‘Completely nuts’: Premier takes aim at Halifax decision to designate new encampment sites

CITYnews halifax / By Mark Hodgins

As Halifax prepares nine new locations for use by people experiencing homelessness, the premier says he’s not on board with several of the spaces that will soon be used for tenting.

On Tuesday night, Halifax councillors designated nine new locations, including seven in Halifax and two in Dartmouth.

“When I saw some of the sites that the HRM has designated, I almost fell out of my chair,” Premier Tim Houston said.

He said Point Pleasant Park and a space on the Halifax Common stood out to him as being “completely nuts.”

“It’s just really hard to get the head around how the HRM council could think that these would be appropriate sites and the impact they would have on communities and on Nova Scotians,” Houston said.

The premier said the province has been working “diligently” with Halifax on around 40 sites, which he said could include shelters and pallet villages. Houston did not give details about specific sites.

In an email to CityNews, a municipal spokesperson said Point Pleasant Park was not yet an officially designated location and staff were working to determine a specific location within the park for an encampment.

The potential location at the Halifax Common is the area within the walking trails that run along Cogswell St., North Park St., and the walking trail opposite from Nora Bernard St., they said.