[SteelTown]

Good news...the halfway house isn't renewing it's contract so it's moving. But where should it be moved too? I say underneath the Skyway Bridge.

[SteelTown]

I was talking to a friend of mine and he wanted to know if those trolley buses arrived yet? Have they?

[raisethehammer]

no, they are delayed actually. maybe not till summer.
no artics were out today. I was downtown for over an hour with someone and we didn't see one.

[raisethehammer]

You know International Village is on the right direction when Maxim's deli literally snatches that property on King and Walnut right away. I doubt they have room for patio space, would be nice.

Actually the Maxim's deli is going in across the road from the gallery.
The building is currently being renovated and has a new second floor balcony and the exterior has been redone in a blue colour.
Hopefully something good will go in the gallery space. It's gorgeous.

[Hammer Town]

As far as the Halfway hous is concerned They should convert the Stelco Rod Mill into a halfway house and let them live in there. Or bot even have them in Hamilton Give it to Brantford or something.

As far as the New Deli I was walking past the site and it looks nice inside I was going to snap a pic but I was in somewhat of a hurry. But the nenovation is coming along very nice. I also noticed a truck by hte new TiCats Office with framing studs in the back so Work is happening there already.

[SteelTown]

Yea we should use the halfway house as advantage for us, let them move into an abandon building and renovate it, not build a new place.

I'm sure there's plenty of abandon warehouses they can convert into a halfway house.

[raisethehammer]

yes, the reno for the deli is coming along...nice apartments upstairs too.

[realcity]

i can't figure that out either. the factory in the distance looks a little like the former westinghouse/camco site but i'm not sure if that would make sense.
http://ca.geocities.com/hsrstreetcars@rogers.com/NSC_files/hsr505.jpg

I think that is looking towards Burlington/Aldershot from the same view as the high level bridge. See the white steeple? That's Sisters of the Precious Blood and the factory is the old brick factory. A housing developer took down that chimney about five years ago and built houses there near Waterdown Road beside the 403.

[realcity]

Good news...the halfway house isn't renewing it's contract so it's moving. But where should it be moved too? I say underneath the Skyway Bridge.


I can't believe it. That is so awesome. I heard that this morning too and that it's moving to an industrial area but on a bus route. Fricken fantastic.

Level that piece of crap building. Another good spot for Hamilton's next tallest.

[flar]

Where is the halfway house now?

[LikeHamilton]

I always thought that the whole block that the sally ann and the half way house is on should be levelled and a hotel with some convention/banquet space in it should be built there. This would have a huge underground parking facility that would then connect to Copps Coliseum. Rip up York Blvd and have it connect underground the whole block plus bridges above. Sell Copps or lease it to someone for 50 years (Prefer to sell) and let them do a 20 to 30 million-dollar makeover on it to bring it up today’s standards

[LikeHamilton]

Where is the halfway house now?

The 3rd floor of the Salvation Army building on York Blvd at Bay across the street from Copps Coliseum, Jackson Square and the Library.

[raisethehammer]

the halfway house is only on one floor of that building I think.
there won't be any new developments there any time soon...Salvation Army is in there too.

[realcity]

Where is the halfway house now?

on York Blvd across from Copps Coliseum in the red brick Salvation Army building.

[the dude]

re: halfway house

that's good news. moving them doesn't really solve any problems, though i suppose this is just about optics. they'll still be downtown, just not living downtown.

[SteelTown]

I remember when it was only me and realcity here and we talked about closing the halfway house and now finally years later it's leaving, it's a special moment lol.

Now if only we can boot everyone out of the Salvation Army building and demo it.

Welfare office moved out of the Gore Park area....checked!
Halfway house moved out of the downtown....checked!
Methadone clinic out of the downtown....still in the downtown

[raisethehammer]

methadone clinic(s). there are a few downtown...they aren't as big a deal though.
I'd love to see the Sally Anne move somewhere else so that building can be converted into lofts.
Then get Bell Canada to vacate their prime land at Bay and Cannon and do some medium density, mixed-use housing on that site too.

