On January 23 HRM Council voted to give the Dexel / Lawen development even more benefit but still without any public benefit in exchange. For almost a decade HRM Council and staff ignored public concerns about the Lawen and the Rouvalis families’ two projects and refused requests that the four towers be considered together. Citizens support the need for development and density but want better options. Now the combined impact on the existing/future affordability, climate, traffic, community, heritage, wind, shadow, noise etc. will only be understood in real time. HRM made no attempt to balance the private, for-profit interests of the developer with societal needs. The HRM public hearing recording begins at 8:08 & the citizen speakers at 8:34 -Its worth the watch. See details below the video.
Tag Archives: Carlton Street/Spring Garden Road
Lloyd Alter: Groundbreaking Study Highlights How Design and Development Decisions Affect Embodied Carbon
“Groundbreaking study on embodied carbon comparing new build to retrofit and addition in Halifax Canada ignored by city, author told to ‘stop making things up.” Should be studied closely, big implications.” writes Lloyd Alter, well-known author at Treehugger in a review of the new report, Buildings For a Climate Crisis, by Peggy Cameron. “The lessons of a study from Halifax, Canada can be applied anywhere,”
Download Buildings For the Climate Crisis

Image: Halifax Waterfront. Henryk Sadura/ Getty Images
Public Hearings for Multiple Towers, September 7th
HRM hosted two public hearings on September 7, 6pm (day after Labour Day) via zoom and approved Case 20761 and Case 22927. The huge public opposition to these proposals was seriously misrepresented by HRM staff and ignored by everyone but Patty Cuttel the only HRM Councillor to vote against the Rouvalis proposal. This is a bad process. It continues to result in a bad outcome.
Case 20761 (red): Carlton Block at Robie, Spring Garden, College, Carlton

Case 20761 – Rouvali 28, 29-storey towers are being considered separately from Dexel’s Cast 20218 for 2 ~30-storey towers. Model by Hadrian Laing.
Developer Rouvalis can now build TWO TOWERS, 28 and 29 storey + penthouses, at Robie and College. Confusingly, Case 20218 (orange) developer Dexel also wants TWO ~30-storey towers in the same block at Robie and Spring Garden, but these 2 developments are being considered separately. Dexel’s towers will be considered at a future public hearing for the 2 towers. If permitted together the FOUR ~30-storey towers will demolish 12-14 buildings, 110-114 affordable units; an area equivalent to a 12-storey building. There will be stalls for ~861 cars. Constructing new towers will emit 31,000 tonnes+ of greenhouse gas. Development Options Halifax modeled a 9-storey in-fill option with~ 550 units and keeping all but one building.
Case 22927 (orange): Willow Tree Block on Robie near Quinpool
Continue reading
Chronicle Herald: Group concerned with proposed central Halifax highrise developments

Peggy Cameron of Development Options Halifax stands at Robie and College streets on Mon., July 5, 2021. The group is concerned that two central Halifax mixed-use development proposals will negatively impact the historic Carlton Street neighbourhood. – Noushin Ziafati
Noushin Ziafati – July 6, 2021
An advocacy group says it’s concerned that a set of proposed highrise developments in central Halifax will negatively impact the historic Carlton Street neighbourhood and that Halifax Regional Municipality hasn’t been transparent in the approval processes for the buildings, which a local councillor adamantly denies. Continue reading
Carlton Block’s “Upward Creep” Proposals Ignore Both Public Concerns and HRM Regional Plan Policy Considerations
Media Release
July 4, 2021 –For immediate release
KJIPUKTUK (Halifax) HRM’s response to significant public concerns over two massive Spring Garden Road high-rises that will overwhelm and negatively impact the entire historic Carlton Street neighbourhood has been to give the developers even more height.

