Quinpool then and now

Many changes have come to Quinpool Road recently.

Among these changes is the the new Garrison taproom in the Oxford Theatre building. Its neighbour, the East Peak Climbing gym, is under construction in the theatre space. The beloved Quinpool Shoe Repair shop moved across the street. The buildings that used to house Sicilian Pizza, Bi One Korean BBQ, Naughty Paw and 7 Peppers are freshly demolished to make way for a shiny new development.

Sicilian Pizza on Quinpool is officially gone 😔 pic.twitter.com/ZUF5JeJOzL

— Lucia (@luciahelder) November 6, 2019

Quinpool Road is over 200 years old, dating back to at least 1808. It has historically been the meeting place of the north and south ends of Halifax.

Let’s take a look back at what the road looked like roughly 50 years ago.

Most of these photos were taken as reference for repairs or real estate and not for aesthetics. Google Street View didn’t exist then, so it’s difficult to piece together a whole view of a street from one time.

The Dilly Dally Cafe on the corner of Vernon Street was the only coffee place on the east side of Quinpool. Starbucks opened in 2018 in the new Keep Condominiums across the street, which created competition for the local cafe. Freeman’s Little New York, now a Quinpool icon, took the place of the bank in the 1966 photo.

Flower Trends and the Benjamin Moore store have replaced the Art Centre and Beauty Salon, and today’s TD Canada Trust building was altered to have one less floor.

This building used to house Dorothy Richards Specialty Shoppe, Steak Centre Restaurant, Barrowman Bros. Ltd. Hardware, and Trans-Canada Credit & Loans. Now it’s home to two salons, Lee’s Nails and Salon de Mini. The Secord Gallery, which hosts local artists, is on the second floor.

It’s hard to see, but it looks like there was a drugstore where H&R Block is today. The distinguishing details on this facade of this building have remained.

The Nahas brothers, who also own the Oxford Theatre building down the road, are naming this new building after their father, Ted. It will be a mixed use commercial and residential building. The development also extends beyond Quinpool onto Preston Street. Sicilian Pizza, Bi One Korean BBQ, Naughty Paw and 7 Peppers had to move out of their spaces. Bi One and Naughty Paw found new homes on Quinpool, but Sicilian no longer has a restaurant on the street and 7 Peppers is still looking for a new location.

The McDonald’s and Fitness FX gym will also be replaced with a mixed use tower, at a date to be determined. The only thing separating these two new developments will be the small KFC and Pizza Hut, which plans to stay.