[SteelTown]

Since the number of Hamiltonians has increased here maybe we could set up a meet and greet during the Doors Open on May 5 & 6. Anyone interested in meeting up and going as a group to see different buildings in Hamilton? If so I could possibly get others like from Toronto to join up as well.

http://www.doorsopenontario.on.ca/userfiles/HTML/nts_1_6167_1.html
^ list of buildings open for Doors Open this year, new this year is the Powerhouse at McMaster Innovation Park (former Camco site) and Woodward Environmental Laboratory

[raisethehammer]

sounds great.

[hamiltonguy]

http://www.lightrailnow.org/features/f_lrt_2007-02a.htm

this is what i'm thinking.

LRT for King using modern Streetcar

Streetcars (traditional) For James North, Barton and Eventually the Redeveloped CN lands.

[LikeHamilton]

Transit Fare Increases

An unusual group of organizations have come together to ask the city to “hold the line on fares this year pending a full review of HSR funding”. They are sending a joint letter to council today before it vote on increasing the bus fare.
The letter is jointly sign by representatives from;

Hamilton Civic Coalition
Hamilton and District Labour Council
Hamilton Chamber of Commerce
Environment Hamilton

:yes:

[SteelTown]

For the Doors Open meet you don't have to say that you'll definitely be there just want to know if you’re interested, so far I got one person interested. If there's enough interest I'll set it all up with suggestions from you guys. Remember Doors Open is less than a month away from now.

[raisethehammer]

that rapid streetcar article on light rail now was circulated to all integral members of the transit steering committee as well as the mayor and a few downtown councillors.
It's by far the best idea out there. Amazing bang for buck.

[matt602]

Since the number of Hamiltonians has increased here maybe we could set up a meet and greet during the Doors Open on May 5 & 6. Anyone interested in meeting up and going as a group to see different buildings in Hamilton? If so I could possibly get others like from Toronto to join up as well.

http://www.doorsopenontario.on.ca/userfiles/HTML/nts_1_6167_1.html
^ list of buildings open for Doors Open this year, new this year is the Powerhouse at McMaster Innovation Park (former Camco site) and Woodward Environmental Laboratory

I've already set up a meet for the Urban Explorers in Southern Ontario (but it'll mostly be Hamiltonians and GTA'rs). If you guys wanna invade upon our meet, you're more than welcome. We'll be touring around the more popular locations all day and afterwards we'll do some... risky business. You're welcome to join for that too, but if that's not your thing the meet will just be Doors Open fun.

I haven't got all the details yet, but it will be on the Saturday May 5th around 11am. I'm thinking we're gonna meet at Ferguson Station if the weather is agreeable (and warm). If not, I'll need to pick something indoors... a place that doesn't mind a large group of people meeting with loads of them probably not buying anything (so far Infusions, Tim Hortons and Bread and Roses don't like us for this).

[flar]

If I'm around that weekend I might meet up with you guys.

[SteelTown]

Okay, that sounds good should be a good sizeable crowd. This weekend I'll make a separate thread in the Ontario section inviting people to come and join, might get people from Toronto and Windsor to come as well.

What kind of building you planning to enter? Lister Block?

[matt602]

We're just going to be doing the regular, public friendly doors open stuff first. Afterwards we'll put our heads together and discuss possible locations to explore. If you intend to come with us on an exploration, it's a good idea to wear clothes you don't mind getting dirty/ripped and a flashlight.

Lister Block probably won't be on the list, due to the guard who is there. That's a much later at night thing.

Yah sure, if you wanna go ahead and make that thread in Ontario, here are some details I've got going:

Saturday May 5th - 11am
Ferguson Station (if weather is good and warm)

I guess we'll figure out a "bad weather" meet location when the 7 day forecast is in view.

[NuclearNerd]

Stole this from Boingboing. Here's what you might find in a city that values alternative forms of transit. In Trondheim Norway, it's the bicycle lift: http://www.trampe.no/english/photogallery.php

[Lukey]

Stole this from Boingboing. Here's what you might find in a city that values alternative forms of transit. In Trondheim Norway, it's the bicycle lift: http://www.trampe.no/english/photogallery.php

Haha, I've been there. As you can see in the photos the incline is really steep and I believe it goes in a zig zag a few times, so this is definitly needed. Houses are built all along the road so traffic is slow. I'm not sure how well this would fare on any of the mountain access routes.

