Last week, Halifax City Council again/still/always decided to re-re-re-write its planning bylaws on the fly for the greater good and increased profit of a private developer whose books it didn’t bother examining, let alone asking to glimpse once, maybe upside down on the desk, even just in passing. Jump? How high, sir, how high?… Good...
Can we trust the Armoyans to act in the public interest?
No. That's not their job. But it is councillors' job. Their eagerness last week to say yes to the Armoyan scheme to trade approval of a 25-storey tower for a few affordable housing baubles tells you more than you want to know about council oversight.
Last week’s lopsided Halifax city council decision to decide not to decide — for now — how to respond to APL Property’s proposal to erect a taller-than-OK 25-storey tower at the corner of Quinpool Road and Robie Streets was interesting for all sorts of reasons. Before we wander into that thicket, however, a little history....