General Updates and News

[Drybrain]

Some encouraging news from the local councillor’s website today: https://laurawhite.ca/alehouse-status/

Update 22 December 2025: Sorry for the delay in posting this update.

I met with the consultant for this project on 26 November 2025. Plans are progressing well to preserve the Alehouse and add housing to the block via a Heritage Development Agreement (HDA). The owners are working in good faith towards this goal. The plans look good. The Alehouse itself will most likely be for commercial space.

Per staff today:

“The original demolition permit for the Alehouse was issued on Nov 27, 2025, as they met all the requirements for a demolition permit application.”

I’m not clear on what was issued on 27 November vs back in March (see my update above), but I am not concerned.

Also, from staff today:

“the owner and their consultant for this project (W.M. Fares) are still actively working on a (HDA) application for the site, which would retain the Alehouse building in its entirety. The owner will need to apply for and receive heritage registration for the building as a precondition for entering into such an agreement, which they intend to do once their application package is ready. Heritage staff continue to work with the owner and their consultant to see this project through.”

Kudos to staff, the owner and W.M. Fares for their work on this project. Nothing is set in stone, but the owners are investing financially in the planning for this heritage registration and HDA project. They would not do so if they did not intend to follow this path.

[Keith P.]

Originally Posted by Drybrain

The haphazard approach to maintaining insitutional buildings like schools and medical facilities really illustrates that. Now that I have young kids, I'm pretty familiar with peninsula schools, and most of the mid-century and older public schools I know are genuinely shabby. There's no reason these buildings needs to be in bad shape, but they've experienced years of minimal maintenance and investment in improving them. This leads to a perspective that the old schools are simply inferior learning environments, and kids need new schools. My kids will go to the new SJAM when it opens in the North End, and it looks like it'll be pretty spiffy. But I do wonder if over time it'll just lapse into the same decay, and 50 years from now some new generation of parents will be celebrating its demolition and replacement.

I went to the old SJAM when I was a kid. I attended the AM school when it was a separate admin from SJ, so I got to experience both the original AM building (which survived the Halifax Explosion) along with the annex/gym built onto the back in what likely was in the late '50s. The old building was indeed old, with desks and chairs having cast-iron frames bolted to the wooden floors. Those floors were bouncy and creaky even back then. I don't recall any issues with the newer addition. I then went across the street to SJ for junior high. Those classes were in the new early-'60s building built facing Russell St and I thought that was quite nice. The gym in particular with its arched roof seemed cool. It was new enough that I don't recall any maintenance issues with it but my impression was always that maintenance was pretty minimal in all of the Halifax schools. All it takes is for a few leaks to go without being repaired for a while and eventually you have an expensive problem. I felt badly when I heard that building was going away because my impression of it from years before was good. A big part of the problem is that the school board budget has to handle repairs, but the province pays for building new/replacement school buildings. That leads to maintenance being a low priority for the school board. It is interesting that the old AM building was taken over several decades ago by the Shambhala School/Hydrostone Academy and is still quite presentable and apparently in good repair.

[someone123]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

A big part of the problem is that the school board budget has to handle repairs, but the province pays for building new/replacement school buildings.

I wonder if it works differently in other provinces. Like I said, around here it's completely standard for the original public schools to be operating even if they were built around 1900. In Halifax almost no older schools are left; some of the buildings are there but they are virtually all private. I doubt this was more cost-effective overall.

Maybe to some degree maintenance is cheaper here due to climate but I doubt the difference is that large and as I said expensive seismic upgrades have had to be done as this is a high risk earthquake zone. Toronto and Montreal are full of old schools. And these are large cities where the inner city school land could be sold off for big bucks.

[someone123]

Originally Posted by Drybrain

Kudos to staff, the owner and W.M. Fares for their work on this project. Nothing is set in stone, but the owners are investing financially in the planning for this heritage registration and HDA project. They would not do so if they did not intend to follow this path.

Perhaps the bad old days are ending and there will a reasonable outcome with a new development and a well-maintained heritage building.

[OldDartmouthMark]

Originally Posted by someone123

Perhaps the bad old days are ending and there will a reasonable outcome with a new development and a well-maintained heritage building.