[realcity]

When is the Open Doors Hamilton? The site didn't have anything. I'll meet up with you dudes. Where's the meet?

[realcity]

I remember when it was only me and realcity here and we talked about closing the halfway house and now finally years later it's leaving, it's a special moment lol.

Now if only we can boot everyone out of the Salvation Army building and demo it.

Welfare office moved out of the Gore Park area....checked!
Halfway house moved out of the downtown....checked!
Methadone clinic out of the downtown....still in the downtown

:cheers:

Indeed Steel. I do remember when we were the only Hamilton forumers defending our great city. Remember the battles? The administrators stopped city vs. city threads, because they got nasty, but they were fun. I started coming here to draw the buildings, back then the forums were less important. Mostly because there weren't many from Hamilton. It seems now the discussions now take more importance over the building illustrations. This thread has turned into a great source of info. BIG Thanks to everyone.

Your wish list used to be much bigger. It would be interesting to see if you go back a few years and check off what's been done and not done.


:hug:

[SteelTown]

Yea Hamilton vs Winnipeg seemed to be popular at the time but it was just you defending the city with like 30 other Winnipeg forumers haha

My 2005 wishlist found in the archives

1) Hamilton wins the Canadian Music Hall of Fame bid......lost that bid
2) All the units at the Chateau Royale are sold out......dunno about that
3) New residential condo announced in the core.....yea happened
4) Lister Block re-development announced......this was before there was any talk of redeveloping the Lister Block
5) Getting some decaying buildings turned around....yea James St North
6) Royal Connaught Hotel back to its glory.......the hotel just closed at the time
7) Mid-size condo development at the waterfront.....nope
8) New airlines doing business at YHM....yea Air Canada and Flyglobespan
9) Attracting new businesses to Hamilton.....yea
10) Salvation Army building closed.....well no but got halfway house out
11) Improvements with public transportation, add more HSR routes, do a study on new public transportation such as LRT or BRT.....got a Rapid Transit Office so it's a start
12) GO Train services expanded in Hamilton.....no Mayor Fred trying to get it to the East end though

my 2006 wishlist

1) VIA Rail station built in the downtown....still working on it
2) Tivoli theatre redevelopment announced....YAY!
3) More condominium/residential development announced for the downtown...yea
4) The European Piazza for Pier 8 officially announced....stalled
5) Hamilton’s Farmer’s Market redevelopment announced (rumours Yale Properties is working up a plan to open up the Farmer’s market onto York Boulevard – an outdoor market)....getting there!
6) Victoria Hall and MacKay building gets developed....got a plan just need to excute it
7) 150 Main Street West - old federal building finally starts construction sometime this year....god this project is pissing me off since 2005
8) Better transit system. Start off with Main Street dedicated bus lane....yea that's the plan now
9) Details of the Hilton Hotel at corner of Main and Bay gets released...got some infor
10) Air Canada expand routes from Hamilton airport, more direct flights would be nice....no expansion from Air Canada, would be nice to have Hamilton to Winnipeg to connect to the west from Air Canada
11) The Half way house at the Salvation Army building gets relocated finally...YAY!!

my wishlist for 2007

1. The abandon building at the corner of King and Wellington (next to the downtown gate) announced a redevelopment plan, such an eyesore at the moment....nothing yet over the 4 months
2. VIA Rail announces plans to locate a station in the downtown.....hopefully this year
3. More residential units announced for the downtown core.....residental loan program is coming out soon
4. Finally work beings to convert the old federal building into residential, getting fed up seeing years pass by with nothing happening.....GRRRRR start already!!!!
5. Flyglobespan a smashing success....fingers crossed
6. CANMET building starts construction at the McMaster Innovation Park....not until next year open sometime 2009 to 2010
7. BRT system gets full financial support from the federal and provincial government....city needs to outline a plan first
8. City approves funding to build an incline railway...god I hope that happens this year
9. Jackson Square announced a redevelopment plan to coincide with the redevelopment of Farmer’s Market and Central Library......I can seriously hope
10. Tivoli theatre gets the proper funding to go ahead with redevelopment of the theatre....i hope
11. Lister Block redevelopment plan approved with construction beginning in the spring....HA good luck perhaps the summer now? lol
12. A new NHL team called the Hamilton Penguins announced....nope
13. My mom’s pastry shop becomes a reality, fresh cupcakes anyone?.....mom is still working on the idea lol


