A plan that will shape how buildings are built throughout Halifax Regional Municipality is one step away from completion. 

The Centre Plan, meant to regulate development and land use within the regional centre, has been years in the making and is off to the province for its approval after Package B was passed unanimously by Halifax regional council Tuesday night. 

Package A, which focused on high growth and mixed-use areas such as downtown Dartmouth, was adopted in 2019. But regulations for the remaining areas including downtown Halifax and the rest of the regional centre were left to be covered by Package B. 

The latter of the two packages focuses on adding density with minimal impact on a neighbourhood while providing housing options such as backyard and secondary suites. It also took into account what is important in each zone, such as industrial or institution employment, heritage preservation and water access. 

At the end of the day, Eric Lucic, director of regional planning at HRM, said the ultimate goal is to create more housing opportunities.

“We’re recognizing there is a demand for housing now and this Centre Plan is to lay it out,” Lucic told council. 

“We are talking about 50,000 potential housing units within the regional centre from this and that is a lot.” 

The two packages, which will be integrated with one another, will create at least 20 different zones with regulations for density, height, bonus zoning and other measures tailored to each zone’s needs.

However, some architects came forward during the public hearing portion to voice concerns with specifics they found within the hundreds of pages of documents that make up Package B, ultimately increasing the costs of construction resulting in less affordable housing. 

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