More development planned for downtown Dartmouth

By Joanie Veitch - The Weekly News
A developer wants to build three multi-unit residential buildings, including a high-rise tower, in the Pine Street Extension and Ochterloney Street area.
Darrell Dixon, a construction manager who has overseen several projects for Shannex, first started buying some of the properties five years ago and now wants to develop four parcels of land. As part of the deal, he's also proposing to partner with the city and the Shubenacadie Canal Commission to finish the parkland area that has been developed on the former Starr site.
"My property is adjacent to that site so it just makes sense for us all to work together to get a site plan that we're all happy with. I want to make this an historic destination, an address that people will know and identify," Dixon said.
At last week's regional council meeting, councillors approved a staff recommendation to begin the process of amending the Municipal Planning Strategy for downtown Dartmouth to designate the area Dixon owns as an opportunity site under the MPS. Specifically, the parcels of land under discussion are on Ochterloney Street, next to the Greenvale building, a second site behind the former school, a third at the now-vacant laundromat, and a fourth on what is currently a parking lot beside Andrea's Music Studio.
Referring to the site on Ochterloney Street, Dixon said he plans a building "that will be in keeping with the architecture" of the street.
The high-rise building, which he plans for the middle parcel behind the Greenvale development, will be a slender tower. "It won't just be a square box, " Dixon said, adding that he intends to live in the finished structure. "I'm planning a building with a lot of curves. It will have some interesting definition."
People who attended public forums held in downtown Dartmouth as part of HRM By Design said they want more high-density residential buildings in the downtown core, noted Mitch Dickey, a city planner working on the proposed project.
But people are also very concerned with maintaining the character of the area, he added.
"This site is critical. It is behind a heritage building and faces public streets," said Dickey. "I expect it's going to be a highly-scrutinized process."
The opportunity for partnering on "site improvements" on adjacent lands on the former Starr Manufacturing site and Shubenacadie Canal Corridor - both owned by the city - is an interesting component of the proposal, Dickey said. One of the improvements being discussed is the proposed "daylighting" of a section of the canal.
"Whether or not it will happen is still up in the air, but he (Dixon) could definitely help with that," he said.
Dickey will be leading a public information meeting on the proposed development on Feb. 15 at Dartmouth High School. Dixon will also be there with some of the preliminary designs for the buildings.
jveitch@ns.sympatico.ca