But for two decades all levels of government have been dicking around with the site, doing everything but building some damn housing already. Governments chased one impossible fantasy after another for the site. It was the vehicle for an aborted but self-enriching scheme by business fraudsters to host the Commonwealth Games. Then Mayor Mike Savage managed to get the municipality to spend a gazillion dollars to study putting a stadium that no one wants on the site, before pivoting to a masturbatory exercise in using it for an Amazon World Headquarters, as if Jeff Bezos would give two shits about Halifax. The federal crown corporation Canada Lands has been studying the area to death, finally getting around to saying that it will be fully developed by… 2034.

Last year, Canada Lands committed to making 20% of the housing to be built on the site “affordable,” but it was anyone’s guess what affordable actually means. “The company plans to start building roads and selling lots in 2024, acting senior director Mary Jarvis told the Harbour East Marine Drive Community Council Thursday night,” reported Zane Woodford in February 2023.

For some reason, the 20% affordability promise, still undefined, was re-announced yesterday, but Heather Chisholm, Canada Lands’ director of real estate said Canada Lands “is now working with the municipality to get the required approval to subdivide the property, and will then sell off parcels of land to developers. She expects construction to start in the fall of 2025,” reports Nicola Seguin for the CBC.

Absolutely no explanation was given for why the start of construction was delayed from 2024 to 2025, and I seriously doubt we’ll even see that.

Moreover, Canada Lands is evidently more concerned about maximizing profit over meeting the need for public housing. The whole site could be government-owned and -managed public housing, but instead Canada Lands is parceling it off to private developers. The 20% “affordable” criteria, whatever that means, will be met by “working with” overly stretched and under-resourced non-profits that, frankly, aren’t up to the task.

In the 1960s, Mulgrave Park went from an idea to planning to construction in under 18 months, but now Shannon Park is now looking at three decades of inaction, and the action that is promised to come is inadequate and set for failure.

This is housing the government could build immediately, without hassle or fanfare. Just building some damn housing already.

Wonder how they sleep at night ….
shame

You are two amazing women. We are listening to this and we are bawling our eyes out because this is our reality. We cannot move somewhere in Nova Scotia. We have to leave the province when its time for us to go. As excited as we are for our new adventure, we are saddened to know that its against our will. We love living here. I moved here from homelessness which was caused by fleeing domestic violence! I was pregnant and had a toddler with no family to support me or my children. The support and love ive gained from others in this community has truly kept me ALIVE. Ocean Breeze saved my life. Its heartbreaking to know people I love, established friendships with and created family support with all live the same reality as myself & it breaks my heart to know we face homelessness again.

Id like to think ive done well for this community! I talk to everyone I see, I look after EVERYONES kids and share the food I literally need for my own family. I have helped so many people with emergencies with their pets, looked after homes & even helped clean for others when they were unable to. Once a year, my kids and I go around picking up garbage so that way I can also teach them to take care of their community and to learn that voluntary work for something creates a feeling of good in their hearts. I dont want to leave here. Its the closest to the feeling of a home ive ever had. The people here are good, the life here is good.

This new bill will make my family live in a tent. Ill lose my children. I dont have family to move in with, nor could we ever afford to pay rent higher than we do now. Theres no way we could ever pay for rent by holding on to money as we cannot save it. The prices of food are so insane that I cry at the store panicking that my kids will be hungry. One sick week this winter will cost us dearly. We dont have much wiggle room to have sick days.

I made a promise to my kiddo when we moved here and I tend to keep it. The promise was “I promise you, that we will never have to live in a shelter ever again, I will always make sure we are safe”. The mental health struggles that child has now because the buildings are being torn down is catastrophic in itself. The deer being reloacted made them cry themselves to sleep, the sounds of the machines make them cry, the empty lots where friends once lived in which we need to walk by to go to school, hurts them. Its just such a horrible situation for everyone.

I once again thank you for advocating for families like mine. ❤️ I appreciate you both more than you could ever know. Your words, quivering voices & strength has been recognized, recorded and appreciated.

Thank you for being a voice for us!