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CBC
2 days ago
- Business
- CBC
'Much prettier' scaffolding will allow Halifax wine bar to open patio for 1st time in years
New scaffolding that aims to be eye-catching — instead of an eyesore — is being built around a Halifax wine bar, creating space for a summer patio the business has been prevented from using the past two seasons. Obladee said its business has suffered since 2023 when the municipality initially ordered scaffolding to be placed around its leased downtown location to protect passersby from falling debris. That tangle of steel and wood left no space for a patio, but work is underway on a more attractive design that does, following the latest municipal order issued May 9. "I'm very pleased with it," said Heather Rankin, the co-owner and sommelier of Obladee. "The idea is to provide maximum visibility for Obladee, maximum use of the sidewalk for pedestrians, while still protecting anybody below from what might fall off of the facade." The most recent order issued to the property owner, Caryi Group, detailed Nova Scotia building code violations, including hazardous loose stone and facade cladding. The order was made after a recent engineering report identified further concerns. The company doing the work, Skyrise Scaffold, has come up with a design that will leave room for a patio while also trying to hide the steel-frame structure and providing the required safety protection. "It is hopefully going to provide a much prettier finished product that fits in nicely into its surroundings around here," said Hywel Tyler, project manager and chief designer. Covering steel shoring posts in black plywood, for example, will make the structure blend in with the rest of the building on the corner of Barrington and Sackville streets. "We've been in conversation with [Obladee] about lighting and sort of melting away the beams up underneath and hiding as much as we can while not compromising any of the structure," Tyler explained. The additional engineering work means the project is a lot more complex — taking three days just for the initial base — whereas a routine build would only require that amount of time to complete. "When you're walking down the streets of Halifax, you wouldn't, unless you're looking upwards, actually know that there's scaffolding here," he said. The Caryi Group is going through insolvency proceedings in the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia. A representative for the company could not be reached for comment. It has been a long haul for Obladee, whose owners said the previous structure made it difficult for people to know they were even open. "Nobody wants to be crawling under old steel bars to get to us. And once they're inside, they don't want to be looking out at them either. So this is a huge improvement," Rankin said. She's hoping the new scaffolding system will be completed by the end of the day Thursday, after which time the city will need to return to examine it. "They'll do their normal inspections to hopefully approve our patio permit at that stage," Rankin said, noting it has already been submitted. The patio that is currently in storage is ready to install, she said, as soon as the business receives the approvals it requires.
CBC
25-03-2025
- Business
- CBC
'Eyesore' scaffolding in place since 2023 hurting business at Halifax wine bar, says co-owner
Social Sharing Every time he has to walk under the scaffolding that has surrounded his downtown Halifax business since the summer of 2023, Christian Rankin feels more discouraged. The structure that was meant to be temporary, he said, is making it difficult for people to see the Obladee wine bar through all the steel and wood in the way. "It's an eyesore and people can't tell that we're open," Rankin said in an interview. "If people don't know you're open and they can't tell you're open from 50 feet away, it's bad." The wine bar on the corner of Barrington and Sackville streets has taken a financial hit, Rankin explained, since the scaffolding was put up in July 2023 following an order issued by the Halifax Regional Municipality. With concerns about the crumbling state of the building's facade, HRM ordered the property owner to fix it. There are yellow caution signs hanging from the scaffolding that warn about the possibility of falling debris. The municipality made another order in April 2024, but Rankin said nothing has been done and he is growing more and more frustrated. "We've lost two patio seasons because of this and we're a couple of months away from losing another one," he said. The space the scaffolding takes up makes it impossible to have the outdoor patio where it would normally be on Sackville Street, he said, which could seat about 20 people. This is in spite of continuing to pay rent under a lease that provides access to the patio, he said. Rankin said numerous requests to the property owner have not resulted in any action. The Caryi Group, which owns the building along with a number of other commercial and residential properties in Atlantic Canada, has fallen into financial trouble. The group's principal, Steve Caryi, died in 2023. His family is now trying to sell the building and others he left with mortgage debts estimated at about $47 million as of January, according to court documents. His sister, Joanne Caryi, declined comment on the insolvency proceedings now before the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia. She is identified as the executor of her brother's Canadian estate in court documents. Bids can be made for the Caryi Group's properties as part of the court process. Those are being handled by the trustee Deloitte Restructuring. It will then take bids back to court for approval, which could happen within the next couple of months. But Rankin said waiting for a sale and then seeing what a new owner would do are things Obladee, which employs around 10 people and has been operating since 2010, should not have to wait for. He's making one last-ditch effort for the municipality to do the work before June 21 to save this patio season amid a serious risk of going out of business. "If the building owner, for whatever reason is not co-operating or can't co-operate, then the city has to step in and do what the building owner won't," Rankin said. "I call it doing their job."