It appears that I think years ahead as things do finally happen just that the city takes more time to act on these.

[SteelTown]

When is the Open Doors Hamilton? The site didn't have anything. I'll meet up with you dudes. Where's the meet?

Here's website for more info http://www.architecturehamilton.com/tours.html

May 5th it all happen at. So far i guess we'll meet at Ferguson Station at 10 or 11.

I'll make a new thread for this on the weekend, I have final exams at the moment to worry about so I don't have the time to sit down and make a detailed list.

I wish the Bank of Montreal building was part of this Doors Open this year. Hamilton Club never seems to be open for the public.

[SteelTown]

Holy what a council! lol

Finally at the end of the night Bratina took the floor to withdraw his notice of motion that he wanted the province to examine what's happening in the city's building department. When his speech started to go on, several councillors motioned to Mayor Fred Eisenberger to bring Bratina back on point. When Eisenberger signaled to Bratina, he snapped off his mike and pushed back his chair. He then whipped his pen across the council chamber, hitting the door and narrowly missing McHattie's head. Then he walked out.

But the real excitement happened after the meeting ended.

This is what I hear: Jackson and Whitehead went nose to nose in the council offices yelling at each other over the heritage position.

Meanwhile Bratina returned and allegedly started swearing at Councillor Lloyd Fergusuon for questioning some of his comments about the QEW bridge. Apparently the f-word was flying around like candy from a burst piñata.

I feel like attending council meeting and yelling out "Jerry...Jerry...Jerry...Jerry...Jerry...Jerry...Jerry...Jerry" Jerry Springer Show

How about replacing these guys with us, steeltown ward 8, rth ward 2, flar ward 12, DC can have stoney creek ward 10 or 11, realcity can take Bill Kelly old ward of 7, matt can have ward 3, and the rest can fight over what ward. lol

[SteelTown]

Oh I just noticed that MayDay festival from Skydragon is being held the same time for Doors Open on May 5th so we should deinately plan a trip to the festival for beer, entertainment, food, whatever well exploring the city. For the festival King William from James to Hughson will be closed to traffic.

This is starting to sound nice!

[matt602]

I cannot believe how Bob Bratina acted in council. That seems so unlike him. Really, I would have expected something like that from Bernie Morelli. What the hell is up? He's gonna lose his job if he keeps acting like that.

Aww I wanted ward 2 :(

[flar]

Wow, the behaviour of our councilors is quite disturbing. I don't know any of those guys, but no wonder nothing ever gets done!

[raisethehammer]

you take Ward 2...I'll take Ward 1.

[hamiltonguy]

I can't believe Bratina did that! My Dad and Uncle know him! Holy crap so unlike anything i've ever heard of him.

There must be something going on. This last month every one of them have been swearing and yelling.

Bratina threw a pen at McHattie wow... So much for them seeming to work together as a single voice.

I live in Ward 7 but i'll take any ward I can get.


Hmmmm. Maybe skyscraper forum should have a "Shadow" City Council?

[raisethehammer]

I don't think skyscraper would let us set up a shadow council.
We wouldn't be allowed to use council's language on this forum.
i don't think he threw the pen at Brian...it says he just threw it away. it happened to come close to Brian.
still, what a bunch of maniacs.

[beanmedic]

The council meeting will re-air tonight at midnight and again at 3am on Cable 14

[raisethehammer]

sure..I'll stay up that late to watch these morons.
noticed tonight that the safety fencing is now up in front of the Kit Kat building on King East.
Let's assume that means she's coming down shortly.

