As Remembrance Day services are held across Halifax on Saturday, one noticeable change will be made to the municipality’s typical itinerary as the ceremony normally held at Grand Parade will instead occur at Sullivan’s Pond in Dartmouth.
On Oct. 24, Craig Hood, executive director of the Nova Scotia branch of the Royal Canadian Legion, cited the encampment of unhoused people currently located at the grounds outside Halifax’s City Hall as the reason for the venue change.
Councillor Tony Mancini, who represents part of the Dartmouth area, said he’s anticipating a larger turnout than usual when the ceremony begins at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday.
“Will we have double the numbers? We don’t know, but (people should) anticipate that, so I would arrive a little bit earlier than maybe you have in past years,” he said, noting the availability of nearby parking spots could be limited around the time of the service.
“Everybody come out with that in mind and a little bit of patience and maybe prepare to take a little walk because you (might) have to park a number of blocks away,” he said.
“The bottom line is we’re remembering those who served.”
Despite an expected increase in people making the trip over to Dartmouth this weekend, Halifax Transit announced Thursday that bus and ferry routes will continue operating on a regular holiday schedule during Remembrance Day.
The Alderney Ferry will make its first departure at 7:30 a.m. and run every 30 minutes until around midnight.
In a social media post from the Downtown Dartmouth Business Commission, it was noted that this year’s service marks the 95th anniversary of Dartmouth’s Somme Branch Legion. Members of the legion will be marching to the Cenotaph at Sullivan’s Pond prior to the event.
The park’s bridge will be fully decorated with poppies hand-crafted by residents, family, and community volunteers of the Oakwood Terrace Nursing Home in Dartmouth.
Mancini said some of the municipality’s event staff are now assisting with preparations in anticipation of a greater turnout.
“They’re going to be adding more of a P.A. system that’ll be easier to hear for a larger crowd, they’re involved in closing down some of the streets around Sullivan’s Pond … so, more engaged than we normally are but we welcome our neighbours from across the harbour,” he said.
According to an update on Thursday, the event is expected to impact traffic on King Street, Ochterloney Street, and Crichton Avenue in Dartmouth.
Looking ahead, Mancini said he hopes that Remembrance Day services can return to Grand Parade in 2024 — adding that challenging circumstances led to the Legion’s decision to switch locations.
“We have to be able to adjust and adapt … there are people that are living in tents in the parade square, these are people who are there for different reasons,” he said.
“It was the legion’s decision to move, not the municipality, but we support the decision and we’re there to help the legion. So, hopefully, folks in the community come out and remember.”
Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston, Halifax Mayor Mike Savage, and Nova Scotia’s Lieutenant Governor Arthur Leblanc will also be in attendance for the Sullivan’s Pond event due to the venue change from Grand Parade.
When the switch was first announced, the Nova Scotia Royal Canadian Legion director said the decision was made to respect the people staying in the square.
“With the concerns of their rights and dignity taken into consideration, as well as the safety of not only the homeless but of the participants of the parade, we made a very difficult decision to move to Sullivan’s Pond,” Hood said in an interview with Global News in October.
Hood said his organization decided it was unnecessary to displace the homeless population any further, and that shifting the ceremony to Dartmouth was a better solution.
Other locations for Remembrance Day ceremonies taking place throughout the municipality on Saturday morning include:
- Sailor’s Memorial at Point Pleasant Park, starting at 10:45 a.m.
- The Halifax Citadel National Historic Site, starting at 11 a.m., with the location’s museum offering free admission to the public between 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
- The Sackville Cenotaph on Memory Lane in Lower Sackville will host a service starting at 10:45 a.m.
- The Hammonds Plains Cenotaph, starting at 10:30 a.m.
- Fish Hatchery Park in Bedford, starting at 10:45 a.m.
— with files from Global News’ Megan King and The Canadian Press
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