Cogswell District, Halifax’s biggest city-building project, officially launched

It's being called the largest and most ambitious city building project in the municipality's history.

An event was held Tuesday morning to officially launch the Cogswell District.

“The Cogswell District project will transform the Cogswell Interchange from an underutilized piece of road infrastructure into a new, vibrant urban neighbourhood in the heart of downtown Halifax,” said Halifax Regional Municipality CAO Jacques Dubé.

“We are very excited to gear up for the construction and we look forward to breaking ground on the project in the coming months.”

Sixteen acres of road infrastructure will be converted into a mixed-use neighborhood that's expected to one day be where 2,500 Haligonians live and work.

Mayor Mike Savage said in the coming months utility companies will start moving their infrastructure to get ready for construction.

In addition, three by-pass roads will be set up to detour traffic around demolition sites. Two will be for north-south vehicles, while the third will be for east-west traffic. They are expected to be finished by spring. 

HRM will be launching mobile app in the coming months to help Haligonians stay up to date on road closures and detours.

“Make no mistake, this is a massive project,” Savage said. “Demolition of the existing elevated road network and re-establishing new roads will take … probably about four years to complete.”

“It will cost over $120-million, much of which will be recovered through the sale of land and property tax. We expect the work, which will begin this spring, to finish in fiscal 2025/6.”

The completed project will include four new parks, multi-use paths, an active transportation network and a transit hub.

“This project is designed to reflect the aspirations of our community. To be a prosperous, growing city that cares about its environment, and the wonderful mix of people of all kinds who contribute to the life, culture and personality of place that we believe set us apart,” Savage said.

“Cogswell will support a district energy system that supplies renewable energy from the Halifax Water Wastewater Treatment Facility,” he added. “This unique initiative to heat and cool buildings within the district will be one of the many ways we showcase our commitments under our Halifax Climate Plan.”

The new neighbourhood will be designed to achieve Rick Hansen Gold Certification for accessibility “an important statement that we want this district to welcome everyone,” Savage explained, adding Mi'kmaq and African Nova Scotia culture and heritage will also be visible throughout the area.
 
“Let's get to work reconnecting our history with a bright new future for our downtown,” the mayor said.