Halifax councillor seeking report on de-designation of Cogswell Park encampment

Halifax City Hall is pictured. (Source: Callum Smith/CTV News Atlantic)

A Halifax councillor is requesting a report outlining the de-designation of the Cogswell Park encampment site, which has been open since July 2024.

Councillor Virginia Hinch’s motion will ask the chief administrative officer to prepare a staff report on when the Cogswell Park site can be closed. The report would be delivered to council in August.

Council will vote on the motion at their meeting on Tuesday.

“When Council approved Cogswell Park as a designated site in July 2024, a total of eight tents were permitted to occupy this space,” the motion reads. “The number of tents at this encampment site has since doubled. In addition to exceeding occupancy limits, there are also safety concerns on the part of residents including fire safety concerns.”

The motion notes the Parkland Campus on Quinpool Road is expected to open this fall, which means Cogswell Park will fall within 50 metres of an adult care facility and will no longer meet the criteria for a designated encampment site.

Aside from Cogswell Park, there are currently three designated encampments in the Halifax Regional Municipality: Green Road Park in Dartmouth, the Barrington Street green space and Lower Flinn Park.

The municipality de-designated and shut down the Geary Street encampment in Dartmouth last month, putting up fencing around the area. As of June 20, there were 48 tents and four trailers spread across the remaining designated encampments.

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