[SteelTown]

Saw the video clip of Bratina and yea he chucked his pen across the chamber alright lol, bounched off the glass door next to McHattie.

Funny part is McHattie reaction...he stood still the whole time didn't even move lol

[SteelTown]

Oh and he's taking a few days off to cool off. So the chance of stopping the bus fare increase looks weaker with one less councilor.

[hamiltonguy]

Crap, he can't skip tommorrows vote. Crap Bob, what a bad time to break down.

I didn't mean like debating and stuff, but have 1 of us for each ward, and a mayor and take votes whenever Council makes big votes. See how many times we disagree with council.

[flar]

Something I've always wondered, how often does council meet? Is it a full time job or do these guys work at normal jobs while on council?

[SteelTown]

I don't think any of the councilors have a part time job. Think there's committee of the whole meeting every 2 weeks. The rest of the committee is spread out like every 2 or 3 weeks.

[SteelTown]

Hamilton real estate blooms
The Hamilton Spectator
(Apr 12, 2007)

New jobs and population growth are putting a new bloom on Hamilton's real estate market.

It's such a pretty bloom, in fact, a new report from the Vancouver-based Real Estate Investment Network ranks the city in its top 10 Ontario places to invest in real estate.

The list, released yesterday, puts the city in a two-way tie with Brantford as the fifth best place in the province to buy a property. Kitchener-Waterloo-Cambridge tops the list.

Most of the credit goes to economic diversification, said REIN founder Don Campbell.

"The economy of Hamilton is really shifting away from the dirty steeltown impression a lot of people still have," he said. "Diversification is going to have a real impact on people wanting to live here."

Also driving the local market is a rising demand for housing, as new immigrants to Canada and migrants from other parts of the country settle here.

"Growth in Hamilton isn't going to be a home run, but it is going to be a nice double or triple base hit," Campbell said.

Also boosting the area are low mortgage rates, the migration of housing refugees from Toronto aided by improved GO Transit service, the looming completion of the Red Hill Valley Parkway and booming development at Hamilton airport in Glanbrook.

Hamilton's real estate hot zones

East end: Anywhere within 500 metres of a ramp from the Red Hill Valley Parkway. The highway is expected to open up the economic potential of the area, especially the east Mountain. "It's going to open up that whole area because of the easier commute," said Tom Rendall, co-owner of Re/Max Escarpment Realty Inc.
Westdale: Anywhere near McMaster University, where parents and investors continue to buy property as student housing. It offers parents the chance to save money on residence fees and hopefully turn a profit when the house is sold after Junior graduates. The university area will also attract people looking for homes as employment at the knowledge factory increases. "McMaster is creating a lot of jobs around the area," Rendall said.
West end: The university area for the same reasons. Also, "anywhere within a 15-minute drive of the McMaster Innovation Park (being developed on Longwood Road) is going to do incredibly well," said Don Campbell, founder of Vancouver-based Real Estate Investment Network.
Downtown: The central city, north of Main Street, is seeing a lot of activity by landlords picking up two-and-three-family homes as income properties. "There are quite a few realtors selling a lot of that today," according to Doug Tunis, broker-manager of Royal LePage State Realty.

[matt602]

As soon as I started reading that, I knew the emphasis would be on the sprawl area's, and not the inner city. No point kidding yourself, sprawl is still king and it always has been appealing to immigrants (take Brampton and Milton for example, where the immigrant population is HUGE).

[raisethehammer]

yes, but notice the areas they highlight at the end of the report - all in the lower city.
I was pleased since my house actually falls into 2 of the categories - 'Downtown - north of Main street' and 'West End within 15 minutes of the Mac Innovation Park'.
I'm 2 minutes from the farmers market and less than 5 from the Innovation Park. not to mention the waterfront.

[SteelTown]

3 out of the 4 real estate hot spots are in Lower Hamilton, 2 spots for the Westend and the downtown.

