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Halifax has become a mecca for hipster high-end overly-priced restaurants, coffee shops and stores. This shop local trend in my opinion is a load of crap. I think it crosses a line when the businesses are “owned” by young hip folk, but are actually backed by developers, which in turn will gentrify that area (i.e. Gottingen and Agricola Streets) by starting the change through these businesses, meanwhile working on development and condos. But consumers still buy that shit, thus making it difficult for modest entrepreneurs and artists who want to start a business in Halifax. It has become too expensive for these modest folk to get into this “local business” as rent and taxes are so much due to the high-end trend we see now. That’s my rant; there’s very little true local business in this city and after living here for all these years I see little reason to stay as the arts and culture scene is full of ego and money. It saddens me more artists and small entrepreneurs who ask reasonable rates for their offerings can’t make it in this town. For those that are still doing it, I deeply respect your efforts. — Bitchinainteasy
This article appears in Mar 12-18, 2015.
It took you this long to figure that out?!
If you’re going to give your hard-earned cash to somebody, might as well be local. Unless you’re more comfortable with an enhanced carbon footprint or padding the riches of the Asian elite and their child labour.
Sell your bay rum and beard oil over the internet, mahfucka.
URBAN GENTRIFICATION: A CONSPIRACY?
“This shop local trend in my opinion is load of crap. I think it crosses the line when the businesses are ‘owned’ by young hip folk, but are actually backed by developers, which in turn will gentrify that area (Gottingen and Agricola Streets) by starting to change those businesses, meanwhile working on development an condos.” Bitchinainteasy
Is urban gentrification a conspiracy traveling under the banner of “buy local?” Is there collusion from bottom to top, from the “young hip folk” fronting for developers who will then gentrify the area and raise prices in an upward spiral? Two questions: What’s wrong with gentrification? Does it actually work?
There can be little question that the Gottingen and Agricola Street areas would benefit from gentrification if for no other reason that visual appeal. Let’s face it, they’re not the Champs Elysees. But gentrification is not a boot-strap operation. Money is needed and money comes from businesses. What’s the alternative? The perpetuation of a chronically depressed visual eyesore?
The more debatable question is whether such gentrification works. As a matter of fact an in-law of mine attempted to gentrify a part of Gottingen Street. He converted a church into condos. Some were bought by well-heeled clients but many soon moved out and others barred their windows against what appears to be a solid core of disreputables. But he’s okay. He’s now living in California.
A pleasure as always,
Cheerio!
OB, you aren’t very well traveled from the sound of your bitch. Because every city I’ve been in for awhile has been like that, I was in TO ,Calgary & Winnipeg& Ottawa as well as Halifax last year. I’ve been to these Canadian cities multiple times in the past couple of years along with New York LA, Huston, New Orleans etc etc & all cities are creating an expanding web of these little ‘trendy’ over priced places. But , there are still some gems out there in all places, it just takes some looking to find them. I found a pizza place on the sidewalk, recommended by a guy busking in Manhattan, it was a hole in the wall, you had to go downstairs to get into this tiny little place…. the pizza was amazing. A little coffee shop 2 streets up from Bourbon street in New Orleans, no recognizable name, ambrosia is the only way to describe the coffee & beignets there. Which by the way were even better than Cafe Du Monde , which were really really good as well .
There was this mom & pop place in Florida called Mothers, out side Tampa, sea food especially the shrimp & the calamari, some of the best I’ve ever had. Wasn’t a mainstream place , but the locals all knew where it was.
Perhaps you need to stop going where the rest of your preppy school friends go & ask around for where there might be some decent good eats …oh & by the way , there’s this free rag called The Coast, I’ve tried some of the recommended places in it, the ones that you will see by the reviews to check out. Some of those are pretty good as well .
I don’t think you can blame the local movement for high rent and taxes.
The main problem with the anti-gentrification movement is its inability, or unwillingness, to separate cause from effect. The renovation of run-down neighbourhoods and the arrival of “hip” new businesses isn’t what makes life less affordable – it is the lack of earning power of the anti-gents. This may be due to lack of useful education, an insufficient minimum wage, or simply the desire for a slacker lifestyle,but , at any rate, “gentrification” is a symptom and not the underlying problem.
Secondly, I can tell from your writing that you are reasonably educated and that implies choice to me. You have social mobility and you can improve your income. There are many people that don’t have that mobility. They aren’t the ones complaining and I’ll tell you why. I grew up in a run-down neighbourhood that has continued to go down hill for many years. There are many people there who lack any social mobility. Gentrification can do nothing but help. It makes neighbourhoods more desirable so more people go there at all hours. This increases safety for everyone. The small businesses also create more jobs, hire more staff, treat staff better, and pay better than the chain restaurants and coffee shops that you find in underdeveloped neighbourhoods.
So, I say bring on the gentrification. It can only help.
My issue is with the feasibility of entrepreneurs without the financial backing to enter such a high end market. The current taxes and rent as a result of this high end movement make it difficult to start a business anywhere in the city as nothing is left for the little guy to get going. This is a strategy the investors and property owners use to take complete control of a cities markets. I’ve worked for various businesses and apartments offering trade based services and noticed they worked both fields being rental and business partnership, the same faces would be seen playing both fields and its a small pool. It is systematic and not about the actual business and pride taken in those businesses (despite how trendy and artsy these new businesses seem). This system is designed to prevent a larger pool of small scale sole proprietorship business owners in the city and eventually will push out any of those small businesses remaining once control is attained by big business. If it were an ideal situation of primarily small scale owners rent would be cheaper along with taxes. Of course this method of business is the norm, but it would be nice to see Halifax being the small city it is to retain some of the small scale businesses.
