Cogswell Interchange

[someone123]

The downtown Radisson hotel was also converted from office.

I don't think it's necessary to worry directly about what will happen to downtown office buildings in 10 or 20 years. The key is mostly just that the city needs to get out of the way (e.g. repeal pointless zoning controls that ban residential from commercial/institutional zones). Developers will build what is in demand if they can, and they're already looking at residential. The Southwest proposal for Hollis and Sackville is one good example.

The stuff in that video isn't new but it is nice to see it all presented concisely.

One of the biggest problems Halifax has now is that, aside from maybe the ferries, it doesn't have any high-quality transit service. There are no train stations to serve as focal points for development. There need to be corridors where transit is high-frequency, fast, permanent, and comfortable. Metro Transit won't solve this problem by adding more lurching buses to the city's already choked streets. Something better like commuter rail is needed.

[Drybrain]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

There is some precedent for this here. The old Canada Permanent building on Barrington - the International-style structure on that street, the one with Starbucks on the Barrington side and Durty Nellys on the Argyle side - is apartments now. I have been in there and it is OK but there are some compromises. It is pretty uninspiring space inside. That may have been due to poor design choices during the reno though, I'm not sure.

That's pretty cool--too bad it's not so great inside. I actually really like that one from the outside (I've not gotten a lot of agreement on that opinion, and it could definitely use a clean-up, but it's pretty unique for Halifax.)

[halifaxboyns]

Wasn't the Raddison on Hollis Street also an office building that was converted to a hotel? These buildings don't just have to be converted to residential either...

[Jonovision]

Cogswell Shake-Up on May 16th hosted by the Strategic Urban Partnership.

http://strategicurbanpartnership.com...6th-600-830pm/

Cogswell Shake-Up - May 16th, 2013 -6:00 – 8:30pm – Halifax Marriott Harbourfront Hotel – Sable Ballroom.

FROM THE STRATEGIC URBAN PARTNERSHIP AND MAYOR SAVAGE
Located in the heart of the city, the Cogswell Interchange is the road system where the downtown and the North End meet. It’s the hub for public transit, the heart of the business district, and one of the primary routes in and out of the city.
But since its inception, the Interchange has been universally considered a missed opportunity. Given its prominent location, it could have (and should have) been so much more.
The great news is that the Mayor and HRM Council have begun exploring what the future of the Cogswell Interchange will look like. Both citizens and the city alike are taking an interest in one of HRM’s most important plots of land and pieces of infrastructure.
The Shakeup Before the Takedown
This is a big-deal project. Once it’s done, Halifax will never look the same.
That’s why the SUP, in partnership with the Mayor’s office, is hosting The Cogswell Shakeup.
The event will be an opportunity for Haligonians to come together and dream about what’s possible for the Cogswell area.
We have invited community organizations and groups to submit their “dreams” for what the Cogswell Interchange could do, be or mean for the city.
Come and share your ideas!
GET INFORMED, GET INSPIRED, STAY INVOLVED

[MeEtc]

Originally Posted by halifaxboyns

Wasn't the Raddison on Hollis Street also an office building that was converted to a hotel? These buildings don't just have to be converted to residential either...

Yes it was. As I posted in the general updates thread, its getting another makeover at present as well.

[halifaxboyns]

Originally Posted by MeEtc

Yes it was. As I posted in the general updates thread, its getting another makeover at present as well.

I thought so...I've never stayed there, but I know friends who have. They said it's very nice.

[fenwick16]

I recently saw the following National Post story on the Cogswell Interchange.

Demolishing Halifax’s city-splitting ‘Road to Nowhere’ seen as chance for downtown renewal
Melanie Patten, Canadian Press | 13/05/06 | Last Updated: 13/05/06 2:17 PM


The Cogswell Interchange, built in the 1960s to accommodate a planned waterfront freeway that was never built,
is seen in Halifax on Friday, April 26, 2013. The city is considering plans to redevelop the area of prime real estate.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan

HALIFAX — It’s the big, ugly legacy of urban renewal in Halifax: a tangle of roads that observers say was supposed to stand for progress but ended up dividing the city, figuratively and literally.

Now the successors of those who helped build the Cogswell interchange more than four decades ago want to tear it down, leaving behind 6.5 hectares that could be redeveloped to repair the fractured heart of the city.

“What we have here is an incredible opportunity,” says Andy Fillmore, a veteran city planner and Halifax’s former manager of urban design.

