General Updates and News

[spaustin]

Perhaps we should wait and see what the proposal is before flying off the handle (too late?). I would be very surprised if it was more public housing since governments everywhere have pretty much stopped building it. Government has in fact pretty much given up on housing. Affordable housing is all that's getting built (usually by non-profits) which has a crucial difference. Affordable housing allows low-income earners who otherwise couldn't afford to buy, a chance to become owners. They thus have a stake in the property unlike many in Uniacke Square and tend to keep it up. I would be shocked, especially since it's Canada Lands redeveloping the site, if they were proposing some flashback to the 1970s. Neither policy, planning or politics suggests that's what's happening or an even remotely realistic idea. So let's all breathe and wait for details.

[Barrington south]

Originally Posted by spaustin

Using the Thompson Building for public housing will not be the end of Barrington Street.

"Neither policy, planning or politics suggests that's what happening".... but you certainly raised the possibility...infact you where the first to mention public housing.
i'll start breathing when you start showing a little consistency


and in this case, no I will not wait and see,
i'm taking a pro-active approach and have already started the prosess of recruiting local business owners and concered homeowners.....
and most people I have talked to, agree,
as do I, that a minoroity percentage of affordable housing is not a problem....

but the retro-fitting of the Thomsan building is

[Dmajackson]

Report: Bedford will need several new schools

By TOM PETERS Staff Reporter
Fri. Jun 19 - 4:46 AM
Increases in student population will demand that several new schools be built in the Bedford area within 10 years, a Toronto consultant’s report projects.

The recommendations are contained in a 10-year plan for Halifax Regional Municipality prepared by CS&P Architects Inc.

The plan, titled Imagine Our Schools, takes an overall view of the municipality’s school needs, with projections based on comprehensive criteria.

The Halifax regional school board heard recommendations Thursday evening at Halifax West High School on school facilities in the south-central and southwest regions of the municipality.

Maureen O’Shaughnessy of CS&P said that overall, the municipality’s student population will decrease by 2021 to 13.4 per cent of the total population from 17.8 per cent in 2006.

But she said the Charles P. Allen High "family of schools," which includes junior highs and elementaries in the Bedford area, will buck the trend. The report projects that enrolment will increase by 19 per cent by 2019 and use of present school facilities will increase to 131 per cent from 102.

The cause of the increase is planned major growth areas in the south and west areas of Bedford. The report says Bedford now has eight schools but will need another seven, including a second high school, over the next eight to 10 years.

While the C.P. Allen family will grow, student enrolment in the Halifax West family of schools is projected to decline by 17 per cent over the next 10 years and use of school facilities will drop to 80 per cent from 89.

In several recommendations, a number of schools were earmarked for alterations and improvements and it was suggested that Atlantic Memorial and Terence Bay elementary schools be consolidated into one improved school.

J.L. Ilsley and Sir John A. Macdonald high schools anchor the southwest region of the municipality, where school population is expected to decline nearly five per cent by 2021, indicating "another aging community," Ms. Shaughnessy said.

J.L. Ilsley, which is fed by urban, suburban and rural schools, is expected to undergo an enrolment drop of 17 per cent in the next decade. The master plan suggests a need for only seven schools, down from the current 11, to feed into the high school.

The report suggests that Cunard Junior High and Elizabeth Sutherland be combined into one junior high.

Sir John A. Macdonald High is projected to show a marginal increase of about four per cent over the next decade. The plan projects that 10 schools, an increase of two, will be needed in that part of the municipality by 2018-19.

Some of the main recommendations for the area include a new Primary-to-Grade 6 school in Beechville-Lakeside-Timberlea, a new elementary in Westwood Hills to serve St. Margarets Bay and Highland Park, and a boundary review to direct some students to the new Westwood Hills school or to Tantallon.

The full report is available at www.hrsb.ns.ca.

( [email protected])

[spaustin]

Originally Posted by Barrington south

"Neither policy, planning or politics suggests that's what happening".... but you certainly raised the possibility...infact you where the first to mention public housing.
i'll start breathing when you start showing a little consistency

I mixed up the terms (easy enough to do since they're close), but if you read my posts I think I have been very consistent. Just out of curiosity, are you aware that there is public housing of a sort on the upper level of the VIA station. Funny how the neighbourhood has managed to carry on. Affordable housing certainly won't hurt the neighbourhood (it sounds like you agree with that) and I would even argue that some public housing (affordable housing doesn't work for everyone) would even be fine. Where things could go wrong would be if the whole building was public housing, but I just can't see that being a real possibility. A mix is the way to go.