Fingers crossed!

[Keith P.]

Article about the Alehouse building today in the Herald: https://www.saltwire.com/nova-scotia/hal...-spare-historic-building-from-demolition

From the story:

The Halifax Alehouse property on Brunswick Street may be spared from the wrecking ball, according to owner George Ramia.

On Nov. 27, a demolition permit was issued to Ramia by the Halifax Regional Municipality’s Permitting, Planning, Licensing and Compliance department.

Ramia bought the Alehouse and adjacent Halifax Sports Bar properties in December 2024. He also owns the Keg Steakhouse restaurant behind the Alehouse.

In October 2024, the province ordered the Alehouse to be closed for 45 days because of Liquor Control Act changes. It has not been open since then.

However, Ramia said they are looking at a heritage development agreement as a possible alternative to demolition.

“We haven’t decided one way or the other, but we are going through the process of seeing how we can enter a development agreement,” he said Monday.

“We want to analyze the property to see if there is something we can work out with the heritage (development agreement) and move forward from there.”

Laura White, councillor for Halifax South Downtown, said the demolition permit met all the requirements but she doesn’t see Ramia using it.

“I don’t expect them to follow through on the demolition permit,” said White. “They are working on a plan for keeping the Alehouse and doing a housing development.”

White said the W.M. Fares Group is consulting on the project.

The Heritage Trust weighs in:

In February, the Heritage Trust of Nova Scotia circulated a petition to save the 132-year-old property that once housed the Salvation Army temple and Atlantic Printing.

The Heritage Trust office is closed for the holiday season, but in February, executive director Emma Lang told The Chronicle Herald that there are few structures left from that time period.

“The building itself is incredibly culturally important,” Lang said of the brown, two-storey brick structure at 1717 Brunswick St.

“It was the first Salvation Army citadel,” Lang said. “Salvation Army buildings were usually built in working-class neighbourhoods and this working-class neighbourhood was really vibrant, fully integrated and was referred to as the Upper Streets.”

In a 2020 report, HRM staff described the building designed by Henry F. Busch, one of Nova Scotia’s most significant architects, as a rare example of the Second Empire style using Victorian Gothic architectural elements.

“The architectural integrity of the building since 1895 is largely unchanged,” the staff report stated.

The staff reports referenced three existing Second Empire-style buildings on Brunswick Street: the Salvation Army Citadel, the Halifax Academy at 1649 Brunswick and the Welfare Building at 1697 Brunswick.

[kzt79]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

Article about the Alehouse building today in the Herald: https://www.saltwire.com/nova-scotia/hal...-spare-historic-building-from-demolition

Reading the above led me to this interesting post:

The Life and Hard Times of Halifax’s Upper Streets: A Brief and Not At All Definitive History

[OldDartmouthMark]

Originally Posted by kzt79

Reading the above led me to this interesting post:

The Life and Hard Times of Halifax’s Upper Streets: A Brief and Not At All Definitive History

Thanks for that. It was a very interesting read.

[OldDartmouthMark]

The Salvation Army Citadel building in a different stage of its life:

1965:


1979:






Source

The building to the left was an automotive or truck repair shop (I believe) in the 1965 photo and The Arrow Club in the 1979 photos. From what I can gather The Arrow Club was torn down shortly thereafter to be replaced by The Palace Cabaret, which had been converted to the HFX Sports Bar and Grill most recently, and I believe is closed now.

[Keith P.]

Mark's description is correct. The Arrows Club was primarily aimed at the black community though open to all and for a time was a venue where many well-known acts from the US would go to perform. The Palace was created in the early '80s on the site in a new and for the time fancy place that originally tried to be a type of high-end nightclub but within a short period of time degenerated into a more typical disco/booze hall/pickup bar.

[JET]

The double stacked billboards on Nantucket in Dartmouth below the McDonslds have come down. Many of these eyesores are now gone with all the new building, hopefully soon all will be gone.

[worldlyhaligonian]

2025 was quite a strong year for development in Halifax. As a year end wrap up question...

What is your favourite proposal or building concept that has yet to break ground?

