Halifax Can Begin Development Of New Cogswell Neighbourhood
HALIFAX – Construction of a new neighbourhood that will replace the current Cogswell interchange can finally begin moving forward. The Halifax Regional Municipality recently completed a land swap with local real estate company Crombie, which will allow the city to begin construction in 2021.
In the land swap, Halifax was able to acquire a large portion of land at the end of Granville Street and three other small parcels of land.
“The land will be used to facilitate the development of Granville Park, a new Transit HUB and the planned Proctor Street,” reads a statement on the municipality’s website. “The land exchange allows the municipality to complete a number of signature design pieces at the south end of the Cogswell District anchored by the planned Granville Park.”
A construction tender has now been issued to three pre-approved bidders: Miller Paving, Ellis Don, and Dexter. The tender will be awarded towards the end of summer, 2021.
In a written statement to Huddle Today, Crombie said the land they received from the HRM can be developed into mixed-use properties.
“In terms of future use, this transaction provides us with the potential for a future development opportunity that aligns with Crombie’s strategy of developing mixed-use properties in top urban markets where people want to live, work, shop, and play. Value is a function of development potential, and we have the identical development rights on the new land as we have on the land we are exchanging,” reads the statement.
“I can add that we’re very pleased with this transaction; it enables us to uphold our commitment to enhancing the communities where we’re located. We have a long history in the heart of downtown Halifax, and we’re pleased to be able to play a role in this important city-building initiative.”
The land swap is great news for those who have wanted to see the Cogswell development go forward over the past several years. In fact, when he was running for Mayor in 2012, constructing this area was a campaign pledge by Mike Savage.
“It’s a symbol of the new Halifax, a city that’s growing and forward-thinking; relying more on public transit, cycling, greenspace,” said Savage in an interview with Huddle. “I think it will, not only reconnect the city but enhance it as well and make it more of a city everybody gets to share.”
“It’s not elite, other than its design; but not elite in terms of who gets to use it.”
Savage said developing the Cogswell district is important in order to reconnect the city, particularly the north end and south end of Halifax.
“Like a lot of cities, we went through what was called urban renewal in the ’60s. It was really about building a city that was designed for cars and trucks, as opposed to people,” explained Savage.
“The Cogswell Interchange was built; it was supposed to go further all the way down Lower Water Street. But citizens, with a view on the future, got involved and stopped it. It could have taken all of the historic properties and other buildings on the waterfront. So, they stopped it, but the Cogswell interchange remained.”
The city is hoping that the project, in the long-term, will be self-financed. Basically, Halifax will be able to recoup any construction costs through the sale of land to developers.
“It’s always been our goal that is a self-financing project, so we sell the land in a way that pays for the development,” explained Savage. “First of all, there’s a fair bit of demolition that’s going to have to happen; that’s not cheap.”
In 2014, it was estimated to cost $65-million to redevelop the area, but that amount would have changed quite a bit over seven years.
“Specific details of the project cost remain confidential to preserve the integrity of the tender process,” reads a statement on the city’s website. “These details will be released once the tender is awarded. Further, the capital budget will be updated to reflect final project costs.”
Savage says the city will try and respect the needs of local businesses when construction and demolition begin.
“We recognize that it’s a major project in the middle of the city. We have businesses there, hotels and restaurants that have already been affected by Covid. We want to make sure we are sensitive to the needs of the existing businesses. We’re working with them as much as possible to mitigate the problems.”