General Updates and News

[Drybrain]

Originally Posted by someone123

...whereas the lower end Spring Garden buildings are wood and have been significantly altered in many cases.

True, but most of Halifax's older buildings, commercial and residential, are wood, at least outside of the immediate downtown core. That's just the local vernacular. As we see with the city's well-preserved clapboard streetscapes, a properly maintained wooden structure can last for decades or centuries.

It looks like MacDonald wants to move fast with this, and the worst-case scenario would be to replace what's there right now with something hastily conceived, or just plain unattractive. (I'm thinking of the big slab of ugly that is Cornwallis House, right across the street, which replaced a decent three-storey Victorian wood building.) If the new development really turns out to be an improvement, awesome. But the current SGR streetscape works well, as does the Birmingham streetscape. The new development will have to be seriously fantastic, from an urban and aesthetic perspective, to justify the demolition. I'm just not confident MacDonald's got that in him. But--I hope I'm wrong!

[cormiermax]

Originally Posted by Drybrain

True, but most of Halifax's older buildings, commercial and residential, are wood, at least outside of the immediate downtown core. That's just the local vernacular. As we see with the city's well-preserved clapboard streetscapes, a properly maintained wooden structure can last for decades or centuries.

It looks like MacDonald wants to move fast with this, and the worst-case scenario would be to replace what's there right now with something hastily conceived, or just plain unattractive. (I'm thinking of the big slab of ugly that is Cornwallis House, right across the street, which replaced a decent three-storey Victorian wood building.) If the new development really turns out to be an improvement, awesome. But the current SGR streetscape works well, as does the Birmingham streetscape. The new development will have to be seriously fantastic, from an urban and aesthetic perspective, to justify the demolition. I'm just not confident MacDonald's got that in him. But--I hope I'm wrong!

I actually like Cornwallis House, the building it replaced was completely decrepit.

[Hali87]

I actually don't mind Cornwallis House (although I don't remember ever seeing what was there before) but I think having the current Mills buildings across the street from it looks a lot cooler than having another Cornwallis House across the street. IMO those are among the most important buildings on Spring Garden as they still give the street a high-end feel but are also very different from what you'd normally expect in that kind of retail strip. I also don't think the chicken burger was a bad idea; I went a couple times while I was home in August and it always seemed pretty busy, and the food is cheap but delicious by fast food standards (especially the burgers). Also the setup might not make sense from an urban design standpoint, but there were picnic tables set up in the parking lot (again, usually well-used) and the whole thing was sort of just barely sheltered from the hustle and bustle of SGR, which made for a comfortable vibe. I think it was developed in anticipation of the new library and Clyde St. projects, and if it is included in the redevelopment I think it will be successful.

One possible reason why MacDonald might seem like he is stumbling around blindly as of late is that historically most of his businesses have been based in Bedford. In the case of Palooka's, for instance, the original gym is in one of the wealthiest parts of the HRM while the Gottingen location was located in one of the most impoverished. MacDonald did try to take this into account, and the focus on the Gottingen gym was supposed to be totally different, but things didn't turn out the was he had hoped or expected. I think that the gym actually was more profitable than expected, but the whole point was for it to get the local kids off the streets and give them something to do. When he noticed that this wasn't really happening, he closed it. In the case of Chickenburger, he probably didn't consider that he'd be able to start the larger redevelopment so soon. Spring Garden is a lot more dynamic than the Sunnyside area in terms of redevelopment.

[Hali87]

Keith P., you'll probably hate this, but for everyone else:

Urban art brushes back vandalism

AN ANGRY CARTOON SUN glares at pedestrians walking past Nauss Bike Shop on Agricola Street. Nearly illegible bubble letters claim an entire exterior wall. A desert landscape runs along the bottom. Thought has been given to filling the entire space with graffiti-style art.

For years, taggers targeted Nauss, costing the small business hundreds of dollars a year in paint to cover it up.

“We weren’t getting artists writing on our shop — we were getting kids who were making a mess,” Nauss manager Brent Halverson says. “You clean it off and it just gets tagged again.”

It became obvious to the long-time bike shop employee that a new strategy was needed.

Over the summer, Halverson put the call out to six local graffiti artists (also known as graffiti writers) to paint murals on the bike shop.

“I knew that it would at least be an improvement to cover it up with something more colourful, more attractive, and hopefully get locals artists and the community involved in the project.”

He pitched the project to the shop owner, who didn’t like the idea at first, but eventually came around.

Nauss hasn’t been tagged since the murals went up.

The shop is one of several small businesses on the Halifax peninsula that are using an unwritten code to their advantage.

...

