Hi Neighbours, Here are Kat’s and HRM staff’s notes from the latest walk Kat organized to help inform us about the development of the Centre Plan, especially as it affects our neighbourhood. See comments from Councillor Smith about the Bloomfield Centre near the end. Thanks so much to Kat for her efforts on our behalf. Ron Sent from Mail for Windows 10 From: Katherine Kitching Sent: December 2, 2020 4:21 PM Cc: Rexanne and/or Ron Skibbens Subject: Fwd: Bloomfield Walk notes Hi all, here are the notes that I have from our walk a couple of weeks ago, along with follow-up from Brandon, the planner who joined us. Feel free to share with others who may be interested. Please write me back if you have further questions we can get the planners to answer for you.. or if you have further comments/feedback to share with the planners. First half of December is the critical window to have your feedback considered! BLOOMFIELD WALK NOTES SUNDAY NOV 21 Concern voiced about potential Heritage Neighbourhood designation for Bloomfield n'hood: - It would be important for restrictions not to be too strict. Old houses require a lot of maintenance and owners need the flexibility to be able to do this maintenance in a cost-effective way. As far as I recall, everything else discussed was Q&A. Please correct me if you have other feedback to add. Here are the questions, answered by Brandon!   1. Attached garage requirements in the ER zones  (what sort of garages are permitted in our neighbourhood?) The proposed Centre Plan - Package B by-law includes 3 requirements related to attached garages for the 3 ER zones. The first requirement (Section 153(1) states that any garage door facing the front or flanking lot line shall not project any closer to the streetline than the wall of the main dwelling. The second requirement (153(2)) limits the number of garage doors facing the front lot line for a low-density dwelling use to one door and to a width of nor more than 50% of the width of the dwelling to a maximum of 3 metres. The third requirement (153(3)) limits the number of garage doors facing a flanking lot line for a low-density dwelling use to two doors and a maximum width of 50% of the dwelling up to 6 metres. There are separate and detailed requirements for detached garages in the by-law as they are accessory structures.   DOES ANYONE HAVE QUESTIONS/FEEDBACK ON THE ABOVE? 2. Urban Farm use (pertaining to the currently vacant lot on Northwood we stopped at) Urban Farm use is defined as an urban agriculture use, including a community garden, undertaken by a property owner, a community organization, or a commercial operator. Urban Agriculture use is defined as the use of a structure or land for: (a) the keeping of bees as an accessory use; (b) the keeping of egg-laying hens as an accessory use; or (c) the breeding, planting, cultivation, or harvesting of plants, such as vegetables, fruits, herbs, sprouts, ornamental plants, and flowers. These two definitions mean that the vacant lot we stopped at could be used as an Urban Farm but without a principal use on the lot like a dwelling the owner could not do (a) bees, or (b) hens alone as they are accessory uses. The lot could be used for (c) the breeding, planting, cultivation, or harvesting of plants, such as vegetables, fruits, herbs, sprouts, ornamental plants, and flowers.   DOES ANYONE HAVE QUESTIONS/FEEDBACK ON THE ABOVE? 3. Bloomfield site Update   Councillor Smith recently provided a detailed summary and history of the Bloomfield site and process. At the end of the timeline you can see that Council has moved to conditionally accept the RFP, as per the Disposal policy. Importantly, conditions were attached to the sale of the site or incorporated into policy for the site as we discussed on our walk yesterday. In 2017, Council directed staff to explore incorporating the following principles of the Bloomfield Master Plan concept: • 10,000 square feet of commercial market space, targeted to creative industry • 20,000 square feet of affordable community and cultural space • 20 percent of the site as open space • Explore incorporating affordable housing, as a condition of sale, consistent with policy direction to be set out in the Centre Plan.   Councillor Smith’s summary can be found here: https://lindellsmithhfx.ca/2020/10/13/bloomfield-sale-statement/ The minutes from the Regional Council meeting where these priorities were set can be found here: https://www.halifax.ca/sites/default/files/documents/city-hall/regional-cou…   Thanks again for the great walk yesterday. Please let me know if there are further questions or comments from the residents who joined us or if you have any more yourself.   Regards,   BRANDON UMPHERVILLE PLANNER I COMMUNITY POLICY PROGRAM | REGIONAL PLANNING PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT   T. 902 240 5128 halifax.ca