Fillmore is among those trying to come up with a plan for the massive hole that would remain in downtown Halifax if the concrete comes down.
.
.
.
As for what the space could look like, those involved say public input will be key. The Strategic Urban Partnership will host a public meeting May 16 called the Cogswell Shakeup where residents will be able to float ideas for the site.
.
.
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full story and source - http://news.nationalpost.com/2013/05...ntown-renewal/

Jonovision had posted information on the Cogswell Shakeup, which I quoted below. This is happening in just a few days - Thursday, May 16th, 2013, 6:00 – 8:30pm at the Halifax Marriott Harbourfront Hotel – Sable Ballroom

Originally Posted by Jonovision

Cogswell Shake-Up on May 16th hosted by the Strategic Urban Partnership.

http://strategicurbanpartnership.com...6th-600-830pm/

Cogswell Shake-Up - May 16th, 2013 -6:00 – 8:30pm – Halifax Marriott Harbourfront Hotel – Sable Ballroom.

FROM THE STRATEGIC URBAN PARTNERSHIP AND MAYOR SAVAGE
Located in the heart of the city, the Cogswell Interchange is the road system where the downtown and the North End meet. It’s the hub for public transit, the heart of the business district, and one of the primary routes in and out of the city.
But since its inception, the Interchange has been universally considered a missed opportunity. Given its prominent location, it could have (and should have) been so much more.
The great news is that the Mayor and HRM Council have begun exploring what the future of the Cogswell Interchange will look like. Both citizens and the city alike are taking an interest in one of HRM’s most important plots of land and pieces of infrastructure.
The Shakeup Before the Takedown
This is a big-deal project. Once it’s done, Halifax will never look the same.
That’s why the SUP, in partnership with the Mayor’s office, is hosting The Cogswell Shakeup.
The event will be an opportunity for Haligonians to come together and dream about what’s possible for the Cogswell area.
We have invited community organizations and groups to submit their “dreams” for what the Cogswell Interchange could do, be or mean for the city.
Come and share your ideas!
GET INFORMED, GET INSPIRED, STAY INVOLVED

[Keith P.]

I see little point to such an event. The usual suspects will be there stating it should be made into an urban farm and that there should be no automobiles allowed downtown, turning the entire thing into green space and bike paths. Really, why bother with such a useless exercise?

[fenwick16]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

I see little point to such an event. The usual suspects will be there stating it should be made into an urban farm and that there should be no automobiles allowed downtown, turning the entire thing into green space and bike paths. Really, why bother with such a useless exercise?

As a taxpayer you could state that you want the city to get market value for it so as to recoup the demolition cost of the Cogswell Interchange (unless you prefer the Cogswell Interchange to remain as it is?)

I think that an option would be to allow developers to issue proposals and a price that they are willing to pay and then let the winner dismantle the Cogswell Interchange.

[halifaxboyns]

It's a useless exercise when people who have a genuine opinion feel unable to go and express their views because of the power of a few vocal minorities (the HT). This is why I'm not a fan of the presentation style community engagement. I'd rather do an open house or send staff out to a few festivals and put up a tent asking people for their ideas. None of the planning exercises in Halifax has ever just 'showed up' to an event like that to seek public engagement - why not? We did it here in Calgary for the Municipal Development Plan (Plan It). Staff showed up to everything from the Jazz festival to the lilac and salsa festivals.

You might wonder or say it's out of place; but it's an opportunity for engagement that the HT wouldn't expect staff to show up at and you get true, un-edited engagement. People don't expect it - so they just talk. It works well...

[someone123]

Originally Posted by halifaxboyns

It's a useless exercise when people who have a genuine opinion feel unable to go and express their views because of the power of a few vocal minorities (the HT).

This is one part of it, but it also seems to me like a lot of people have uninformed opinions that are not very useful. For example, a lot of people have suggested stuff for Cogswell that obviously just can't fit on the amount of land available.

I really like the style of consultation where planners focus on one area or question, present critical background information for that area, and then mediate the discussion while allowing people a chance to discuss things on their own a little. The library and Nova Centre consultations were like this. They were great because people started talking about actual stuff, and groups like STV were not permitted to derail the discussion by constantly harping on questions that have already been answered (e.g. whether or not the Nova Centre makes economic sense and should be built).

The core planning decisions are really about trade-offs that involve a balancing act between costs and benefits. When you ask people what they want without framing the discussion you get into "rainbows and unicorns" territory where people talk about things they think are high benefit (to them personally or groups they know, so maybe not actually that great for the city as a whole) without accounting for costs. It seems like 90% of this type of feedback is basically useless.

[Empire]

So far everyone is delusional about the Cogswell lands. There are no Cogswell lands. The claim of 6.5 hectares is wrong. This includes the ugly stinking sewer pit at the north end of the said "lands". The claim that half of that area will be required for traffic management is wrong. It is more like 70% and then you will have a massive bottleneck at the foot of Cogswell and on Cornwallis. Barrington must remain 4 lanes.

Why do people keep insisting that a stadium, Metro Centre or Arts Centre can go there? They cannot, tall towers with a small footprint similar to 1801 Hollis could be shoehorned in select wedges of land but there will still be a traffic nightmare. The streets have to go underground. It's too bad the city elected to put a 6ft dia. sewage collection line directly under the Cogswell exchange.

