While
feeding the 5 bluejays that frequent my backyard every morning, I could hear
the rattling of cranes and thought to myself progress has come to Downtown
Halifax. Several people have asked me but why did it take so long and what is
the fate of those that have hung on awaiting this to occur?
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| New Central Library |
During my
tenure on Regional Council, so many projects were approved (many hotly
contested), yet we are only seeing movement now. Some blame the past Council, others blame the
developers. In actual fact; I believe it
is the realization that the HRM By Design Secondary Plan is finally being taken
seriously.
From 2000
to June 16, 2009, Halifax Regional Council struggled with development
within the oldest part of the municipality.
Developers would ask for huge exceptions to the existing municipal
planning strategy and expect Regional Council to comprehend their rationale to
challenge the plan. Unfortunately, one exception to the Municipal
Planning Strategy became the normal occurrence and the battle over heritage/
height/design became so intense that it seemed Regional Council was constantly polarized
which media, businesses, and citizens blamed on the Elected Officials.
Yes, planning documents need to be never ending working
documents so that they are kept in line with desires of the citizenry/business,
but not to the point of ignoring the rules all together. There is an avenue which
allows for changes to be adopted to a development plan called an amendment. This
allows for planning strategies to be revised through several steps: public
input via public information meetings, first reading (allows for Regional
Council to either move the revision to a Public Hearing or nix it), and then
the debate on the Council floor. This
allows for healthy dialogue between the public and the Elected Officials which
should aid the Elected Officials with their decision- making.
Thankfully HRM By Design has made this antiquated procedure the
way of the DoDo. With the input of thousands
of citizens, developers, and businesses; the Secondary Plan is in the hands of
a group of volunteer professionals who comprehend the intent of the plan and
review the proposed developments which has diminished the waiting time for
developments.
So if that is the case, why did it take so long for these
developments to get going? It’s called
reality! This is not a game of Sim City! As a former draftsperson, I know first hand how long it takes to compile and action a project.
Assembling funding, detailed designs, and working through permits and other
documents/approvals for water, sewer, electrical takes abundance of man hours
from all aspects.
So now we are seeing the results of what seemed to be a
lifetime of meetings, public input, and heated debates. So why are businesses closing? What is
causing this mass exodus? Several people on my Facebook have chimed in on this
topic with several theories. Here is one example of why we are losing good
businesses on Barrington Street.
Many of the businesses, the independently operated, lease
space for their businesses and the owners are jacking up the rent to the point
they cannot sustain themselves. One such
business which was an awesome little antique/art gallery/restaurant was
Elephant’s Eye. The owner decided to
renovate, but this caused the business to shut down during renovations only to
then have to close permanently because the owner raised the rent.
The loss of Dacane Surf Shop, Extreme Pita, Oddjects, and Captain
Sub/Greco Pizza and Elephant’s Eye in the past 30 days makes you wonder if Barrington
Street will every bounce back. Well, it
will. Just like Gottingen Street and
Spring Garden, Barrington will reinvent itself but it will be at the cost of
our entrepreneurs that have awaited some aid with the resurgence of the
downtown core. These shops, bars, and
restaurants had faith in our downtown and waited patiently for the citizens to
discover their unique businesses and now, now they could hold on no longer (
depending on their circumstances of course – just generalizing) If the rents
continue to climb where will our energetic entrepreneurs go? Will they leave Halifax for greener
pastures? Many have already done so
unfortunately.
The old adage “with progress comes change”, let’s hope that
during this change, those that have contributed to keeping the Downtown alive
are able to hang on just a little longer.
