I too would have preferred the addition to follow the original building shape, even though it will no longer be the original building. Maybe it won't look so bad at street level...
IMHO, the real missed opportunity here is that they didn't keep the façade of the original Zellers building. It was one of the few art deco examples that we had in Halifax, as there wasn't a lot of building going on here during the period that art deco was in vogue.
At least recladding it in a similar fashion will get it close, but it's not clear if they will include the original carved sandstone decorative elements or not. The rendering shows some of it, but not all of it, and the windows will be reconfigured a bit.
FWIW, I don't believe the entrance was right on the chamfered corner - I think it was more of a styling element that gave the building visual interest.
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