St. Joseph’s Square
Rendering for the proposed St. Joseph's Square development on the corner of Gottingen & Russell Streets
A new condo development project is one step closer to moving forward in North End Halifax. The proposed project would be on the corner of Gottingen and Russell Streets, very close to the Hydrostone neighborhood. The project’s site was previously occupied by St. Joseph’s church which was demolished in 2009.
The project design is pictured above, and would include a 2 level parking garage, 5,000 square feet of commercial space, 12 street level townhouse units and 83 total units standing at 9 stories high. This is actually a revised design as the original plan for the property was to be 11 stories tall with 85 units. The height adjustments were made to appease concerns of conformity with the neighborhood’s existing buildings and their respective heights.
As readers can guess I am 100% behind this project, as I firmly believe that peninsula growth is very important and since experienced businesspeople (developers) continue to fight to get these projects approved and completed then there must be a demand for these developments. Regional council must have thought the same as they approved land use amendments on Tuesday of this week, and the project’s development agreement’s next step is to get approved by Peninsula community council before it can be built.
The Chronicle Herald reported that as usual there were naysayers and Negative Nancy opponents of the project, and for our entertainment they even offered a few quotes. One person suggested that NOTHING should be built on this site, except for perhaps a park. While a park is not a bad idea, the suggestion of ‘nothing’ suggests to me that this person should not be suggesting anything. Others were concerned about the noise and the… get ready for this… DUST that this project would create. You live in the largest city East of Montreal. Things get built. Get over it. If your neighbors complained about the noise and dust that was created when your home was built, then you would be homeless.
Others expressed concerns about the 2 schools that are directly next to the project and the impact that the construction and extra traffic would have on the children. The construction is not happening inside the classrooms, and the kids are already crossing one of Halifax’s busiest streets as it is, not much change there. How about the impact that an urban landscape has on those around it? A growing, vibrant and entrepreneurial landscape and community inspires those around it to grow, be vibrant and forward thinking. But maybe we should stick to the above suggestion and build nothing, the current site is pretty inspiring too:
The current state of the site on the corner of Gottigen & Russell Streets
