To the hotel sitting on a lake in Halifax,
I have been coming a peaceful and pretty grassy spot to enjoy the sun and the lake for at least ten years now. As your hotel can’t seem to keep a name or management, I’ve been able to use the spot because your hotel stayed empty for many years.
Now you’re kicking out locals that peacefully use the spot, even calling the police on them, well, that’s not very neighbourly. If you’re concerned about your “guests” consider that your hotel has been under construction for years, and there are probably more people using the grassy space than using your accomodations. If the property is just for these said “guests” do you think people new to Halifax want to sit on your property all day? No, they want to explore. Don’t have a big bbq for your neighbours then treat them like this. Threatening just means we’ll start spreading the word about your business practices.
Sell the land back to HRM, or charge a fee to use the space, honestly, most of us would be willing to pay a fee every summer to use the space. We’re respectful, and enjoy the solitude, we don’t want to have to go to the dirt-sand spot across the lake filled with screaming children. We’ve been coming to the spot longer than your hotel name has been there, please consider that, and consider your public relations, which you’ve not been doing a good job of maintaining. Next time we’ll yell louder and use names.
—Lake Lover in Halifax
This article appears in Jul 30 – Aug 5, 2009.
st marg’s bay road?
If the hotel owns or leases the land you talked about then you are out of luck, the land is private property and the hotel has every right to control who access to it. There would also be liability concerns to giving the general public unobstructed access to the land.
The hotel is doing nothing wrong and to be honest, once you are asked to leave and either refuse or return again then you fall under the trespass act which can see the police and courts getting involved.
Lake Lover, I know oh too well about said hotel on the lake. The managment sucks big time and the reason that nothing has been done, is because of the douche that runs the show for maintainence there. The owner is no better, believe me…they pretend to be nice. I actually ‘worked’ at this place….the reason I didn’t stay? They (the guys in charge of the repairs) have absolutely no clue what they’re doing and quite frankly, I think the whole thing is some sort of cover for drugs. But that’s another thing that doesn’t belong here on a message board, but in the hands of authorities…which I am sure it is.
And for the record…I grew up on this lake, literally. And the management that was there before, always let us swim there. Even when we’d swim over from the beach. If you didn’t cause problems, there was no problem. Yes it is private property, but that is still no way to make good neighbours.
I am with you Lake Lover, and I think the Hotel(meaning the current chain) should just fuck right off all together. Sell the fucking land, either to someone who will actually do something, or back to the city for another public park/beach site.
There is an easement on all water lots in Nova Scotia which permits access to anyone who wants to use it. It is your right to be there and they can not remove you from that land. One might want to check with Access Nova Scotia regarding the setback from the lake/sea shore…know your rights and go stand on that imaginary line and taunt the fuckers! Having said this there are SOME lakes in Nova Scotia where access IS denied but these lakes are typically water supply lakes