General Updates and News

[HalifaxRetales]

former Ben's Warehouse off Hammonds Plains Rd. (10 Science Park Dr) is being torn down to build a new Halifax Regional Fire & Emergency Station

[Keith P.]

Part of my formal education was in urban planning but 3 decades ago began a career in finance. My overriding concern is how we manage the provincial objective of significantly increasing Nova Scotia's population and tax revenue base, and a result Halifax's population growth in an efficient but realistic manner. I look forward to our discussions.

A wise career choice. I find most urban planners unfortunately have no concept of the financial implications of their decisions.

[Dmajackson]

former Ben's Warehouse off Hammonds Plains Rd. (10 Science Park Dr) is being torn down to build a new Halifax Regional Fire & Emergency Station

Just to clarify it's a new Fire Station #1 and the new HRFE Headquarters. HPR is likely a good spot to have a strong fire department presence. The extreme wildfire risk is something that's not going to go away. Convenient spot for 2023 events. Right in between the wildfire and flooding zones.

It was a quiet week for development permits. The only thing I noticed is a renovation permit for a new unnamed restaurant in Bedford Place Mall.

[Dmajackson]

As an aside, have you considered migrating the blog to a more robust platform? I know that Wordpress for example has a migration tool that should make the process relatively straight forward.

I took some great advice from new2halifax and have migrated my tumblr blog to a wordpress site. All of my old posts are there plus a few from this week and a few scheduled for the next few days. I can still cross-post photos onto this forum. Importantly, I can post from my phone hassle free which means regular photo updates.

HalifaxDevelopments.ca - Halifax Developments Blog (https://halifaxdevelopments.ca/)

:cheers: - DJ

[OldDartmouthMark]

:previous:

The new blog looks great! :tup:

[Keith P.]

I took some great advice from new2halifax and have migrated my tumblr blog to a wordpress site. All of my old posts are there plus a few from this week and a few scheduled for the next few days. I can still cross-post photos onto this forum. Importantly, I can post from my phone hassle free which means regular photo updates.

HalifaxDevelopments.ca - Halifax Developments Blog (https://halifaxdevelopments.ca/)

:cheers: - DJ

I tried to use Wordpress and found it extremely difficult and unintuitive to use. But you seem to have figured it out and your site looks good. Don't know how you did it. Their tools might as well have been written in sanskrit for me. The Block Editor was a complete exercise in frustration.

[fatscat]

I took some great advice from new2halifax and have migrated my tumblr blog to a wordpress site. All of my old posts are there plus a few from this week and a few scheduled for the next few days. I can still cross-post photos onto this forum. Importantly, I can post from my phone hassle free which means regular photo updates.

HalifaxDevelopments.ca - Halifax Developments Blog (https://halifaxdevelopments.ca/)

:cheers: - DJ

Great to see! And echoing that the blog looks great/clean.

[kzt79]

Dalhousie University wins suit against HRM to allow it to tear down heritage home
by Aaron Beswick · Reporter for Saltwire

https://www.saltwire.com/halifax/news/dalhousie-university-wins-suit-against-hrm-to-allow-it-to-tear-down-heritage-home-100915681/

In a lengthy written decision, Rosinski castigated the heritage advisory committee and council itself, finding both the process used and decision to list the property was biased.

“There is a reasonable apprehension of an attitude of closed-mindedness at the (committee) level and a reasonable apprehension of bias at the HRM council level, a bread-crumb trail that led to a clearly unreasonable result,” reads Rosinski’s decision.

Nice to see.

[new2halifax]

I can post from my phone hassle free which means regular photo updates.


That's great! Glad the migration was hassle free.

[new2halifax]

Dalhousie University wins suit against HRM to allow it to tear down heritage home
by Aaron Beswick · Reporter for Saltwire

https://www.saltwire.com/halifax/news/dalhousie-university-wins-suit-against-hrm-to-allow-it-to-tear-down-heritage-home-100915681/


Yes. Thanks for that.

I wish they would allow universities to build bypassing zoning restrictions. Specially if it's within the distinct boundaries of the university. Why not let SMU or DAL build a massive residence in the middle of their campuses?

[Keith P.]

Dalhousie University wins suit against HRM to allow it to tear down heritage home
by Aaron Beswick · Reporter for Saltwire


The CBC story on this was posted earlier in the proper Urban Design and Heritage forum.

[IanWatson]

The old Coastal Cafe building is gone.

[kzt79]

The CBC story on this was posted earlier in the proper Urban Design and Heritage forum.

My bad, I hadn't noticed.

[teddifax]

I see mentions of the Ralston Building site being approved is there something here on this
?

[alps]

I see mentions of the Ralston Building site being approved is there something here on this
?

There is a thread here:

https://skyscraperpage.com/forum/showthread.php?t=237114&page=6

[someone123]

There is a new video by Halifax Walker exploring downtown:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dq7jQKg2gjo

I noticed it includes a view of the Tramway Building work:

https://i.imgur.com/j5oq7AU.jpg

I wonder if they will rebuild the "crenellations" that used to exist along the roof, and what the final colour will be. Not sure what the finish on this building was originally. There aren't a lot of old pictures and the ones I've seen from before the 80's or so are all black and white.

The 2-storey addition looks decent here and it's a good medium scale that doesn't seem too timid. It looks like this corner might end up being quite nice as the various projects wrap up. Skye will change the feel too and add some "depth". The Neptune looks a bit out of place now. Could it handle an addition of a few floors?

[Drybrain]

I wonder if they will rebuild the "crenellations" that used to exist along the roof, and what the final colour will be. Not sure what the finish on this building was originally. There aren't a lot of old pictures and the ones I've seen from before the 80's or so are all black and white.


The proposal for the project mentions the facade restoration as "partial," but that seemed to refer to uncertainity about whether the rustication underneath the brick storefront addition was still in good enough shape to be restored. It looks as it they are, in fact, restoring it, or at least re-revealing it. The crenellations/turrets are depicted in the project renderings, and mentioned in the site plan approval docs. I figure it may just be the last phase of the facade work? I certainly hope so.

