General Updates and News

[Antigonish]

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.

Agreed. And remember everyone has to start out at some point. I'm not a fan of simple flared tags or ugly 'throw-ups' you see a lot around the city but there are a number of amazing artists in Halifax. I met APER years ago at a party when I lived in the city and seeing that guy piece was f*cking amazing. Not many of your standard school-bred artists anywhere have the imagine or experience to write graffiti pieces, I think its greatly under appreciated in the older generations of society because its not a sub-culture they grew up to or are accustomed to.

[Dmajackson]

When it comes to deterring graffiti I think the best methods are found on North Street. The law offices at Windsor installed flower boxes which seemed to do the trick (and made the corner a lot more attractive), and the FRED building at Agricola has a wicked mural facing the alley.

Personally I think some forms of graffiti look great but not when they are facing public roads. In alleys they fit in well but on the front of buildings flower boxes and innovate facade designs seem to work and look a lot better.

[Wishblade]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

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.

lol, gang warfare zone. Thats a good one. If the graffiti artists are actually good at their craft it makes for some very interesting streetscapes. I am behind this initiative 100%, and as Hali pointed out, even the vandalizing type of graffiti isn't gang related whatsoever. Its almost all done by induviduals simply leaving their mark.

[Hali87]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

This stuff is simply hideous and immediately makes the city look like a gang warfare zone.

...to you, but not to 99% of my generation. You know, the ones who are just entering the workforce, choosing where to live, buying their first property, making efforts to support the local economy, etc. But I guess our tastes are trivial, and art is objective. You win.

[scooby074]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

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.

I cant get into anything where the "artist's" medium is spray paint. Sorry, it screams "ghetto" to me and I think it's hideous.

As to "Teflon Paint"... There are many manufacturers. Krylon (no small amount of irony there) Sherwin Williams and Dumond are a few. Some are permanent while some require re-application after graffiti removal. Youtube has videos if you interested.. Easy peasy removal, just need a pressure washer. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXNy2iD4QOw&feature=related

[someone123]

A few more details have come out about the Chickenburger and Mills redevelopments:

- Right now the intention is to proceed as soon as possible with a building on Queen Street that will replace the Chickenburger. The plan is for some of the Mills building tenants to move there.
- The Mills site will be developed as 2 or more buildings, presumably after the tenants can all move to Spring Garden Place and the new building.
- The DHX building (Starbucks, American Apparel) is not included in the development.

So far it is hard for me to interpret this as anything but positive for the area. Replacing the Chickenburger building and parking next door with a mixed-used building and space for major retail tenants will be a huge win for the area. It sounds like the plans will result in 3 buildings along the Spring Garden frontage (DHX and 2 Mills replacements) plus there is the Clyde site in behind. This won't have a large footprint like Park Lane.

It sounds like Mickey MacDonald paid just under $1.2M for the site and total costs were $1.3M, so the renovation cost a mere $100,000 and some of those parts can be reused in a new Chickenburger location. Not sure how much he made operating the Chickenburger for half a year but it doesn't sound like he has lost a lot and his profits from a new building could be much larger.

[Empire]

I think most people would expect to see innovative use/reuse of existing historic buildings on Spring Garden Rd. rather than replacing them with bland utility buildings such as Park lane, Cornwallis House and Spring Garden Place.

Once all of the historic buildings are replaced on Spring Garden Rd. it will be more like Robson St. .....bland but busy.

