[Image-1] About six months after he was elected to Halifax council, the city upgraded a major intersection at University Avenue and Robie Street in Waye Mason’s district. It was, according to Mason, “a beautiful piece of engineering which solved a bunch of problems.” But the reaction on the street was not so pretty. “People flipped […]
Fix this city
Posted inNews + Opinion
Bus ticket monopoly is a hassle for retailers and riders
[Image-1] Public retailers want to make money for the city by selling bus tickets, but HRM keeps telling them “no.” Michele Gerard has been trying to stock Halifax Transit tickets at her store for four years now. The owner of Morris Street’s Atlantic News says she calls the city every year, hoping they’ve changed their […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
How to fix the city 2015
Criticism, as Winston Churchill said, may not be agreeable but it is necessary. It calls attention to an unhealthy state of things. Yet every time some persnickety pundit highlights a civic flaw they’re dismissed as putting the “No” in “Nova Scotia.” It’s ironic, how negatively many folks view negative thinking. Quite juvenile, as well, to […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
What do you think needs to be fixed?
[Image-1] We reached out to public figures, community leaders and business owners to find out how they would fix the city. Some edited responses were printed in this week’s issue, but below are the full replies we received. “More use of our wonderful harbour. We should have extended hours on our downtown ferry, with more […]
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Impounded dogs are at the mercy of slow-moving courts
[Image-1] CORRECTION: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated Bastarache visited her dog at Wyndenfog. All visits with Chomper took place at Homeward Bound. Wyndenfog was also incorrectly identified as a pound. It is in fact a boarding kennel. The Coast has removed these references and apologizes for the errors. Chomper was seized by […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Khyber may go up for sale
[Image-1] After 126 years on Barrington, the Khyber Centre for the Arts building could be at its end. City staff is recommending Halifax Regional Council declare 1588 Barrington St. surplus and put it up for sale. Officials assessing the Victoria-era building listed poor conditions and hazardous materials (including a failing floor system and asbestos in […]
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The Forum’s uncertain future
Everyone has a Forum memory. It’s been home to Nova Scotia’s first professional hockey team, and has played host to everyone from Reba McEntire to Mohammad Ali, Hulk Hogan to Waka Flocka Flame. History aside, on any given day the humble Halifax Forum holds world-class music, university sports, community skates, the region’s largest flea market […]
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Trees felled on the Common
[Image-1] There’s a lot less shade on the Common, these days. Dozens of mature trees have been cut down to make way for the roundabout construction on North Park and Cunard Streets, leaving some park-goers angry. “They’re cutting down all our beautiful, ancient trees and all for what? For nothing,” says Daniel Towsey. “You don’t […]
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Know shelter
The Out of the Cold emergency winter shelter began organizing in the fall of 2008 as a response to a reduction in the number of shelter beds in Halifax. Together, service providers of all kinds created a safe space where those who could not access other beds in the city could come for the night. […]
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How to Fix the City Scorecard
Each January, our first issue of the year, we offer up our annual Fix the City suggestions in the spirit of civic-mindedness; truly, we’re trying to make this a better place to live. But does anyone listen? Are we making any difference, or is this a pointless exercise in navel-gazing? Turns out, most years we […]
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Our Annual Halifax Fix the City list
Create an emergency shelter When the harshest winds of winter hit the city, and the streets are buried beneath a blizzard’s weight in ice and snow, where can the homeless turn in a pinch for safe and supportive care? Nowhere, since the closure of Pendleton Place, a harm reduction centre that the Nova Scotia Department […]