Plans for more development on Halifax's waterfront were unveiled at a public meeting at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic Monday night. The Halifax Waterfront Development Corporation is looking for feedback on its long-term vision for land-use along Halifax Harbour.

The main area of interest is 11 hectares of land owned by the corporation, which wants to turn more than half of the land into apartments and businesses. Ross Cantwell says public space is key to the plan's success. He's with the company which drew up the waterfront guidelines.

"We want to strengthen our existing open space on the waterfront and that may mean some reworking of spaces," Cantwell said. "And we want to create some new major pieces of public open space."

The plan calls for nearly five hectares of public territory, which includes a new park and plaza. But it also includes one hectare's worth of private roads and that's bad news to waterfront development activist Alan Ruffman.

"Many people were saying we want to be able to see the water, we want to be able to have an open space that allows us to spread out a blanket on the grass, not a parking lot," Ruffman said. "That's a criticism they should have heard tonight."

Cantwell defends the new roads, saying they'll maintain a Halifax tradition of smaller city blocks. The Waterfront Development Corporation also defends its ratio of public to private space, and says the buildings will cover the cost of buying the land.