-bitchinainteasy
Also to poster more, glad to hear you’ve had the opportunity to try and and explore these places and foods. These are big cities however Halifax is not, do you think that pizza shop could survive if it’s rent was doubled? Halifax is expanding and does not have the infrastructure to accompany this expansion as we see with traffic, were a small city and need to retain some of its characteristics when it comes to businesses in the city. Developers think other wise and it will catch up to them. Also why on earth would you assume I have preppy friends I barely graduated high school and have a partial college education. Preppy not so much, stoners and underachievers yes. Oh and no I have not traveled because I can’t afford it despite busting my ass over the years working.
Welcome to every city everywhere
Do you actually believe that the new businesses in the North End are “backed” by developers to drive out the poors? Because that’s what it sounds like you’re saying, and it that’s correct, you have a very paranoid, conspiracy-minded worldview that’s pretty divorced from reality. (Unless you can provide evidence for this, which I doubt.)
That’s not how gentrification works–it’s a much shaggier and more disorganized process, and rarely is there malice behind it, even if the end result is bad for the poor.
Gentrification in the North End is a serious issue, but get a grip on the actual causes and results. Gentrification, well-managed, isn’t all bad, and it’s certainly not as if some young restaurant owner on Gottingen–who’s busted their ass to start a new business–is being financially propped up by the development industry. Get real.
Why do local beers being sold in the same building they’re brewed cost more than beers imported from 3000kms away? Is beard wax that expensive?
Shop local is a scam for higher prices and trying to make you guilty for buying cheaper.
One way to look at shopping local is as a matter of simple economics – “leakage” and “the multiplier effect”. If you buy products locally the money spent is recirculated in our economy as wages for the local employees and profit for the local owners. Any money they, in turn, spend locally is re-circulated again and again. This multiplier effect is even greater if the goods are also manufactured locally since the labour costs are paid as wages that contribute to the economy. And all of this money circulating in the economy increases the tax base so we all benefit from this multiplier effect.
The flipside of this is when we purchase goods not made locally. The manufacturing wages are paid to people elsewhere and so the money leaks out of our economy and into theirs. Same goes for online shopping. Local businesses and staff don’t receive the benefit so there is more leakage from the economy.
So, the campaign to buy locally made and sold products is sound economic policy. Of course, many of us buy products online (myself included) because of better price, convenience and availability. However, when making purchases it is useful to be aware of the impact we are having on the local economy and there may be times when that is enough to sway our decisions.
I think many people get that, but its nothing more than a fucked up version of Reaganomics, isn’t it?
Remember when “cashmobs” were a thing (for 5 seconds), how fucking contrived was that?
@Cranky
The answer to your question about the cost of local beers can be found in three simple words: economies of scale.
And really, unless it’s a one-off specialty beer, local beers don’t cost significantly more. A 12-pack of Coors Light is $24 at the NSLC. A six-pack of Garrison or Propeller or another NS microbrew comes in around $12.99-$13.49. That’s $26-$27 for 12. At most, that’s like 25 cents more per bottle. At MOST.
^^^ “its nothing more than a fucked up version of Reaganomics, isn’t it?”
In my view it has pretty much nothing to do with Reaganomics.
” Reaganomics called for widespread tax cuts, decreased social spending, increased military spending, and the deregulation of domestic markets. Reaganomics was partially based on the principles of supply-side economics and the trickle-down theory. These theories hold the view that decreases in taxes, especially for corporations, is the best way to stimulate economic growth: the idea is that if the expenses of corporations are reduced, the savings will “trickle down” to the rest of the economy, spurring growth. “
In fact, the trickle down theory was disproven. It makes more sense to give tax breaks to lower income people because they spend pretty much all of that money at local businesses and stimulate the economy.
And the “buy local” campaign is about putting money in the hands of small producers and vendors rather rather than corporations. So “buy local” is pretty much the opposite of trickle-down – it’s more of a bubble-up approach.
Hence my “fucked up version” quote. Its just another way of separating rubes from their money, just more touchy feely goodness.
For the record, I only buy local indy beer.
I just try not to buy anything.
Leaves more money for booze.
I do find it really sad that when I go down familiar streets from when I first moved here, SO MANY businesses are gone. The bars seem to survive more than the rest but that’s likely because drinking’s the only fun thing to do here.
I’m with crispy. do you really want to fuel the Chinese economy? every consumer holds power over global economy. every single one of us. despite despair over the giant oil companies, food companies, if each of us just stopped buying whatever they are pushing, say for a month, think of the impact.
and yeah, I know its as likely to happen as my boobs to fly
#freethebitchers https://messiahmom.files.wordpress.com/201…
because really, he is just too expensive as his current price
To me this doesn’t make sense. If your only competition is high-priced crap why can’t you make the same crap and sell it for less of a profit than these companies? If it was the same quality everyone would flock to your store. Sounds like you have a case of the greedy-Nova-Scotian.
n
^^^ well said!…. and I’m only teasing so don’t get all indignant.
True, beer prices are somewhat fair, but there is a bit of overpricing going on (I’m not going to say gouging, as it is what the market will bear) when a new local beer store is selling growlers for 15 bucks vs 10 bucks everywhere else. Not to mention, some of the products they are selling are being overpriced at their various breweries as well, so it isn’t just shipping costs being accounted for. This stuff is just overpriced. Its that simple. Tastes great though.