Darrell Dixon wants downtown Dartmouth to aim higher---about 23 storeys high---in search of its long-sought population boost. City planners are considering changes in downtown Dartmouth zoning laws that would allow Dixon to build higher than the current 70-foot height restrictions on buildings in the area. Dixon says the three residential buildings---at 23, 14 and seven storeys---he wants to build behind the Greenvale School condo project and along Irishtown Road (the recently renamed Pine Street extension) would include both rental and condo units. High-density high-rises are the key to boosting the downtown's stagnant population, he argues.
But Dartmouth residents think Dixon's proposal for a 23-storey tower is just dense. At a public meeting to discuss the zoning changes Monday, citizens raised a slew of complaints, most regarding the literal and figurative shadow such a building would cast over the downtown area. Several pointed out that the apartment Goliath would stand only 150 feet from single-family residences and that its sleek, modern design was hardly in keeping with the heritage-heavy feel of the area.
City planner Mitch Dickey and councillor Bill Karstens said the city would take these complaints into consideration and the proposed height of the buildings would come in for serious debate. If Dixon's going to touch the sky in downtown Dartmouth, he has a lot more convincing to do.