On February 20th, 2006 the Heritage Canada Foundation issued a press release listing downtown Halifax as one of the top 10 Most Endangered Places in Canada. The report goes on to say that the United Gulf Development’s proposal for building 27-storey towers on the former Tex-park site on Granville will “threaten a historic district and views to the landmark Citadel Hill.”
I am fed up and furious with these single-minded people who claim to know what is good for this city. Who in their right mind would suggest that a development on the lot of a former dilapidated parking garage is threatening to historic properties? Can people please get over the idea of preserving “the view” of the harbour from the citadel (maybe it will block the view of the smouldering oil refinery in Dartmouth) and see that this development would be a good thing for the struggling Barrington Street area? Can they also not grasp the concept that some modern buildings can highlight the beauty of neighbouring heritage properties through contrast?
To the Heritage Canada Foundation and Heritage Trust of Nova Scotia, I beg of you, please do your job and protect existing heritage buildings from being demolished. Stop hi-jacking our city and let it become the modern metropolitan centre it deserves to become.
By Scott Marquardt
This article appears in Feb 16-22, 2006.