Regional Plan Policy CH-16-Development Abutting Heritage Properties- 5 guidelines are ignored
On June 23, the HRM Heritage Advisory Committee moved the Rouvails proposal-Case 20761, at Robie Street, College Street and Carlton Street a step closer to approval, with the new heights now increased to 28 and 29 storeys plus penthouses from the original proposal of 20 and 26 storeys. This development will be adjacent to Dexel’s proposal- Case 20218, for two towers originally proposed as 16 and 30 storeys but now also approved for up to 90m or 29 storeys plus penthouses. Continue reading
Unanimous Approval of Carlton St Developments New Low In City Governance

This small-scale mixed use block on Spring Garden Rd is part of 12 buildings & 80 – 100 affordable housing & commercial units to be demolished in the historic Carlton St neighbourhood. As building & construction produce ~40% of greenhouse gas emissions UK architects recently set a policy of upgrading existing buildings for extended uses as a more carbon efficient alternative to demolition and new build.
Mayor Savage and Council’s unanimous approval of two proposal for four towers in historic Carlton Street’s neighbourhood is a new low in city governance. Eight hundred+ citizens petitioned against the proposals and a dozen+ speakers at July 15th’s special meeting spoke in opposition. HRM ignored Development Options Halifax’s requests to present a 3-D model showing the neighbourhood with the proposed developments and a better option 9-storey model that would have retained 10 of the 12 buildings now slated for demolition.
Listen to Rick Howe’s interview with Peggy Cameron to learn more about how democratic process and the Centre Plan are seriously off the rails in HRM…
Comedian Cathy Jones says Halifax losing ‘its livability and its character’ due to high-rise developments
Halifax losing ‘its livability and its character’ due to high-rise developments
Comedian Cathy Jones says
Comedian Cathy Jones speaks from the steps of city hall Thursday morning, asking Halifax regional council to step up to change proposed high-density developments for the block of Spring Garden Road and Robie, Carlton and College streets. – Francis Campbell
Cathy Jones thrives on an ability to make people laugh, to get a rise out of a live or TV audience. But the 64-year-old St. John’s-born comedian doesn’t see the proliferation of proposed highrise developments on peninsular Halifax as a laughing matter.
“My point here today is to challenge city council to do better for the city of Halifax,” Jones said Thursday from the steps of city hall. “Who is the city council working for? The people of this city elect a city council believing in some small way that they actually represent them, when in fact, the proposals of these kinds of buildings for our downtown are so off base.”
Jones referred to proposed developments as city duncity instead of density. She was talking particularly about two separate development proposals that would bring four towers of 30, 26, 20 and 16 storeys to a one-hectare block of property at Spring Garden Road and Robie, Carlton and College streets. The projects would accommodate two multi-use developments and would move the Cold Cure Institute building and the McCoy Building a short distance from their College Street foundations to 1452-1456 Carlton St. Several buildings would be demolished. Those developments are scheduled to be discussed at council Monday evening.
Jones also commented on the three developments that were approved late Wednesday night after regional council burned the midnight oil for three public meetings.
An eight-storey plus penthouse building on Wellington Street in south-end Halifax passed by a vote of 11-3 Wednesday. A redevelopment and addition to the corner of South Park Sreet and Victoria Road and a three-building, 100-unit development on a 72,000-square-foot property between Bayers Road and Young Street also passed.
“Last night, in the middle of the summer when many people are not in town, the city pushed through a proposal for three new highrises,” said Jones, who has lived in Halifax for nearly 26 years.

“The city is losing all of its livability and its character and its practical community quality because of these monoliths that the city council is approving left, right and centre, going up without consulting properly the people who live here,” Jones said.
“When all the nice neighbourhoods are destroyed, the walkability and livable quality, nobody who used to live there will be living in these buildings. I have been on TV for 30 years and I couldn’t afford to live in one of these buildings. All over this city are people looking for housing, families who want to stay downtown.”
Development Options Halifax calls for all developments presently under consideration and proposed changes under the Centre Plan to be modeled before approval. They are asking citizens to sign a petition found HERE.
“I want the city to say, no, we’re not doing these developments,” said Peggy Cameron of Development Options. “I want them to recognize that this (Carlton developments) is a heritage neighbourhood. In 2012, 2016, the heritage trust asked for this whole neighbourhood to be considered for a heritage district, they were ignored. Yet, the city quite happily entertained two developers for four towers. It’s too massive, it’s too large, it’s 80 per cent the size of the Nova Centre and it’s not necessary.”
Hadrian Laing, an architectural student at Dalhousie University, has produced a 3D model of the Carlton development projects, showing what the block of property looks like now and what it will look if the developments go ahead. Laing said he has massed an alternative development proposal that would create 303 new residential units without exceeding nine storeys in height. It would also save a couple of existing buildings.