[someone123]

It's an interesting piece of architectural history as a sort of missing link between older and newer architectural styles that uses concrete but still has some ornamentation. I think it's actually one of the more significant heritage buildings downtown even though it might not have been obvious.

There is a lot of nice detailing that has re-emerged and hopefully it'll be highlighted somehow with whatever final treatment happens (ground floor and the "boxes" between upper floors). None of that was visible in old streetview shots from before the work began. I would guess it was "modernized" circa 1960.

There are other buildings nearby that have lost ornamentation like the Pacific Building, Canada Permanent, and St. Paul's Building.

[OldDartmouthMark]

I had posted the pic below back in 2018. It's from the late 1950s and gives some idea of what the building looked like when it was around 40 years old. It's hard to tell if it had colour from the black and white photo, but it almost appears to have a natural finish, with the rectangular indentations highlighted with a darker colour. I can't recall finding any earlier photos, though I'm sure they exist.

https://i.imgur.com/j2Ju7IS.jpg?1

https://skyscraperpage.com/forum/showpost.php?p=8319806&postcount=2467

[teddifax]

Halifax Retails on it's FB page posted a picture of where the Coastal Cafe used to be, it shows the entire street frontage on Robie St., from May St. up to the old Bloomfield School is now vacant, just what is planned for here...? Please don't say another car dealership!

[Dmajackson]

^There are stakes in the ground showing the proposed building. It doesn't include the newly demolished buildings which are owned by HRM and will likely be used as a staging area for Robie Street widening construction and then sold off for development.

WM Fares - Robie + May (https://www.wmfaresarchitects.com/robie-may)

246942

[Jreeb]

Given Murex Realty owns the Coastal Café site - I wouldn't be surprised if there is a multi-res building planned for development once the rapid transit land gets negotiated.

[Arrdeeharharharbour]

The corner of Clifton St. and North St. Structure in the hole...

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/53370494016_3b1d474a4e_h.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/2pjaJtj)20231201_131251_HDR (https://flic.kr/p/2pjaJtj) by AJ Forsythe (https://www.flickr.com/photos/194233676@N07/), on Flickr

[OldDartmouthMark]

Halifax Retails on it's FB page posted a picture of where the Coastal Cafe used to be, it shows the entire street frontage on Robie St., from May St. up to the old Bloomfield School is now vacant, just what is planned for here...? Please don't say another car dealership!

Speaking of the old Bloomfield School, I noticed yesterday that the 1919 building is showing clear signs of deterioration now, having been sitting neglected for so many years. I fear that the city’s lack of action on this site may have already sealed the fate of this historic building. It’s shameful, really.

[Keith P.]

Speaking of the old Bloomfield School, I noticed yesterday that the 1919 building is showing clear signs of deterioration now, having been sitting neglected for so many years. I fear that the city’s lack of action on this site may have already sealed the fate of this historic building. It’s shameful, really.

Lots of blame to share there, from the Imagine Bloomfield bunch who wanted it given over to community use (along with several big bags of money), the the NDP wanting it to develop affordable housing and then doing nothing to it, to HRM letting it decay until they sold it and allowed the developers to just sit on it until it reached its current sorry state.

[Drybrain]

Speaking of the old Bloomfield School, I noticed yesterday that the 1919 building is showing clear signs of deterioration now, having been sitting neglected for so many years. I fear that the city’s lack of action on this site may have already sealed the fate of this historic building. It’s shameful, really.

I’m kind of resigned that the most likely outcome seems at this point to be total demolition. Major failure by all parties—private and public—on this front. We’re needlessly losing a historic resource, and we’ve had this vacant scar in the middle of the neighbourhood for like 20 years, slowly deteriorating. Something will happen here eventually and I hope it’s great, but so far the failure to make something of this site is actually kind of amazing.

[someone123]

How much would it have cost to keep the buildings in OK shape and let community groups continue to operate there as they had in the past? Why do these sites get sold off and left to rot for decades instead of being maintained until it's time to develop? The development agreements can be hashed out while the buildings are maintained.

There seems to be a "perfect is the enemy of the good" problem and problems with reactionary policies such that there are people dying in tents but the city decides the old library is unusable for any purpose the day it's decommissioned. The mayor had said it needs something like $10M+ in renovations.

I don't really see the same scale of blighted public sites in most other cities aside from actual dying municipalities in the Rust Belt. The Palais de Justice debacle in Brussels has a similar political paralysis feel but is a grandiose structure that no doubt is very expensive to maintain.

[Drybrain]

It strikes me that Halifax seemed to turn a corner fairly recently, with privately owned historic sites suddenly enjoying a much better outlook than in the recent past. We’ve come a long way from just a few years ago, when it looked like both the Green Lantern and Elmwood would be lost, for example. The former has been restored, the latter is about to be, and we’ve also got the Tramway, the Dartmouth post office, the Waverley (hopefully, eventually), the Stairs House, etc.

But if a building is publicly owned, it becomes a victim of this ridiculous stasis.
The memorial library is one example, with the mayor and others on council talking about the building—which was occupied only eight years ago—as if it will require heroic efforts just to render habitable. And while Bloomfield is privately owned now, its current state is mostly the result of years of indifferent treatment in public hands (and even more recently, the city failing to ensure that the current prevents continued decay).

The Forum appears to probably be escaping this fate, but it too has had to endure years of hemming and hawing.

Seems like if you want to save a historic building in the current environment, sell it to a developer.

[Summerville]

From my experience, bureaucrats and politicians are indifferent to these buildings. They aren’t “owners” in the true-est sense. This is work and a building that needs repairs is a pain in the butt.

But they are paralyzed by nimby’s and special interest groups and they literally leave the door open in fear of making the wrong decision,…the decision that will create bad press….and perhaps generate more work.

And the buildings rot until they become human health hazards which is the popular reference that politicians turn to when put on the hot seat.

The one thing that the Forum has going for it is that it has a Board that cares about the building.

Bloomfield was doomed on the day that the city decided to stop using it as a rec centre.

[someone123]

The former has been restored, the latter is about to be, and we’ve also got the Tramway, the Dartmouth post office, the Waverley (hopefully, eventually), the Stairs House, etc.

It's also very easy to fixate on a few major sites like Bloomfield while it is harder to keep track of the average maintenance level for a bunch of small houses and commercial buildings around the city. I don't know which way things are going overall but from following pictures online I see a lot of nice smaller projects and fewer suburban-style duds being built in the urban core.

In general all of the older and nicer houses on the peninsula are going to be premium real estate from now on, purchased by wealthy people (20 years ago, most of those areas were not). The exception will be properties purchased for development. But there will be fewer and fewer run-down buildings owned by people who can't afford to maintain them or rented out as slum properties.

[someone123]

From my experience, bureaucrats and politicians are indifferent to these buildings. They aren’t “owners” in the true-est sense. This is work and a building that needs repairs is a pain in the butt.

I can't remember which councillor it was but there was always some guy from the suburbs who would talk about how every old building needed to be torn down. He said this of the Kelly Building on Granville which if it had been kept around for a few more years would have gone well with the TD tower redo (which turned out nicely in any case but would have been slightly better).

Part of what's strange I guess is even the local or downtown councillors don't seem to champion these things much, or have any connection to the buildings themselves. I get your point about their focus, but I don't find that other cities are like this as much. I'd say Halifax might be slightly worse in this area than Toronto for example, and Toronto is supposed to be a very business and growth focused city. I'd say Halifax might be behind Vancouver as well. In more heritage-oriented towns like in Quebec or elsewhere in Atlantic Canada there is a lot more preservation.

One thing I notice is there is a perpetual narrative of economic pressure that gives ammo to the "tear it down" crowd. In recent years it seamlessly flipped from "we aren't growing so we can't have nice things" to "we have growth pressure so we can't have nice things". There's a lot of overlap in the groups who would have called for suburban box stores on the peninsula in 1998 and those who say all the old buildings should be torn down today because of the urgent need of housing (many YIMBYs are in that group).

[Keith P.]

Well, I dunno. If you look at Barrington you have the Roy, a new build meant to honor the old decrepit original which I’m sure would have turned out much differently otherwise, the old Zellers/Discovery building, the Green Lantern, the Tramway, and the perpetual NFB project. The ones lost were typical old individual buildings that had been stitched together over the years like the SGR projects at Queen St., which would have been extremely difficult to do much with. But even with other examples of that like the old McKelvie’s and surrounding buildings, what replaced them was largely a homage to what was there, which likely introduced both compromises with the new structures and significant extra cost. The “glass is always empty” mentality is endemic locally but I think some pushback towards it is reasonable.

[OldDartmouthMark]

Well, I dunno. If you look at Barrington you have the Roy, a new build meant to honor the old decrepit original which I’m sure would have turned out much differently otherwise, the old Zellers/Discovery building, the Green Lantern, the Tramway, and the perpetual NFB project.

The Roy would have turned out much better if they had kept the original facade, along the lines of the Green Lantern. As it is, the Barrington side looks more 'faux heritage' than anything else. Curiously, the Granville side is much more attractive, although that is the less prominent side of the building.

[Dmajackson]

Mixed Use & Commercial Building Permit - New Building - Submitted - 28 VIRIDIAN DR, DARTMOUTH - $17'100'000 - Dwelling - Multiple Units - Residential Use - 95 Units - 6 Floors - New construction of a multi unit residential building (95 Units).

Crane is being installed for this project.

[Dmajackson]

Lancaster Villas and 28 Viridian Drive.

https://halifaxdevelopments.files.wordpress.com/2023/12/20231206_140924.jpg?w=1024
HalifaxDevelopments.ca (Photo by David Jackson) (https://halifaxdevelopments.ca/2023/12/07/lancaster-villas/)

[Dmajackson]

Brunswick Street Supportive Housing Project is now under construction next to Hope Cottage.

https://halifaxdevelopments.files.wordpress.com/2023/12/20231210_131816.jpg?w=755
HalifaxDevelopments.ca (Photo by David Jackson) (https://halifaxdevelopments.ca/tag/brunswicksupportive/)

[someone123]

This looks okay but somewhat worse than I had hoped from the elevation drawing. One issue which I guess maybe is due to accessibility concerns is that this building style is normally on a tall foundation and this version looks like it has sunk into the ground.

[JET]

Brunswick Street Supportive Housing Project is now under construction next to Hope Cottage.

https://halifaxdevelopments.files.wordpress.com/2023/12/20231210_131816.jpg?w=755
HalifaxDevelopments.ca (Photo by David Jackson) (https://halifaxdevelopments.ca/tag/brunswicksupportive/)

We need more of these all over. Some on my street, please. :tup:

[Dmajackson]

THE FAIRWAY (3539 Joseph Howe Drive @ Scot Street)

https://halifaxdevelopments.files.wordpress.com/2023/12/20231216_140805541566227716588973.jpg?w=1024
HalifaxDevelopments.ca (Photo by David Jackson) (https://halifaxdevelopments.ca/tag/thefairway/)

[Arrdeeharharharbour]

I'm already getting a cool 'urban canyon' feel when driving along Joe Howe and the buildings aren't even (fully) built.

[fatscat]

Noticed what looks like land prep going on at Oxford/Bayers, where a new Acadian School (?) is supposed to be built.

Not sure if I correct in my assessment. Just noticed while passing through.

[Arrdeeharharharbour]

A crane is being installed today at the development next to Superstore on Joe Howe.

[smitty99n]

Mixed Use & Commercial Building Permit - New Building - Submitted - 28 VIRIDIAN DR, DARTMOUTH - $17'100'000 - Dwelling - Multiple Units - Residential Use - 95 Units - 6 Floors - New construction of a multi unit residential building (95 Units).

