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From the Herald today.



Playground spat heading to court

Developer says he and city are willing to bypass URB process


By CHRIS LAMBIE

Business Editor

A Halifax developer is taking his argu ment with the city to another sandbox. Peter Polley has asked the provin cial regulator to adjourn the case pit ting a playground promised four dec ades ago against his proposed $15-million, 63-unit condominium project on Barrington Street.

His lawyer wrote to the Utility and Review Board on Tuesday indicating

Polycorp Properties Inc. and the city want to take their battle to Nova Scotia Supreme Court.

“It keeps getting more and more bi zarre," said Polley, the company’s president.

“Nobody is doing anything to try to see development move forward. They’re just trying to block it using any and all methods that they can."

He paid more than $1 million for the lot last April after performing several checks to make sure it was zoned for high-density development.

But after Polley made the purchase, a development officer with the city ruled the project, dubbed Jazz Condo miniums, could not go ahead because the land is supposed to be a play ground for the adjacent Ocean Towers highrise on Brunswick Street.

Polley met with Mayor Peter Kelly earlier this month in an at tempt to resolve the problem.

“As far as I can tell, the only thing that’s going to keep this from being a drawn-out, very pub lic process over the next two years is if the mayor is man enough to step up to the plate to say, ‘Enough of this madness,’ " Polley said. “Somebody needs to use some common sense here."

Mary Ellen Donovan, the mu nicipality’s legal services direc tor, has refused to discuss the case.

In review board filings, the city has questioned the board’s juris diction in the matter.

The municipality has also asked the Registry of Deeds to get the old agreement stipulating the land should be a playground add ed to official documentation.

“We’ll be looking for a declara tion that this unsigned and unre corded agreement is not binding on us," Polycorp’s lawyer, Rob Grant, said of the case headed for Supreme Court.

“Our position would be if we win that, they can’t amend the re cord."

Polley bought the empty lot from DDP-Brunswick Ltd. That company is related to Mississau ga, Ont.-based TransGlobe Property Management Services Ltd. , which owns the adjacent Ocean Towers. But TransGlobe didn’t build the towers and they’ve been own ed by several entities since they went up 40 years ago.

“This is the first time the own ership of the lot that Polycorp wants to develop was separated" from the lots where the Ocean Towers sit, Grant said.

Polycorp built the nearby 85-unit Spice Condominiums and the Mont Blanc, which consists of almost 200 apartments and town­houses on Mont Blanc Terrace. It is also working on a 76-house de velopment called Ravenscraig at Sir Sandford Fleming Park.

The board will likely grant the adjournment because it’s been re quested by both parties, said board spokesman Paul Allen.

“That’s a slam dunk in most cases."

(clambie@herald.ca)