🗞️ Halifax's likeliest mayoral contenders

Good morning!

Today is a landmark day for me: My first book, Hell of a Ride, comes out in exactly one month. It’s a memoir about a 7,000-kilometre solo bicycle trek across Canada, but more than that, it’s about depression—and the things we carry with us, along with the things we learn to let go of.

It’s been a long, long road to get to this day (and not just in the literal sense, but also definitely in the literal sense). I’m tremendously proud to share it soon. It’s not a stretch to say that it’s been made better by my time at The Coast.

Aside from that, I’ve been digging into some other books by Canadian authors lately: Last week, I finished Emily St. John Mandel’s Station Eleven, and right now, I’m about halfway through Cherie Dimaline’s The Marrow Thieves. (Both well worth the read.)

What have you been reading lately? I’d love to know.

– Martin

🌡️ Traffic & Weather

Today: 🌨️ -1°

Tomorrow: 🌨️ -4°

Next Day: 🌤️ -1°

7-day forecast

🚗 Driving today? Check out the current traffic conditions and ongoing road closures.

BUDGET WOES

Did Halifax just blow $113 million?

Halifax’s Department of Public Works is a pretty mixed bag this year—as it is most years. And that’s because it suffers from a debilitating bureaucratic symptom known as priority paralysis, along with the syndrome that causes it: A strong tendency toward the status quo.

That one-two punch is making it especially hard for Halifax’s Department of Public Works to actually do the things it claims to want to do. Like, say, keeping Haligonians safe as they get around the HRM.

According to this year’s municipal budget, the DPW is “committed to supporting Regional Council priorities by providing safe and efficient management of the municipal transportation system network including traffic flow, traffic signal / street light maintenance, signage and pavement markings.” Which, aside from being a mouthful, is a rather naïve approach—as Coast reporter Matt Stickland writes.

That’s because while Halifax may indeed have an Active Transportation Plan, and while mayor Mike Savage has said the city will become a cycling city, “come hell or high water,” and while ample evidence suggests cities need to change how people get around, the DPW is most concerned with moving cars. And council is missing the boat.

And even in the wake of presentations from local advocates and the HRM’s own director of traffic management, council is still making the same spending mistakes, according to Stickland.

SPONSORED BY DINE AROUND

Eat out this February

Dine Around is a celebration of Halifax’s innovative culinary scene, and a great reason to eat out all February long! Creative restaurants, pubs, bistros, and bars all over the city are offering special breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus priced at $10, $20, $30, $40, $50 or $60.

So why not treat yourself to a night out—or order in— and skip the hassle of cooking and cleanup? You get thoughtful chef-prepared dishes at a great price. And our city’s dedicated and hardworking restauranteurs get the boost you know they deserve.

Pop into your favourite spots or discover a few new ones. Either way, February is no time to hibernate. Make your reservations soon!

CITY HALL SHUFFLE

Who will seek election as Halifax’s next mayor?

With mayor Mike Savage announcing he won’t be seeking re-election in October, we Haligonians now become the hiring committee tasked with filling a vital leadership position. The person we choose needs to take charge and usher the Halifax Regional Municipality into an era of change and adaptability, as we scramble to correct past development mistakes while building a sustainable future in a climate-changed world.

So, who will it be? The Coast is keeping tabs on all the noteworthy names who are running, likely to run or all-but-confirmed to enter the fray. And right, now, as The Coast’s Matt Stickland writes, that looks like three familiar names in particular.

We’ve done the groundwork so you can get to know them in depth.

🗞️ In Other News

🚨 Two Halifax-area teens are charged with conspiracy to commit murder after a police investigation into an incident at an Eastern Passage school.

🌬️ Tuesday’s overnight snowstorm shut down schools and grounded flights at Halifax Stanfield International Airport. And while Halifax had mostly shoveled itself out as of Wednesday, Cape Breton has yet another haul to clear up.

🚧 Don’t count on federal purse strings to fund any new roads, environment minister Steven Guilbeault told reporters Wednesday. He calls the existing network “perfectly adequate.”

🩰 Shake off your winter blues with Live Art Dance! With vibrant dance presentations from hip-hop to contemporary ballet, we have something for everyone! Learn more.*

⚖️ Nova Scotia’s Supreme Court is siding with the province’s police review board in the case of a Black woman who says she was racially profiled while driving in Dartmouth in 2020.

🚒 Halifax’s growing skyline is prompting the HRM’s fire service to tackle new challenges.

🤝 Atlantic Lottery has existed for almost 50 years now and 100% of profits have always been returned to the region. "Every penny is reinvested in our communities."*

🪱 Canada’s fisheries minister says she’s looking to shut down elver fisheries, just weeks ahead of the fishing season’s opening in the Maritimes—a move that could spark controversy here in Nova Scotia.

*Sponsored Post

2024 SEX + DATING SURVEY

Naked truth: Coast readers confess their sexual secrets

Anonymous catharsis. That's what The Coast's Sex & Dating Survey offers Halifax every year, the 2024 edition being no exception. Let it out. Get it off your chest. Spill, vent, discharge. And one of the most popular questions for that release is simple: “Confess a sexual secret that you’ve never told anyone else.”

Sure, there are people who don’t see value in sharing. “No way,” one reader answered, “there’s a reason it’s still a complete secret.” Then there are others who see no reason to ever keep things in: “No secrets to tell,” was an answer typical of this approach, “I’m pretty open sexually.”

But those of us in between are clearly happy for a chance to let our secrets out—and boy, did those secrets come out.

We’ve compiled a list of all the best survey replies.

🤝 Now hiring

Looking for work?

• Newsletter editor at The Coast. (Yep, we’re hiring!)

• Store manager at TELUS’s Mobile Klinik (Halifax Shopping Centre)

• Building operator at Nova Scotia’s Department of Public Works

• Dean’s office receptionist at Dalhousie’s school of dentistry

🗓️ Things To Do

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

🗓 Sackville Snow Days: There’s a whole host of events all weekend long, from pancake breakfasts to book giveaways to coffee houses | Feb. 16-19 | Times vary | Free-$25

🗓 A Valentine’s light show: Every evening until Sunday, the old Halifax Memorial Library will be lit up for a special Valentine’s display on Grafton Street | Feb. 14-18 | Dusk-11pm | Free

🗓 Crafty Cupid Sale: NSCAD’s clay club will be taking over the Duke campus’s former Art Bar in the Granville Mall for a weekend of drinks, snacks and crafts to fundraise for their annual ceramicists conference trip | Feb. 17-18 | Times vary | Free admission.

Find more Halifax events in The Coast listings

👀 In Case You Missed It

🏛️ Halifax mayor Mike Savage says he won’t seek re-election this fall—meaning the HRM will have a new top official for the first time in more than a decade.

🌶️ Hundreds of Coast readers took part in our 2024 Sex + Dating Survey—and the results are predictably spicy.

💸 More than a third of Canadian couples surveyed in a recent poll say money issues are a top source of relationship stress.

🏳️‍🌈 Halifax Pride is back after a topsy-turvy 2023—and the festival’s interim manager tells CBC News they’re “super dedicated” to coming back on a high.

🎵 North Preston’s rising R&B star JupiterReign has a new single, “In A Rush.”

That’s it!

Thanks for reading The Coast Daily today.

If you found something useful, consider forwarding this newsletter to another Haligonian.

And before you go, let us know: