[Halifax] The Cunard (1475 Lower Water) | 57 m | 19 fl | U/C
 

This thread is for the Cunard Block development being planned by the WDCL. Rendering will be added soon.

The website says construction to start in Spring of 2013. Would that be the building itself? Could site prep start any earlier?

Now that we have an official thread, I will just post the link to the CH story on the Cunard Block again, just in case.

It's interesting to note that Michael Napier Architects and Ekistics have taken over design of this.

So is Waterfront Development Corp goign to design the building then sell the development package? Not sure why they would take such an approach.

I wonder if this was done in response to the Salter situation.

That is my understanding of the situation. And from what I have heard there has been some good interest from developers.

Oh i sure there has been, but was that interest in building something already designed or with them designing to a certain level or generality.

Cunard Block tender coming



May 7, 2012 - 8:24pm By REMO ZACCAGNA Business Reporter


The Cunard Block development project on the Halifax waterfront will be up for tender in the next few weeks.

Provincial Crown agency Waterfront Development Corp. Ltd. president Colin MacLean said they’re seeking a private partner for the multimillion-dollar project, and that the tender process will be launched by the end of June or early July.

At that point, developers will be able to make their pitch for a long-term lease on the land, worth about $8 million.

“We’re pretty excited about that,” he said in a telephone interview Monday.

The corporation wants to see a mixed-use development built on the property, located on Lower Water Street north of the new Nova Scotia Power headquarters by Marginal Road, that could include an 18-storey apartment tower housing anywhere from 250 to 300 units.

The project would incorporate public spaces and have anywhere from 20,000 and 40,000 square feet of commercial space.

“It’s a great opportunity to add some density for people living in the downtown core, so that will be the primary focus,” he said. “And as always, what we want to do is use it as an opportunity to create some great public spaces along the waterfront as well.”

Two conceptual designs for the property, worked on by Lydon Lynch Architects of Halifax, were unveiled last June, when the provincial Crown corporation invited public feedback.

The Crown corporation then brought in a new team of experts, led by Michael Napier Architecture and Ekistics Planning & Design, to work on a design that will be used in the tender process.

The group is now “fine-tuning” that design , which should be completed in the next few weeks, and will ensure that “when we go to market, we’re presenting something to developers that is both buildable and gives them something to improve upon.”

MacLean said it’s too early to determine the capital costs for the project, but that they’re counting on their private partner to “really hone in on making this absolutely economically feasible.”

The final design may incorporate some aspects of the two initial conceptual designs but the developer will have some say on the last iteration.

“Right now we’d know what would be possible to build, and we’re doing enough work with the architects and engineers to get a sense of some of the costs, but ultimately that’s what we’ll hand to the developer and together they’ll bring their expertise to say ‘what exactly will this cost and what will the market bear.' ”

Construction is expected to begin in 2013.

(rzaccagna@herald.ca)

Is this even approved? They shouldn't get too ahead of themselves before the heritage crazies get involved.

Construction in 2013? I'll believe it when I see it. The Salter block project didn't even happen!

I hope this will mark an accelerated period of waterfront development, but I remain sceptical. The level of development of WDC lands over the past ten years has remained painfully slow while many other parts of the city have been built up substantially. It would be one thing if the waterfront land were undesirable or if the city were declining overall but when the WDC-controlled parking lots are surrounded by new office buildings and apartments it seems likely something's not right.

Hopefully this one will actually move beyond the planning stages and they'll get a few other developments in the pipeline, like Cable Wharf. The planning exercises themselves feel like they're meant to give the illusion of progress. They have a very low success rate in Halifax and it's not clear how important they really are. Bishop's Landing is nice but it's a pretty normal condo development, aside from some technical issues that the developer had to worry about.

Yeah, and that was years ago... After Salter I have no confidence they can deliver an 18 story tower in the next 18 months.

The Salter Street Waterfront proposal was through Centennial Group Ltd. with a lease deal through the Waterfront Development Corporation. Since Centennial Group Ltd. didn't meet their obligations the Waterfront Development Corporation reclaimed possession of their land. So I don't think that the Waterfront Development Corporation is at fault for the Salter Street proposal not going forward.

I hope that the Waterfront Development Corporation finds a developer who will move ahead with a land leasing agreement and residential development.

These are really two separate issues. The WDC is not responsible for Centennial failing to construct their development, but it is the WDC's responsibility to develop the waterfront land they have control over.

My understanding is that they have new management now and that the plan is to accelerate the pace of new development. Hopefully we will see results over the next year or two. If not, the only silver lining I guess will be that Halifax will still have lots of waterfront parking spots in 2030.

Did they not pull the plug on the developer just as the developer was finalizing things to start construction? From what I remember, it seemed as though this was done to use the land for that volleyball tournament.

I don't know enough about what really happened to make an assessment of it. The story from Centennial I think was that they couldn't get financing but were going to break ground relatively soon. The WDC however had already extended the deadline for Salter once or maybe twice before they pulled the plug on the project. I have no idea why they switched gears and moved on to the Cunard site rather than giving companies, including Centennial, the opportunity to bid again on Salter. Maybe they have bigger plans for that area, or maybe they though Cunard was a better site for the time being.

I have a hard time faulting the WDC for not developing enough and then also complaining about them pulling the plug on a developer that was too slow. At the end of the day my problem is simply related to the WDC's end results over the past decade.

They pulled the plug on Cenntenial because they were going to ask for another extension. It is a real shame though, it was such a beautiful proposal. I don't blame WDCL at all though.

Here is a link to an informative case study written by CMHC regarding the problems associated with developing waterfront land (such as contamination). http://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/en/inpr/s...alifax-N-S.pdf. Specifically the case study covers the WDCL owned lands.

I still blame them... that development took forever to get approved because of all the idiots on council / public input process. That has to count for something.

I bet the time it took to get approved wasn't that far off the amount of time that followed approval before the plug got pulled.

Interestingly enough, the Sentinel project they mention in the PDF was never built. It was for the King and Alderney drive site next to the King's Wharf site. I used to have renderings somewhere...