[beanmedic]

Bratina overthrows the cut-off man

http://ideas.typepad.com/hallmarks/Bratina2.mov

[matt602]

Anybody know what they're building/doing with the land on the North side of the Wesley Centre, behind the car rental place? Theres some construction equipment there doing... constructing? I don't know.

[LikeHamilton]

Anybody know what they're building/doing with the land on the North side of the Wesley Centre, behind the car rental place? Theres some construction equipment there doing... constructing? I don't know.


It is just a storage place for a construction company. I do not remember it's name.

[raisethehammer]

man, Bratina has a gun!
Sign him up for the Jays.

[matt602]

The "kit kat" building on King beside pizza pizza is almost completely demolished now. You can't really see it from the front, because that's the only part remaining now... but if you go around back you'll see that the entire back half of the place is ripped off and lying on the ground now. It'll probably be all gone by the end of Monday.

[the dude]

^thank god. looking forward to having that filled-in. i'm glad i wasn't around when the original building burned. that would have been depressing to watch. apparently it was quite similar to the pagoda building next door. the treble isn't going to be reno'd at the same time is it? i recall talk of it being turned into affordable housing. it's probably owned by the same idiots who own those buildings around the gore. buying them only to make a couple bucks.

[northender98]

Just passed by the mall at Burlington and james and they have signage on windows for "Grandad's cofee and donuts" and my uncle was told it should be open around the 25th.

I talked to the bartender at the "Great Big Sea" pub and they have plans for a double decker bus to "double" as their kitchen, you'll be able to get service from outside the bus as well and they have plans for a patio out back. I was there on Friday and the atmosphere was good--more and more customers showing up each time I go. Nice to have it in the neighbourhood.

I also made it to the "Seven Windows" restaurant. Great atmosphere and very stylish. The food is very good---make sure you get reservations first.

Northender98

[raisethehammer]

reservations?? really??
anytime I've gone by the place looks empty or closed.
Was it busy?

Great idea at Great Big Sea...look forward to it.

[northender98]

I called yesterday to make reservations for 7:00 p.m. and they told me they had to make it 8:00 p.m. cause they were booked solid. It was packed and I saw people coming in throughout the night, only slowed down after 10.

Northender98

[raisethehammer]

that's good to hear.
I'm glad to hear the kit kat building is almost gone. it's a nice infill project being built in it's place.
Anyone know if interior work is continuing at Victoria Hall at the Gore???

[SteelTown]

I've noticed that every since those loft opened the place has been busy.

[raisethehammer]

I've noticed that every since those loft opened the place has been busy.


gee, interesting concept. have people live above stores and restaurants. who knew it could work?

[Hammer Town]

Monday, April 16, 2007 | Updated at 2:47 PM EDT


Downtown building evacuated after parts of wall crumble
Hamilton Spectator
Hamilton Police have evacuated the building at 14 James St. N. this afternoon after parts of the north wall crumbled into the parking lot.

The building, which houses Sirloin Cellar and Kohler's Drugstore, has been evacuated as a precautionary measure.

James Street North between King and Cannon streets is closed.


Man this City is falling apart Literally.

[raisethehammer]

dang! i love that building.
i'm sure the city will call in Tepperman to do their thing before anyone knows what happened. obviously it would be nice to save it, but this is Hamilton. Demo first, ask questions later.

[raisethehammer]

just read on CHML that it was actually bricks that were lying on the roof that blew off and into the parking lot.
Let's hope that's all it was.
Why would someone have bricks lying around on their roof??

[LikeHamilton]

Monday, April 16, 2007 | Updated at 2:47 PM EDT


Downtown building evacuated after parts of wall crumble
Hamilton Spectator
Hamilton Police have evacuated the building at 14 James St. N. this afternoon after parts of the north wall crumbled into the parking lot.

The building, which houses Sirloin Cellar and Kohler's Drugstore, has been evacuated as a precautionary measure.

James Street North between King and Cannon streets is closed.


Man this City is falling apart Literally.

