Quote:
Originally Posted by Waye Mason
There is a plan but it keeps not being funded. All up it might be $20 million over 5-7 years, but a high end quality job tying the waterfront to the lake and canal system will really be the icing on the cake of the renewal of Dartmouth Centre.
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Maybe the key is to add in a subterranean complex of half a dozen or so ice rinks. We could even name them after Gloria McCluskey.
In any case, if the canal is system is restored to a high level of quality you can imagine this area becoming an attraction of regional importance for locals and tourists. It's a great piece of history and complements the existing ferry service, existing downtown businesses, and all the new stuff that will come in as a result of these other developments. Downtown Dartmouth used to be pretty crappy but I can imagine people taking a day to walk along the canal, do some shopping, and go out to a restaurant if the places exist. I can also imagine lots of people who work downtown living there and commuting on the ferry.
From the point of view of HRM's bottom line, putting a lot of development in downtown Dartmouth is also a great deal. It's a bit more affordable so people can probably get about the same amount of space as they could out in Bedford West but the infrastructure is mostly already there. The savings over a 30 year period of putting 5,000 people in downtown Dartmouth vs. a new suburban area must be huge. Just think of how much money has been sunk into Clayton Park West and environs (Washmill, Mainland Common/Canada Games Centre...), which has maybe 40,000 people.