community session

Three years after a wildfire destroyed 150 homes, construction is beginning in an Upper Tantallon neighborhood.

It was in May 2023 when the fire broke out, forcing 16,000 in Westwood Hills to evacuate out of one exit.

Work on an emergency exit comes a year and a half after Halifax Council voted to build one, connecting Westwood Blvd to Highway 103.

The gravel road will be approximately 500 metres long to create a gated emergency connection not to be used for day-to-day use. The road will be opened by municipal staff and emergency responders during an evacuation.

According to HRM, construction will start early October and is expected to last until late December with some parts of the project that could stretch into spring 2027.

There may be more connector roads and emergency egress routes in the northern part of the community and for those, the city wants input.

There is an online survey in addition to two in-person sessions.

• Wednesday, Oct. 7 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. | Upper Hammonds Plains Community Centre, 711 Pockwock Road, Upper Hammonds Plains 
• Thursday, Oct. 15 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. | Tantallon Public Library, 3646 Hammonds Plains Road, Upper Tantallon

The upcoming sessions are drop-in with no presentation or formal agenda. The city says the purpose of the meeting is to share feedback on routing, connectivity, traffic flow and design features.

The project will also pinpoint policy changes needed in order to get the roads built.

Feedback will then be shared with Halifax Council with recommended next steps after the study is completed in early 2027.