HALIFAX—No parking, no problem for regional council.

After a public hearing Tuesday night, Halifax regional council voted unanimously in favour of bylaw amendments to allow a five-storey development, proposed by WM Fares Architects, on Agricola St.

The site comprises eight civic addresses in the 2400 block of Agricola St., but only two buildings, currently occupied by 10 residential units and a record store. The new building will house 34 residential units ranging from small studios to two-bedrooms, with commercial space in the ground floor.

And while the building will boast ample parking for bicycles – and a bike share program for residents – there won’t be a single space for cars.

At the public hearing, there were concerns raised about the building’s height and a lack of affordable housing in the area, but parking was the issue that came up during each of the five speaker’s time at the microphone.

“We love the idea of density. We’re concerned with parking,” said Agricola St. resident Peter Williams.

“Parking’s at a premium already and despite the good intentions of the architects to make it a bicycle-friendly building, which is very dear to my heart, I sincerely doubt that all the residents of the building, or the majority of the residents of the building are going to be living carless.”

Cesar Saleh, vice-president of planning and design at WM Fares Architects, told council he’s “confused” when it comes to parking.

“I go to meetings, and some people want more parking, some people want less parking,” Saleh said.

Saleh reminded councillors that the Centre Plan – the long-awaited set of land-use planning documents designed to guide growth in Halifax for the next decade or more – removes parking requirements for buildings in areas like Agricola St.

“That’s going to be the law of the future,” Saleh said.

“We strongly feel that a building in this location does not require parking, and we believe that people will live there that do not rely on cars or do not want to own cars.”

Saleh said architects removed the parking as a response to the municipality’s peninsula planning advisory committee’s concerns with the project. That committee found that the plans, which used to have a parking garage entrance in the front, weren’t pedestrian friendly enough. It found enough concerns to recommend that the project not go ahead without changes.

Along with the removal of parking, the developer made other changes to address those concerns, including lowering the streetwall on Agricola St. to three storeys from four.

Councillor Lindell Smith, who represents the area, said he wasn’t excited about the proposal, but it is exactly the kind of building that the Centre Plan is calling for.

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Smith asked that WM Fares consider moving the mechanical penthouse, which rises above the fifth floor, to appease some residents’ concerns over shadows.

The proposal passed without amendments.

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