The provincial government has plans to build a new $29.5 million parking garage by the Museum of Natural History for the Halifax Infirmary. Peggy Cameron, co-chair of Friends of Halifax Common, takes issue with more Common being used for parking. Between 20-25% is already used for parking – there are better options!
This map from FHC’s 2014 photographic exhibition “Parking the Common” shows 20-25% of the Common is used for parking.
The new parking plan for the Halifax Infirmary site is drawing criticism.
Rendering of the parking garage to be located next to the Museum of Natural History on Summer Street, on Halifax Common. (Transportation & Infrastructure Renewal Depart.)
“It’s clearly the case that the hospital is not even thinking about what are the benefits of public open space, they are just going ahead and doing the easiest thing to accommodate a growing demand for cars in a time when we are supposed to be reducing our reliance on cars,” said Peggy Cameron, a member of the non-profit community group Friends of the Halifax Common.
Cameron questioned why the parkade announcement was made Thursday, the day after the legislature had completed its fall sitting and a day after government had passed environmental legislation that requires the province to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 53 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030 and for Nova Scotia to hit a net-zero carbon footprint by 2050. Continue reading
Letter To The Coast Magazine by Peggy Cameron, Coordinator, Friends of the Halifax Common
Why should parking be convenient? Get on board, support commuter rail at: halifax.ca/transit/commuterrail.php The Coast Image credit: Jenn Wall, Cunard Street at North Common
Great job describing myriad reasons why metro pedestrians feel they’re the last on the list. I suspect it’s not the sidewalks that have patience maxed out but also the long-term failure of the city to develop an integrated transportation policy. Decades of widening streets to improve capacity and speed of vehicles (more recently it’s a roundabout fetish) has been to the detriment of meeting real transportation Continue reading
Example of a landscaped raingarden to absorb stormwater and create habitat.
Paul Schneiderheit’s story highlights the benefits of daylighting streams. Jan 6, 2015- Chronicle Herald – Schneiderheit One omission is that HRM’s 2006 daylighting policy specifies two water courses: Dartmouth’s Sawmill River and the Halifax Common’s Freshwater Brook.
We’re generally unaware that the Halifax Common as the watershed for the peninsula was a rich and diverse ecosystem of plants, trees, birds, fish, frogs-all manner of critters and beasties. Ruth Whitehead Holmes’ The’ Old Man Told Us, Excerpts from Micmac History, 1500-1950 “ recounts histories of Mi’kmaq hunting beaver, Black Duck and moose near Black Duck Pond, later Egg Pond and now the skatepark. Continue reading
Phylum Paveia, Lapilus civitis
Listen and learn about the invasive Phylum Paveia, responsible for the creeping disappearance of green space on the Halifax Common…
View On Line: Parking the Common, Documentation of Phylum Paveia
This study classifies invading species of Phylum Paveia (parking lot) responsible for the creeping disappearance of the Halifax Common. Ecological examination reveals P.Paveia colonizes territory replacing endangered natives such as Lawnis tranquilis, Gardenia publica and Serenis communis. Identified Paveias include Genera Bituminus (asphalt), Lapillius (gravel) and Cementus (cement) and species civitis (city), ecclesiais (church), hospitalis (hospital), imperium canadis (federal government), imperium nova scotis (provincial government), privatis (private), scholis (school), and universitis (university). This study raises doubt about notions of improvement historically rooted in imperialist ideology that, unless mitigated, will result in further colonization.
Parking on the Halifax Common is illegal and signs are posted. At a fundraiser held on Saturday June 7th up to 100 vehicles were parked on the North Common and at the Pavilion on the Central Common. Why didn’t HRM staff on duty have the parking ban enforced? Was it because they didn’t know, because permission was given or because they chose to ignore it? Parking on the Common isn’t a new problem but it is getting worse.
Work has begun by Parks Canada to pave the parking lots on the Garrison Grounds in anticipation of meeting more demand for parking and having more concerts.
Choosing to asphalt the Garrison Ground parking lots is really a vote against heritage, the environment, the health benefits of public open space and a vote for the car. As with widening roads, increasing parking capacity is short sighted. All it really does is create more demand.
People come from all around the world to visit Citadel Hill, a designated national heritage site-they don’t come to see new parking lots freshly asphalted. FHC had a meeting with Parks Canada officials about the decision to pave the Garrison Grounds. We were left with the impression that they had not done enough homework before making their decision.
Some examples: There was … Continue reading