Once Facing Demolition, Historic Halifax Inn Will Survive As Part Of Apartment Tower
HALIFAX—A historic Halifax inn once slated for demolition will survive as part of an apartment highrise.
Halifax Regional Council gave the go-ahead July 12 for the owner of the South End building known as “The Elmwood” to start a massive development project on the property.
Galaxy Properties Limited plans to pick up and physically move the centuries-old Elmwood to a new spot on its property and tear down a rear wing of the building.
Together, those steps will allow Galaxy to build a nine-storey tower attached to the Inn. The addition will expand the capacity of the building from 12 to about 79 residential units.
As part of the project, Galaxy also promised to restore the aging building and replace missing historical elements.
RELATED: Historic Halifax Inn To Be Altered With Nine-Storey Highrise
The Elmwood isn’t technically a heritage property but the city considers it a “contributing heritage resource” to the overall heritage value of the historic Old South Suburb. Because of that heritage value, Galaxy’s plan had to pass a public hearing before it could move forward.
On July 12 it did that easily. No members of the public showed up to comment on the project and council enthusiastically supported the proposal.
Saved From The Wrecking Ball
In the mid-2010s, the Elmwood was perilously close to being demolished.
At the time, the property was owned by Paul, Renee, and Peter Metlej’s Principal Developments. Their plan was to knock down the historic building and replace it with a six-storey apartment complex.
The plan sparked public outcry, especially among people who valued the Elmwood’s heritage value.
A group of planners and historians calling themselves the Action Group for Better Architecture in Nova Scotia pushed back hard against the proposed replacement, calling it “bland” and “of low architectural quality.”
Then, Galaxy Properties (owned by Tony Metlej) bought the Elmwood property from Principal Developments. Galaxy scrapped the demolition plans and started working with the city to save the inn.
City ‘Lucky’ To Still Have The Building
At the July 13 public hearing, council applauded the seven years of work it took to get to this point.
Coun. Sam Austin said it’s “remarkable” the building didn’t get levelled and thanked Galaxy for going “above and beyond” to save it.
“If you [look] around town, we don’t really have any Victorian-type apartment buildings left–they’re all gone,” he said. “That we get to keep this building is really something special for the city.”
Coun. Shawn Cleary agreed. He said Galaxy’s alteration plan is “exactly” the type of project the city’s heritage policies are supposed to promote.
“The Heritage Conservation Districts [are there to create] this kind of movement and adaptive reuse and densification on the site that gives you the heritage and gives you more of the city—and that’s fabulous,” he said.
The Elmwood is just one of several historic Halifax buildings that are being restored and modified with large towers.
Already, the Waverley Inn on Barrington Street and Victoria Hall on Gottingen Street are being similarly altered.
In each case, developers agreed to pour millions of dollars into decaying heritage buildings in exchange for permission to build massive towers on the same property.
Cleary said he hopes to see more Halifax buildings “getting some love” through similar projects.
Trevor Nichols is the Associate Editor of Huddle based in Halifax. Send him your feedback and story ideas: [email protected].