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Originally Posted by ns_kid
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Roger Taylor's piece in today's Herald restates what has already been known for some time: the original concept for the structure has been changed considerably, in large part due to the extensive public consultation. Taylor also restates earlier assertions that securing HRM approvals will take up to eight months, which is why the city asked the province to allow subgrade work to proceed by way of interim planning area order.
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It is possible that the sub-grade work progress could be used to pressure the Design Review Committee to pass a development that otherwise might not be passed. I don't have a huge hate-on for this building, but I do have to say that closing a public street is counter to what is generally accepted as good practice in urban design. The current planning and development bylaws expressly prohibit that... even the old MPS and bylaws recognized that was one of the massive failures of mid-century attempts at urban revitalization.
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Originally Posted by ns_kid
...One commenter on Taylor's piece, a jwchisholm, who claims to have attended last night's session, dismisses what he sees as "three soul-destroying blankly-inhuman mega blocks where nothing will ever happen". Like many critics, including the Coast's Tim Bousquet, he seems to dismiss the results of the public consultation as invalid. Which is consistent with development sceptics generally, who demand public engagement but then dismiss the results of that engagement if it doesn't reflect their own narrow vision.
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I don't know that the blocks will be soul destroying - but they have the potential to be street-level-urban-life killers. I haven't read his comments, but if they are about the poor decision to close off Grafton St., I have to say that I don't think the point of public input was to say that the street should no longer be open, but that the convention components be moved out of the basement. I can't believe that it's either/or.
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Originally Posted by ns_kid
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As to whether Nova Centre will be successful I do not know. I have optimism that this project will succeed. Like chisholm I find it disquieting that Mr. Ramia is still unwilling or unable to identify a single major tenant or hotel brand. Unlike some critics, Pacey, Bousquet and Kimber included, I will not celebrate a failure.
http://thechronicleherald.ca/business/1162752-taylor-nova-centre-deserves-fair-start#disqus_thread |
I hope it succeeds too. I'm not very optimistic about some of the basic urban design moves, but I think anyone who complains about it being too tall is out-to-lunch.
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