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The Town Clock and Central Business District Facing East from Citadel Hill
Halifax or Halifax Regional Municipality commonly referred to as HRM, is a Canadian regional municipality. It is the capital of Nova Scotia and contains the largest urban population centre in the Atlantic Provinces.
The first permanent European settlement in the area was the establishment of the Town of Halifax in 1748, other towns and villages were settled throughout the region in the decades that followed. In 1996 the Provincial government amalgamated all the municipal governments in Halifax County and created HRM, a regional government composed of approximately 200 neighbourhoods & communities, divided into eighteen planning areas.
The Halifax Regional Municipality in Relation to Nova Scotia
Geography and Climate
The Halifax Regional Municipality occupies an area of 5,577 square kilometres comparative to the province of Prince Edward Island, and measures approximately 165 kilometres in length between its eastern and western-most extremities.
The coastline is heavily indented, accounting for its length of approximately 400 kilometres, with the northern boundary usually being between 50-60 kilometres inland. The coast is mostly rock with small isolated sand beaches in sheltered bays. The municipality's topography spans from lush farmland in the Musquodoboit Valley to rocky and heavily forested rolling hills.
The urban core area of HRM is located in the western end of the municipality, fronting on Halifax Harbour in the Halifax - Dartmouth and Bedford area and constitutes the most populous urban area on Canada's Atlantic coast, and the second largest coastal population centre in the country, after Vancouver, British Columbia.
HRM's climate is heavily influenced by its location on Nova Scotia's Atlantic coast. The weather is usually milder or cooler than that of central Canada, with the temperature remaining between about -5°C and 28°C inland but the coast can be milder in the winter and cooler in the summer with the maritime influence.
Halifax Immigration Profile
The Halifax Regional Municipality is comprised of several major ethnic groups. According to the Canadian 2006 Census, slightly more than half (51.4%) of the Canadian immigrants were born in Asia and the Middle East.
During the period of 2001 to 2006 Halifax became home to 5,060 new Canadian immigrants. The chart to the left shows the regions of birth for the recent immigrants according to the Canadian 2006 Census.
Halifax was home to the largest foreign-born population in the Atlantic provinces. The Canadian 2006 Census counted 27,400 foreign-born people living in Halifax. They represented six in ten of all Nova Scotians born outside of Canada.
Economy and Job Opportunities for Immigrants
The Halifax Regional Municipality is a major economic centre in eastern Canada with a large concentration of government services and private sector companies. Major employers and economic generators include the Department of National Defense, as well as the Port of Halifax. The municipality has a growing concentration of manufacturing industries and is becoming a major multi-modal transportation hub through growth at the port, the Halifax International Airport, and improving rail and highway connections. A real estate boom in recent years has led to numerous new property developments, including the gentrification of some former working-class areas.
Agriculture, fishing, mining, forestry and natural gas extraction are major resource industries found in the rural areas of HRM, offering opportunities for both unskilled and skilled immigration workers. The majority of agriculture & forestry of the Halifax Regional Municipality is the Musquodoboit Valley. The total number of farms in HRM is 150, of which 110 are family owned and as of the 2001 Census. Fishing harbours are located along all coastal areas with some having an independent harbour authority, and others being managed as small craft harbours under the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans.
Education for Dependant Children and Post Secondary
Families with small children interested in immigrating to the Halifax Regional Municipality can take advantage of the well-developed network of public and private schools, providing instruction from primary to grade 12; 150 public schools are administered by the Halifax Regional School Board as well as three public schools administered by the Conseil Scolaire Acadien Provincial, whereas the fourteen private schools are operated independently.
The municipality is also home to the following post-secondary educational institutions: Dalhousie University, Saint Mary's University, University of King's College, Atlantic School of Theology, Nova Scotia College of Art and Design University, Mount Saint Vincent University, and the Nova Scotia Community College.
Dalhousie University is the largest post-secondary educational institution in the Maritime Provinces, it offers a wide array of programs, including a Medical Program and the Dalhousie Law School.
Arts and Culture
The Halifax Regional Municipality's urban core is the largest population centre in Atlantic Canada and is the major cultural centre within the region. The municipality's urban core also benefits from a large population of post-secondary students who strongly influence the local cultural scene. HRM has a number of art galleries, theatres and museums, as well as most of the region's national-quality sports and entertainment facilities. The region is noted for the strength of its music scene. HRM has also become a significant film-production centre, with many American and Canadian filmmakers using the streetscapes, often to stand in for other cities that are more expensive to work in.
Halifax is a sister city of Halifax, England; Hakodate, Japan (1982); and Norfolk, Virginia (April 27, 2006).
A sailing ship leaves Halifax Harbour as part of Tall Ships 2004
Sports and Recreation
The Halifax Regional Municipality is home to a number of outdoor recreational opportunities, including numerous ocean and lake beaches, as well as rural and urban parks. The municipality has a host of organized community intramural sports, as well as varsity and intramural sports offered by public schools and post-secondary institutions and has extensive facilities.
The region is home to several professional and semi-professional sport franchises, such as the Halifax Mooseheads of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, as well as a newly-announced Halifax Rainmen of the American Basketball Association (see also Sports teams in the Halifax Regional Municipality).
The region has also hosted several major sporting events, including the 2003 World Junior Hockey Championship, 2003 Nokia Brier, the 2004 Women's World Ice Hockey Championships, and the 2007 World Indoor Lacrosse Championship. Since 1984, the region has been home to the CIS Men's Basketball Championship.
Halifax was selected as Canada's bid for the 2014 Commonwealth Games in 2006 but withdrew from the international competition in advance of the November 9, 2007 selection date on March 8.
The municipality was selected as the host community for the 2011 Canada Winter Games in February 2007.