A classmate of mine was commissioned by Fred Connors to do the mural on the side of his business at North & Agricola, and I remember seeing a few other good murals on Agricola besides the one mentioned in the article. Although this type of art is going up all over the city, a lot of the focus seems to be on Agricola these days. And I think that this trend will be great for that street, and that in all of HRM it's probably the most perfect street for it. The area is already popular with the hip, counterculture types and I think that this could be great for the area's sense of identity. I should point out that I'm also a fan of the murals on Quinpool, which are of a very different style and again have added to the area's identity/uniqueness, although I noticed the one on King's Palace didn't last too long before it was painted over.

[someone123]

Actually I just found an old picture of the Victorian building that was on the Cornwallis House site:


Gallery: http://www.panoramio.com/user/1611686?comment_page=1&photo_page=1

Maybe it could have been renovated into something nicer, but I don't think Cornwallis House hurt the street. Spring Garden is much more successful now than it was in 1980.

I've heard that the Mills building design is meant to resemble the Liberty department store in London. I don't think Mills has a lot of architectural merit worthy of preservation, or that it is better than the best new buildings being built right now. Here's what the real Liberty looks like. If Spring Garden had a building like this it would be worthy of preservation:


Source


Source

[Hali87]

I think if the plan is for the new building to have Tudor stylings then there will be no real loss as long as the design and materials are good.

[eastcoastal]

Originally Posted by Hali87

I think if the plan is for the new building to have Tudor stylings then there will be no real loss as long as the design and materials are good.

... except Tudor's not really relevant anymore? I don't think it's reflective of the world right now, as a style. I'd prefer to see the poorly conceived faux-stone-tiles that coat the lower portion of Mills removed and have it brought back to something closer to what it was (Tudor)... with new, higher rise development behind and obviously different style than the Mills storefront.

[Hali87]

Originally Posted by eastcoastal

... except Tudor's not really relevant anymore? I don't think it's reflective of the world right now, as a style. I'd prefer to see the poorly conceived faux-stone-tiles that coat the lower portion of Mills removed and have it brought back to something closer to what it was (Tudor)... with new, higher rise development behind and obviously different style than the Mills storefront.

For me, in this case, it's not a matter of expressing "currently relevant" (contemporary?) architectural style, it's a matter of holding on to at least a handful of the older, wooden architecture that give SGR a sense of place. Replace them all with glass and steel and you might get a very modern feel for the street, but with nothing from the local vernacular, it would be less remarkable on say a national scale. I have nothing against modernity, and as it is Spring Garden is on its way to being one of the most heavily post-modern neighbourhoods in Canada thanks to Park Lane, the Martello, the Trillium, CCA, Cornwallis House, the new library, the Clyde Street lots, etc. Having both the very new and cutting-edge and the very old and traditional (even if it is "not particularly historic" or "of little architectural significance") together in one strip makes for a more interesting environment than just new, IMO.

[scooby074]

Originally Posted by RyeJay

More like the Halifax Sky City...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGrgAYC7f9M

Now thats a scary concept... Rapid, chinese construction applied to the world's tallest building. It'll cast a long (and dangerous) shadow.

[RyeJay]

Originally Posted by scooby074

Now thats a scary concept... Rapid, chinese construction applied to the world's tallest building. It'll cast a long (and dangerous) shadow.

This company's buildings could pass the test of time. We'll see, I suppose. It's certainly impressive (but yes, scary, as well)...

[Drybrain]

Originally Posted by someone123

I've heard that the Mills building design is meant to resemble the Liberty department store in London...If Spring Garden had a building like this it would be worthy of preservation:


Source

Well, London's is far more impressive, but hey, it's London. This is Halifax: smaller, humbler, quainter. Can't hold ourselves to those standards.

Anyway, like I said, I'll be supportive of the development should it turn out to be better. I'd love to see what eastcoastal said: the bad reno undone and with a higher building constructed in the rear. But somehow, I doubt it.

[worldlyhaligonian]

Originally Posted by Drybrain

Well, London's is far more impressive, but hey, it's London. This is Halifax: smaller, humbler, quainter. Can't hold ourselves to those standards.

Anyway, like I said, I'll be supportive of the development should it turn out to be better. I'd love to see what eastcoastal said: the bad reno undone and with a higher building constructed in the rear. But somehow, I doubt it.

Didn't it look more authentic before Lulu came in and the exterior was redone quite a bit?

Last time I was in Halifax it looked like a Walmart version of its former self... I'd rather see something landmark... Although I'm against the former BMO block redevelopment.

The street is definitely losing is character

[scooby074]

Originally Posted by RyeJay

This company's buildings could pass the test of time. We'll see, I suppose. It's certainly impressive (but yes, scary, as well)...

Well if past history is any indication...

[Drybrain]

Originally Posted by worldlyhaligonian

Didn't it look more authentic before Lulu came in and the exterior was redone quite a bit?

Last time I was in Halifax it looked like a Walmart version of its former self... I'd rather see something landmark... Although I'm against the former BMO block redevelopment.

The street is definitely losing is character

Yeah, the reno was quite tacky. I don't actually know what it used to look like inside, just the street-level exterior, which used to be much better before MacDonald slapped some faux-stone from Home Hardware all over it. No accounting for taste.