I am trying to find somewhere in HRM meeting minutes this development was approved for a change from 4 storey 44 unit to 6 storey 95 unit development. it looks like it was approved with a height limit of 14 meters as per council minutes and Sam Austin mailout https://samaustin.ca/e-news-may-2019/
i understand it may be condos instead of apartments. Crane has been in the air now for a week. is there newer or different info on this build.

[HarbingerDe]

I am trying to find somewhere in HRM meeting minutes this development was approved for a change from 4 storey 44 unit to 6 storey 95 unit development. it looks like it was approved with a height limit of 14 meters as per council minutes and Sam Austin mailout https://samaustin.ca/e-news-may-2019/
i understand it may be condos instead of apartments. Crane has been in the air now for a week. is there newer or different info on this build.

Bit of a side note, but why is virtually every single amendment to the Centre Plan proposed by Sam Austin a reduction in permissible height or a downzoning?

It's an impressive list of recommended amendments, and almost every single one is a reduction in allowable height or the removal of a corridor or higher-order residential zone.

[Dmajackson]

I am trying to find somewhere in HRM meeting minutes this development was approved for a change from 4 storey 44 unit to 6 storey 95 unit development. it looks like it was approved with a height limit of 14 meters as per council minutes and Sam Austin mailout https://samaustin.ca/e-news-may-2019/
i understand it may be condos instead of apartments. Crane has been in the air now for a week. is there newer or different info on this build.

From what I can tell it was just a side effect of the Centre Plan passing. Same as a few other projects around the urban core that have been resized according to their new zoning.

The old zoning was Dartmouth R-3 which was a restrictive zone with a requirement for a development agreement for multi-unit buildings. The approved development agreement was signed back in 2007 so by the time Centre Plan came around it was likely expired and would of had to go back to community council for a time extension. Centre Plan put neighbourhoods as either established (ER-1/2/3), corridor, or centres. Lancaster Ridge was given ER-2 zoning in it's developed areas. The remaining area including 28 Viridian Drive was zoned High-Order Residential since this was the closest to the development rights already given to the area. HOR-1 zoning allows for six floors.

[Dmajackson]

A lot of building permits were submitted this week. I've put some notes in individual threads. If I missed any feel free to copy from my blog.

- Needs Convenience at Chebucto & Windsor will be demolished. No idea what the plans are for this site.

- New 6-storey residential building for 6230 QUINPOOL ROAD to infill a parking lot. This is between The Other Bean and Pleasures N' Treasures.

- New 4-storey residential building for 344 PRINCE ALBERT ROAD, DARTMOUTH. This is at the very northern end behind Superstore.

[RoshanMcG]

- Needs Convenience at Chebucto & Windsor will be demolished. No idea what the plans are for this site.

Interesting. I used to live in this area and always wondered if this lot could be repurposed to straighten out that intersection.

[Empire]

What are the odds a wrong decision could be made here?

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/canada/halifax-group-launches-campaign-to-save-centennial-pool/ar-AA1m8UjF?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=HCTS&cvid=d9d6a34553144f4e9e2ca3e80b2c812f&ei=16

[worldlyhaligonian]

What are the odds a wrong decision could be made here?

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/canada/halifax-group-launches-campaign-to-save-centennial-pool/ar-AA1m8UjF?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=HCTS&cvid=d9d6a34553144f4e9e2ca3e80b2c812f&ei=16

There's not much information on the costs/benefits of different courses of action.

I wonder if this group can financially support the maintenance through some sort of crowdfunding?

[Saul Goode]

There's not much information on the costs/benefits of different courses of action.

I wonder if this group can financially support the maintenance through some sort of crowdfunding?

One of the major points of the story is that both facilities (Centennial Pool and a new one) are needed. It's been apparent for many years that the demand exists for two such buildings, particularly with the reduced availability of the Dalplex pool.

One of the great lost opportunities in the ongoing saga of municipal blunders (another obvious one being building the Macdonald bridge with only two lanes) was to make the Canada Games Centre pool 50m (standard competition length) long when it was built, instead of 25m; the incremental cost difference would have been negligible in the overall context of the project. Had that been done, it would have been much easier to eventually dispose of the aging Centennial while adding another new pool down the road - which is the decision point where we are now, more than a decade later.

Unfortunately, a municipal swimming pool is, economically speaking, probably not the most efficient use of such valuable real estate. But there's no chance Halifax would build two new 50m pools, so we're left with this dilemma.

[someone123]

One of the great lost opportunities in the ongoing saga of municipal blunders (another obvious one being building the Macdonald bridge with only two lanes) was to make the Canada Games Centre pool 50m (standard competition length) long when it was built, instead of 25m; the incremental cost difference would have been negligible in the overall context of the project.

They quote Waye Mason saying there is no room on the peninsula but there's lots of space around the Commons. Much of it has been used badly over the years. In theory there has been planning but how great was the planning if the aging pool next door was not considered? It's really obvious that it's a potential location for civic amenities and the land should be used sparingly so more amenities can fit in.

I wonder about putting some buildings around the Citadel too, but with a green roof. You could build a pool on the Garrison Grounds parking lot for example and add a usable roof open to the public, perhaps used as an open-air event space that is superior to the Garrison Grounds.

The old library is still sitting empty.

FWIW it seems to me like HRM always has a million different quasi-priorities (if you have 100 priorities you have 0) and kicks the can down the road on many projects, often with false economies, instead of just investing properly to fix something on a 50 year or longer timeframe. You always need to keep the basic services going but it doesn't hurt to have 1 main priority and commit to building something good; in the long run I think that strategy often creates better results.

[OldDartmouthMark]

What are the odds a wrong decision could be made here?

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/canada/halifax-group-launches-campaign-to-save-centennial-pool/ar-AA1m8UjF?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=HCTS&cvid=d9d6a34553144f4e9e2ca3e80b2c812f&ei=16

Aside from being a useful pool, it's a piece of history with interesting architecture that marked a significant anniversary in Canada's history. IMHO, it is somewhat of a landmark in DT Halifax.

