I would like to put the proverbial cat amongst the pigeons and comment on Pigeon's assumption that the there is no issue here and that the Bus Stop can happily co-exist with this development.
The proposed buildings are simply out of scale for the neighborhood. The existing zoning which is great zoning - allows for 40 feet on Maitland Street. Sure the two story Bus Stop Theatre could co-exist with the 8 and 11 story proposed buildings - but is this what we want our city to be? One of the buildings is 110 feet high on Maitland Street, almost 200% higher than is allowed.
The proposed density of 250 units is approximately 2 times what would be allowed anywhere else on the peninsula. Do we need this density? NO.
- The RP+5 plan passed just this week proposes 25% of new houses, apartments and condos be built in the city core which includes the peninsula and, over in Dartmouth, a similar sized area.
- An average of all dwellings built in HRM in a typical year is perhaps 2,400. Thus the goal at 25% is 600 hundred units a year. Just this project would be almost one half years take up.
The problem of course is that all the other developers will look at the 11 stories and say - he got it so why can't I get it too.
In the center plan there are 11 areas in the core identified for intensification. Just the Gottingen Street area has 23 proposed acres for intensification of housing density.
If the precedence set by these developments is applied to the policy of the center plan then Gottingen alone could have 5,500 units, the other 10 areas will hold 55,000 more. This instantly is a one hundred year supply at what the RP+ 5 plan has recommended we need for the entire core area.
But then in addition there is the newly rezoned Downtown area, the proposed high density Cogswell Interchange area as well as every other as of right development site in the urban core.
To put this in exact perspective, the peninsula has around 4,940 acres, with 500 persons per acre we could fit about 2 Million people and still have 20% of the land left for roads and parks.
Somehow I cannot make the leap from the 600 persons per year in the plan and density that would allow for millions.
I believe we can build a better more human scale city where there is sunlight for all, where you have a chance to know your neighbors.
I do not know why, just before the centre plan comes forward for public consideration this fall, we would approve a building that contemplates density 1,000's of time higher than we would ever need to accommodate the anticipated population growth.
I don't mean to pigeon-hole Pigeon but I would like to have this bird explain the necessity to pigeon coop unsuspecting citizens of modest means in such concentrated flocks all packed side by each.
Perhaps we could simply adopt the density bonusing provisions of approximately 10% of units in all new buildings be affordable units as suggested in the first round of public hearings for the centre plan and already adopted in the HRM by design Downtown plan.
Together we can build better affordable housing in a great city with healthy, vibrant, diverse communities.
Recent Comments
The proposed buildings are simply out of scale for the neighborhood. The existing zoning which is great zoning - allows for 40 feet on Maitland Street. Sure the two story Bus Stop Theatre could co-exist with the 8 and 11 story proposed buildings - but is this what we want our city to be? One of the buildings is 110 feet high on Maitland Street, almost 200% higher than is allowed.
The proposed density of 250 units is approximately 2 times what would be allowed anywhere else on the peninsula. Do we need this density? NO.
- The RP+5 plan passed just this week proposes 25% of new houses, apartments and condos be built in the city core which includes the peninsula and, over in Dartmouth, a similar sized area.
- An average of all dwellings built in HRM in a typical year is perhaps 2,400. Thus the goal at 25% is 600 hundred units a year. Just this project would be almost one half years take up.
The problem of course is that all the other developers will look at the 11 stories and say - he got it so why can't I get it too.
In the center plan there are 11 areas in the core identified for intensification. Just the Gottingen Street area has 23 proposed acres for intensification of housing density.
If the precedence set by these developments is applied to the policy of the center plan then Gottingen alone could have 5,500 units, the other 10 areas will hold 55,000 more. This instantly is a one hundred year supply at what the RP+ 5 plan has recommended we need for the entire core area.
But then in addition there is the newly rezoned Downtown area, the proposed high density Cogswell Interchange area as well as every other as of right development site in the urban core.
To put this in exact perspective, the peninsula has around 4,940 acres, with 500 persons per acre we could fit about 2 Million people and still have 20% of the land left for roads and parks.
Somehow I cannot make the leap from the 600 persons per year in the plan and density that would allow for millions.
I believe we can build a better more human scale city where there is sunlight for all, where you have a chance to know your neighbors.
I do not know why, just before the centre plan comes forward for public consideration this fall, we would approve a building that contemplates density 1,000's of time higher than we would ever need to accommodate the anticipated population growth.
I don't mean to pigeon-hole Pigeon but I would like to have this bird explain the necessity to pigeon coop unsuspecting citizens of modest means in such concentrated flocks all packed side by each.
Perhaps we could simply adopt the density bonusing provisions of approximately 10% of units in all new buildings be affordable units as suggested in the first round of public hearings for the centre plan and already adopted in the HRM by design Downtown plan.
Together we can build better affordable housing in a great city with healthy, vibrant, diverse communities.
Andrew J. Murphy, CA
Halifax