Despite opposition, council OKs tower
By AMY PUGSLEY FRASER City Hall Reporter
Wed. Jun 11 - 5:28 AM
The excavators could be making room for a new 19-storey building in downtown Halifax this fall after regional council approved a new development for South Park Street.
After a lengthy public hearing Tuesday night that drew 30 people to city hall, councillors gave Wadih Fares’s "Trillium" building the go-ahead for the corner of Brenton Street.
The hearing — which took up so much of council’s four-hour meeting time that it had to defer most of the agenda items until next week — brought out a mix of people who were almost exactly evenly split in their opinions on the building.
Some favoured its stepped-back design, its potential to bring new residents into the downtown area and the beauty of its front-facing wall of glass.
Opponents lamented the shadows it would cast over the nearby Public Gardens and Victoria Park, and the fact it would tower over the many single-family homes in the neighbouring 200-year-old heritage district some call Schmidtville.
After listening to the speakers, councillors voted 21-1 in favour of the development proposal.
The only dissenter was Coun. Dawn Sloane (Halifax Downtown), whose district will be home to the building.
She based her decision, she said, on the wishes of the people she represents.
Some were concerned about the fate of three historic homes on the building lot whose heritage designation has been applied for but not approved.
The developer has said he would pay to relocate the homes if a suitable placement could be found.
Still, Ms. Sloane said she was "betwixt and between" on making a decision. "Unfortunately, the citizens in my neighbourhood, who have signed a petition with 90 names, told me that they don’t want this in their neighbourhood."
Coun. Sheila Fougere (Connaught-Quinpool) told council she had lived four doors down from the property when she was first married.
It has been little more than a "filthy corner" and a "derelict slum" since then, she said.
"At one point (the three homes) may have been beautiful buildings . . . but they have been quasi-rooming houses surrounded by a dirt parking lot for in excess of 25 years.
"If that’s the kind of stability we want to see in the neighbourhood, that frightens me."
She also said the building’s design could counter the potential of increased wind in the area, a concern raised by several of the speakers during the hearing.
"We have better technology now, there’s better design to mitigate those kinds of issues than when Park Victoria was built, and we’ve seen by the evidence provided to us that has been accounted for in this particular design."
During Tuesday night’s hearing, a few people referred to challenges from heritage groups to downtown development.
"I, as with many, simply abhor the anti-highrise development rhetoric offered by the self-interested few," Patrick LeRoy of Elliott Avenue said.
"But this development would be a further step forward in ensuring revitalization of our urban core."
In an interview, the developer — who said he was surprised by the overwhelming vote in favour of his project — said he’s hopeful that heritage and development can work together.
"It is too bad that always heritage comes out as an adversary to us," Mr. Fares said after the meeting. "I believe there is room for us to work together."
That hope may not be realized too soon.
Phil Pacey, president of Heritage Trust, said after the meeting that the group will continue its battle to support heritage properties.
"We will fight for heritage in this city with every breath that we have. We will not give up. The heritage of this city is far more important than some members of council realize."
(
apugsley@herald.ca)
’We will fight for heritage in this city with every breath that we have. We will not give up.’
PHIL PACEYHeritage Trust president