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View Full Version : Hamilton: Is it really that bad?



flar
Sep 24, 2007, 6:47 PM
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raisethehammer
Sep 25, 2007, 2:34 AM
awesome.
interesting thread title too...I assume you're hoping to gather comments from those who've never been here and assume the city sucks, based on their Skyway Bridge view.
I'm sure this tour will shock them.
Hamilton rocks.

matt602
Sep 25, 2007, 2:46 AM
Nope :)

I hated it when I first moved here but I've learned to embrace it because I opened my eyes and explored the city.

Cambridgite
Sep 25, 2007, 3:16 AM
While far from reaching its full potential, Hamilton does have some gems and a genuinely urban quality to it. Not what you'd expect, given its reputation.

theman23
Sep 25, 2007, 3:28 AM
Man, Mississauga is better than this.

raisethehammer
Sep 25, 2007, 2:40 PM
don't take the bait people! keep the thread on topic.
theman23 - perhaps you should start a new thread comparing various suburban regions like Mississuaga: Burnaby, Laval, Marham etc.... your post is completely irrelevant here.

harls
Sep 25, 2007, 2:47 PM
Nope.

#96 - the guy in the middle looks like Joey Jeremiah.

the dude
Sep 25, 2007, 3:43 PM
believe it or not, some people on ssp aren't fans of true cities. they prefer strip malls, expressways and power centres to beautiful architecture, walkable neighbourhoods and tree-lined streets.

the dude
Sep 25, 2007, 3:46 PM
Nope.

#96 - the guy in the middle looks like Joey Jeremiah.

that would make the other two snake and wheels. totally sweet flashback.

shappy
Sep 25, 2007, 3:49 PM
haha, it's the Zit Remedy!

I couldn't find "Everybody Wants Something" but this clip is pretty good: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hzl_UY_M-as&

the dude
Sep 25, 2007, 4:06 PM
oh man, joey got sooo burned in that clip. dwayne was such a jerk but then he got hiv and everyone felt sorry for him. good times.

WZ1
Sep 25, 2007, 6:36 PM
This is just one picture thats shows why I love Hamilton.. looks like its right out of Chicago! I will really miss the walkable factor living in Mississauga.. in Hamilton I walk everywhere.. and as of Friday I must rely on Mississauga Transit and my car... :(

http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k28/segaert/new%20hammer/00026.jpg

raisethehammer
Sep 25, 2007, 7:20 PM
I feel for you...I couldn't imagine living there.
This is a great photo tour AND there's no night shots of Hess Village! By far our hottest destination neighbourhood. I guess there's just too much good here to get into 1 tour.

ikerrin
Sep 26, 2007, 1:13 AM
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Man, you really have a gift there. Have you ever thought of pitching your collection of hamilton shots to a publisher or creating a calender? I would far rather have your photos hanging on my wall than yet another photo of Queen's park:tup:

By the way, could you tell me where this appartment building is? I remember seeing it elsewhere and I always thought that it was architecturally really beautiful. If it was in Toronto, no doubt it would be a condo with units selling in the 400's!

Thanks again, you make me homesick for my McMaster days!

DC83
Sep 26, 2007, 1:39 AM
It's at Quigley & Greenhill in the city's South-East End.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=greenhill+%26+QUIGLEY+HAMILTON+ON&sll=43.209657,-79.787382&sspn=0.003707,0.01075&ie=UTF8&ll=43.210212,-79.787521&spn=0.007413,0.014462&t=h&z=16&om=1

They're actually 2 floor apts! It's not in the greatest area, but it's not in a horrible area either. There are some ghetto apts / houses in the area, but a lot more nice single fam homes including some (on Bunker Hill) that back onto the Glendale Golf Course! Awesome neighbourhood... I grew up right around the corner from there!

flar
Sep 26, 2007, 1:43 AM
That building is actually 16 storeys, it's massive. Each balcony is 2 floors, as DC83 said and the building is in a T shape. It's in the style of Le Corbusier's Unite d'Habitation. Several were built right after WWII in Europe.

Another view:
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k28/segaert/springhammer/00018.jpg

Mille Sabords
Sep 26, 2007, 12:51 PM
I don't know Hamilton nearly enough, having only been there twice (first time in 1990, got to see Copps Coliseum, second time around 2001) but these shots are impressive. The city definitely merits a few days' worth of exploration as a tourist and I can see how it would grab you at the heart if you were born there. Awesome shots.

ikerrin
Sep 26, 2007, 1:11 PM
That building is actually 16 storeys, it's massive. Each balcony is 2 floors, as DC83 said and the building is in a T shape. It's in the style of Le Corbusier's Unite d'Habitation. Several were built right after WWII in Europe.

