Town of Lunenburg says world will be watching its new housing development

The historic Town of Lunenburg, N.S., is open for ideas on what a new hillside neighbourhood should look like.

The municipality issued a request for proposals in early February for a residential development across a nine-hectare site on Blockhouse Hill, which is currently owned by the town. Plans are due by March 31.

"It's the Oscars of development. I mean, what you do here will be seen globally," said Lunenburg chief administrative officer Jamie Doyle.

"It's so important that we get it right, and that the … design schemes are right."

The area is one of the few spots in town with views of both the colourful Lunenburg Harbour and the quiet, more wooded Back Harbour. Proposal documents require each applicant to come up with four different designs that include different types of housing, new streets and parkland.

Accessible units must be included, and 10 per cent of the homes must be affordable housing. The town says affordable rent is 30 per cent of median household income, estimated at about $1,637 per month.

"We certainly want to participate where we can and within our jurisdiction to help ease some of the housing crunch and crisis … within this province," Doyle said.

The winning applicant will likely be selected by council this spring or early summer, Doyle said, and their designs will be open to public feedback after that.

Zoning for the lands ranges from low density of one main building per lot to high density with no unit limit, Doyle said, but designs still have to fit the community fabric of Lunenburg and likely won't be higher than four storeys to ensure the harbour sight-lines remain.

Doyle said deputy mayor Peter Mosher described an ideal model as a "21st century Hydrostone," referring to the 1920s Halifax development of concrete row houses and greenery.

"It's a new side of Lunenburg — literally and figuratively," Doyle said.

The property is within the buffer zone of Lunenburg's UNESCO World Heritage Site, which means any design is required to "complement" the area's heritage. Any artifacts uncovered during construction must be immediately reported to the provincial Department of Communities, Culture and Heritage.

The town's call for proposals describes Lunenburg as the best surviving example of a planned British colonial settlement in North America. Established in 1753, it has retained its original rectangular grid layout and some buildings from the 18th century remain.

Kim Taylor lives next to the Blockhouse Hill site, and said Lunenburg's "very significant" history is an important factor that designers and developers must keep in mind.

The hill itself was a key defensive area for cannons during colonial times, given its view of both harbours, Taylor said.

"People need to keep their minds open, and developers need to keep their minds open, that both progress and history can move ahead together," Taylor said.

"We can still be proud of the community in its new iteration."

Taylor said the site makes sense for a large development, and the reality is Lunenburg badly needs housing for families and local workers, because people commuting to the area is not what makes "a thriving town."

Newer homes will hopefully be more in reach for many people who can't currently afford to fix up Lunenburg's beautiful but large and aging houses, Taylor said.

"I don't want to see Lunenburg as a retirement village for well-heeled people," Taylor said.

However, Jamie Myra of the Lunenburg Board of Trade said any homes built on the hill will likely still cost more than $500,000 given the properties feature water views. He added that 10 per cent affordable housing is "smoke and mirrors," given such a small percentage of the project.

Although the Blockhouse Hill development was part of the town's Comprehensive Community Plan (CCP) from 2020 which received public feedback, Myra said many residents were distracted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Call for public meeting

Now, Myra said projects like Blockhouse Hill and a pilot bike lane on Montague Street have come as a surprise and created a "divide" among residents who feel like they didn't have proper say in the community plan.

"There should be a public meeting called sooner rather than later about the whole entire CCP to discuss the things that are in it," Myra said.

"We can all go, you know, say our piece and move forward."

The board also runs the RV campground that currently sits on the hill, which has to leave to make room for the development. Myra said the $200,000 in annual revenue the campground brings in to pay for the tourism centre, street festivals and parades will be lost because there is no other suitable spot.

Crews from Netflix's show The Sinner and Disney Plus' Washington Black have also used the campground when filming in town, Myra said, and the site is one of the few in the area that can host RV tours.

"They're half a million dollar rigs that are bringing people to this town that like to spend money in our restaurants, our businesses," Myra said.

The town recently published frequently-asked questions about the project, saying the film industry is still welcome in Lunenburg, but it is "fully capable" of finding another suitable location for base camps. 

"Our priority is to provide the best level of services to residents," the statement said.

Town spokesperson, Michael Best, said in an email that the town and board might be able to partner on the marketing levy that the municipality can impose on hotels and other accommodations — which can go up to three per cent of the total cost — as a new source of revenue for community activities.

"Otherwise, the board could support itself through membership fees like most other chambers of commerce and the town could take over services and events where it would serve the public interest to do so," Best said.

King Street development coming first

But first, residents will see designs for a nearby smaller development on the back side of town.

Zzap Consulting of Dartmouth won the tender in September to design ideas for a proposed development on a four-acre site at the end of King Street where it slopes to the Back Harbour. 

That development will also include accessible and affordable units in a mix of housing types, according to the town documents.

In both cases, the town will eventually sell the land to a developer who will carry out the chosen design.