Also, I don't really see this connecting the north end to downtown. It connects the sewage treatment plant to downtown.

What could be there:
- transit hub- maybe a ferry terminal if someone is willing to give up waterfront property
- small pocket parks
- one midsized flatiron building
- four 35 storey office towers- connected underground with a retail network and connected to the downtown pedway system
- street level retail
- merge Hollis and Upper Water and go underground to the north end of the Cogswell interchange

[curnhalio]

Originally Posted by Empire

What could be there:
- transit hub- maybe a ferry terminal if someone is willing to give up waterfront property
- small pocket parks
- one midsized flatiron building
- four 35 storey office towers- connected underground with a retail network and connected to the downtown pedway system
- street level retail
- merge Hollis and Upper Water and go underground to the north end of the Cogswell interchange

I personally couldn't care less about what goes on top, however a transit hub underneath whatever is built is a must in my eyes. One of the biggest inhibitors to transit growth in this city - especially for peak services - has been the lack of a proper central terminal downtown. A facility the size of the new Bridge Terminal can fit quite easily lengthwise within the interchange lands but it's a bit snug widthwise when you factor in the likely street network. I've constructed a map of potential routings based on the current system although modifications are practically a given once something is built. I want to upload the image but it says I have to have a URL and this is a .bmp file. How do I get the image up? This is my first post. I've read with great interest all your ideas so far and I've decided to jump in the fray. Let me know what you think.

[halifaxboyns]

I've been away in Abbotsford for the long weekend, but looked at the media response to the Cogswell Xchange (or whatever the public meeting was called). I don't think I agree with Ketih's position on urban farms - there are ways of doing it that wouldn't remove space for buildings. Here in Calgary, they are doing an urban farm in the public right-of-way of the pedestrian mall running north south in the downtown. So an urban farm can be in planters, parts of buildings - it doesn't mean the whole site is the farm. But I think you may be thinking that if Watt's got her hands on the land it would be, in which case - I would agree with you.

Transit is the key to downtown and I agree that we have to really start thinking ahead. LRT and future transit service has to be really thought about in order to move forward. Whether it's a surface station or underground, make sure it's part of future density bonusing on the site so that Developers can contribute and reduce the cost to tax payers.

[jasonashhh]

[IMG]lol[/IMG]

Dont no if this worked out not

Black is an underground transit coming in from the mcdonald bridge, Take a chunk of wall out and turn the buses into there as well as removing the ramp going to scotia square.

Green is the Highway part of which will be travelling to hollis, bus routes will travel on as well to go underground going via spring garden etc.

Yellow is leaving out of water street going towards the bridges and one lane or maybe you dont need none there and could just use the casino route for more building along the hollis street highway.

Baby blue will be coming from TD building etc and turning up towards burnswick street as it will be a one way

the Black line is which also would be using that one way coming up out of ground would be bus routes going towards Burnswick not the best with drawing but there is lots of building space.

buses will be coming out and in from underground going upwards towards Td building etc instead of buses being on the right side they would have to be on the left side of the road after the set of light there to go underground if i had better skills of drawing this u would understand

also is it just me but could the city build a parkcade in the navy parking lot like a 8 story one and use some of the lots down there for massive high rises or is it just me while having a little street run through it ?

[Empire]

Originally Posted by jasonashhh

also is it just me but could the city build a parkcade in the navy parking lot like a 8 story one and use some of the lots down there for massive high rises or is it just me while having a little street run through it ?

Maybe put a new Metro Centre there?

[Wishblade]

Originally Posted by Empire

Maybe put a new Metro Centre there?

I remember hearing a while back that Irving once offered to build a parking garage at the dockyard if they were allowed to have a gas bar built on site as well. For whatever reason DND turned down the offer and it never came to fruition

[Aya_Akai]

Originally Posted by Wishblade

I remember hearing a while back that Irving once offered to build a parking garage at the dockyard if they were allowed to have a gas bar built on site as well. For whatever reason DND turned down the offer and it never came to fruition

Aren't they gearing up to build a 500 car parkade down there soon? .. at leas that's what I thought I read somewhere.. lol

[scooby074]

Originally Posted by HaliStreaks

Aren't they gearing up to build a 500 car parkade down there soon? .. at leas that's what I thought I read somewhere.. lol

Yup. Employee parking

[Wishblade]

Originally Posted by HaliStreaks

Aren't they gearing up to build a 500 car parkade down there soon? .. at leas that's what I thought I read somewhere.. lol

I hadn't heard this but that's good if it's true. It's badly needed there. As it stands, only DND employees who have 14 or more years with the organization are allowed a parking permit for the dockyard, and it still fills every day.