Convention centre idea draws lots of interest
Big names in HRM development world show up for info session
By AMY PUGSLEY FRASER City Hall Reporter
Thu. Apr 24 - 6:46 AM
The opportunity to build a new downtown convention centre has attracted a veritable who’s who of the Halifax development world.
The number of people who attended a recent meeting, which was mandatory for anyone interested in submitting a proposal, shows that many architects and developers are keen to get on board.
"Everybody was there kicking tires and seeing who else was there," Halifax architect John Crace, a partner with WHW Group, said Wednesday.
Phil Townsend, manager of capital projects for the municipality, told the group that the exercise was a bit of a "fishing trip," just to see who comes out of the woodwork, Mr. Crace said.
Last month, the province and city announced they were seeking preliminary proposals from developers to replace the World Trade and Convention Centre.
Expressions of interest are sought for a convention centre with a minimum of 150,000 square feet to accommodate large conventions and several smaller events simultaneously.
The new building would almost triple the size of the existing facility, which is attached to the Metro Centre on Argyle Street and has 55,000 square feet of convention space.
It would also bring Halifax more in line with the national average for convention centre size, which is about 158,000 square feet.
Fred MacGillivray, president and CEO of Trade Centre Ltd., a provincial Crown corporation, said he was pleased to see so many companies and groups represented at the meeting.
"It was a good turnout," Mr. MacGillivray said in an interview Wednesday.
"We know that it is a pretty significant project and certainly one we are very anxious and positive about."
The group, which convened in the lobby of the centre, built in 1984, reviewed the outline made public last month. Many of those who attended were people who have an interest in "taking a lead" or who want to team up with other groups, he said.
"Some of them are architects, some are engineers, some are contractors — it was a mix of people who might be involved in something like that."
They will all be expected to submit their own proposals by May 16. At that point, they will be evaluated and ranked. A government-appointed committee will then produce a short list.
"They might have a different approach, but they all have to address the property issue and whatever they plan to build," Mr. McGillivray said of the proposals.
Mr. Crace said it’s likely that most applicants will submit a financial outline and a plan.
"There may be some sketchy designs that show what might be possible on any given site, but there are a pretty limited number of sites in the subject area," Mr. Crace said.
Four or five candidate sites are known to government staff, including the Cogswell interchange, land by the Pier 21 immigration museum and property occupied by The Chronicle Herald.
This newspaper is moving over the summer to offices at the Armdale Roundabout. The current site, along with the parking lots on the block behind, has been called an ideal spot for a new convention centre.
A representative of Argyle Developments Ltd., the group that bought The Chronicle Herald property, attended the session.
THE SHORT LIST:
Here’s a list of the individuals / companies that attended an information session on the new trade and convention centre:
•Raymond Lewis
•ADI Ltd.
•Jacques Whitford
•Sonco Group Inc.
•CBCL Ltd.
•EllisDon Corp.
•Argyle Developments Inc.
•MHPM Project Managers
•PCL Constructors Canada Ltd.
•Stantec Consulting
•MacDonnell Group
•Pomerleau Inc.
•MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple
Architects
•Trax Atlantic Developments
•Aecon Atlantic Group
•WHW Architects
•Rank Inc.
•Noel Fowler Architect
•Bird / Rideau
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) I kinda wish they could find a way to preserve some of the old building. It does have some merit. If they were to at least keep some of the facade on argyle.
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