General Updates and News

[Wannabe Economist]

Originally Posted by someone123

Apparently this is being done to the Gibson's building on Chebucto Road?


Source.

The rendering appears to show that they are removing the second 'floor' entirely to make way for double height ceilings. This is particularly visible around the front signage. I can't imagine the business case for removing an upstairs apartment to do 20 foot ceilings in a coffee shop makes much sense. Makes the whole thing appear to me as an owner-occupied passion project.

[Drybrain]

Originally Posted by IanWatson

What I see looking at this cafe in the Gibsons space is a desire to shape the building to fit the business, rather than the business to fit the building. Wide-open cafes with scandanavian finishes are a dime a dozen, but cozy little cafes tucked into the various nooks and crannies of an old building are harder and harder to come by.

Excellent way to put it. It's basically no longer the old building anymore; just a shell that's been so heavily altered to accommodate current trends that it may as well be a new build. That's one of the ways in which character, however ineffably defined it may be, gets lost. And people genuinely appreciate that, but it often takes imagination to see it as a builder.

[Corker]

Originally Posted by Wannabe Economist

The rendering appears to show that they are removing the second 'floor' entirely to make way for double height ceilings. This is particularly visible around the front signage. I can't imagine the business case for removing an upstairs apartment to do 20 foot ceilings in a coffee shop makes much sense. Makes the whole thing appear to me as an owner-occupied passion project.

There's an article on this project in the Herald today. They are removing some of the floor to give the high ceiling. They are putting the apartment in the basement, which seems odd since it looks like it sits low to the ground so not sure if there are any windows down there.

https://www.saltwire.com/halifax/news/old-gibsons-shop-on-chebucto-road-may-see-new-life-100759878/

[someone123]

Originally Posted by Corker

There's an article on this project in the Herald today. They are removing some of the floor to give the high ceiling. They are putting the apartment in the basement, which seems odd since it looks like it sits low to the ground so not sure if there are any windows down there.

The article sounds exactly like you'd expect. Business owner looks for some properties for coffee shops, buys one in Cole Harbour and does whatever to it, buys one in Halifax and does whatever, following the rules in place.

One narrative is that owners should be free to do what they want with their buildings but actually this owner just looked around for a suitable building and worked with the constraints provided. There were limited constraints around preserving the external appearance of this property or architectural coherence for the neighbourhood. There are probably all kinds of arcane rules around density and parking, but not in those areas.

I think if HRM had given a bit more planning direction and assistance here something different/better could have been worked out (restore the outside windows and detailing and keep a compatible style for extra windows; maybe get some tax rebates in exchange), or maybe this developer would simply have picked a different property as this one would have been deemed unsuitable.

[Dmajackson]

Looks like excavation work has started on Lancaster Drive apartments next to the First Baptist Church. They will be accessed from the church's driveway and at the time of rezoning they were planned to be two buildings of six floors.

Case 21552 Rezoning (Approved in 2019).

[Dmajackson]

Crane base was delivered today for Compass Cooperative on Maitland Street.


Halifax Developments Blog (Photo by David Jackson)

[bartekci]

Is there a thread for the Oxford / Bayers development (beside Look Ho Ho)? I can't find it.

[KMcK]

Originally Posted by fatscat

Is there a thread for the Oxford / Bayers development (beside Look Ho Ho)? I can't find it.

Try searching for Young Street.

[teddifax]

Developments Halifax on FB posted a bunch of pictures today and this development Bayers/Oxford was one of them.

[bartekci]

Thanks, seems we don't have a thread for it but I found it on the FB Page including the proposal (https://www.halifax.ca/sites/default/fil...ung%20Application%20Details_Redacted.pdf)

[bartekci]

Originally Posted by Dmajackson

Crane base was delivered today for Compass Cooperative on Maitland Street.


Halifax Developments Blog (Photo by David Jackson)

Halifax is sure occupying a lot of cranes!

[kph06]

WM Fares Architects has updated their website.. This gives a preview of many upcoming projects, many are currently recently made vacant lots. I can't seem to link the photos, so here are links to the project sites.


Joe Howe and Scot (North - by Superstore)

Joe Howe and Scot (South)

3485 Joe Howe

Windsor and Willow

Wentworth Tower - Rockingham South (former Sobey's land)

Rockingham South Hotel - i thought this was changed to residential

[bartekci]

Originally Posted by kph06

WM Fares Architects has updated their website.. This gives a preview of many upcoming projects, many are currently recently made vacant lots. I can't seem to link the photos, so here are links to the project sites.

Nice designs. The great revamp of Joe Howe continues to impress. Just over 550 residential units added (plus whatever these two new additions contribute, probably ~100) on a stretch that housed, on my rough count, no more than a dozen or so single dwelling homes (rest being weak retail and the car mechanic on Percy).

