Archives /// urban green

HALIFAX - Interested in turning your urban yard into a rural idyll? Always wanted a piece of the country right here in the city? On Wednesday at Halifax Hall, city staff are hosting a public information meeting regarding backyard laying hens and a proposed amendment to the Peninsula Land Use By-law. Following this meeting, the proposal will undergo a detailed review and staff will prepare a report to be tabled at Peninsula Community Council. If you're interested in the growing urban farm movement, this is the place to make yourself heard. WHAT: Public information meeting ...

MONCTON - While driving towards Salisbury along the Riverview side of the Petitcodiac River I noticed some peculiar sign-age under the acronym LAPPA, imploring all who cared to read it to keep the causeway connecting Moncton with Riverview closed. Having become familiar with the plight of the river myself over the years, the sign struck me as odd. It was my understanding that the general consensus amongst concerned citizens was that the gates should be opened in an effort to restore the river.  So, as with anything of particular interest to my life, I Googled it. Before we get to my findings, a little background information if you will. The causeway was constructed as a means of connecting Moncton with the quickly expanding town of Riverview and, as is the case with many NB municipalities, foresight was a word not found in the City of Moncton’s dictionary. The causeway essentially pinched off the river, causing a massive buildup of silty sediment directly downstream. The river's tidal bore, once world renowned and allegedly surf-able, was reduced to little more than the trickle of an 80 year man with kidney stones. As can be imagined the local ecosystem was affected and the fauna — fish in particular — that had once flourished soon vanished. A new ecosystem has since grown in its place, namely that of Lake Petitcodiac, a fresh water headpond that amasses upriver of the causeway.

Brought to you in collaboration with the Ecology Action Centre and Halifax Cycling Coalition, SpokesPeople covers all things cycle-related. From the principles to the potholes, we're here to examine the realities facing the two-wheeled traveler. HALIFAX - With debate still simmering after last week's North Commons revitalization presentation, Spacing Atlantic is pleased to kick off SpokesPeople with a look at the place of cyclists in the Halifax Common. An undisputed geographical crossroads in peninsular Halifax, the North Common is a figurative crossroads in countless other ways, too. Each day, thousands of pedestrians and cyclists criss-cross the Common’s various axes – and each other. Many are “straight-line” users, commuting to and from school and work via the shortest possible path between two of the Common’s numerous corners. For others, the Common itself is the destination: a place for a relaxed stroll on a sunny afternoon, or a venue for youngsters to test the waters of life without training wheels, free of the worry of motorized vehicles bearing down on them. Add in concertgoers, picnickers and sports enthusiasts, and you’ve got a multi-use space that is brimming with Haligonians and visitors alike. Where else could a commuting high schooler, a left fielder, and a rabid rock fan make the same footprint within hours of each other?

[caption id="attachment_2901" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="Map of Halifax Commons in 1931 linked to Point Pleasant Park by Tower Road"][/caption] HALIFAX - If you look it up on Google Maps, Canada’s oldest urban park, the Halifax Common hugs the western skirt of Citadel Hill. It’s shown as two triangular patches of green space — North and Central — divided by a yellow line that is Cogswell Street. The city seems to stop at its edges on all sides: Cunard, Robie, North Park Streets, and Bell Road define its present day boundaries as it sits sheltered by the Citadel from the east. Halifax’s early beginnings though, tell a different tale — there was also a South Commons — and that story can be read through the urban fabric that exists today. It’s fun to be an urban sleuth — reading the physical city for windows back in time. Cities themselves can often tell the story if we’re willing to squint and read between the lines. The Commons (as it is locally known) began as a much larger piece of land, a swath of open space ‘for common use’ that cut north-south across the peninsula reaching to the edge of what is now Saint Mary’s University. As our biggest public room in the city, The Commons is lined with buildings, tall and short, and anchored by the Citadel from the east. You may think that there is a very clear edge to its domain on all sides, but the public and institutional spaces found a little further south challenge that boundary and show us hints into our city’s past.

SYDNEY, NS - After declining use and facilities crumbling for years, the initiative to revitalize Wentworth Park in Sydney began in 2004. As this work continues to progress, this park will once again be worthy of being called Sydney's signature urban park. Beginning in 2004, coinciding with the King's Road realignment and the start of construction on "The Wentworth" condominiums, renovations on the lower pond of Wentworth Park began. The renovations included an improved, more natural looking retaining wall along the pond's shore, improved pathways, monument restorations, a new elevated gazebo overlooking this section of the park, new fountains, and a new pedestrian underpass under King's Road as part of a larger plan to connect the park to the Sydney Boardwalk on one side and Rotary Park on the other. This is also part of the larger Active Transportation plan for Cape Breton Regional Municipality (CBRM), parts of which will be further explored in future articles.

HALIFAX - Interested in learning more about the development of the District 14 active transportation trail and how it fits into the larger plan for the Halifax Urban Greenway? Here's an opportunity to hear members of the Halifax Urban Greenway Association and HRM staff speak on the development of the trail and how community members can become involved. WHAT: Meeting on the Halifax Urban Greenway trail in District 14 WHEN: Wed, Jan 27th, 7pm WHERE: Oxford School, 6364 North St (entrance off of Willow St, ...

HALIFAX - HRM's proposed plans for the North Common [PDF] will be presented and discussed at an open house at City Hall tonight. The proposal includes an asphalt "Special Events Plaza," a new building, clustered street-side kiosks and seating, wider pathways, and a redesign of the Centennial Fountain. The public is invited to view the proposed plan starting at 6:30, followed by a presentation and question period — a crucial opportunity to float concerns, clarifications, and suggestions. In preparation for tonight's event, community group Friends of the Halifax Common ...