downtown

Tuesday March 6, 2012

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator, Tuesday March 6, 2012

Could Hamilton be on the Pan Am pitch mound again?

Baseball fans will probably be delighted to hear that Hamilton’s been invited to make a pitch to host the baseball and softball competitions at the 2015 Pan Am Games. Our men won gold last time the games were held. Our women took silver. Could be fun, right?

Sure. But it should surprise no one — and will relieve almost everybody — to hear the initial reception to the idea among the city’s decision makers was cool at best. Bordering on frigid. Especially when council discovered we could be on the hook for nearly $6 million if all-new facilities were required.

Council is still smarting from the endless and painful stadium and velodrome sagas that dominated their lives for months and made them the object of scorn in town. Just the phrase Pan Am Games causes some to break into cold sweats and experience dry heaves. As a result, it was no surprise that a good number sounded like they’d rather shove hot metal pokers into their eyes than step back into the fray of another protracted, potentially pricey facility debate.

“I think you can hear the expressions of not doubt, but concern, that we may be going down an expensive path,” Mayor Bob Bratina said. “Nobody is going to, I don’t think, approve any large expenditure. But we don’t know what the site requirements are or what our participation would involve. So all we need is to find that out.”

A letter dated March 1 from Murray Noble, senior vice-president of infrastructure for the Pan Am organizing committee, invites Hamilton — and some other unnamed cities — to consider putting together a facility that would include a baseball stadium with 8,000 to 10,000 seats, a secondary diamond with 1,500, a main softball stadium that could hold as many as 6,000 and a secondary field with a capacity of 1,000. (Source: Hamilton Spectator) 

 

Wednesday February 29, 2012

By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator, Wednesday February 29, 2012

Health campus hits yet another snag

Negotiations over a new downtown health campus turned sour Monday as accusations, threats and claims of manipulation flew around City Hall.

Councillors say they feel hoodwinked by city staff’s recommendation to lease so-called “swing space” in the Robert Thompson building on King Street West and sublet it to the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board.

Leasing the space to the school board as an interim measure — after it vacates its present home and while its new one is being built — is a key part of the three-way deal between the board, the city and McMaster University.

And while city manager Chris Murray assured councillors that rejecting the Thomson swing-space proposal was not a “deal breaker,” moments later, Roger Couldrey, McMaster’s vice-president (administration), told councillors that walking away from it could put the entire McMaster downtown health campus at risk.

Couldrey says if the school board is forced to start its plans from scratch, it would be significantly more expensive.

“That will cause us to have significant second thoughts about the amount of money we want to put on the table,” he said.

The complicated, winding debate Monday ultimately resulted in councillors voting to again delay a swing-space decision until March 6 (the issue was already delayed after councillors raised concerns about the swing space).

But Councillor Sam Merulla says Monday’s negotiations have given him cause to pull his support for the deal entirely. (Source: Hamilton Spectator) 

 

Thursday July 23, 1998

July 23, 1998

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday July 23, 1998

People first in downtown

There is no silver bullet to solve the problems plaguing downtown Hamilton. Revitalizing the city core depends on a host of small solutions, including solving the problem of traffic arteries that serve as one-way mini-expressways to speed commuters through the heart of the city. A new study outlining ways to convert one-way streets to two-way is a welcome starting point in creating a downtown that serves pedestrians and businesses first, rather than cars and trucks.

Two-way streets are a bold, controversial concept in a city that has successfully employed a one-way road system in the absence of a major cross-town expressway below the escarpment. But the idea shouldn’t automatically be dismissed as impractical. The community should keep an open mind about radical methods of transforming the downtown core.

Research on the merits and drawbacks of two-way streets is a prerequisite. Many other steps are needed — such as cheaper and more convenient parking, wider sidewalks and more commercial and residential development — regardless of whether two-way streets become a reality. But at minimum, this new study moves downtown planning ahead with preliminary suggestions for more two-way streets.

Some key proposals include converting King and Main to two-way streets from Paradise Road to the Delta; making Cannon and Wilson two-way; and reconstructing and widening Cannon to become an extension of York Boulevard. The Cannon proposal is a substitute for the Perimeter Road, linking Burlington Street to Highway 403. Costing an estimated $250 million or more, the Perimeter Road is currently too expensive for regional taxpayers. But it would be the best route. The region should try to find funding partners for the project.

We have concerns about rebuilding Cannon Street. While cheaper than the initial phase of the Perimeter Road as far as Bay Street, the Cannon proposal would disrupt homes and businesses.

The study — and possible alternative routes — deserve more public meetings. Regional council should continue to get advice from many quarters, including the newly-formed downtown partnership. Two pilot projec ts deserve support. One proposal, converting Bay Street from Main to Cannon to two-way operation, may potentially better connect the rejuvenated bayfront with downtown. A second idea, reducing the number of lanes on King Street, from James to Bay, would allow experiments in parking and more space for pedestrians.

Leadership is needed to find ways of reconciling a vibrant downtown with the traditional mobility that Hamiltonians have enjoyed. A green light for the pilot projects will allow everyone to see where two-way streets fit into a healthier, prosperous downtown. (Hamilton Spectator Editorial, A8, 7/23/1998)