Friday October 12, 2012
By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator, Friday October 12, 2012
Stadium saga draws to a close
After half-a-dozen potential sites and years of political turmoil and debates that pitted neighbourhoods against one another, Hamiltonians are about to see the stadium that caused so much heartache.
TO2015, the organizing committee for the Pan Am Games, will announce the design of Hamilton’s new stadium Friday. Games officials, as well as representatives from the city, the province and the federal government will officially unveil the details of the $150-million soccer and football field at 2 p.m. at Ivor Wynne Stadium.
The Spectator has learned that Bouygues Building Canada Inc. and Kenaidan Contracting Ltd. beat the two other shortlisted contracting firms and will be in charge of building Hamilton’s stadium, Milton’s velodrome and a stadium at York University.
While Friday’s announcement marks the kickoff of one the biggest construction projects Hamilton has seen in recent years, it’s also tinged with the frustration that has permeated the process.
Councillors, who agreed to put $45 million toward the project, will meet with officials from Infrastructure Ontario (IO) Friday at 10 a.m. for a high-level briefing. However, IO won’t reveal the renderings of the new stadium or the full details of the project until the 2 p.m. news conference at Ivor Wynne.
Some councillors say they won’t attend Friday’s announcement, either due to scheduling conflicts or because of discomfort about the way the process has unfolded. Councillors on the Pan Am stadium subcommittee were forced to sign confidentiality agreements, and the rest of council — along with the constituents they represent — will be in the dark until IO reveals the details to the public. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)