Originally Posted by Barrington south

"and in this case, no I will not wait and see,
i'm taking a pro-active approach and have already started the prosess of recruiting local business owners and concered homeowners.....
and most people I have talked to, agree,
as do I, that a minoroity percentage of affordable housing is not a problem....

but the retro-fitting of the Thomsan building is

Well it can't really hurt I suppose. I live in the neighbourhood too and have for years now (shortly I will be almost directly across from your business). Still I think you'll be riling everyone up for something that seems very, very unlikely based on a single line (reported in this thread) from All Nova Scotia saying affordable housing was being considered.

[Waye Mason]

That building is toast, it HVAC is busted, the building was poison, people had a lot of sick days there, and there is nothing of merit about it architecturally.

I think people who are freaking out need to calm the hell down. Affordable housing is not Uniake Square anymore. Lets wait until we see what the actual plans are.

Mixed income developments are the vogue again. I think that is great. I live near Dal. Take Vernon Street. You have single family homes, you have over and unders, you have duplexes, you have apartment buildings with 8-10 units built to look like row houses. It works generally well, except when the students come back in September... but we sort them out.

The key is they are all mixed together.

I don't want to see a "project" being built but that is a big chunk of land. If the property includes some affordable housing, something that allows working class people to own homes or rent affordably, mixed with some appropriate higher end development, is that so bad?

[Waye Mason]

Oh and also, there is already plenty of low rent housing around there, as a student I lived in the yellow building at the corner of Barrington and South, a friend of mine and her daughter live next door to Taj Mahal, and of course the soon to be demolished building around the corner at Morris and Hollis is cheap as heck. "Poor" people already live in the neighbourhood, get over it.

[BravoZulu]

Originally Posted by Waye Mason

Oh and also, there is already plenty of low rent housing around there, as a student I lived in the yellow building at the corner of Barrington and South, a friend of mine and her daughter live next door to Taj Mahal, and of course the soon to be demolished building around the corner at Morris and Hollis is cheap as heck. "Poor" people already live in the neighbourhood, get over it.

The difference is that these "poor" people are doing it on their own dime.

[Barrington south]

uhhh thanks WAE,

but I don't consider the properties you described as the residents of poor people...

there is actually such a thing as middle class people...ya know!!...

and if you actually read my responses,
you would soon realise.....
that your last statement on your first post is what I said previously said I wouldn't mind...

try a little harder next time bro....

who's the next left winger to take offence....east coastal?

[Waye Mason]

I love how I was a self employed business man and entrepreneur for 17 years and now I teach business and I am a "leftie" if I disagree with certain people.

Absurd.

[Waye Mason]

So lets put some facts into this heated debate based on emotions and perceptions. Wikipedia says this about Affordable Housing (and no cracks about Wikipedia please, its Saturday and how much time do you expect me to spend on this anyway! )

Affordable housing is a term used to describe dwelling units whose total housing costs are deemed "affordable" to those that have a median income. Although the term is often applied to rental housing that is within the financial means of those in the lower income ranges of a geographical area, the concept is applicable to both renters and purchasers in all income ranges. This article focuses on the affordability of owner-occupied and private rental housing as social housing is a specialised tenure.

In the United States and Canada, a commonly accepted guideline for housing affordability is a housing cost that does not exceed 30% of a household's gross income. Housing costs considered in this guideline generally include taxes and insurance for owners, and usually include utility costs. When the monthly carrying costs of a home exceed 30–35% of household income, then the housing is considered unaffordable for that household.

Is this what they are talking about? A small block of flats and homes, something like a South Barrington version of C/GA? If it meets the planning strategies requirements how bad can that get? Not bad, I don't think.

SO according to Statscan the median is $46,941 in 2000 for Halifax County. So that means an average cost of $1300 a month all in for rental or sale properties. So you could see condos sold to qualified buyers for $210,000 and that would still qualify.

