Planning and well-being: Aesthetic perceptions in a deindustrializing landscape

Halifax has experienced an uneven landscape of deindustrialization since the late 1970's. Theformer city of Dartmouth, now a planning region within greater Halifax, is an area which has remained quite industrial relative to the Halifax peninsula. The Imperial Oil refinery was a part of this remnant industrial landscape. Situated in the neighbourhood of South Woodside, the refinery has been a prominent feature on the waterfront skyline for almost a century. It is understood, appreciated, and despised differently according to different actors and observers— creating both stigmatization, wonder. The impacts of its presence are similarly dispersed. The refinery closure was met with sadness, ambivalence, but also, quite a bit of relief. The dynamics between lived experiences, and the broader global context and forces, shape future possibilities for community development, and there is a the tendency for poor engagement among different acting bodies—a function of an entrepreneurial mode of development. The poor coordination of planning efforts, and imbalanced power in decision making has resulted in a disengaged community. If justice were to be restored in land use decisions, there is potential to both restore well-being in a stigmatized community and take advantage of synergies between community capacity building and industrial development.