional shift. Wages start at $20/hour for entry-level positions.

"Well this is a major day for Rapide," said Andre Fortin, Pontiac's Member of the National Assembly of Quebec.

"You see how small a community this is. It used to be a one industry town that became a no industry town. Over the last 10 years, this community lost its gas station, the motel closed, and the little restaurant that was here closed. And now there's opportunity again." (Editor's note: Lance's Convenience, 224 rue Principale in Rapides des Joachims, remains opens and sells gas.)

For employees like Douglas Sullivan, the reopening of Commonwealth Plywood was a day he has been waiting for.

"I had always prayed for it and when I knew they were opening, I was here," says Sullivan, who worked at the mill for 27 years starting back in 1984.

"I was probably 17 or 18; my grandfather bought me my first pair of boots and then drove me over here. And I started on the trimmers."

In the more than 10 years that the mill has been closed, Sullivan said he worked odd jobs such as roofing and fast food, often for minimum wage. None of those jobs satisfied him, saying that millwork is in his blood.

"I thought I lost my world because I really enjoyed my job. I'd come in two hours early every day, I would run a loader and a de-barker by myself and the night went great and I loved it."

The mill's reopening is also seen as hope for the revival of the forestry industry in the region. Once the main economic driver in the Pontiac, just two mills remain open.

"It sends a signal to all the other communities, whether it's Fort Coulonge or others, that it's possible, there are people looking into it," Fortin tells CTV News.

"So if we can do it here I'm sure we can do it in Fort Coulonge as well."