Development causes concern about schools
An approved Halifax council motion to initiate planning for 5,800 new housing units for the proposed development on the Exhibition Park lands has caused concern about a lack of schools.
The issue was first brought up by Coun. Patty Cuttell (Spryfield-sambro Loop-prospect Road), who noted that development plans showed no mention of schools in the area.
Coun. Waye Mason (Halifax South Downtown) estimated that about 1,800 school-aged residents will be living in the new developments once constructed. Yet there have been no plans made to provide spaces for their education.
“Those are the kinds of things the comprehensive process has to identify,” said Mason. “Where are the rec centres going to go? Where are the schools going to go?”
Mason said that a new junior high and elementary school should be built to accommodate new students, as well as a new high school in a separate area.
However, Mason later added that for 1,800 new students, there isn’t room set aside in the development plan to account for new schools.
“There’s no way that children should be bussed out of a place that has the density of Truro and taken somewhere else,” said Mason. “This community, when built out, needs to be self-contained in that way.”
Matt Conlin, a planner for the municipality, said creating space for new schools would start with a review from the Halifax Regional Centre for Education (HRCE). Further down the line, there would need to be a negotiation with the developer, Banc Group Inc.
Conlin said in his city planning experience, he’s yet to see a developer who was against having a school site near their property.
“It only makes their site look that much more appealing, that much more integrated into the community,” he said.
Another municipal planner, Stephanie Salloum, added that zoning the land for institutional uses could also allow them to bring new schools into the area.
HRCE communications officer Lindsey Bunin said that the administration has opened five new schools in the past six years. For the Exhibition Park development, they’re planning to work with the municipality and do what they can for Halifax students.
“HRCE works closely with the municipality to understand the implications of development throughout our community,” said Bunin. “As we do with all news of growth and development, we will incorporate the details of the proposed Exhibition Park project into our plans to ensure students are safely and comfortably accommodated.”
In terms of next steps for the project, Salloum said representatives from HRM planning and development will return to council in June with updates on the community engagement process.