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Originally Posted by IanWatson
Really interesting photos! They're a good reminder that there was a time when downtowns were dirty, harsh places. It's also a good reminder that we should be empathetic when questioning the planning decisions of the past; it's no wonder sprawl and suburban development were attractive!
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I don't remember it as well as some might, but I can recall as a kid in the early seventies when part of the waterfront was still somewhat industrial. I can still remember the noises and smells that you don't associate with the waterfront today - the sounds of machinery and physical 'work', and the smells of petroleum products like industrial greases, diesel oil and such.
I also recall being met with the strong smell of fish from the Fisherman's Market that greeted ferry passengers as they disembarked on the Halifax side. That experience wouldn't be acceptable in today's waterfront environment, but the times were different.
This photo from the Municipal Archives is at the bottom of George Street - you can see the Fisherman's Market in the center-left, and the old ferry terminal would have been just beyond that to the left:
Municipal Archives
I'm in a bit of a quandry when it comes to downtown planning at the time. I try not to look at it with 20/20 hindsight, but rather through the mindset that was prevalent back in the day. The question of what to do with an aging downtown still littered with worn out pieces of the industrial age was troubling many cities in the US and Canada, and many just chose to ignore the downtown and build fresh on the outskirts. It was perhaps logical from a financial standpoint, but IMHO it was somewhat short sighted.
In Halifax's defense, they did have a master plan that they hoped would help to revitalize the downtown, and they did go to substantial investment to purchase derelict properties and build infrastructure (the Harbour Drive project), but that was stopped midstream due to protests over the destruction of historic buildings. So what to do with all that cleared land once plans changed? It took them a few decades to figure it out.
In hindsight, it probably worked out for the best, as some historic buildings and the actual waterfront were saved. Nowadays, the downtown seems to finally be headed in the right direction, but even this will be up for scrutiny by future generations, and depending on the idiom of the day it may deemed a success or possible a short-sighted failure... or somewhere in between.