FHC to Premier-Don’t Approve a Pool Building Before Public Consultation and a Plan

FHC are asking the Nova Scotia Legislature not to approve legislation to permit new building on the Central Common for HRM’s proposed Aquatic Centre. A public consultation process for the Common Master Plan begun in Dec 2017 has never come back to the citizens for final input or approval.

This map shows a synthesis of what was agreed on for the favoured elements-with no change to the building footprint

Despite there being no final Plan, the Minister of Municipal Affairs, Brendan McGuire, has introduced Bill 103 to amend HRM’s Charter and give permission for a building and fencing for an aquatic centre on the Central Common.

“It is very concerning that HRM staff has not communicated with residents about the Halifax Common Master Plan since the summer of 2019,” says FHC director and long-time Halifax resident Alan Ruffman. “Public consultation is an obligation that HRM owes its citizens under the HRM Charter.” Continue reading →

Letter to Premier Rankin-Protect the Halifax Common

March 17, 2021
Dear Premier Rankin and Minister Macguire,

RE: Legislative Protection for the Halifax Common

The 235 Halifax Common was granted “to and for the use of the inhabitants of the Town of Halifax as Commons forever” by King George III in 1763. It is Canada’s oldest and largest Common. The Friends of Halifax Common write to request that the provincial government enact legislation to protect the Halifax Common and that this legislation enshrine the 1994 Halifax Common Plan, adopted by Halifax City Council in 1994. This is similar to the legislative protection that the provincial government put in place for the Dartmouth Common. We consider this to be an urgent matter as the continued failure of governments in their respective fiduciary responsibilities to protect the Halifax Common have reduced the Common’s public open green space to approximately 20% of the original grant. Continue reading →

Letter to Premier Rankin: Cancel $100M Parking Garages

Friends of Halifax Common has sent a new letter to Premier Rankin requesting that he cancel the ~$100 million parking garages planned for the QEII re-development. FHC respectfully ask for a better choice for the future and for health care dollars.

There is a much greater need for direct-to-patient health care over unnecessary parking structures.
Nova Scotia is moving away from balanced Budgets because of the COVID crisis and need to avoid unnecessary expenditures that add to Debt.
Approximately 3,000 citizens signed a petition against the NS Museum garage.
Policy priorities set out in the Speech from the Throne needing investment, and especially for the goal of getting off carbon, are inconsistent with building parking garages.
Traffic emissions are a principal source of air pollution and the leading cause for Canada having one of the world’s highest rates of new childhood asthma.
Each year ~36,000 Canadians die an early death from diseases related to burning fossil fuels- for perspective COVID has caused 22,000 deaths. Nova Scotia has one of the world’s worst jurisdictions for vehicle fuel consumption and emissions.

As COVID has reminded us worldwide, access to public open space has enormous proven and necessary health benefits. Parking garages do not.

FHC Letter to Centre Plan Team Re Package B (Feb. 24 2021)

Centre Plan Team:
The Friends of the Halifax Common (FHC) wish to re-confirm our belief that while Package B of the Centre Plan is notable in many respects, the current draft does not adequately address the need for green public recreational space within an increasingly densified Regional Centre. The need for public open space in urban areas is widely recognized and documented, particularly by the W.H.O. in their study, “Urban Green Spaces and Health: A Review of Evidence.” Public parks provide a balance to the built environment; in fact development and open space are opposite sides of the same coin.

We believe that the need for green public space must be detailed at every level of Centre Plan Package B from Core Concepts to Implementation. Without this level of detail, the achievement of a balanced urban environment will not be achieved, it will be outpaced by rapid development. Opportunities to enrich our environment with public spaces both large and small will be lost. Continue reading →

2020 – FHC Centre Plan Submission

Dear Centre Plan Staff,

Please find included in this email two previous submissions from Friends of Halifax Common

In return for the School for the Blind park, the public was promised a fully landscaped Park within a Park (200 trees & 200 parking places), a scented garden and a land-scaped path along the block of Tower Road the public reluctantly agreed to give to the VG. Maybe the VG Parking lot can be a new urban farm?

(2018 & 2016) . Our suggestions seem even more relevant in this time so we ask that you will please take the time to re-read these.

Green Space: As the Centre Plan intends to add 15-30,000 new residents to the area it is imperative that there be greater attention given to protecting existing green space and to increase it. This is for all the benefits known — human mental and physical health, safe social distancing, improved walkability and active transportation, habitat, gardening, coping with climate change etc.

Health Benefits: A 2016 World Health Organization[i] report suggests sizes of and distance from green space. ie 5 minutes from 1ha is one standard. It also emphasizes connectivity as well as buffer zones for green space – these should be adopted as goals of the Centre Plan. Continue reading →

CBC-Maritime Noon-Why Old Buildings Matter

In 1960s the Cogswell “slum clearances” demolished 3,000 buildings with affordable housing, small scale businesses and diversity. Building & construction is responsible for 39% of greenhouse gas emissions. photo-Stephen Archibald-Brunswick Street, Halifax 1965/66

Listen to CBC’s Bob Murphy and guests Tom Urbaniak, professor at Cape Breton University and Tom Morrison, engineer at Heritage Standing Inc. discuss the multiple advantages of keeping old buildings-economic, social, cultural and very important – environment and climate change.

