Worried about a “swath of renoviction,” Halifax councillors have voted to spend $445,500 to help a non-profit keep hundreds of homes affordable. As the Halifax Examiner reported on May 2, the Housing Trust of Nova Scotia is working to buy a portfolio of hundreds of apartments in HRM: There’s a deal in the works now […]
Housing Trust of Nova Scotia changing tack, abandoning development plan and buying hundreds of apartments
The Housing Trust of Nova Scotia is changing up its strategy, moving to sell its property on Maitland Street and buy hundreds of existing affordable rental units. The trust, a nonprofit founded by developer and consultant Ross Cantwell in 2009, used to own two nearby properties between Gottingen Street and Maitland Street, with plans for […]
Utility and review board says it can’t waive Halifax Water fees for affordable housing
Nova Scotia’s Utility and Review Board says it has no authority to waive Halifax Water’s fees for non-profits building affordable housing, and those fees are likely going up. In a decision released Thursday, the UARB approved Halifax Water’s request to increase its regional development charge, or RDC. The RDC is meant to pay for direct […]
Densely calculated density
In return for "public benefits" — affordable housing units, public art, and the like — the city trades "density bonuses" that allow developers to build higher and bigger than planning rules would otherwise allow. But a study shows that on just six big developments downtown, the city lost a potential $8 million in public benefits because it low-balled calculations.
If public meetings to discuss the municipality’s Centre Plan were episodes of Sesame Street, they would be “brought to you by the number 15.” The Centre Plan would chart development for the next 15 years. But that same number keeps getting raised in pointed questions from citizens who want to know why there’s a 15-year...