Janet Brush, 72, a lifelong Halifax resident who now lives on London Street, said destroying buildings is not a sound idea.
“One thing that really outrages me is tearing down perfectly good buildings to put up these monoliths,” Brush said. “All that stuff goes in the landfill and there are empty spaces where they could allow something like this, like the old St. Pat’s site for example. To tear down perfectly good buildings is to me an outrage. Climate change, our landfills filling up, it’s just such a horrible waste. We have the technology to build buildings that will last thousands of years. We build buildings and tear them down.”
Jones, a veteran of the This Hour Has 22 Minutes satrical and parody comedy show, joked that she and her supporters were the new city council.
“As of 10:30 this morning we took over and we have a much better plan for the city,” Jones said.
None of the elected councillors or the mayor popped out of the city hall building to comment.
“I thought one or two would come out,” Brush said. “I am very disappointed, especially in the mayor (Mike Savage). I thought he was doing a good job the first few years but I’m beginning to change my mind on that.”
HOWARD EPSTEIN: HRM council is kowtowing to developers
Citizens See 3-D model – but HRM won’t look!
3-D Model Shows the Big Picture

Hadrian Laing presents his model of proposed Carlton Street developments to a group of interested citizens.
Development Options Halifax wants the city to require 3-D models for all developments and for changes proposed with the Centre Plan.
Dear Centre Plan, Show us your 3-D models!

Dalhousie architecture student Hadrian Laing volunteered to produce this 3-D model of 4 towers proposed for historic the Carlton St. neighbourhood- together & for the first time!
FHC has joined other citizens to form Development Options Halifax. Recently the public saw our 3-D print model of 4 towers that 2 developers want to build at Carleton, College, Spring Garden and Robie. This technology is readily available, effective and cheap but it’s the first time it’s been used to model developments for Halifax citizens.
In January we developed and showed the public drawings of the two proposals together, again for the first time – even though they’re on the same block HRM processes and meetings have been entirely separate! The model is so successful we call on HRM to provide 3-D print models of all proposed developments and Centre Plan changes in advance of its approval. The public has the right to know what HRM plans for the city. This “to scale” model captures how out-of-scale the proposals, at 80% the square footage of the convention centre, are. It allows a comparison of before and after, and helps explore better options for in-fill respectful of Halifax Common’s last historic neighbourhood.
HRM planning needs a more open, transparent process. During June 2016 Centre Plan public consultations, HRM Staff story-boards suggested their target of addition 400 residents to the area could be accommodated in two 10-storey buildings or one 10-storey building and two 5-storey buildings. But Staff didn’t include the already approved 18-storey high-rise that Killam will build on Carlton by Camp Hill Cemetery – it would house 70% of the 400 residents!
There are so many unanswered questions. How is it volunteers are showing the mass and scale of these developments together to the public for the first time? And presenting the first 3-D model? Why are the 2012 and 2016 requests by Heritage Trust for the last historic neighbourhood on the Halifax Common to be designated as a conservation area being ignored? Almost 50% of the buildings are heritage and another 11 qualify. Why is HRM planning for the wasteful destruction of up to 12 buildings? Its a small-scale, mixed-use, commercial and residential neighborhood with many affordable units and hidden density.
There are better options. The 3-D model helped us visualize and calculate that 8-storey buildings could be constructed in the 48,000 sq ft of parking area in the centre of the block. These could accommodate approximately 213 two-bedroom units or ~534 people. Similarly a low-rise building could be built at Killam’s property at 5880 Spring Garden Road next to the Glitter Bean. The towers are not necessary.
Please ask the Mayor and Council to not approve these 2 developments. Sign the petition: https://forms.gle/3enTs6PfSkmMmNW48

Planning A Carlton Street Super Block Isn’t Urgent – It’s Premature, Piecemeal and Peculiar.
Why exactly are Mayor Savage and HRM Council following the lead of the Lawen/Dexel and Rouvalis developers who want to break rules and jump ahead of HRM’s planning process to build 16, 20, 26 and 30-storey towers on the Carlton Street block of the Halifax Common? Listen to Rick Howe’s interview with FHC director Howard Epstein about his letter to Mayor and Council to hear some of the many reasons why the proposed super blockers should be deferred or defeated.
Read the letter here: FHC Director Howard Epstein’s letter of Jan 28th to Mayor and Council re: Carlton Street
Want to help out? Scroll down to find a poster and 2-sided flyer you can print and distribute.
Print and post this poster in your neighbourhood and workplace. |
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