Cancel the Proposed WSP 23-storey high-rise-Case 22927

The Westwood high-rise tower at 2032-2050 Robie Street has already been turned down by HRM Mayor and Council. Height for this location was to be restricted to 6-storeys. The Development Agreement is discretionary-Mayor and Council should cancel the project.

Dear HRM Planners, Mayor and Council
Re: Cancel the Proposed WSP high-rise- Case 22927

The proposed Westwood high-rise tower at 2032-2050 Robie Street has already been turned down by HRM Mayor and Council. Height for this location was to be restricted to 6-storeys. Council’s decision to allow a Development Agreement is discretionary and should be cancelled. It is effectively raising the dead. This Development Agreement not only denies the earlier council decision and staff recommendations to limit the height to 6 storeys, it makes a mockery of public participation by voiding the historic and more recent input of citizens.

Values reflected by statements such as Councillor Smith’s June 2019 motion “In recognition of the substantial investment made in the preparation of a planning applications for the site located at 2032- 2050 Robie Street, Halifax“ beg the question whose interest are Mayor, Council and staff representing? The owner’s investment of money in thinking about what to do with their land is not a legitimate basis for approving a project. Continue reading →

Rick Howe-Cancel the Parking Garage-There are better solutions.

The fourth version of the 500-stall, 8-storey parking garage planned for the north side of the NS Museum of Natural History is flipped in orientation requiring a larger easement from HRM and chewing up more of the Halifax Common.

Rick Howe interviews FHC’s Peggy Cameron about the group’s letter to Premier McNeil asking that he cancel the plans for parking garages on the Halifax Common. There are other, better solutions.

Letter to Premier – Cancel the Parking Garage

Outgoing Premier McNeil

December 17, 2020
Dear Premier McNeil,

As you leave your role as Premier, we write to ask that you reconsider the decision to build a $30 million dollar, 8-storey, 500-stall parking garage on one of the last remaining public open green spaces on the Halifax Common. Approximately 20% of the Common is used as parking, almost all for provincial health care facilities.
The 1000-stall parking garage planned for the former CBC building site will certainly provide enough parking for years – build it first and the parkade on the Museum of Natural History grounds becomes unnecessary. The decision for the Museum property parking garage taken by Minister Lloyd Hines, requires careful second sober thought.

Continue reading →

News 95.7-Rick Howe: Freshwater Brook vs Parking Garages

Construction work for a controversial parking garage by the NS Museum of Natural History exposed an ancient pipe where Freshwater Brook flows. Rick Howe interviews Peggy Cameron who sees this as a perfect opportunity for a re-think on the controversial $30 million, 8-storey, 500-stall parking garage planned for one of the few public, open green spaces left on the Halifax Common.

Cyclist sees “Restore Freshwater Brook” as a better new reality.

Chronicle Herald: Restore historic Freshwater Brook in Halifax to natural state

The brook, initially called a river, ran from what is now near the corner of St. Albans Street and Clifton Street in north-end Halifax, across the peninsula, through the Halifax Public Gardens, Victoria Park, past Fenwick towers and the Sobeys parking lot on Queen Street to the confluence of Barrington and Inglis streets. Continue reading →

Buildings For the Climate Crisis – A Halifax Case Study by Peggy Cameron

This new report “Buildings for the Climate Crisis – A Halifax Case Study” by Peggy Cameron, MES reveals the high levels of greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) released up-front by high rise construction, developments, and demolitions. By comparing these to more climate-friendly in-fill buildings (carbon-neutral or carbon-positive) it offers scenarios that are better matched for what society and Earth need at this time.

For the report a Canadian interdisciplinary climate change strategy consultancy Mantle Developments, conducted preliminary estimates of global warming gases associated with:
— two Halifax based proposals;
— the associated demolition of 12-14 historic houses;
— the replacement of the demolished floor area, equivalent to a 12-storey building and,
— a 9-storey in-fill option modeled by the citizen’s group Development Options Halifax.
The report details impacts of the present developments and associated demolitions on the climate crisis and links this to the affordable housing crisis.

This report proposes options in the path forward including policy recommendations for what needs to change if we are planning for an inclusive society and for environmental remediation. With the release of this report the author aims to encourage all parties to seize this important and timely opportunity to re-think accepted practices of the building, construction, and demolition industry.

Globally, green houses gasses (GHG’s) from the materials and products used to build buildings is 11% as embodied or upfront carbon and approximately 29% as operational carbon from heating, lighting and cooling MORE>