Background: https://builthalifax.ca/2021/07/30/the-centennial-project/

One also has to wonder why proactive maintenance hasn't been occurring to prevent the leaks from happening in the first place, rather talking as though it was surprising that 56 year old pool has started to leak. (Omigod! It leaked! Tear it down! :rolleyes:)

While there's no question that affordable housing is needed, I'm not sure that the city becomes a better place by inserting affordable housing in every location possible, especially a prominent downtown location that serves its citizens with a recreational facility. A well-thought-out strategy to provide affordable housing seems to be something needed vs random knee-jerk reactions every time a structure/development plan comes into question. There doesn't seem to be much long-term thinking involved here.

My line of thought: keep the pool, come up with a sustainable housing strategy that also respects Halifax's downtown (which also considers an alternate location for the Grand Parade tent city). We definitely need to take care of those who are less fortunate, but damn, we can't forget that pride in our city is of importance as well (to everybody who lives here). We need to help and consider those who are living rough or having trouble finding a place to live, while not forgetting everybody else. Walk and chew gum at the same time - help out our homeless while simultaneously maintaining pride in our city for the long run.

[someone123]

Nice medium density developing in this area:

https://i.imgur.com/aJeniMg.jpg
Source (https://www.royallepage.ca/en/property/nova-scotia/halifax/28302832-isleville-street/21127180/mls202325359/)

[someone123]

My line of thought: keep the pool, come up with a sustainable housing strategy that also respects Halifax's downtown (which also considers an alternate location for the Grand Parade tent city). We definitely need to take care of those who are less fortunate, but damn, we can't forget that pride in our city is of importance as well (to everybody who lives here). We need to help and consider those who are living rough or having trouble finding a place to live, while not forgetting everybody else. Walk and chew gum at the same time - help out our homeless while simultaneously maintaining pride in our city for the long run.

I find the crisis mode arguments are often dubious in that some people pretend they are taking no-holds-barred crisis measures only because the measures happen to not to infringe on their personal values; if they did then the crisis rhetoric would be dropped. When it comes to the Grand Parade the tents are treated like a force of nature but they've been banned or displaced in other parts of town. I suspect that's mostly about whether or not there are politically connected local residents and councillors directly affected. The South Enders can live with tents on the Grand Parade. But arguably the negative impact of having tents there is much higher than it would be in many other residential areas. The city also has to deal with the fact that you can "induce demand" for tents just as you can induce demand for roadways. Some people might choose to live in a tent next to their work in the summer months, for example, instead of living in a dumpy apartment that requires an hour long 6 am bus commute; that desire as one example shouldn't trump the integrity/availability of some of the city's main public spaces. It's subtler than a lot of people let on.

HRM politicians seem pretty underwhelming lately IMO. About a decade ago there was progress from the Peter Kelly, but now the city feels stuck in the 2010's and it's just not enough for the current tougher challenges. The design review committee delays, passivity around housing issues, and lack of progress on transit are examples. This isn't unique to Halifax but it's been straddling the small town vs. larger city boundary and needs to operate more like a big city. It is quite a large municipality.

[Drybrain]

Nice medium density developing in this area:

https://i.imgur.com/aJeniMg.jpg
Source (https://www.royallepage.ca/en/property/nova-scotia/halifax/28302832-isleville-street/21127180/mls202325359/)

The density bump in the past year or two has been noticeable at street level here, in pedestrian activity and overall business. There are also I believe five buildings U/C in this picture, which will add collectively a few hundred more new residents. I also won’t be surprised to see this badly underused lot (https://goo.gl/maps/ZDU6JX35mZkRJzMw7) replaced in the near or medium term as well. (I do hope the space occupied by the warehouse market building on Isleville escapes redevelopment though—it’s a prime lot, but also arguably offers more to the neighbourhood as a commercial and gathering space.)

[Dmajackson]

New Building - Submitted - 2730 AGRICOLA STREET, HALIFAX - $10'591'000 - Residential Use - 44 Units - 5 Floors - We are looking for a building permit to develop a 44 unit apartment building at 2730 Agricola Street.

[Keith P.]

Just south of the derelict Bloomfield site, adjacent to (or perhaps inclusive of) McLellan Antiques.

[Dmajackson]

^It must include it. 2730-2732-2736 were sold as a combined development site back in March for just under $2 million. The permit is "Mixed-Use & Commercial" which means the GF will be commercial. That means there is 11 units per floor which should require the 10'000 sq ft the combined lot provides.

[Colin May]

I suspect that's mostly about whether or not there are politically connected local residents and councillors directly affected. The South Enders can live with tents on the Grand Parade. But arguably the negative impact of having tents there is much higher than it would be in many other residential areas.

HRM politicians seem pretty underwhelming lately IMO. About a decade ago there was progress from the Peter Kelly, but now the city feels stuck in the 2010's and it's just not enough for the current tougher challenges. The design review committee delays, passivity around housing issues, and lack of progress on transit are examples. This isn't unique to Halifax but it's been straddling the small town vs. larger city boundary and needs to operate more like a big city. It is quite a large municipality.
Beggars want to be near heavy foot traffic and busy traffic intersections and the South End is not a place where beggars will choose to be. Both sides of the MacDonald bridge have several beggars and are well compensated by drivers. The one beggar I remember was the one man who sat outside Shoppers on Spring Garden every day and seemed to make a decent living from the heavy foot traffic.

[new2halifax]

Some people might choose to live in a tent next to their work in the summer months, for example, instead of living in a dumpy apartment that requires an hour long 6 am bus commute;

It was last summer that a census of the tent encampments showed that there were a handful of tourists among the homeless. I was shocked, not by that fact per se, but to the fact that city officials did nothing about it.

[new2halifax]

- New 6-storey residential building for 6230 QUINPOOL ROAD to infill a parking lot. This is between The Other Bean and Pleasures N' Treasures.


Greatly needed! Is there a plan for GF commercial?

