The Value of Investing in Canadian Downtowns - International ...

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Key Patterns of Investment: 1. Central Library project An exciting new investment in the downtown is the Halifax Central Library, which will replace the current Spring Garden Road Memorial Library and serve as a central resource centre for residents. Funding for this project has been provided across all three levels of government, with the Government of Canada providing up to $18.3 million (from the Major Infrastructure Component of the Building Canada Fund), the Government of Nova Scotia providing $13 million and HRM contributing $23.7 million toward the project, which has a total estimated cost of $55 million. 10 The library is approximately 100,000-square-feet and the facility will include a larger book collection, additional meeting and study rooms, a 250-seat cultural and performance space, and areas for computers and emerging technologies. The building will reflect a modern design vision; it will be LEED Gold certified and will integrate two new public plazas. 11 ‘This [the new Central Library] is the first step, and it is a symbol that the public sector is investing in the Downtown again.’ 46 Library Under Construction http://www.mbchamber.mb.ca/2010/12/another-8-million-raised-for-canadian-museum-for-human-rights/ The City strategically released a large city-owned parking lot beside the library for new mixed use development. Once this entire development is complete, it will set a new standard for design in downtown Halifax and deliver a vibrant new mixed use community with a combination of both public and private spaces. The additional public space will be welcomed by the many visitors to Spring Garden Road, one of Halifax’s most popular ‘high streets.' 2. Heritage Incentives – Barrington Street Historic District Downtown Halifax possesses a rich collection of heritage buildings. However, a general lack of investment in these edifices over the past few decades has left them in a variety of conditions and some have reached a relatively serious state of decline. The HRMbyDesign process aimed to reverse this trend and established new incentives to address this challenge. Previously HRM did provide heritage incentives, yet the HRMbyDesign planning process revealed that the citywide program would not be large enough to support the extensive restoration work needed downtown – particularly concerning the revitalization of Barrington Street. It was estimated that in this heritage district, approximately one half of the buildings were in need of improvement. 12 Consequently HRM has created new incentives specifically for Barrington Street Heritage District and has made several million dollars available for in grants and tax credits over five years. This program has been very well utilized and since 2009, there have been 12 restoration projects approved through the Barrington Heritage District grants and incentives program and it is anticipated that this fund will be exhausted before the five years is up. Details on the first 10 approved restoration projects are provided below: 10 Infrastructure Canada (2011). Government Project Breaks Ground on Halifax Central Library Project. Retrieved from: http://www.infrastructure.gc.ca/media/news-nouvelles/2011/20111107halifax-eng.html. Accessed 2012 January 16. 11 EllisDon (2011). Summary. Retrieved from: http://ascribehq.com/ellisdon/portfolio/5826. Accessed 2012 January 16. 12 Regional Municipality of Halifax (2009). Barrington Street heritage Conservation District Revitalization Plan. Retrieved from http://halifax.ca/capitaldistrict/documents/BarringtonPlan.pdf. Accessed 2012 January 16.
Building Total Grant + Tax Credit 2009 Colwell (Mamoya, Certainly Cinnamon) $11,000 Freemason’s (TAO, Korean Grill) $300,000 Green Lantern (Pogue Fado, Tribecca) $585,000 2010 NFB (Façade, Argyle Bar & Grill) $476,000 Barrington e-Space (3 buildings) $502,000 NS Furnishings (Telus/Canada Manpower) $25,000 Farquhar (Venus Pizza) $205,000 2011 Old Carsand Mosher (Argyle Fine Arts) $168,000 G.M. Smith (Oddjects) $19,000 Brander-Morris (Attica) $36,000 TOTAL HRM Grants + Tax Incentives $2,327,000 Source: Presentation by Andy Filmore, Manager of Urban Design, 2010 The success of this program shows the willingness of private land owners to invest in their buildings and utilize these incentives. As Barrington Street is upgraded, HRM may be well served considering other targeted incentives to restore, reclaim and repurpose the wide range of heritage buildings that comprise the downtown. 3. Investing in Civic Spaces and Recreational Facilities HRM has invested strongly in civic spaces and recreational facilities. A key vehicle for this has been the HRM Community Facility Partnership Fund that was launched in 2008 to support the municipality’s Cultural Plan and Economic Development Strategy. This fund provided support to community non-profit groups and public institutions as a means to foster innovation and develop enduring community cultural and economic infrastructure. The program’s first grant supported the creation of the Seawall Farmers’ Market. Spatz Theatre at Citadel High School also received funding from this innovative program. 13 While the HRM was forced to temporarily suspend the Partnership Fund in 2011 due to fiscal constraints, there is hope it will be reinstated in subsequent years. Downtown Halifax has also benefited from investments in a range of other civic amenities and recreational spaces, such as the Victoria Park upgrade, which will help make the downtown more enjoyable for people living in the residential areas within a short distance of the park. The waterfront has also seen a series of upgrades that will help draw more vitality to the core. Furthermore, in 2010 HRM provided $1.1M to upgrade the Public Gardens along Spring Garden Road and financed several other streetscape improvement projects while in 2011, Council approved an economic strategy that called for the creation of a 5-year $50 million public realm improvement fund, to come from three levels of government, to be used in the urban core. 13 Halifax Regional Municipality. (No Date). Partnership fund template. Retrieved from: http://www.halifax.ca/boardscom/bccgrants/documents/HRMFacilityPartnershipFundTemplate.pdf. Accessed 2012 February 1. 47
Page 3 and 4: ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This project would
Page 5 and 6: CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .........