Google tour of Spring Garden Rd.
http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=dartmouth&h...d=ihIhqgv8FCDM6O7OGf9U4Q&cbp=12,315,,0,0

http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=dartmouth&h...oid=hypa30xuJxOB_Drz_jwaUw&cbp=12,0,,0,0

http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=dartmouth&h...Xt4sxbQAOyCGHQbKwmKQ&cbp=12,300,,0,-2.92

http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=dartmouth&h...DP9tW8i6s_2CNVINQ&cbp=12,332.58,,1,-0.66

http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=dartmouth&h...KsMU1upDs7AdHT1LLTssJA&cbp=12,32.96,,0,0

http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=dartmouth&h...5wBVZ24N_SIvrHPIQB9TQ&cbp=12,109.84,,0,0

http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=dartmouth&h...J0zBEHPIeQPeJU9Vg&cbp=12,295.55,,0,-1.12

[Dmajackson]

Rebuild to be done by March
November 26, 2012 - 8:41pm BY REMO ZACCAGNA BUSINESS REPORTER

A new Dartmouth apartment building that will replace one destroyed in a fire will be completed by March.

The four-storey, 69-unit building will include three two-storey attached townhouses fronting Portland Street, approximately mid-block between Maitland and Albert streets, with over 21,272 square feet and one level of underground parking.

It will replace a nine-unit building that was located 85 metres west of Five Corners that was ravaged by fire on Jan. 1, 2010. Given the amount of time since the fire, none of the former tenants will be moving into the new building, said Allan Silverman, principal at Harbourvista Apartments Ltd.

...

Read More: thechronicleherald.ca

([email protected])

[fenwick16]

Originally Posted by Empire

I think most people would expect to see innovative use/reuse of existing historic buildings on Spring Garden Rd. rather than replacing them with bland utility buildings such as Park lane, Cornwallis House and Spring Garden Place.

Spring Garden Place seems to be somewhat bland. But I was very impressed when I first saw and went into Park Lane (about 20 some years ago). I don't think that I have been in Cornwallis House but it looks good based on pictures on the internet.

Spring Garden Road is changing but it still Has the Lord Nelson Hotel and Public Gardens.

[someone123]

Originally Posted by Empire

Once all of the historic buildings are replaced on Spring Garden Rd. it will be more like Robson St. .....bland but busy.

This is a little alarmist given the fact that we haven't even seen real plans for these developments yet. Some of the early renderings for the BMO Building showed that its facade would be preserved. It's easy to imagine a nice development for that block where a glass tower is built above the sandstone buildings and the brick rowhouses. The rear of the block has some parking and small buildings that could be built over.

You are also being very selective with your photos. The Spring Garden area used to be maybe 1/3 parking lots, and actually the main commercial strip hasn't changed much in about 20 years. I think the HMV block may now be the least attractive on the street and it is mostly small, older buildings.

[Keith P.]

Originally Posted by Hali87

...to you, but not to 99% of my generation. You know, the ones who are just entering the workforce, choosing where to live, buying their first property, making efforts to support the local economy, etc.

Once again, the term "clueless youth" is validated.

But I guess our tastes are trivial, and art is objective. You win.

There are only losers here, not winners. By defacing buildings without permission or under fear of same, this cannot be considered anything other than criminal vandalism. What's next, the art value of broken windows?

[eastcoastal]

Originally Posted by Hali87

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....

Who really knows what is currently relevant anyway?

Originally Posted by Hali87

...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 don't know that Spring Garden is "remarkable" on a national scale. It sure would be nice if it were considered "pleasant" on a national scale.

It is pleasant... but only in short spurts. The street hasn't grown enough to be relevant beyond a very few contiguous blocks. Beyond those, there is a lot of nothingness before a person encounters anything else "nice" or "interesting." I think/hope we'll see the percentage of population on the peninsula, and near areas like Spring Garden, rise and boost the viability of the retail and service environment.

I do agree that replacing everything with glass and steel would be a poor idea. And I do miss the old shopfront of Mills. I think it had way more charm before. One would imagine that they could have addressed issues with condensation on the glass without having to re-imagine the building's street presence. It's so much more anonymous now.

[Empire]

Originally Posted by someone123

You are also being very selective with your photos. The Spring Garden area used to be maybe 1/3 parking lots, and actually the main commercial strip hasn't changed much in about 20 years. I think the HMV block may now be the least attractive on the street and it is mostly small, older buildings.