[Dmajackson]

^Quinpool Road is pedestrian-oriented commercial street. The at-grade level is required to have commercial use.

"New developments along pedestrian-oriented commercial streetscapes will be required to provide active at-grade uses consistent with pre-existing built form characteristics." - Centre Plan Package B.

New development this week for 25 CRYSTAL DRIVE, DARTMOUTH. The demolition permit has been issued for the vacant commercial building at the corner with Leaman Drive. The redevelopment is said to be a 50-unit residential and commercial building. The site is zoned HR-1 and 20'000 sq ft.

[new2halifax]

^Quinpool Road is pedestrian-oriented commercial street. The at-grade level is required to have commercial use.

"New developments along pedestrian-oriented commercial streetscapes will be required to provide active at-grade uses consistent with pre-existing built form characteristics." - Centre Plan Package B.


Good to know! Thank you Dmajackson

[Dmajackson]

Looks like Polycorp's next development site might be their vacant land south of Mont Blanc Terrace above North Barrington Street.

PLANAPP - 2023-01974 (https://www.halifax.ca/business/planning-development/applications/planapp-2023-01974-3807-mont-blanc-terrace-halifax)

I predict they'll have The Aria done by 2030 and will swiftly move onto this project. :haha:

[Keith P.]

I wonder if the Five Moes will be finished their labors at the NFB project to allow them to move (slowly) to this one?

[kph06]

I wonder if the Five Moes will be finished their labors at the NFB project to allow them to move (slowly) to this one?

I believe the NFB building has actually been complete for some time now, I had family visiting this summer and they stayed in the hotel there. They have now moved crews onto the Tramway Building renovation. I think the NFB building was plagued by access and space constraint, contributing the slow pace. The developer behind these, Steve Caryi recently passed away. I think he had other heritage restorations in the area planned.

Aria by Polycorp on the other hand doesn’t have the space constraints at Long Lake Village. I think the developer has been quoted saying they have a different financial model than most, I always go back to the missed years of rental income in the current market. I recall a few years back reading that Polycorp also had a large tract of land near Long Pond further south on Herring Cove Road they would develop in the near future.

[Dmajackson]

Some demolition permits submitted this week. These don't have any known projects associated with them. Anyone know who may own them?

2872 Agricola Street (at Macara Street)

212-218 Portland Street, 28A-30 Maitland Street, 3 Newcastle Street in Dartmouth Cove. The land assembly totals to 31'000 sq ft in HR-1 zoning.

15 Prince Albert Road (notes state future development)

Also a building permit was issued for a 10-storey / 148 unit building that I cannot locate (41028556). The lot must be so new it's not in mapping software.

[Insigne]

Also a building permit was issued for a 10-storey / 148 unit building that I cannot locate (41028556). The lot must be so new it's not in mapping software.

Seems to be 19 Hamlet Lane, Dartmouth. Odd that it has a different PID than the map. see: https://cdn.halifax.ca/sites/default/files/documents/city-hall/community-councils/220420hemdcc1311.pdf

[IanWatson]

2872 Agricola Street (at Macara Street)
Bragg Group. They own a lot of the land in that area. I think anything substantial for this area will have to wait for the result of the ongoing infrastructure study that HRM is doing.

[JET]

Some demolition permits submitted this week. These don't have any known projects associated with them. Anyone know who may own them?

2872 Agricola Street (at Macara Street)

212-218 Portland Street, 28A-30 Maitland Street, 3 Newcastle Street in Dartmouth Cove. The land assembly totals to 31'000 sq ft in HR-1 zoning.

15 Prince Albert Road (notes state future development)

Also a building permit was issued for a 10-storey / 148 unit building that I cannot locate (41028556). The lot must be so new it's not in mapping software.

Too bad about 15 Prince Albert, nice house, looks old.

[Drybrain]

Too bad about 15 Prince Albert, nice house, looks old.

Nice enough but not too remarkable. Overall these all look like "good" demolitions to me, if I can use that word--nothing of significant architectural value of density being lost, and it doesn't look like a lot of displacement either.

There is one new development that the Halifax Developments blog posted (https://halifaxdevelopments.ca/2024/01/15/5213-green-street/)this morning, which is a bit unfortunate as it will take out a particularly unique and attractive, if rundown, Victorian House on Green Street in the South End.

Maybe another potential for the developers of the College/Robie project to move to make up for their house-dropping mistake! (Which seems to have put the whole development on ice for the past eight months, with no word of when it will resume, which I find a little concerning...)

[Dmajackson]

There is one new development that the Halifax Developments blog posted (https://halifaxdevelopments.ca/2024/01/15/5213-green-street/)this morning, which is a bit unfortunate as it will take out a particularly unique and attractive, if rundown, Victorian House on Green Street in the South End.

I just checked the permit and it also includes the two buildings to the west (uphill) of the Victorian house. A three-unit house and a small war-era apartment building.

[terrynorthend]

2872 Agricola Street (at Macara Street)
Bragg Group. They own a lot of the land in that area. I think anything substantial for this area will have to wait for the result of the ongoing infrastructure study that HRM is doing.


I've been long awaiting redevelopment of the radio station/CTV studio site.

[Drybrain]

I just checked the permit and it also includes the two buildings to the west (uphill) of the Victorian house. A three-unit house and a small war-era apartment building.

This is the kind of thing where a heritage-conservation district would be useful, IMO. Those other two buildings are totally expendable, but I do think the Victorian merits preservation. I'd be very happy to have a situation in which contributing resources to a heritage district cannot be torn down, but the development potential lost by retaining is compensated for in the form of additional height or density elsewhere on a lot assembly.

[Saul Goode]

Too bad about 15 Prince Albert, nice house, looks old.

The market has been very kind to it: bought for $310K in November 2017 and currently assessed at $909,900.

[OldDartmouthMark]

Too bad about 15 Prince Albert, nice house, looks old.

I agree. I've always liked the look of that house, in that location. Having it remain there would also provide a buffer for the historic church if it were only the other buildings that were to be razed.