Page 7 and 8: Additionally this project aims to b
Page 9 and 10: with the selected downtown study ar
Page 11 and 12: KEY FINDINGS The project team devel
Page 13: Downtowns are iconic and powerful s
Page 16 and 17: Victoria have very sensitive downto
Page 18 and 19: PROSPERITY Does the downtown have a
Page 20 and 21: These are very promising signs, yet
Page 22 and 23: Downtowns are making a major contri
Page 24 and 25: The densest downtown is Vancouver a
Page 26 and 27: Downtowns are important places for
Page 28 and 29: Winnipeg Fredericton Edmonton Halif
Page 30 and 31: Downtown Toronto and downtown Vanco
Page 32 and 33: Municipal Investments (mapped inves
Page 34 and 35: DOWNTOWN CASE STUDIES 32
Page 36 and 37: Downtown Halifax Timeline 1749 - 20
Page 38 and 39: VISIBILITY Does the downtown have a
Page 40 and 41: VISIONARY Does the downtown have st
Page 42 and 43: LIVEABILITY Is the downtown vibrant
Page 44 and 45: sites for redevelopment that are cu
Page 46 and 47: Summary of Municipal Investments Pr
Page 50 and 51: Future Investments The proposed Con
Page 52 and 53: Downtown Fredericton Timeline 1749
Page 56 and 57: PROSPERITY: Is the downtown’s eco
Page 58 and 59: Municipal Tax Base Since 1995, the
Page 60 and 61: Public Realm Downtown Fredericton h
Page 62 and 63: 60 Municipal Investments in Downtow
Page 64 and 65: 2. Enhancing the waterfront Committ
Page 66 and 67: Downtown Ottawa Timeline 1792 - 201
Page 70 and 71: charges have recently been reinstat
Page 72 and 73: Many of the federally occupied buil
Page 74 and 75: Safety Downtown Ottawa is seen as a
Page 76 and 77: transit service downtown and across
Page 78 and 79: Summary of Public Investments Publi
Page 80 and 81: Key Patterns of Investment: Convent
Page 82 and 83: Downtown Toronto Timeline 1793 - 20
Page 84 and 85: Context Map: Key Assets and Feature
Page 86 and 87: The downtown study area differs sli
Page 88 and 89: http://www.architravel.com/architra
Page 90 and 91: Office Development Downtown Toronto
Page 92 and 93: Municipal Tax Base The downtown mak
Page 94 and 95: Safety Crime indicators for the Cit
Page 96 and 97: STRATEGY Is the City Strategically
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Public Investments in Downtown Toro
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5. Strengthening Communities Invest
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Downtown London Timeline 1840 - 201
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VISIBILITY Does the Downtown have a
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PROSPERITY: Is the downtown’s eco
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LIVABILITY Is the downtown vibrant,
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picnic tables, cafe tables with umb
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Summary of Capital Projects: 1998-2
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Key Patterns of Investment: The Cit
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WINNIPEG Growing in strength and co
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Context Map: Key Assets and Feature
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VISIONARY Does the downtown have st
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PROSPERITY: Is the downtown’s eco
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STRATEGY Is the City Strategically
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126 Major Public Investments in Dow
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Ship Street, Sky, and The Strand. T
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Downtown Saskatoon Timeline 1903 -
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VISIBILITY Does the downtown have a
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Leadership and Collaboration The Ci
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Office Development Private office s
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LIVEABILITY Is the downtown vibrant
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Key Patterns of Investment: 1. Conn
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EDMONTON a downtown filled with mom
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UNITY Does the downtown have strong
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Retail Development It has been obse
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156 Municipal Investments in Downto
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downtown zoning bylaws ensure that
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Downtown Vancouver Timeline 1859 -
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PROSPERITY Is the downtown’s econ
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The downtown also generates a fifth
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Eastside community, which could pot
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uild freeways into downtown Vancouv
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172 Downtown Vancouver Capital Proj
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2. Building complete communities In
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The City has also taken strong lead
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downtown is striving to offer a uni
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Safety Downtown Victoria has faced
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Pattern of Investment: Investing in
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QUICK WINS FOR CANADIAN DOWNTOWNS O
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Connecting the Downtown with Natura
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comprehensive planning processes to
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uilding and reconnect it with surro
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198 APPENDICES
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Yet, where the municipality had not
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Data Gaps From the outset of this p
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The foundation of the five principl
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was also collected that examines pr
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APPENDIX 2 - PHOTO CREDITS Front Co
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Context Map The Harbour: http://www
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Toronto 212 Confederation Square: h
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214 Rebuilt Covent Garden Market: h
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Parking lots: The Alberta Legislatu
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Victoria Cover Page Red Second post
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APPENDIX 3 - REFERENCE LIST City of
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City of Edmonton. (2010). Capital C
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City of Vancouver. (2007). Downtown
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Condos Victoria BC. (2011). The Atr
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Harris Consulting (2007). City of V
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The Star Phoenix Website. (2011). S
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