For guys, there’s always a small thrill in getting to smash something. But joining Halifax Mayor Peter Kelly in swinging a sledgehammer through drywall was rewarding for much more than the visceral experience. The resulting spray of dust marked the official kickoff of construction for our new Global Maritimes station in the historic North End of Halifax.

Don’t call it a TV station. We are eager for the facility being developed on Gottingen Street to be much more than that: a “virtual” community centre, a digital news incubator and, most of all, a great place to visit and to work.

It is being built in what was once the Vogue Theatre — a Vaudeville-era playhouse that later became the city’s premiere cinema. It then fell into disrepair and was reopened in various incarnations: as an adult theatre, a punk rock bar, a gay nightclub, and most recently a boxing gym. Oh, the stories these walls could tell …

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So what better place to put a newsroom dedicated to telling stories? And what better neighbourhood than one that is close not only to the business and political elite of the downtown core, but also to the struggles of the city? Our new neighbors include both community outreach organizations and up-and-coming businesses; subsidized housing side-by-side with funky urban lofts and condos.

In short, it is the community in microcosm — and our move here reflects a strong desire to be at the centre of it.

Shaw Media is investing close to $10 million in Halifax over the next five years to re-invent the very idea of a TV station: from one focused on the industrial processes of getting on-air, to one centered around community connection, whether that connection occurs through our front doors or through social media.

When we move in this fall, one of the first things we’ll do is launch a new, regional morning show. It’s part of our desire to provide news and community content not just at 6:00 and 11:00 pm, but around the clock. And for that matter, not just on TV but online and through mobile platforms as well. We call it the “Digital First” newsroom, and we hope that our hip, creative and innovative workplace will help attract even more hip, creative and innovative staff to take not just Global Maritimes but all of Global News in bold new directions.

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Halifax is one of Canada’s most dynamic, educated and artistic cities. We are thrilled to make a long-term commitment to grow along with it. And thrilled to be breaking down a few walls in the process.