[mleblanc]

Originally Posted by fatscat

Nice designs. The great revamp of Joe Howe continues to impress. Just over 550 residential units added (plus whatever these two new additions contribute, probably ~100) on a stretch that housed, on my rough count, no more than a dozen or so single dwelling homes (rest being weak retail and the car mechanic on Percy).

Agreed, and I know I sound like a broken record at this point, but why not taller?! So much space, so far away from arbitrary viewplanes, so much road, transit, etc. Literally anything I can think of to foster development and attempt to break this housing mess we're in. What could people complain about building tall here?

You could fit thousands of units in these lots. What're we waiting for?

[Colin May]

Originally Posted by mleblanc

Agreed, and I know I sound like a broken record at this point, but why not taller?! So much space, so far away from arbitrary viewplanes, so much road, transit, etc. Literally anything I can think of to foster development and attempt to break this housing mess we're in. What could people complain about building tall here?

You could fit thousands of units in these lots. What're we waiting for?

Taller costs more money and time is also more money. Faster completion leads to faster occupancy. And the cost of money has increased significantly, as has the cost of supplies and labour.
Southland is advertising for school bus drivers, starting at $22.80 an hour - every business is facing significant cost pressure and the faster a project is completed the faster the project achieves positive cash flow. The old rules of business never change.

[Dmajackson]

Originally Posted by kph06

WM Fares Architects has updated their website.. This gives a preview of many upcoming projects, many are currently recently made vacant lots. I can't seem to link the photos, so here are links to the project sites.


Joe Howe and Scot (North - by Superstore)

Joe Howe and Scot (South)

3485 Joe Howe

Windsor and Willow

Wentworth Tower - Rockingham South (former Sobey's land)

Rockingham South Hotel - i thought this was changed to residential

Wow that is a lot of growth for Joseph Howe and the bottom of Fairview. There is;

3411 Joe Howe - U/C
3485 Joe Howe - Demolition
Scot South - Unknown
Scot North - Land Cleared in 2021
The Interchange - U/C
Percy Street - Construction fencing up
La Villa West - Recently Completed
The Rosedale - Recently Completed
The Boss Plaza III - U/C
Port West - Construction fencing up
Main & Titus - Proposed
3840 Joe Howe - U/C

That area is starting to rival the North End in terms of construction sites. It's just not high-rises so it's not discussed as much.

As for the other projects I'm mostly surprised at Windsor and Willow. After all of the uproar over Spirit Place I didn't expect the zoning to allow for this scale. I'm good with it but I imagine it will stick out for quite a few years until the corridor densifies.

[Keith P.]

Originally Posted by Dmajackson

As for the other projects I'm mostly surprised at Windsor and Willow. After all of the uproar over Spirit Place I didn't expect the zoning to allow for this scale. I'm good with it but I imagine it will stick out for quite a few years until the corridor densifies.

One wonders where the uproar went this time after the shameful performance by both the neighborhood NIMBYs and the city council at the time around Spirit Place.

[bartekci]

Originally Posted by Dmajackson

Crane base was delivered today for Compass Cooperative on Maitland Street.


Halifax Developments Blog (Photo by David Jackson)

Is there a reliable source of number of cranes per city? I found this crane index, but it only highlights trends not actual numbers.

Based on some Googling, it looks like Halifax has tied or even surpassed Boston for number of cranes, which if true, is interesting! (Although Boston seems to have had sagging numbers for some time. I cherry picked it mostly for the sister city connection)

[kph06]

Originally Posted by fatscat

Is there a reliable source of number of cranes per city? I found this crane index, but it only highlights trends not actual numbers.

Based on some Googling, it looks like Halifax has tied or even surpassed Boston for number of cranes, which if true, is interesting! (Although Boston seems to have had sagging numbers for some time. I cherry picked it mostly for the sister city connection)

I may have a spreadsheet where I've been tracking this on for a number of years. I have 36 at the moment. I don't count bases without towers, but do count the portable cranes like at HSC (3 up at the moment), plus the long term placement of the one at the Shipyard. That number may have a margin of error of 1 or 2 as its hard to track them all when there are this many as almost weekly there is a change. The photos here certainly help!

[someone123]

Originally Posted by mleblanc

Agreed, and I know I sound like a broken record at this point, but why not taller?! So much space, so far away from arbitrary viewplanes, so much road, transit, etc. Literally anything I can think of to foster development and attempt to break this housing mess we're in. What could people complain about building tall here?

It will be a shame if the Cogswell height limits remain as they are, undoubtedly the most likely outcome. The city is limiting its own revenue from the project and that area could use more residential density to counterbalance the older office complexes. It would allow for more architectural interest as well. The recent wave of development has proven that there is demand to build many more towers beyond 30 floors.

I can't help but notice that other cities push the envelope with similar new developments. Obviously Halifax will not be developing a WTC, Hudson Yards, or Canary Wharf, but there wasn't even really that much sentiment at the planning stages. So many constraints were put on this project before it even started and the planning horizon seemed very modest. I'm not sure there was much talk of adding architectural landmarks, major civic amenities, or new transit infrastructure.