All the people who don’t like Matt Whitman just don’t know the “real” Matt Whitman. So says Matt Whitman. “They just know the guy that criticized an RCMP officer for giving someone a ticket,” says the councillor. “Or the guy that ran around his car with his 19-year-old son after coming from a funeral.” Or […]
City Council
Posted inNews + Opinion
Khyber sale moving forward
The 1588 Barrington Street Building Preservation Society is one step closer to taking over the former Khyber building after council’s vote to move the sale along at this Tuesday’s council meeting. While the original motion on the table asked for more information from the non-profit group before deciding on the sale, deputy mayor Mason instead […]
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Mayor on Cornwallis panel: “I don’t really think it’s useful to point fingers”
The Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi’kmaq Chiefs wants immediate action. Halifax mayor Mike Savage, however, is looking forward to more conversation. On Friday afternoon the Assembly officially walked away from participating in HRM’s historical panel on the legacy of Edward Cornwallis. The Chiefs cited ongoing delays in dealing with city hall and called for the statue […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Khyber Catch-22: HRM wants funding commitments before selling historic arts hub
The fight for the former Khyber building continues next week at City Hall. The 1588 Barrington Street Building Preservation Society is urging Halifax Regional Council to push forward with the sale of the former Khyber building, despite a staff recommendation to wait the process out a little longer. This Tuesday’s Regional Council meeting will consider a […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
City buys 200 acres of land for Blue Mountain-Birch Cove Lakes park
The municipality has finally put some of its money where its mouth is to protect Blue Mountain-Birch Cove Lakes. On Friday afternoon HRM announced it had purchased nearly 200 acres of property near Hobson Lake from West Bedford Holdings. It’s the first land acquisition by Halifax towards creating a new regional park around the Blue […]
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Willow Tree roundabout: Verdict on polarizing development delayed
It’s either a landmark building that will put food on the tables of Halifax’s working-class, or a shakedown that’s anathema to positive urban design. Depends who you ask. Over 40 residents, planners and friends of the Common attended a public hearing Tuesday evening at City Hall to speak out both for and against Armco’s Willow […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Cornwallis panel nominee’s sexual assault conviction
One of the names put forward to judge the actions of Edward Cornwallis has a violent history of his own. Chief Wilbert Marshall, who has been selected by the Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi’kmaq Chiefs to help lead Halifax’s examination of the city’s controversial founder, was himself convicted of sexual assault 10 years ago. Marshall […]
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Halifax’s Indigenous advisor talks Cornwallis, council and reconciliation
The wave of reconciliation is shallow, but it’s spreading. So says Wyatt White, the Halifax Regional Municipality’s first-ever Indigenous advisor. White, who hails from the Listuguj Mi’kmaq First Nation on the New Brunswick/Quebec border, is a former aboriginal affairs advisor to Environment Canada and to the provincial department of Education. He recently sat down with […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
HRM council salaries jump 2.3 percent to $87,409
Happy holidays to HRM councillors, who are taking home a 2.3 percent pay bump. It’s a slightly smaller raise than last year when salaries jumped by 3.4 percent. Back in May council approved a motion to tie its annual raises to average weekly earnings in Nova Scotia, as reported by Statistics Canada. Under the new formula, […]
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Halifax to wait-and-see on this whole basic income thing
A staff report on poverty reduction recommends Halifax hold off on endorsing a basic income pilot project from the province. The municipality’s Community Planning and Economic Standing Committee asked for the report back in July after a presentation from Basic Income Nova Scotia. At the time, the group had suggested some minor steps HRM could take […]
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City councillors square-off over Segways on the ferry
Limiting the number of cyclists allowed on Halifax Transit ferries isn’t nearly as much of a concern for one city councillor as whether or not Segways will still be allowed aboard. Matt Whitman—who is not part of the Transportation Standing Committee—sat in on Thursday’s meeting and repeatedly went to bat for letting users of the self-balancing […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Halifax council to undergo cultural sensitivity training
In the fallout from several racially charged statements made by elected officials and more than a dozen conduct complaints submitted to city hall, Halifax Regional Council has agreed to collectively take part in cultural sensitivity training. The idea was unanimously approved Tuesday night after three hours of in-camera discussion. “We could all use a […]