But yeah, hopefully we can all agree that Chedrawe's looming idea to level the entire BMO block is a terrible, destructive, idea. That's a lynchpin location for the whole neighbourhood.

[RyeJay]

Originally Posted by scooby074

Well if past history is any indication...

Omg...

This picture has motivated me to jump to Google. This 13-storey building collapse happening because they were digging the underground parking lot for this building on one side, while piling all the dirt on the opposite side. After rain storms, the ground upon which the completed building stands became unsettled.

I cannot find the name of the company responsible for this project. Hopefully it's not Broad Group... !!!

[spaustin]

Originally Posted by Drybrain

It looks like MacDonald wants to move fast with this, and the worst-case scenario would be to replace what's there right now with something hastily conceived, or just plain unattractive. (I'm thinking of the big slab of ugly that is Cornwallis House, right across the street, which replaced a decent three-storey Victorian wood building.) If the new development really turns out to be an improvement, awesome. But the current SGR streetscape works well, as does the Birmingham streetscape. The new development will have to be seriously fantastic, from an urban and aesthetic perspective, to justify the demolition. I'm just not confident MacDonald's got that in him. But--I hope I'm wrong!

That's my feeling too. Really good modern buildings that work well with the street that they're on tend to be the exception rather than the rule. It's too easy to do things thoughtlessly, which means that when something like the loss of Mills comes up, it can be hard to be confident.

[Keith P.]

Originally Posted by Hali87

Keith P., you'll probably hate this, but for everyone else:

Urban art brushes back vandalism

A classmate of mine was commissioned by Fred Connors to do the mural on the side of his business at North & Agricola, and I remember seeing a few other good murals on Agricola besides the one mentioned in the article. Although this type of art is going up all over the city, a lot of the focus seems to be on Agricola these days. And I think that this trend will be great for that street, and that in all of HRM it's probably the most perfect street for it. The area is already popular with the hip, counterculture types and I think that this could be great for the area's sense of identity. I should point out that I'm also a fan of the murals on Quinpool, which are of a very different style and again have added to the area's identity/uniqueness, although I noticed the one on King's Palace didn't last too long before it was painted over.

I saw that article when it first appeared and just shook my head. Essentially the property owners are being forced to give into blackmail. Deface your property with gang-related graffiti vandalism, or deface it with truly ugly graffiti-based "urban art" that is really just more of the same. It is of absolutely zero value.

I think I will investigate the market for teflon-based coatings that will allow this garbage to be easily washed off buildings. It would be the paint equivalent of those spike strips that are placed on ledges to keep pigeons from crapping on buildings. Sadly, even pigeon crap is better than this kind of crap.

[Keith P.]

Originally Posted by someone123

Actually I just found an old picture of the Victorian building that was on the Cornwallis House site:


Gallery: http://www.panoramio.com/user/1611686?comment_page=1&photo_page=1

Maybe it could have been renovated into something nicer, but I don't think Cornwallis House hurt the street. Spring Garden is much more successful now than it was in 1980.

Ah, yes, I remember that dump. White vinyl siding everywhere, uneven, creaky floors, cut-up spaces. I remember visiting a classmate who had an apartment in one of the upstairs sections and it was a pretty scuzzy space. The replacement by Cornwallis House - which is a very nice office building, BTW - was a huge improvement.

[Hali87]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

Deface your property with gang-related graffiti vandalism, or deface it with truly ugly graffiti-based "urban art" that is really just more of the same. It is of absolutely zero value.

I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I think this stuff looks AWESOME and I would bet my next paycheque that the majority of Haligonians under the age of 40 would agree with me. It is inherently NOT of zero value because people are paying for it. Most of the "tags" (what you refer to as "gang-related") are not gang related at all, they're just the result of stupid kids writing their nicknames on walls with sharpies. The murals that have been commissioned are absolutely not the same thing. They may have the same origins but like it or not, the murals are art, they have value and they are enjoyed by a great many people, even non-criminals.

[Keith P.]

Originally Posted by Hali87

I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I think this stuff looks AWESOME and I would bet my next paycheque that the majority of Haligonians under the age of 40 would agree with me. It is inherently NOT of zero value because people are paying for it. Most of the "tags" (what you refer to as "gang-related") are not gang related at all, they're just the result of stupid kids writing their nicknames on walls with sharpies. The murals that have been commissioned are absolutely not the same thing. They may have the same origins but like it or not, the murals are art, they have value and they are enjoyed by a great many people, even non-criminals.

They are defacing buildings and are an eyesore. I would prefer the multicolor patterns that were painted on the now-demolished buildings on Robie and Pepperell adjacent to the Atlantica Hotel/Holiday Inn a few years ago as a protest by the property owner, which were later declared an unsightly premise. This stuff is simply hideous and immediately makes the city look like a gang warfare zone.