Association not in favour of Dartmouth Crossing residential development

By Joanne Oostveen - The Weekly News
The Greater Burnside Business Association says it does not support a recent application by Dartmouth Crossing Ltd. to rezone 31.5 hectares of land next to Burnside.
In a five-to-one vote earlier this month Harbour East Community Council passed the rezoning application that will now allow Dartmouth Crossing to pursue a residential development located north of the existing Dartmouth Crossing Business Park and west of Highway 118.
Karen Caldwell, spokeswoman for the volunteer-run Greater Burnside Business Association that represents more than 1,400 businesses and nearly 18,000 employees within Burnside, said adding the proposed 1,500 residential units on the land will bring added strain to an already inadequate infrastructure.
"The infrastructure has not grown with the park," she said. "For instance, there aren't enough buses now to satisfy the current demand without the additional residential construction and we have concerns about traffic and safety moving together. HRM has not been paying attention to us."
Caldwell also says other planning and construction issues have not been addressed for many years, making it almost impossible for them to fully understand the impact the rezoning will have on Burnside.
"We have long been promised a connection with Highway 102 which would improve commercial and commuter traffic flow, and we are still waiting to hear about the construction of the pedestrian overpass across Highway 111," said Caldwell. "Hopefully no one will get killed there. Improvements are long overdue."
Glenn Munro, managing partner of Eastern Canada for North American Development Group, the managing partner of Dartmouth Crossing, said he would like to see a sustainable community that includes a residential component, a place where people can live, work and play.
"We are happy the zoning was passed under the Halifax Regional Plan,which called for medium and high-density residential opportunities extending from City of Lakes up to the 118 and the 107," said Munro. "And really, when you look at things, we do have some of the same concerns as the GBBA."
Munro said his property will not have through access to Burnside, which will alleviate traffic and they will be buffering their properties.
Dartmouth Crossing will now have to work out a full development agreement with HRM and the developer. This will include input from businesses, residents and other groups like the Shubie Canal Commission he said.
"The development agreement will regulate the layout, density and finishes of buildings, the buffer zones required from Burnside Park and the highway and green areas such as parks, bike and pedway routes and watercourses," said Munro.
Construction on the new residential development is not expected to begin until late 2010 or 2011.
joanneoostveen@accesswave.ca