Another view:
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k28/segaert/springhammer/00018.jpg

Thanks for the second photo and the information. I can see by this shot that it probably needs a bit of renovating, but like so much of Hamilton it an unpolished jewel!

ikerrin
Sep 26, 2007, 1:14 PM
It's at Quigley & Greenhill in the city's South-East End.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=greenhill+%26+QUIGLEY+HAMILTON+ON&sll=43.209657,-79.787382&sspn=0.003707,0.01075&ie=UTF8&ll=43.210212,-79.787521&spn=0.007413,0.014462&t=h&z=16&om=1

They're actually 2 floor apts! It's not in the greatest area, but it's not in a horrible area either. There are some ghetto apts / houses in the area, but a lot more nice single fam homes including some (on Bunker Hill) that back onto the Glendale Golf Course! Awesome neighbourhood... I grew up right around the corner from there!

Thanks for the google link. I can't quite make out if its on the mountain or below the mountain. I see Barton which I remember from long bus rides out to see movies that weren't playing downtown.

flar
Sep 26, 2007, 1:16 PM
it's below the mountain

flar
Sep 27, 2007, 1:03 PM
When I first moved to Hamilton 5 years ago after living in London for 7 years, I didn't like it. London is a nice city and I enjoyed living there. I figured Hamilton was similar to London in terms of its size, cultural, entertainment and shopping options. I had a lot of preconceptions about Hamilton, as most do, having heard that it was dirty and dangerous. As I explored Hamilton, I kept finding more and more; the city is filled with history, incredible and unique neighbourhoods, hidden architectural gems and amazing communities. I discovered that Hamilton is actually quite a bit larger than I thought and offered a lot more of a big city experience than London had. If I was pleasantly surprised by the urban experience, I was even more surprised by the natural beauty of the city and its parks.

The real thrill of exploring Hamilton comes from the fact that so little is known about it. Few people even within Hamilton look beyond the industry and decay. As everyone knows, Hamilton is overshadowed by Toronto, which means there is very little media exposure and hardly any national presence compared to other Canadian cities of its size. This is what has spurred me to photograph so much of the city, to get the word out and show the things about Hamilton that most cities would be proud of but go unnoticed here.

Thanks for looking, here are links to some of my other phototours of Hamilton. The good, the bad, the fascinating:

Old school suburbia: A profile of one of Canada's first and finest suburbs (http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=135327)

Twilight of the Industrial Age (http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=128954)

Spring in the Valley: Dundas, ON (http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=131127)

Another incredible Hamilton neighbourhood: Kirkendall (http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=135162)

The Hammer Lives! (http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=133598)

A leisurely stroll through the inner city (http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=134211)

A Crazy Melange of Imagery from Hamilton (http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=127266)

"possibly the largest concentration of early 20C mansions in Canada" (http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=118098)

Five Miles of Grit: A long walk down Barton St. in Hamilton (http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=119700)

Old Man Winter vs. Hamilton (http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=124596)

"The largest fabric and textile district in Canada" (http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=135905)

Conquer and rule or serve and lose, suffer or triumph, be the anvil or THE HAMMER (http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=136882)

boden
Sep 28, 2007, 12:29 AM
Here's a shot of the same building that I took about a month ago when I visited Hamilton. I loved the place by the way.
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1059/1259463530_04c2cc8eed_o.jpg

Border City Boy
Oct 2, 2007, 6:49 PM
Great shots! I love the Hammer. Probably one of Ontario's most underated cities.

go_leafs_go02
Dec 26, 2007, 8:49 PM
I'm a student transplant, and definitely haven't fallen in love with the city after 3 months. I'm from London. like flar, but I just can't get myself to like it. I find it disappointing, gritty and sub-par in alot of areas.


I find the natural beauty of the escarpment to be amazing. I think the city has more potential than almost any other place in Ontario. It's proximity to Toronto, it's location with the escarpment and the Burlington Bay could be enhanced so much.

I'm pretty much wishing for the replacement of the steel mills with beautiful bay-side communities with condos. It honestly would be one of the most beautiful places to live. I would rather live on that bay looking towards Dundas and Aldershot than living on Lake Ontario looking across into empty water. So much potential with Hamilton, just I've been reading, and there seems to be no real desire to improve the city when it could be done. And from what I read, that's a general consensus of alot of Hamiltonians.

raisethehammer
Dec 26, 2007, 9:11 PM
hey goleafsgo...where in the Hammer are you living?? what would you like to find that would make life here a little more enjoyable for you? maybe we can help.

go_leafs_go02
Dec 26, 2007, 9:20 PM
hey goleafsgo...where in the Hammer are you living?? what would you like to find that would make life here a little more enjoyable for you? maybe we can help.
oh i'm a student, i'm going to mohawk college for transportation engineering. I live out close to the meadowlands, in a house with a few guys (I'm only 19) and am close to the Stone Church & Upper Paradise intersection.