I was there. I talked to the owner of the building with the Sirloin Cellar and Kohler's Drugstore in it. The wall in question is the the old wall to the the old Grafton store. It is not part of his building. He has been fighting with the owner of that property to get it fixed since 1995. The brick did come off of the wall in several places and not blown off. The parking attendant watch it for 2 hours before someone else call 911. Several cars damaged and one is most likely a write off. The building department will ordered it fenced off and fixed. Not much chance of that as the owner is rumored to owe $500,000 in back taxes o the city. The city may have to fix it and add to the bill. It is owned by a person named Selvestri.

[matt602]

That's a damn shame. Looks like there's gonna be an even bigger space there than the Zellers left. That building is pretty nice.

[SteelTown]

That whole section from the parking lot to that corner store on King is in such rough shape yet it's a beauty. It needs a good spray to remove the layer of dirt and grim. Fix up the windows and it'll look great.

I wasn't aware Silvestri owned any building. I know he owns that parking lot. He bought that parking lot the same time he bought that parking lot where he just finished building Cityvew condos.

[raisethehammer]

i saw on CH news tonight...silvestri owns the parking lot and that wall. I looked at it tonight while downtown....I never noticed before, but there is still a wall from the old building standing there.
How weird is that?
So that's good - it's not the sirloin cellar building. just the big wall beside it.

[SteelTown]

Huh, there's a wall that's still standing from the old Zeller's building? Why didn't they just knock that wall down with the rest of the demo.

A free standing wall right next to the sirloin building, whoa strange.

[flar]

That wall may have been left standing because removing it could destabilize the other buildings.

[LikeHamilton]

Sorry I was not clear. Silvestri owns the parking lot and the wall. The owner of the building owns the drug store and its operations include the whole 2nd floor. The 3rd to 5th floor are vacant. I got into the building and it has not been used for anything other than some storage for the last 75 to 100 years. It is wide open and even has the piping and fixtures for it's original gas lighting hanging from the ceilings. From the north side of the 5th floor running around to the east and then south is an inclosed walkway that goes to the old Mill's China shop on King St. They used the 5th floor of the drug store building for storage of china at one time. It was a cool space with bare brick walls and old wooden floors. It would have made great loft but no one has kept it up and it maybe to far gone to do anything with. :D

[matt602]

That wall may have been left standing because removing it could destabilize the other buildings.

I believe the same thing was done regarding St. Deny's.

[matt602]

Sorry I was not clear. Silvestri owns the parking lot and the wall. The owner of the building owns the drug store and its operations include the whole 2nd floor. The 3rd to 5th floor are vacant. I got into the building and it has not been used for anything other than some storage for the last 75 to 100 years. It is wide open and even has the piping and fixtures for it's original gas lighting hanging from the ceilings. From the north side of the 5th floor running around to the east and then south is an inclosed walkway that goes to the old Mill's China shop on King St. They used the 5th floor of the drug store building for storage of china at one time. It was a cool space with bare brick walls and old wooden floors. It would have made great loft but no one has kept it up and it maybe to far gone to do anything with. :D

Can I ask how you got to see all this? I'd LOVE to see all this myself.

[LikeHamilton]

From the latest LACAC minutes.

(i) Tivoli, 108 James Street North, Hamilton – Councillor B. McHattie
Councillor McHattie indicated that there are no updates however, a five storey building to be built across the street has been approved for grants for renovations therefore, there will be improvements in the area. He will contact Belma Diamonte from the Ballet Company for more information.

[LikeHamilton]

Can I ask how you got to see all this? I'd LOVE to see all this myself.

I cannot give up my sources but I have friends in high and low places!
;)

[fastcarsfreedom]

Removing walls definitely can destabilize neighboring buildings. The old main Royal Bank branch on James North started having problems after the Robinson's store was demolished, cracked walls, etc.

[raisethehammer]

that's partly why spallacci has taken so long to get going...several months were needed to shore up the denningers building since the old st deny's was attached to denningers.
urban construction is really quite fascinating.
st deny's should start rising out of the ground soon by the look of it.

[SteelTown]

Watch out for June 8th, big stuff for McMaster. I can't say much then that. It's been a working process over a couple of months.

[the dude]

tease...

[SteelTown]

I would love nothing more than to give a big hint but really I can't. I had a long meeting today and we finally got the date when the news should break, June 8th.

I don't want to get fired at work for telling. I don't even feel comfortable telling the date. Flar works at Mac so I could get in shit lol

[raisethehammer]

just answer this...does it have ANYTHING to do with downtown??

[SteelTown]

no

[matt602]

Then it ain't important :P

Kidding of course.

Can't really tell where the damage was on the Sirloin cellar (went out tonight and got some pics):

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k201/sugarton/Downtown%20Hamilton/Sirloin%20Cellar/IMG_0045.jpg

It's cool to see how part of the Zellers building is still there though (albeit the very small chunk they couldn't remove):

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k201/sugarton/Downtown%20Hamilton/Sirloin%20Cellar/IMG_0052.jpg

[raisethehammer]

crazy eh? destabalizing neighbouring buildings wouldn't deter the far-thinking powers-that-were back in the 60's and 70's.
for that matter, destroying the city didn't deter them either. What a horrible time in Hamilton's history. Probably the worst leadership this city has ever had and they left a permanent mark by swinging wrecking balls everywhere they turned.

[SteelTown]

I dunno but it seems like FINALLY the old federal building is getting gutted. This project I have been the most frustrated about. But the delay was probably done for a reason, new parking structure, conversion and new hotel. Hopefully this year will be a big turn around for Main West from Bay to Hess.

I think rth mentioned the hotel at the corner of Bay and Main will start construction this year.

YAY! I finished my last final exam today. F-R-E-E-D-O-M!

[the dude]

^are you referring to the hilton/hmp project or is there something else in the works? it'll be very nice to see that property get fixed up.

[matt602]

Just passed by there today. There's nothing going on aside from some new boards here and there.

Only thing I've got is a bum that we know who lives in HMP that says they are working inside there every day (federal building). I haven't seen any evidence of it.

[raisethehammer]

yes, they are gutting it.
the delay was the heritage assessment report for the HMP building.
It's done now, and they are going to save the building, not demo it. Thank goodness.

[matt602]

The place has been gutted ever since I've been going there (last 3 years). I can't imagine there'd be too much to do aside from new construction.

[SteelTown]

Then they must be getting ready for full blown construction! Makes since it's now spring and obviously there's some kind of work be done to the old federal building lately.

[Border City Boy]

About the doors open event... I would like to come up from Windsor for it.

Let me know when you've got all the plans finalized.

[SteelTown]

^ Here's the separate thread about Hamilton's Doors Open. Contains all the information

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=129344

[Border City Boy]

Awesome!

[LikeHamilton]

The place has been gutted ever since I've been going there (last 3 years). I can't imagine there'd be too much to do aside from new construction.

Most buildings today require 2 demolitions. The 1st is the asbestos removal and then the 2nd would be a normal demolition. You cannot do anything in a building more than 10 years old without the asbestos removed. Even in new buildings you have to have a survey stating you have no asbestos in it from a company that specializes in asbestos. I suspect the 1st demolition was the asbestos removal and now they are completing the rest of the demolition.

[northender98]

Hey All,
I just noticed that they are removing the railings from the balconies of the "Marina Towers" by the bay. Hopefully they completely renovate the building and make it more modern and aestetically pleasing. Starting from scratch would probably be best but renovations are helpful too.
Northender

[raisethehammer]

man, I was wondering if we'd see a lull in downtown development projects.
This week I've been told about a whole pile of great projects - big and small - that are taking place downtown.
James North is on a roll....i'll post some of my news later on when i've got a bit more time.
should be another fun summer of construction/reno watching downtown.

[matt602]

I noticed that the building beside the parking lot at James/Vine, across from Tivoli has a "SOLD" sign on it. Anyone know who bought it and what they intend to do with it? Has it been this way for a long time? (sold?)

[northender98]

I just came back from a walk by pier 8 and I noticed that there are patio stones at the back of the marine discovery centre. I'm guessing they will be making a patio for the cafe there. That will be a great addition to the area, a great place to relax, drink a coffee and enjoy the view.
Northender