Maybe a positive approach is to push for mixed income, and to make sure it meets HRMbD standards, and to make sure it has well designed street level interface and shops.

[Barrington south]

Originally Posted by Waye Mason

I love how I was a self employed business man and entrepreneur for 17 years and now I teach business and I am a "leftie" if I disagree with certain people.

Absurd.

OK Waye, if you say so....but to be fair Bev Miller Teaches business at that Sobey's School of business so I guess not all Bus. Teachers can be painted with the same brush, yah know what I mean?

[Barrington south]

Originally Posted by Waye Mason

Maybe a positive approach is to push for mixed income, and to make sure it meets HRMbD standards, and to make sure it has well designed street level interface and shops.

That's exsactly what I have been doing Waya, like I said previosly, most people i have talked to don't mind if it has a affordable housing involved, and i hope it is something to the standars of the Gottegen Terraces (although it has to be built to offically be deemed a succsess...in my mind anyway)

and I agree well designed street and shops play a very lardge factor

dude, does this semi consensis beteen you and i offically make me a leftie now?...

[ZET]

Waye might say yes, but I'm doubtful. ZET (or JET, if it's confusing for you).

[Waye Mason]

Originally Posted by Barrington south

dude, does this semi consensis beteen you and i offically make me a leftie now?...

KP might think so, though KP and I keep agreeing on NSL this week, so maybe we have all died and gone to leftie heaven.

[alps]

Originally Posted by Barrington south

uHHH if you had invested millions ,
and you where not alarmed by the prospect of a massive wellfare wareouse 30 feet away,
then you need to get your head examined bro..

.read my other reply`s...
some affordable...
fine....
if they must....

.but I don`t think that`s what being proposed.....
they are talking about retro fiting the exsisting structure....
(the politicly correct term affordable was thrown out there by Hacks in the Media....)
into what very well could be social housing .

your lack of perspective is disturbing bro....

can you not see the `harm` uniake square has done......

yah.....uniake square hasn`t done any harm to the Gottegan resturant<pub scene....It`s thriving....



Ohhh and the wheels are in motion....this will be fought to the bitter end

I don't think this project should or can be compared to Uniacke..

[Takeo]

Originally Posted by Barrington south

........THIS MEANS WAR......beteen left-winger Tim Bousque fighting "gentrification" of the North end, and Left-winger Dawn Sloan and others fighting for the ghetto-fication of the South End iit blows my F*ck*** mind!!....what do they want....a little Detroit by the sea?......and yes damed straight...this is a Rant!!

Yup. Definitely a rant.

[Takeo]

Originally Posted by Barrington south

uHHH if you had invested millions ,
and you where not alarmed by the prospect of a massive wellfare wareouse 30 feet away,
then you need to get your head examined bro..

Can we clear up what "affordable" means. Is this simple low cost market housing or is it a Metropolitan Housing Authority assisted living project? In other words, is your characterization of a "massive wellfare wareouse" accurate? I'm just asking the question.

Originally Posted by Barrington south

they are talking about retro fiting the exsisting structure....
(the politicly correct term affordable was thrown out there by Hacks in the Media....)
into what very well could be social housing .

Where can we find this information for ourselves?

Originally Posted by Barrington south

your lack of perspective is disturbing bro....

Right... *MY* lack of perspective.

Originally Posted by Barrington south

can you not see the `harm` uniake square has done......

What does Uniake Square have to do with anything?

[Barrington south]

Originally Posted by Takeo

Yup. Definitely a rant.

Your clutching for straws Takeo, and
your about 24hours after the fact,

plus others have already reconfirmed something I happily said from the beginning....

so what the hell is your point?

[Barrington south]

Originally Posted by Takeo

Can we clear up what "affordable" means.

Uhhhh, hasn't Waya already done that?

[Barrington south]

Originally Posted by Takeo

is"massive wellfare wareouse" accurate?

-the building is massive for an all affordable, and is one of the largest buildings in the south barrington area
-you where the first to use the term 'warehouse' and if this building was completely retro fitted for the poor....like has been reported, then yes massive welfare warehouse is accurate if one wishes to take a politically incorrect swipe at the project....partly inspired by you, of coarse