N.S. association says Halifax council not consulting construction industry on some motions

President and CEO of the Construction Association of Nova Scotia addresses frustrations with Halifax council.

The Construction Association of Nova Scotia (CANS) says Halifax council is not consulting with the industry before making decisions on construction-related motions.

Duncan Williams, CEO and president of CANS, said their organization has a “long tradition” of working with all levels of government, but he claims the Halifax Regional Municipality is moving away from that process.

“Our frustration now is there been a pattern of moving to motions and then staff reports with little to no consultation or communication about what the nature of the problem is with the very industry that is supposedly creating it,” he told CTV News Atlantic’s Todd Battis.

In an open letter, CANS was critical of a motion at a council meeting on Tuesday that requested a staff report on a policy of maintaining active transportation routes during building construction.

The motion carried 14-to-one, with Mayor Andy Fillmore being the sole dissenting voice.

“The motion advanced without prior engagement with the construction sector, even though these issues have been raised by industry for years,” the letter reads. “Many of the concerns cited are not new.”

CANS and industry partners have long advocated practical improvements tied to universal accessibility and public safety, including hoarding practices, reducing the duration and footprint of street and crosswalk encroachments where feasible, and safer pedestrian routing around construction sites.

“Industry has repeatedly offered to work with HRM proactively to strengthen outcomes on the ground, but requests to meet have not been accepted.”

Williams said they did not want to make their problem with the municipality public.

“This is the last thing we want to be doing,” he said. “For us to be taking this stance is something we strive to stay away from.”

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