Thank You for Showing Up, Lucasville!

Thank You for Showing Up, Lucasville!

Last Thursday’s community meeting was a powerful success, and we want to thank everyone who came out to stand up for Lucasville. Your presence and passion made it clear. We care deeply about protecting our community, our culture, and our future.

Over 100 residents filled the Wallace Lucas Community Centre to speak out against the proposed 118-unit apartment development at 505 Lucasville Road. It was an inspiring turnout, and we’re hoping to double those numbers at our next meeting in August (date TBD). This time, we’ll be joined by HRM planning staff, including the planner responsible for this application, key decision-makers in determining whether or not this project moves forward.

What We Learned from the Planner

We reached out to Jess Harper, the planner assigned to the 505 Lucasville Road application, and received answers to several of the questions raised by residents.

Is this application currently open to public input? Why is it only now becoming publicly available when the original permit dates back to 2022?

• I anticipate the public engagement stage of the planning application process for the 505 Lucasville Road application to occur during the month of August. With that said, residents are welcome to reach out to myself at any point during the application process to provide comments and feedback, it is not only restricted to the public engagement stage.

• Developments that receive approval through the as-of-right process (i.e., do not require a decision a Council as the use is permitted in the zone) do not contain a public engagement component. Whereas discretionary planning applications, such as PLANAPP-2025-01152, that requires a decision of Council, include a public engagement component.

• HRM does have a Permit Status Map (Permit Status Map | Halifax) on our website which shows all approved permits for any given property throughout HRM. If you are looking for which permits have been issued for 505 Lucasville Road.

Given that Senior Citizens Housing is no longer a permitted use, would the developer now be applying under Shared Housing with Special Care, or another category?

• The development for 505 Lucasville Road will continue to fall under the use of Senior Citizen Housing. Appendix A-1 of the Beaver Bank, Hammonds Plains and Upper Sackville Land Use By-law is to account for existing senior citizen housing uses that had been issued a development permit for that use prior to the First Reading of Appendix A-1 at Regional Council. Regional Council approved Appendix A-1 on September 12, 2023, which allows for the Senior Citizen Housing use on the properties included within the Appendix to have their permits reissued until May 26, 2026. I have included the link to the staff report in case it is of interest: Regional Wide Approach to Shared Housing - Supplementary Report - Sept 12/23 Regional Council | Halifax.ca
  

Can you confirm what type of septic system is proposed? Based on our understanding, 2,400 square meters is not sufficient to support 64 units with on-site septic.

• As this application is for a land use by-law text amendment only, the specific layout of the site and details pertaining to the septic system are not part of this application but will be reviewed in detail at the permitting stage. Approval related to the septic system is obtained through the Nova Scotia Department of Environment and Climate Change.
  

Have any environmental, traffic, or community impact studies (including mental health or infrastructure assessments) been submitted or required for this development?

• As this application is for a land use by-law text only amendment to the Beaver Bank, Hammonds Plains, and Upper Sackville Land Use By-law (LUB), specifically Appendix A-1, items such as impacts to the environment and traffic are reviewed at the permitting stage, along with the site layout as mentioned above. With that said, I can confirm that a Traffic Impact Statement was submitted as part of the Engineering Right-of-Way permit.
  

What are the next steps in the application process? Will there be formal community engagement or consultation before any decisions are made?

• In terms of current and next steps, the application has completed the preliminary review stage, and the next stage is public engagement. As indicated above, I anticipate that the public engagement period will take place during the month of August and will be in the form of a mailout notification factsheet. I have also committed to sharing the factsheet with both HRM’s ANSCAP team and the Area Councillor for distribution so that residents beyond the notification area can be engaged. Following the completion of public engagement, staff will prepare a staff report for consideration by the North West Community Council. A public hearing is required to take place at Community Council prior to a decision being made on the application. The public will have the opportunity to share any comments or concerns they have on the proposal directly with Community Council at the public hearing.

et’s Keep the Momentum Going

If you have any further questions or comments, please reach out to the planner and CC us at lucasville.lvc@gmail.com We need your help to ensure this development does NOT go through as proposed. Here’s how you can take action:

✅ Sign the petition: www.change.org/lucasville ✅ Fill out our community survey: Take the survey ✅ Visit: www.lucasville.org to join the newsletter or sign up as a member ✅ Contact the planner directly:

Jess Harper Principal Planner, Rural Policy & Applications 📞 902-478-6875✉️ jessica.harper@halifax.ca Feel free to CC us at lucasville.lvc@gmail.com

✅ Talk to your councillor and MLA. ✅ Spread the word on social media. ✅ Encourage friends and family to get involved. Together, we can make a difference and shape the future of Lucasville—a future that reflects the voices of its people, not just developers.

We’ll see you in August.