🗞️ Government is making it easier to evict you

Morning Halifax,

You know what I always say: the shorter the man, the wider the spread.*

A 6’2” queen from Edmonton is doing the lord’s work via TikTok by showcasing the uniquely male phenomenon known as the “manspread.” She was the victim of a particularly offensive case on a  Flair Airlines flight and she took to the socials to share her truth.

Behold the horror:

@erinrempel

why would anyone EVER need that much room??? i tried to get him to move but he wouldnt

It took her reaching down to retrieve something under her seat to ultimately force them to reposition their legs. And to add insult to audacity, the guy next to her was actually shorter than her, which is so typical it hurts.

She recorded the video and shared it to “shed light on a very common situation” and suspects that a lot of women have also experienced this problem, but might be too timid or scared of a man’s reaction to speak up.

One guy commented on her video: “As a man it’s just more comfortable to sit like that.” Oh, okay. I’m so sorry. I didn’t realize her personal space is not as important as your balls.

-Julie

*I’ve never actually said this before today.

🌡️ Traffic & Weather

Today: ☀️ 24°

Tomorrow: 🌤️ 24°

Next Day: ☀️ 22°

7-day forecast

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

💨 Here is Halifax’s Air Quality Index and the smoke report.

NEWS + OPINION

The provincial government is making it easier for you to get evicted

Tim Houston’s government announced law changes to the Residential Tenancies Act last week that will benefit landlords and make it easier for tenants to lose their homes. New regulations give landlords more flexibility and power in evicting tenants, proposing a shorter timeline for filing an eviction notice for late rent and giving landlords more reasons for why they can evict tenants.

All of this while Service Nova Scotia minister Colton LeBlanc says introducing a residential tenancy enforcement unit would just be “bringing more bureaucracy and more red tape,” despite landlords often breaking rules around repairs, illegal application fees and renovictions. And no, there’s nothing to prevent landlords from offering fixed-term leases, allowing them to boot out tenants after the lease expires. 

The Nova Scotia Liberals and NDP have both come out against the proposed changes to the Residential Tenancy Act, as have several community organizations. Housing critic Braedon Clark was unimpressed by the lack of an enforcement unit, which was recommended for the province in a report on renting ordered in 2022. And although the changes include extending the current 5% annual rent cap from Dec. 31, 2025 to the end of 2027, NDP leader Claudia Chender derided the rent cap as useless when partnered with current fixed-term-lease legislation, where landlords can kick out tenants and jack up the price of their units as much as they want, ignoring the cap completely.

ACORN Canada also shared a statement on the changes, saying premier Houston’s government is “not interested in fixing the housing crisis.” Dalhousie Legal Aid targeted the rent cap, saying it’s the highest in the country and that it’s far above the 3.5% inflation rate. Despite such criticism, the Houston Progressive Conservatives have a majority in the legislature so can effectively push the proposal into law. 

The Coast’s Brendyn Creamer breaks down the proposed changes and how they leave renters in the dust while benefiting landlords.

🤔 Need To Know

🌁 The Macdonald Bridge will be closed to vehicle traffic this weekend for maintenance work beginning Friday at 7pm and reopening Monday at 5:30am.

🚨 A 34-year-old man has been charged with attempted murder in connection to a shooting in Halifax’s north end last week.

🌔 Get ready for Nocturne: Microcosm, taking place October 17-20! Check out projects and start plan your festival here.*

🎭 Step into a magical world of love, mischief, and enchantment. Shakespeare's timeless comedy, A Midsummer Night's Dream is on stage now at Neptune Theatre.*

💃 Live Art Dance announces the first show of our 2024-25 Season - Kaha:wi Dance Theatre's "Homelands"! September 27th & 28th. Get your tickets today!*

⏰ Tick Tick Boom!! Time is running out for you to get your nominations in for The Coast's 2024 Best Of Halifax Awards. Nominations close Sept. 15!*

*Sponsored Post

SPONSORED BY MEET YOUR FARMER & NOVA SCOTIA FEDERATION OF AGRICULTURE

Open Farm Day is this Sunday!

Participating farms around the province will open their gates and welcome you this Sunday September 15th. Each participating farm offers its own unique experiences so plan your adventure! Meet the farmers who grow our food, and see first hand how they do what they do. See you on the farm!

CITY COUNCIL

A real step forward in police reform

Tuesday’s council meeting really had it all.

The main debates were about Halifax’s ongoing efforts at police reform. Council gave first reading to an amendment to bylaw P-100, formally known as the Police Board By-law. This amendment will add the position of Commissioner of Public Safety, a person to act as a liaison between the HRM, the Halifax Regional Police and the Board of Police Commissioners. This should result in someone watching out for the public’s interest in the relationship between the board and the police, which has typically worked to advance the interests of police in the HRM.  

