Neighbours appeal Shore Club’s approved patio plan

Neighbours of the Shore Club in Hubbards have appealed the municipality’s approval of a new patio for the restaurant and concert venue.

The club applied to HRM to build a new patio with an outdoor kitchen and bar area and washrooms, but its planned patio didn’t meet the requirements of the land-use bylaw.

The bylaw requires it to be set back 20 feet from the front property line and eight feet from the side. The plan is to build right up to the front property line and six inches from the side. The bylaw also requires an accessory structure, like a bar and kitchen, to be 12 feet from the main building.

The club applied for variances, and Peter Nightingale, the municipal development officer on the file, approved them.

Neighbours appealed

Susan McCann appealed in a letter to the municipality. She outlined four concerns: added noise, an accessible ramp coming too close to an intersection, parking, and drunkenness.

“The drinking issue has caused issues to this day as I frequently find beer bottles, glasses, and just general garbage on my property on a Sunday morning after the dances. I have also encountered people from the club using the bathroom in my bushes and other such things that I won’t get into here. We all have encountered ‘tourists’ who feel its [sic] their right and privilege to sightsee on our properties and take a nice walk down our roads,” McCann wrote.

“The increase in the number of people milling about with this proposal is unsettling. Even putting private property signs at the top does not stop them from trespassing. This is still an onging [sic] problem just with the Lobster suppers from Wed. to Sun. and the dances on Sat. nights.”

Thalia Delano, Darlene O’Neil, Doris Dauphinee, and Walsh and Janesta Boudreau also appealed. They cited similar concerns, with traffic and parking the most prominent.

Their appeal is on the agenda at the North West Community Council meeting in Sackville on Monday night. That community council comprises Halifax regional councillors from districts 1, 13, 14, 15, and 16.

Planners say variances are warranted

Nightingale and planner Rhys Burnell wrote in a report to the community council that they recommend councillors deny the appeal. They argue the variances don’t violate the intent of the land-use bylaw.

While the appellants’ comments don’t necessarily apply to the land-use bylaw, Nightingale and Burnell addressed each of them. Most applied to the provincial government, which has approved parts of the plan already.

“Ample on-site parking exists at the rear and other side of the existing building for the operation of the commercial business that will still be available,” they wrote.

The community council meets Monday at 7pm at the Sackville Heights Community Centre. There’s no livestream.

If the appeal goes ahead, the Shore Club will still be able to build a smaller patio.

“In addition to the variance application, the applicant has submitted a building permit for an outdoor dining patio at the same proposed location which meets the required front yard and side yard setbacks,” Nightingale and Burnell wrote.

“This building permit was issued and construction has started on the outdoor dining patio. If the variance is approved, the applicant would be permitted to expand the deck to the desired setbacks detailed in the table below.”