The postcard view of Canada?s Atlantic coast is dotted with small, colourful clapboard houses sitting by the ocean. But in some parts of the Atlantic, that?s starting to change, with a growing appetite for contemporary design, and a contingent of architects ready to deliver it.
?When the Halifax Central Library opened, it changed many people?s perceptions about what a modern building could bring to the city,? says Rayleen Hill, of RHAD Architects. The opening of the library in 2014 coincided with a real estate boom in the city: construction has been on the rise, with a record number of housing starts in 2018.
There?s a sense of economic optimism that?s unusual for the fiscally conservative city. It?s anchored, perhaps, in the thriving Irving shipyard, which secured a $25-billion package for building federal combat vessels in 2011, and earlier this year was part of a team selected to design and construct another $60 billion of military ships. ?When I first arrived in Halifax 25 years ago, there were massive parking lots in the city,? recalls Susan Fitzgerald, of FBM Architecture & Interior Design. ?Now, new communities are being created on those sites.?
FBM Architecture & Interior Design?s plan for Halifax?s Midtown North comprises a mix of six commercial and residential buildings.
One of the most visible development projects is Queen?s Marque, a set of residential midrises on the downtown waterfront by MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple and FBM that includes public areas. Ther...