Council was also sent the independent report about the evictions of unhoused from the Old Library in August of 2021. There wasn’t much of a debate about this as council just voted to get a staff report about what the city thinks could have gone better. Even in such a short debate the chair of the Board of Police Commissioners, Becky Kent, managed to stick her foot in her mouth. 

In this meeting, councillor Patty Cuttell had a run in with systemic racism and councillor Trish Purdy had a brush with transphobia. Also, councillor Kathryn Morse angles for more affordable housing and what Men in Black can teach us about police reform. 

The Coast’s Matt Stickland has everything you need to know about what happened this week at Halifax Council.

🗞️ In Other News

🚑 The head of Nova Scotia’s ambulance service says that average response times are down from 36 minutes to 18 minutes provincewide since January.

🏘️ After years of advocacy by residents, HRM has changed the boundaries of the historic Black community of Beechville to better reflect its initial size.

🩺 The NDP are calling on premier Houston to immediately release statistics on how many people are looking for a family doctor—the province’s online health data portal has not updated its records since June 1, when more than 160,000 people were on the waiting list.

💨 The Nova Scotia government is planning to kick-start its offshore wind industry—with or without federal approval—and launch a first call for project bids next year.

👀 The Nova Scotia RCMP is investigating the “suspicious” disappearance of a 55-year-old woman—Esther Jones was reported missing Sep. 2.

🤫 Nova Scotia's health minister is providing few details about a $120M sole source contract awarded in June to Shannex—the long-term care company that agreed to buy a partially constructed health-care facility in West Bedford from the province.

🎞️ Halifax International Film Festival

DAY 2 - PREVIEW

The Atlantic International Film Festival is in full gear with films playing throughout the day at the Park Lane Cineplex. At 5:30pm in theatre three, music fans can gather to see The Tragically Hip: No Dress Rehearsal, a four-part documentary on the famous Canadian rockers from director Mike Downie, brother of Hip lead singer/national icon Gord Downie. Experience the band’s highs and lows over their 40-year-long career in the presence of like-minded fans. Downie, along with producers Bryn Hughes and Jake Gold, will be sticking around after the documentary for a Q&A.

Tickets can be purchased here.

🗓️ Things To Do

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

🗓 Festa Italiana Halifax - A Taste of Italy in NS: Don't miss out on this opportunity to experience the best of Italian culture right here in Halifax. Come for the food, stay for the fun, and maybe even take home a prize. | Sep 13-14 | $2

🗓 Shindig Music Festival: SHINDIG is a brand new music festival taking place on the Garrison Grounds, featuring The Chainsmokers, Lil Tecca, Loud Luxury, Nle Choppa and Polo G. Time to turn up the volume and soak in the last bits of summer. | Sep 13-14 | $109

🗓 ZORKA - A Fusion Event: Dive into the captivating realm of ZORKA, the extraordinary 10th creation by FUSION Productions. The show unfolds seamlessly in a captivating sequence of story and dynamic artistic expressions, encompassing dance, singing, gymnastics, live music, acrobatics, and various other live performances.  | Sep 14 | 8pm | $45

🗓 Level UP! Retro Games Night: Halifax, get down with the classics and Level UP your Saturday night plans at Discovery Centre. Play retro games, including Nintendo, Genesis, Playstation, Xbox, and more, provided by Game Over, Cancer. | Sep 14 | 9pm | $34.50 |

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

⚓️ What’s In The Harbour

🛳️➡️ The Enchanted Princess cruise ship arrives in Halifax at 9am and leaves for Canadian seas at 6pm.

🛳️➡️ The Norwegian Sky cruise ship arrives in Halifax at 9:15am and leaves for Canadian seas at 7pm.

🛳️➡️ The Tirranna vehicle carrier arrives in Halifax from Southampton at 5:55am and leaves for New York at 8:30pm.

🛳️➡️ The One Swan container ship arrives in Halifax from Colombo at 5:45am and leaves for New York at 10pm.

🍴 Where To Eat & Drink

🐟 Craving fresh seafood? Try the Crusted Haddock Cheeks at Edna: charred snap peas, radish, fennel soubise, turmeric oil, garlic scape relish.

🥟 Get some Latin flair with the empanadas from Verano Food Purveyors in whatever flavour you’re craving, like Queso Fresco, Braised Pork or Chicken Tinga.

👀 In Case You Missed It

🪕 The Halifax Urban Folk Festival is marking its 15th anniversary this year, and it’s celebrating with an incredible lineup of singer-songwriters from local and abroad. The Coast’s Brendyn Creamer speaks with HUFF’s organizers about their top-tier lineup.

🚌 A Halifax mother says she was left feeling terrified after her eight-year-old twin daughters were more than 4.5 hours late returning home from school on the bus—prompting her to call police amid a lack of communication from school and transportation officials.

🛩️ The newest airline to operate out of Halifax—Pascan Aviation—will be flying a fleet of nine aircraft between destinations throughout the Maritimes, hoping to cater to students, medical workers, and the business community.

That’s it!

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