I don't have a car, so I use the HSR for everything. that involves usually going from my house to Mohawk (Fennell campus) to downtown on occasion. I've been done King Street to Eastgate a few times. I have driven down the Linc/Red Hill alot, and been to Limeridge a bunch of times, and I just don't find it attractive.

I am in transportation engineering, which I stated before, so that has a major influence on how I look at the city, and how it's constructed. I see shoddy, run down roads with poor infrastructure in alot of areas, particularly in drainage and snow removal, so that sticks out a lot. And I compare it far too much to London which is where I call home.

I've read through alot of this forum in the past few days, quite interesting.

raisethehammer
Dec 26, 2007, 9:30 PM
haha...I don't find any of those areas attractive either. lol. what are you looking for? certain type of vibe or urban neighbourhoods or specific suburban-type areas??
Hamilton, keep in mind, is an old, large urban centre....provincial downloading has meant we've been stretched to the limit each year at budget time trying to take care of our own (and Toronto's) homeless and social needs.
we've actually improved snow removal and summertime garden/park maintanence in the past few years so things were worse 5,6 years ago.
Have you ever been to Westdale, Locke South, James North, Hess Village, West Harbour parks and Williams Coffee Pub, Ottawa St North, Concession St etc.... those are usually the places I tell newcomers to check out...gives you a good feel for the city and the unique culture here. Places like Meadowlands and Limeridge are everywhere (including London) so you can't get a good feel for the city based on that.
Go for a walk at Sam Lawrence Park along the Mountain Brow or check out the Dundas Peak hiking trail.

go_leafs_go02
Dec 26, 2007, 9:41 PM
haha...I don't find any of those areas attractive either. lol. what are you looking for? certain type of vibe or urban neighbourhoods or specific suburban-type areas??
Hamilton, keep in mind, is an old, large urban centre....provincial downloading has meant we've been stretched to the limit each year at budget time trying to take care of our own (and Toronto's) homeless and social needs.
we've actually improved snow removal and summertime garden/park maintanence in the past few years so things were worse 5,6 years ago.
Have you ever been to Westdale, Locke South, James North, Hess Village, West Harbour parks and Williams Coffee Pub, Ottawa St North, Concession St etc.... those are usually the places I tell newcomers to check out...gives you a good feel for the city and the unique culture here. Places like Meadowlands and Limeridge are everywhere (including London) so you can't get a good feel for the city based on that.
Go for a walk at Sam Lawrence Park along the Mountain Brow or check out the Dundas Peak hiking trail.
Thanks for those tips. Winter is blah for me. I hate winter. I know even in September, I did alot more exploring of the city with one of my friends who I live with, cause it was warmer. We biked around and walked to the Mountain brow on occasion. Looks so amazing, especially at night.

One thing I noticed is that the makeup of London and Hamilton are different. London was formed well on white-collar industry of health and business mainly. hamilton is a steel, blue-collar town through and through.

downloading doesn't help either, for sure, I know the consequences can be seen in many areas.

I'm more one of just seeing aesthetic cleanliness and neatness, and am not not really one for like cultural vibes. Where the grass is green and lush, concrete is un-cracked and void of weeds, buildings look presentable, clean, bright and orderly. From what I hear, Hamilton lacks bylaw enforcement on private property standards, and that's noticable.

I don't want to come across like a douche who is constantly negative, but from what I see/know of Hamilton at present, I don't have that great of a positive opinion of it.

but I love the HSR and the current transit system there overall. Very consistent, good service times more-or-less and they run from 5 AM to 1 AM in most areas. (can't say that about London) :)

DC83
Dec 26, 2007, 10:27 PM
Welcome to the forum, man. But most importantly, Welcome to the Hammer!!
#1 problem is, you're not exploring the city with a Hamiltonian who cares about the city.
I've given a bunch of my out of town friends (and even some Hamiltonians) tours of downtown and other areas, and have completely changed their minds.
You need to understand Hamilton to appreciate it!


I'm more one of just seeing aesthetic cleanliness and neatness, and am not not really one for like cultural vibes. Where the grass is green and lush, concrete is un-cracked and void of weeds, buildings look presentable, clean, bright and orderly. From what I hear, Hamilton lacks bylaw enforcement on private property standards, and that's noticable.

To be honest, dude, I dunno WHERE you're going to find a city like that, esp in the Golden Horseshoe Area. Look at Buffalo, St Catharines, Hamilton, Toronto... Hell, consider the whole Rustbelt (Cleveland, Pittsburgh, etc).
No city in this area will look like Phoenix or Charleston... it's all part of our heritage!!! You need to understand THAT to appreciate as well.

Toronto has just as many cracked sidewalks, graffitotagged bldgs and weeds as Hamilton (or Kitchener-Waterloo, or Cambridge, or Gurlph, etc)... it's just masked by Bay Street.