[Dartguard]

I agree. I've always liked the look of that house, in that location. Having it remain there would also provide a buffer for the historic church if it were only the other buildings that were to be razed.

I suspect that the back of this lot is very close if not abutting the Nazi's former dental business and I was under the Impression that a Developer has tall plans to erase that memory.

[terrynorthend]

I suspect that the back of this lot is very close if not abutting the Nazi's former dental business and I was under the Impression that a Developer has tall plans to erase that memory.

I believe you are right, because he owned the lot beside the teeth place too. I wouldn't be surprised if a developer is trying to consolidate some sq. footage.

[OldDartmouthMark]

I suspect that the back of this lot is very close if not abutting the Nazi's former dental business and I was under the Impression that a Developer has tall plans to erase that memory.

For the life of me, I would never have associated that house on Prince Albert Road with that POS’s place on Portland. Whatever they do, if it helps to erase the memory of that stain on humanity, I’m all for it.

[IanWatson]

Sidewalk (Bruno Builders) bought the dental property so I assume they also have 15 Portland Prince Albert.

[Patrick Matthews]

some demolition permits submitted this week. These don't have any known projects associated with them. Anyone know who may own them?

2872 agricola street (at macara street)




fs industries limited

[Patrick Matthews]

some demolition permits submitted this week. These don't have any known projects associated with them. Anyone know who may own them?

15 prince albert road (notes state future development)


pa developments inc.

[Patrick Matthews]

Some demolition permits submitted this week. These don't have any known projects associated with them. Anyone know who may own them?

212-218 Portland Street, 28A-30 Maitland Street, 3 Newcastle Street in Dartmouth Cove. The land assembly totals to 31'000 sq ft in HR-1 zoning.


HARBOURVISTA APARTMENTS LTD
owns 6 lots there; 2 on Portland and others going back on Maitland

[teddifax]

Waye Mason is not reoffering, running for Mayor, I hope Savage runs again.
CityNews Halifax
@CityNewsHFX
NEW: Councillors Lindell Smith and Waye Mason won't reoffer in 2024 election, while Mason weighs mayoral run

[fatscat]

We may need a thread for the upcoming election, something tells me.

I'm both not and am surprised by the vitrol surrounding Mason. I don't have the history some people do (I've only lived in Halifax for 4 years) but he seems like a councillor who is highly communicative, gets his hands dirty, makes compromise (a large part of politics) and has provided a mixture of incremental and strong progress for the city. Yup, has his faults especially for the high-rise loving crowds of this forum (me included :) ) but I overall feel like he's done a great job as councillor, at least from observing his most recent term.

I think because of the way he's involved, he gets more hate than he deserves. Surely better to have someone like him in the council seat than someone who never speaks up, stays quiet, and tows the line. Edit: Waye did comment in a reddit thread he's not interested in a mayor seat.

I don't have a strong opinion on Savage. He doesn't feel like a strong mayor but I also don't seem to get much of him on my radar. I do feel like it'd be nice to see a new mayor at this time. Rumours have it that Fillmore may be one of the race constestants.

[Dmajackson]

HARBOURVISTA APARTMENTS LTD
owns 6 lots there; 2 on Portland and others going back on Maitland

Thanks!

So the name clearly implies it's owned by the same company that developed 222 Portland Street next door, Westbury Rentals (https://www.westburyrentals.com/index.aspx). I'm not really optimistic looking at their portfolio.

[Keith P.]

We may need a thread for the upcoming election, something tells me.

I'm both not and am surprised by the vitrol surrounding Mason. I don't have the history some people do (I've only lived in Halifax for 4 years) but he seems like a councillor who is highly communicative, gets his hands dirty, makes compromise (a large part of politics) and has provided a mixture of incremental and strong progress for the city. Yup, has his faults especially for the high-rise loving crowds of this forum (me included :) ) but I overall feel like he's done a great job as councillor, at least from observing his most recent term.

I think because of the way he's involved, he gets more hate than he deserves. Surely better to have someone like him in the council seat than someone who never speaks up, stays quiet, and toes the line. Edit: Waye did comment in a reddit thread he's not interested in a mayor seat.

He loves publicity a bit too much. He is slippery and glib, working both sides of an issue in public while being very much of a different mind in reality. He torpedoed the proposed 1000 units of student housing on Inglis next to Saint Mary’s because some of his old-money south-end supporters didn’t want it. He fought many low-to-mid rise proposals for ludicrous “too tall” reasons. He was a champion of the seriously flawed Centre Plan and thinks he is an expert on things about which he is clueless. He is arrogant and smug. He needs to go.

[teddifax]

We can only hope that he does run for Mayor and gets defeated.

[Dartguard]

We may need a thread for the upcoming election, something tells me.

I don't have a strong opinion on Savage. He doesn't feel like a strong mayor but I also don't seem to get much of him on my radar. I do feel like it'd be nice to see a new mayor at this time. Rumours have it that Fillmore may be one of the race constestants.

If you don't have a strong opinion of Mike Savage as Mayor then he would consider that a win. The quiet Joke here in Dartmouth is that while Mike holds the title of Mayor of HRM, Gloria McClusky is still the mayor of Dartmouth.
Mike knows his place while in Dartmouth.

[OldDartmouthMark]

Sidewalk (Bruno Builders) bought the dental property so I assume they also have 15 Portland.

I thought we were talking about 15 Prince Albert Road?

https://maps.app.goo.gl/xGQGhg3fxX3r8YCN7

I don't know about that house in particular, but that area of town had some nice houses, built by people who were associated with Starr Manufacturing and other prominent Dartmouth businesses in the late 19th, early 20th centuries. For some reason I always thought that this house had been associated with the church, but I'm not sure where that idea came from (it was a long time ago). The murderous denturist (or his parents) wasn't even a blip on the radar then (may his soul rot in hell).

[OldDartmouthMark]

If you don't have a strong opinion of Mike Savage as Mayor then he would consider that a win. The quiet Joke here in Dartmouth is that while Mike holds the title of Mayor of HRM, Gloria McClusky is still the mayor of Dartmouth.
Mike knows his place while in Dartmouth.