I could add more like this:
http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=dartmouth&h...6ept7gVcYr0wA&cbp=12,25.55,,0,-1.12&z=19

[Hali87]

Originally Posted by eastcoastal

I don't know that Spring Garden is "remarkable" on a national scale. It sure would be nice if it were considered "pleasant" on a national scale.

I would consider it pleasant and most people I know who grew up outside Halifax and visited or moved there describe it as very pleasant. I guess what I mean is that as it is now, it is relatively well-known and doesn't really look like anything else in Canada (most major cities don't have the painted wooden houses and most places in the Maritimes don't have the modern/po-mo architecture). If we replace all of the painted wooden buildings with "something nicer" we'll certainly have lost a unique environment regardless of whether the new buildings are ultimately better. I'm not necessarily saying that all of the wooden buildings should be saved forever but I think these things should be given a lot of consideration when coming up with designs for redevelopment projects on Spring Garden.

[Hali87]

For those who might not have seen this in the Canada section, I'd urge you to check this out for yourself. All you need is a postal code:

http://www.environicsanalytics.ca/prizmc2_cluster_lookup.aspx

I looked up the last 3 places I've lived and all of them were alarmingly accurate. Assuming that most of the other ones are as well, it also gives an interesting new perspective on the types of people who choose to live in specific neighbourhoods and how these communities are likely to respond to development pressure.

[worldlyhaligonian]

Originally Posted by Drybrain

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.

Ok, good, that wasn't just in my head with regards to Mills. Exterior is much more important to me than the interior.

The BMO block is nice... Why don't these guys focus on empty lots???

[Drybrain]

Originally Posted by someone123

This is a little alarmist given the fact that we haven't even seen real plans for these developments yet. Some of the early renderings for the BMO Building showed that its facade would be preserved. It's easy to imagine a nice development for that block where a glass tower is built above the sandstone buildings and the brick rowhouses. The rear of the block has some parking and small buildings that could be built over.

There are renderings with a preserved facade? Is there a link online?

But still, facadism would be insufficient here (IMO). The setting and massing of the BMO building is part of the appeal, and the brick rowhouses are substantial too. Sometimes, from a city-building perspective, it's okay to just say "no" to a development. Usually I'd say, "Let's work with the developer and get something great." But this is already great.

I can't think of any other Canadian cities where so many developers with a general-contractor sensibility own so much property on main streets. The city needs a bit more vision in the development community--some property owners who understand the appeal and economic benefit of heritage. Example: In Toronto this year, a high-end furniture store opened up shop in a heritage building on Queen Street, which was formerly home to a rock club. They could easily have knocked down the building with little protest, since it was in a hideous state of disrepair. Instead, they carefully stripped off the layers of paint and grime and hired new craftspeople to recreate the old Victorian detailing and moldings.

Before:

After:



If the country's biggest city can make two-storey heritage renovations work on its high-rent main streets, why can't we?

[rajoclock]

I saw this on ArchDaily and thought it was interesting:

Under the city’s rezoning proposal, to get the added density, the company would need to buy additional development rights from the city, with its payment going toward transportation improvements. It also would need to design a building deemed by the city to have an iconic design. While SL Green would clearly stand to benefit from the rezoning by being able to build a larger building, Marc Holliday, SL Green’s chief executive, told analysts on a conference call in July it was unclear how the zoning plan would affect the company’s timing for the tower.

Here's the rest: http://www.archdaily.com/298495/kohn-ped...building-next-to-grand-central-terminal/

[FuzzyWuz]

Originally Posted by spaustin

(don't know who owns the building that Starbucks is in).

I think Halifax Film Company, Paul Donovan's company.

edit. Ok, DHX. Michael Donovan.

[Keith P.]

Originally Posted by Hali87

For those who might not have seen this in the Canada section, I'd urge you to check this out for yourself. All you need is a postal code:

http://www.environicsanalytics.ca/prizmc2_cluster_lookup.aspx

I'm "Money and Brains, Urban Elite".

Sounds about right.