In the late thirties and early forties, I, as a high-school student, worked Friday afternoons and Saturday in one of the three first-rate men's clothing stores on Gottingen Street. They, along with a number of other great stores, made the street a shopping mecca for Haligonians. Even into the fifties, Gottingen Street remained a good shopping destination, with two theatres, a particularly good restaurant and other facilities.
I have a different opinion of Gottingen Street than Halifax Coalition Against Poverty's Capp Larsen "Condo conundrum" (Jan. 24). Where Larsen is negative about "gentrification," I think a little of this may be the very thing that will be a positive step in bringing the street to a new beginning. The purchase of a long-time eyesore by PolyCorp Developments, and another property purchase by Cornerstone Investments of British Columbia, along with Mickey MacDonald's "Palooka" boxing facility, are positive indications that the old street is beginning to receive the attention it needs to become an asset to our city.
By Bill Phillips