For me, it would be the site next to Parkland at the Common. As it is now hospital parking, we won't see it developed for awhile, but the renderings we've seen looked great.



Source: a page I've just seen for the first time - https://www.skyscrapercenter.com/building/2032-2050-robie-street/40121

'Skyscraper Center' (giving old SSC energy).

[someone123]

Depending on definition I'd pick the old art gallery proposal (dead) or Spring Garden West (demo so I think yet to break ground), or failing that, the St. Pat's redevelopment. The art gallery would have filled the bigger waterfront hole, SGW is pretty nice looking and is important now that the row of buildings there is gone, and St. Pat's is pretty much required for that little blob of density around Robie and Quinpool to cohere into something significant.

I think the city is going to feel a lot bigger once some current projects are done, assuming they're completed, and the scale is a bit hard to appreciate. Having a 40 storey building by the bridge on the Dartmouth side will make the city look a lot bigger. Same thing goes for looking down Spring Garden Road and seeing 30 storey buildings off in the distance. And the new hospital will be very large and busy.

There's also the possibility of something really good for Cogswell if an entity like Crombie decides to build a marquee project there, particularly if council does adjust the ramparts limits, which would make sense for that area.

I remember thinking about some not so great aspects of Halifax like the prominent empty lot at Barrington and George or the parking lots just off Spring Garden Road that made the city feel hit-or-miss walking around and a bit like a small town. The small town aspect is mostly gone now, or will be once currently under construction buildings are done. There will still be some strangely empty or underdeveloped areas but they'll be more the exception rather than the norm.

[mleblanc]

Originally Posted by someone123

Depending on definition I'd pick the old art gallery proposal (dead) or Spring Garden West (demo so I think yet to break ground), or failing that, the St. Pat's redevelopment.

I'm with you as long as we're talking about the early St. Pats redevelopment, as the most recent one leaves a lot to be desired. As development has finally picked up in Halifax, I've definitely had a personal shift to quality over quantity.

We've had so many great proposals over the years only to have them widdled down into generic, cheap looking buildings. We need more Queens Marquee-level developments at this point: the new AGNS, The Post, etc. all seem to match that level but most still seem incredibly bland.

Fingers crossed that we see some great Cogswell proposals this year!

[OldDartmouthMark]

For me, this one, though it appears that construction will be on hold until at least sometime in 2027?



And by then, the renderings will probably be changed to something less attractive/cool. Maybe a fake Mansard roof?

[Saul Goode]

Originally Posted by worldlyhaligonian

What is your favourite proposal or building concept that has yet to break ground?

My fave was this iteration of Promenade Robie South (which sadly appears to have been superseded recently by something much more bland):

https://i.imgur.com/RNgjXj1.jpg

[Arrdeeharharharbour]

I'm a fan of combining the old with the new. Two projects I'm looking forward to seeing built are the post office in Dartmouth and the Flower Factory in Halifax. Downtown Dartmouth is on the verge of something great and having a bit of height to the east of the north common will look awesome.

[Saul Goode]

Originally Posted by Arrdeeharharharbour

I'm a fan of combining the old with the new. Two projects I'm looking forward to seeing built are the post office in Dartmouth and the Flower Factory in Halifax. Downtown Dartmouth is on the verge of something great and having a bit of height to the east of the north common will look awesome.

I'd love to see The Post finally resume construction and a crane go up. It's been virtually dormant for a long time now and is a sad sight. Anyone have any news on it?

[OldDartmouthMark]

Originally Posted by Arrdeeharharharbour

I'm a fan of combining the old with the new. Two projects I'm looking forward to seeing built are the post office in Dartmouth and the Flower Factory in Halifax. Downtown Dartmouth is on the verge of something great and having a bit of height to the east of the north common will look awesome.

Right! The post office... that one slipped my mind... so, yeah, that one too!

[worldlyhaligonian]

Originally Posted by Saul Goode

My fave was this iteration of Promenade Robie South (which sadly appears to have been superseded recently by something much more bland):

https://i.imgur.com/RNgjXj1.jpg

I also loved that iteration. I'm hoping we get something in the (faux deco?) style somewhere. It suits Halifax.