Good morning!

I’ve been workshopping a few new taglines for Halifax—like to go on the sign when you enter the municipality a la Windsor’s epic ‘Home of Sam Slick’—and today I think I’ve finally found one! Ah-hem…

Halifax: Where even demolishing a building requires a 5-year strategic plan.

Catchy? No. Accurate? Positively.

HRM has perfected the art of turning simple decisions into expensive, years-long exercises in administrative self-preservation. The Halifax Forum is just the latest love child of confusion and just a little bit of lying.

When rising costs prompted HRM to cancel a public meeting about the Forum's demolition, councillors questioned why the meeting had been cancelled in the first place. Naturally, the solution was to schedule another meeting and prepare another report.

Because if there's one thing HRM loves more than spending taxpayer money, it's spending taxpayer money explaining why it needs to spend more taxpayer money.

And I get it. Buildings—like the rest of us—get old and need a little nip and tuck. And sometimes that construction is expensive and you want to consult with others before you book a trip to Türkiye to get that facelift. But at a certain point, you just have to make a GD decision to either lose that gobble neck or not. Metaphorically-speaking. I think.

Instead, Halifax residents get an endless parade of consultations, cost reviews, committee meetings and carefully worded assurances that progress is being made. The reports pile up, the bills grow and the building becomes an even larger eye sore as the years go by.

BUT in more exciting news! Drum roll please…

NOMINATIONS ARE OPENING THIS WEEK FOR THE 2027 BEST OF HALIFAX AWARDS! Watch this space for the moment the link drops!

Love and light!

– Jules

📷 @editorjulesl

Today: ☀ 14°

Tomorrow: 🌧️ 10°

Next Day: 🌤️ 6°

7-day forecast

🚗 Driving, biking or busing today? Check out the current traffic conditions and ongoing road closures.

For Warlet, waiting for opportunities to appear has never been the plan.

If something is missing from the scene, she would rather create it herself.

The Brazilian-born musician and visual artist Gabriella Warlett has spent the past four years building her career in Canada. Working across Brazilian funk, reggaeton, hip-hop and R&B, she is carving out space for the sounds, styles and communities that matter to her.

The Coast’s Warren D’Silva speaks with Warlet about her music, her EP and her upcoming Halloween-style party.

🇨🇦 Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne says the Liberal government will table its 2026 federal budget on Nov. 5—the upcoming fiscal plan will be the second delivered underMark Carney.

🛣️ Nova Scotia road paving projects are outpacing available funds each year, says Nova Scotia’s auditor general—Kim Adair released a report Tuesday examining road paving projects and decision-making.

📋 Seniors and their families are using this readiness organizer to help keep daily life going when someone needs to step in at short notice.*

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🏛️ Provincial government officials are attempting to ease concerns following the announcement of a multi-billion-dollar proposal by a private company to construct a data centre in Nova Scotia—while also rejecting calls from opposition MLAs to convene an emergency session of the legislature.

🛋️ A new Black mental health clinic in Dartmouth is tackling barriers faced by African Nova Scotian communities—the clinic on 190 Victoria Rd. offers services ranging from anxiety and depression support to grief counselling.

🕰️ The clock on Citadel Hill is one of the most visited and photographed landmarks in Halifax, providing postcard-like pictures to people from around the world—and Tuesday marked 223 years of the clock keeping time on the hill.

🪧 The union representing school support workers across Nova Scotia is warning many schools may close if its members go on strike next week—CUPE says more than 5,500 people could hit the picket line next Monday, including bus drivers, janitors, educational program assistants, secretaries and cafeteria workers.

RELATED: My thoughts on CUPE strike and how it will adversely affect working moms, in case you missed it.

🚔 Three men are charged with break and enter after officers followed a vehicle that sped away from a Bedford business and also injured a Mountie.

🧠 Police services on Nova Scotia's South Shore are changing the way they respond to domestic violence calls involving someone with dementia, which they say are on the rise—RCMP and the Bridgewater Police Service launched a collaborative initiative called the Silver Guardian Program last week.

🚨 Halifax RCMP say plans have changed for new satellite offices the municipality already approved—leaving police board members confused and disappointed.

Do you have your tickets for AfterWords, Sunday November 1 to Sunday November 8?

More than fifty writers come together in Halifax for AfterWords. Hear Vivek Shraya, Kai Cheng Thom, Robert J. Sawyer, Ruth Ozeki, Patrick deWitt and more in conversation.

Tickets are on sale now.

Looking for something to do this week? Check out these Coast picks:

🗓 Scotoberfest: Check out Queen's Marque and Historic Properties for three days of Scottish-inspired food, drink, live music, family activities, movies, games, friendly competition, and a lot of laughs. Whether you're here for the contests, the entertainment, or simply a great time by the water, there's something for the whole clan at Scotoberfest. | Oct 22 | 4pm | 

🗓 ReJigged Festival 26: Celebrate the creativity and evolution of Celtic culture at ReJigged Festival, a unique gathering of musicians, dancers, and storytellers from across the Celtic diaspora. Featuring live concerts, interactive workshops, and cultural experiences, the festival blends traditional Celtic music, dance, and song with fresh, contemporary interpretations. | Oct 22 - 25 | 

🗓 Alex Cuba & Symphony Nova Scotia: Feel the warmth and rhythm of Cuban-Canadian Grammy winner Alex Cuba. Blending Latin pop, jazz, funk, and soul, his joyful songs transcend language and culture and invite everyone to get in the groove. | Oct 23 | 7:30pm | From $36.50 |

Have an event to share? Let us know at [email protected].

🚢➡️ The MSC West V container vessel arrives in Halifax from Liverpool at 6:15am and departs for Montreal at 5pm.

🚢 The Oceanex Sanderling container vessel arrives in Halifax from St. John’s at 7:20am.

🚢➡️ The Crystal Symphony cruise vessel arrives in Halifax at 9am and departs at 4pm.

➡️ The Oasis of the Seas cruise vessel departs Halifax at 6pm.

🚢 The Atlantic Sail container vessel arrives in Halifax from Liverpool at 9:20pm.

🏗️ On Friday, an event was held by EverWind Fuels to announce an $8-billion data centre set for construction in Point Tupper. EverWind says its investment also includes $2-billion towards four of its on-going wind turbine projects in the province and the creation of over 2,000 jobs during construction and over 200 permanent positions. The Coast’s Brendyn Creamer speaks on why this announcement is compromising democracy for the sake of business interests.

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