:haha: Many years ago, while I was a summer student working for the city, Gloria, as a councilor was feared by many city employees. Her reputation was such that if she got involved in a dispute on behalf of a resident, she would always win... so don't even try. ;)

[fatscat]

He loves publicity a bit too much. He is slippery and glib, working both sides of an issue in public while being very much of a different mind in reality. He torpedoed the proposed 1000 units of student housing on Inglis next to Saint Mary’s because some of his old-money south-end supporters didn’t want it. He fought many low-to-mid rise proposals for ludicrous “too tall” reasons. He was a champion of the seriously flawed Centre Plan and thinks he is an expert on things about which he is clueless. He is arrogant and smug. He needs to go.

Thanks. This seems aligned with many other more educated comments about Waye.

Gloria McClusky

Why is Dartmouth consistently cooler than Halifax?

[Drybrain]

We may need a thread for the upcoming election, something tells me.

I'm both not and am surprised by the vitrol surrounding Mason. I don't have the history some people do (I've only lived in Halifax for 4 years) but he seems like a councillor who is highly communicative, gets his hands dirty, makes compromise (a large part of politics) and has provided a mixture of incremental and strong progress for the city. Yup, has his faults especially for the high-rise loving crowds of this forum (me included :) ) but I overall feel like he's done a great job as councillor, at least from observing his most recent term.

I think because of the way he's involved, he gets more hate than he deserves. Surely better to have someone like him in the council seat than someone who never speaks up, stays quiet, and tows the line. Edit: Waye did comment in a reddit thread he's not interested in a mayor seat.

I don't have a strong opinion on Savage. He doesn't feel like a strong mayor but I also don't seem to get much of him on my radar. I do feel like it'd be nice to see a new mayor at this time. Rumours have it that Fillmore may be one of the race constestants.

I can see certainly see voting for Mason, depending on who the other contenders are, but I do think he has a tendency to condescend, and has skewed too NIMBY in the past—ha has historically been very keen to defend increasingly old-fashioned planning dogma around “protecting” established neighbourhoods. And while I’m broadly aligned with him on what we might call progressive urbanism—bike lanes, traffic calming, heritage protection, etc.—I find he often defaults to being overly accepting of sloooowww progress on exactly those things. Rather than champion more and faster improvements, he takes a very slow and steady approach that is ill-suited to the city today. And he can get rather testy when challenged on that.

Savage is fine. We could do way, way worse. But same as Mason: while I find he’s generally supportive of the kind of city-building efforts I’d like to see more of, there’s a lack of urgency and ambition in his leadership. We need someone with a little more fire. Having said that I’d certainly take Savage over someone actively harmful.

[OldDartmouthMark]

Why is Dartmouth consistently cooler than Halifax?

It just is... :cool:

[JET]

I thought we were talking about 15 Prince Albert Road?

https://maps.app.goo.gl/xGQGhg3fxX3r8YCN7

I don't know about that house in particular, but that area of town had some nice houses, built by people who were associated with Starr Manufacturing and other prominent Dartmouth businesses in the late 19th, early 20th centuries. For some reason I always thought that this house had been associated with the church, but I'm not sure where that idea came from (it was a long time ago). The murderous denturist (or his parents) wasn't even a blip on the radar then (may his soul rot in hell).

I've been in Dartmouth since 1992, I always thought that 15 Prince Albert Rd was the manse for the church. Next to the church is also the church community hall, and then an empty lot, and then the dental property. joining 15 Prince Albert to the old dental clinic property would make an odd lot. There is also a change in elevation that could complicate things.

[IanWatson]

I thought we were talking about 15 Prince Albert Road?

https://maps.app.goo.gl/xGQGhg3fxX3r8YCN7


Sorry, yes! The lot actually has frontage on both Prince Albert and Portland, but it is 15 Prince Albert for the house.

[IanWatson]

Thanks!

So the name clearly implies it's owned by the same company that developed 222 Portland Street next door, Westbury Rentals (https://www.westburyrentals.com/index.aspx). I'm not really optimistic looking at their portfolio.

AllNS reports today that there is a sale pending for this assembly of properties - buyer unknown. So while Harbourvista Apartments is the current registered owner they won't be the eventual developer.

[JET]

Sorry, yes! The lot actually has frontage on both Prince Albert and Portland, but it is 15 Prince Albert for the house.

What is the Portland St frontage?

[eastcoastal]

:haha: Many years ago, while I was a summer student working for the city, Gloria, as a councilor was feared by many city employees. Her reputation was such that if she got involved in a dispute on behalf of a resident, she would always win... so don't even try. ;)

Gloria could also be petty and, at least on one occasion, act counter to her oath as Councilor.

Years ago there was a development, I don't remember what or where, that she considered detrimental to the neighbourhood... except, it wasn't her district. She was angry about some developments that were approved for Dartmouth that she was fighting (too tall!) and so she voted FOR this other development in another district as "payback" for having what she felt were undesirable developments in HER district. Which... is counter to the oath all the Councilors take to act in the best interest of the municipality. The idiotic thing is that she took an interview with the press and admitted she voted for it out of spite. LOL. Of course, no one did anything about her flagrant disdain for her fiduciary duty, so business continued as usual.

[JET]

Gloria could also be petty and, at least on one occasion, act counter to her oath as Councilor.

Years ago there was a development, I don't remember what or where, that she considered detrimental to the neighbourhood... except, it wasn't her district. She was angry about some developments that were approved for Dartmouth that she was fighting (too tall!) and so she voted FOR this other development in another district as "payback" for having what she felt were undesirable developments in HER district. Which... is counter to the oath all the Councilors take to act in the best interest of the municipality. The idiotic thing is that she took an interview with the press and admitted she voted for it out of spite. LOL. Of course, no one did anything about her flagrant disdain for her fiduciary duty, so business continued as usual.

and she was no doubt re-elected. :tup: