N.S. government yet to make plan for land bought at Shannon Park

The Nova Scotia government has not yet decided what to do with two parcels of land it recently bought at Shannon Park in Dartmouth for nearly $17 million.

"We know we want to maximize affordable housing for that area, and it's zoned for up to 600 [units] but it's currently — the plans have not been developed," Public Works Minister Fred Tilley told reporters Thursday.

Tilley said his department's job was to make the purchase, and the rest will be handled by other departments.

A spokesperson for the Department of Growth and Development — the department that handles the housing file — said they had no other information to share.

Canada Lands is managing the piecemeal sale of Shannon Park, a former military site that has been largely vacant since 2017. In March, it sold two parcels that amount to more than 9,000-square metres of land to the province for $16.8 million.

The federal Crown corporation has said that redevelopment of Shannon Park, which totals about 34 hectares, will include at least 20 per cent affordable housing, equivalent to about 600 units.

Following Tilley's comments, opposition politicians offered some suggestions for how to develop the land and urged the government to get moving.

"I would say it should go to non-profit organizations," said Liberal MLA Iain Rankin.

"Adsum House does a great job. Build another Sunflower 2.0 there," said Rankin, referring to a 25-unit residential community in his riding built by Adsum for Women and Children.

Trish McCourt of the Nova Scotia Non-Profit Housing Association told CBC News earlier this month that she hopes non-profits will be involved in development of the site.

NDP Leader Claudia Chender said the province should be acting with urgency, no matter what model is chosen. She pointed to tiny homes, modular housing, public housing and making deals with non-profit organizations as options.

"We know how many people in [the Halifax Regional Municipality] are living in precarious housing and I don't think they care what the detail is or what the definition is," Chender said.

Canada Lands' vision for the whole of Shannon Park includes 3,000 residential units, a transit hub and two large parks.