RBC Waterside Centre
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The RBC Waterside Centre is a commercial development in the
downtown core The Downtown Core is the historical and downtown centre of the city-state of Singapore and the main commercial area in Singapore excluding reclaimed lands with two integrated resorts such as the Marina Bay Sands, one of the most expensive buil ...
of Halifax,
Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...
, Canada built by local real estate developer Armour Group. The project involves demolishing six heritage buildings and replacing them with a nine storey retail and office building, clad at ground level with the reconstructed facades of most of the former heritage buildings.


Site

The original six buildings occupy a downtown block facing the Halifax waterfront bounded by Upper Water Street, Duke Street, Hollis Street and the
Cogswell Interchange The Cogswell Interchange was a multi-level highway interchange in downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. It was built in 1969-70 as the first stage of a greater scheme for an elevated freeway, called Harbour Drive, that would have demolished much ...
. Along with the adjacent waterfront buildings of Historic Properties and the Victorian commercial buildings of the
Granville Mall Granville Mall can refer to two different locations: * Granville Mall, Halifax, a pedestrian mall in Halifax *Granville Mall, Vancouver The Granville Mall is a transit mall and pedestrian zone in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It comprises t ...
, the site is one of the only intact blocks of 19th-century buildings in Downtown Halifax. It includes the oldest storefront in Halifax and the site of the famous 18th-century tavern “The Great Pontack”, where
James Wolfe Major-general James Wolfe (2 January 1727 – 13 September 1759) was a British Army officer known for his training reforms and, as a major general, remembered chiefly for his victory in 1759 over the French at the Battle of the Plains of ...
planned the siege of Louisbourg and Quebec. The buildings have housed commercial and retail tenants, but Armour group has said that the buildings are no longer economical and their replacements by facades should be seen as restoration. The buildings on the block include the 1820 Harrington MacDonald-Briggs Building the oldest remaining commercial building in Halifax, the 1861 Fishwick & Company Building, the 1926 Imperial Oil Building as well as the 1840 Sweet Basil Building, the last wooden "sailortown" building on Halifax's Water Street. The only building on the historic block not facing demolition by Armour group is the Morse’s Tea Building owned by another developer who has converted the 1841 structure for office use and retained its interior and exterior structure.


Debate

The proposed development has split municipal politicians in Halifax. Those opposed, such as the
Heritage Trust of Nova Scotia The Heritage Trust of Nova Scotia is a non-profit society dedicated to the advocacy for and conservation of Nova Scotia's architectural and cultural heritage. It was founded in 1959, "in response to the proposed demolition of Enos Collins's Halifa ...
, say that Halifax is losing its small and dwindling number of heritage buildings which are a resource for culture and tourism. Supporters like the Downtown Halifax Business Commission say that developers should be given a free rein to promote economic activity. The debate also led Nova Scotia's Conservative Premier
Rodney MacDonald Rodney Joseph MacDonald (born January 2, 1972) is a Canadian politician, educator and musician who served as the 26th premier of Nova Scotia from 2006 to 2009 and as MLA for the riding of Inverness (provincial electoral district), Inverness in ...
to intervene in the city's politics in support of the development and demolition.Halifax Chronicle Herald, Oct. 23, 2008, page B2 Almost all of the presenters at public hearings in September 2008 opposed the project, including officials in the province's tourism industry. A signature with over 690 names opposing the development was presented to Halifax City Council in October 2008 Possible solutions have been suggested include a land swap or a compromise development but to date all have been rejected by Armour Group except for an offer to reduce the office tower by two stories if given large property tax breaks. The heritage buildings on the block were saved from demolition in the 1970s when heritage advocates stropped a planned Harbourfront expressway promoted by city traffic engineers and developers which would have demolished all older buildings on the waterfront. The move was seen as key to reviving the Halifax waterfront and Halifax's downtown tourism. Heritage proponents have argued that the pending demolition underscores Halifax's weak heritage laws. Unlike most older North American cities, Halifax has no heritage districts preserving blocks of heritage buildings but only has individual building designation which may easily be overturned by developers seeking demolition.


Rejection, appeal and demolition

The development was rejected by the council of Halifax Regional Municipality in a tie vote on October 21, 2008. The head of Armour Group, Ben McCrea, initially said he would not appeal as it would create bad publicity. However Doug MacIsaac of Armour Group announced on October 31 that his company would appeal council's decision to Nova Scotia’s Utility and Review Board, the same day as his company began demolition of the first of the six buildings, the former Sweet Basil restaurant. The Board overturned Halifax council's decision on March 26, 2009, and Halifax council voted on April 7 not to appeal the Board's decision.


Completion and occupancy

The development was substantially completed by early 2014. The
Royal Bank of Canada Royal Bank of Canada (RBC; ) is a Canadian multinational Financial institution, financial services company and the Big Five (banks), largest bank in Canada by market capitalization. The bank serves over 20 million clients and has more than ...
committed to occupying four floors of the building, including the ground level, in order to house their
Atlantic Canada Atlantic Canada, also called the Atlantic provinces (), is the list of regions of Canada, region of Eastern Canada comprising four provinces: New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. As of 2021, the landma ...
regional headquarters and flagship downtown branch, both relocated from their current premises on George Street. Royal Bank held a competition open to students and recent graduates of the adjacent
Nova Scotia College of Art and Design NSCAD University, also known as the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design (NSCAD), is a public university, public art school, art university in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The university is a co-educational institution tha ...
seeking a "signature artwork" for the development. RBC moved to the Waterside Centre from their old George Street location over a weekend in August 2014. An opening ceremony for the new building was held on 11 September 2014. The building achieved
LEED Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a Green building certification systems, green building certification program used worldwide. Developed by the non-profit U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), it includes a set of rating ...
Gold certification in February 2016.


References


External links


Project profile at Armour Group website
{{coord, 44, 39, 7.75, N, 63, 34, 27.57, W, region:CA, display=title Buildings and structures in Halifax, Nova Scotia Office buildings in Canada Royal Bank of Canada