Roy Building redevelopment plan stalled
Legislative snag delays public hearing into downtown construction
By BRUCE ERSKINE Business Reporter
Thu. Apr 8 - 4:54 AM
A legislative oversight has delayed a public hearing on the Roy Building development in downtown Halifax.
The development, which includes the demolition of the Barrington Street building, the reconstruction of its historic facade and the construction of a 17-storey tower above it, was to have gone to a public hearing in March, said Rob Landry, property manager with building owner Starfish Properties.
But the hearing was postponed because of the need to amend municipal legislation affecting the project, Landry said Wednesday.
"Nothing is planned at the moment," he said in an interview, adding that the building, which extends to Granville Street, is still leasing space to tenants. "We have no plans to proceed with demolition."
Landry referred questions on whether Starfish is upset about the delay to the Toronto-based company’s principal, Louis Reznick, who was out of the country and couldn’t be reached for comment Wednesday.
The legislative issue, which came to light earlier this year, involves "grandfathering" provisions made for the Roy project and for Frank Medjuck’s nearby Discovery Centre building development.
The developments were grandfathered under the Downtown Halifax Secondary Municipal Planning Strategy but require similar provisions under the Barrington Street Heritage Conservation District Revitalization Plan and Bylaw.
A report on the "drafting error" concluded that municipal council would have to refuse both applications since there are no policies in the heritage district plan that would enable council to consider approving them.
Andy Fillmore, HRM’s urban design manager, said in January the errors were "very fixable" but would require a public hearing that would likely draw critics of the developments, which are taller than the heritage district’s 21.6-metre height limit.
Peter Delefes, head of the Heritage Trust of Nova Scotia, said the projects made no sense in a heritage zone and the trust would oppose them.
Medjuck, president of 1595 Investments Ltd., which owns the Discovery Centre building, is still waiting to hear from HRM on what he called a "procedural" matter that doesn’t affect his development plan.
"Nothing has changed," he said Wednesday. "I’m hopeful."
In the meantime, Medjuck has signed an agreement to keep the Discovery Centre at the Barrington Street location and has tweaked the design of the mixed- use complex, which will be shorter than originally planned.
"My inclination is to go residential," he said, noting a lot of new office space is coming on the market.
Medjuck said the approval process may take time — "I’m used to it" — but he didn’t have a fixed timeline to begin construction.
A nearby development, the 27-storey "Twisted Sister" twin tower, is about 18 months away from construction due to protracted municipal approvals that took almost five years, said Navid Saberi of United Gulf Developments Ltd.
Saberi, whose firm moved on to other projects while the Twisted Sister approval process dragged on, said new municipal development rules stifle creativity.
"This city is slow to get things done," he said, noting that three United Gulf condo projects have been under review for almost two years. "It’s ridiculous."
HRM planner Kelly Denty said Wednesday that a staff report on grandfathering provisions for the Barrington heritage conservation bylaw went to council in January and the matter is still "in process."
(
berskine@herald.ca)
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of subdivision planning is a big factor in the poor support and decisions made for/on the peninsula in the past 20 years.
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