We should definatetly set up a downtown-tour forum-meet after the chaos we call "Holidays" are over. There's tons to do/see/expereince.

You'll love Hamilton, and will prolly be just as addicted to it as the rest of us in no time!! I think there's something in the air & water... besides pollutants...
hahaha

SteelTown
Dec 26, 2007, 10:32 PM
^ Once London Tap House opens I was thinking perhaps we could all meet then. Or wait until the spring and get the rooftop patio.

raisethehammer
Dec 26, 2007, 10:35 PM
I have a good friend who moved here from London a few years ago (hmmm, lot of you London folks bailing for the greener pastures eh?? lol) and at first had a similar thought of Hamilton as you do. He was used to everything being new, clean, fresh etc....he tells me there's only a street or two in downtown London that looks old. Surrounding areas outside of downtown London are all neat and clean..and from my few trips there, he's right.
Toronto is WAY worse than Hamilton for cracked roads, old rundown buildings, properties and graffiti. That IS part of the culture, believe it or not.
I just returned from NYC earlier this summer. Amazing. Awesome city and had way more graffiti, broken infrastructure, potholes, fire hydrants blasting away for no reason in the middle of the day, stuff dripping on you everywhere you walk, homeless everywhere.... it's all part of the city experience.
You might find what you're looking for in Mississuaga, but you won't find a real city there. We should do a meet-up and tour of the hotspots for some newcomers.
My bud from London absolutely loves this city now....says when he goes back to London he finds it so small and boring feeling.
Not trying to bash London...they are different cities though. I think most from London always assume that Hamilton is just a slightly bigger version of London. As you're finding out, that's not the case. I'm glad to hear you're exploring the city...too many peopel sit on their duffs and complain.
Keep up the exploration and who knows, maybe we'll rub off on you someday.
Cheers

matt602
Dec 26, 2007, 11:28 PM
A bit off topic but I'd totally be down for a London Tap House SSP Hamilton meet. Would be awesome.

highwater
Dec 27, 2007, 9:55 PM
The real thrill of exploring Hamilton comes from the fact that so little is known about it. Few people even within Hamilton look beyond the industry and decay. As everyone knows, Hamilton is overshadowed by Toronto, which means there is very little media exposure and hardly any national presence compared to other Canadian cities of its size. This is what has spurred me to photograph so much of the city, to get the word out and show the things about Hamilton that most cities would be proud of but go unnoticed here.

Thanks for looking, here are links to some of my other phototours of Hamilton. The good, the bad, the fascinating:



Flar, been meaning for a while to tell you how much I love your photo essays. Even though I'm already a Hamiltonphile, you have still opened my eyes to some of the wonders of this town. I've been sending your pics to some of the out-of-town doubters and ex-Hamiltonians I know. They should use your pics to promote Hamilton to all the CANMET employees. Many thanks for all you work. (Nice shot of my car in your Westdale essay!)

raisethehammer
Dec 27, 2007, 11:11 PM
Flar, been meaning for a while to tell you how much I love your photo essays. Even though I'm already a Hamiltonphile, you have still opened my eyes to some of the wonders of this town. I've been sending your pics to some of the out-of-town doubters and ex-Hamiltonians I know. They should use your pics to promote Hamilton to all the CANMET employees. Many thanks for all you work. (Nice shot of my car in your Westdale essay!)


I concur...Flar's stuff should be used in luring new businesses, residents and tourists. It's not the corny $500,000 shots used in tourism magazines with a cute little family all laughing till it hurts for no apparent reason.
You photos are best I've ever seen of this town....I don't know how you're going to keep it up in 2008, but I'm sure you will:tup:

chris k
Dec 28, 2007, 1:54 AM
Yeah perhaps you should contact the tourist board and give them it as an offer.... maybe even make a buck or two.

I think they could perhaps put a couple randomn photos up at the airport to lure people on connecting flights or on HSR buses to get the people in out own city more actively involved in celebrating thier culture.

Just a couple cheap suggestions not involving billboards or expensive advertising space. But if they have the budget, why not go for it.
:cheers:

flar
Dec 29, 2007, 3:29 AM
Thanks guys. I doubt the tourism people would use my stuff, they'd rather pay someone to professionally photograph some models staring off into space. I actually chatted with a guy CANMET paid to photograph Hamilton. I gave him some suggestions on places to shoot. Hopefully he got some good shots, he was a bit pressed for time.

DC83
Dec 29, 2007, 1:11 PM
Thanks guys. I doubt the tourism people would use my stuff, they'd rather pay someone to professionally photograph some models staring off into space.

Like this one:

http://tourismhamilton.com/UserFiles/Image/experience.jpg
http://tourismhamilton.com/

hahaha I know it's kinda small, but why would they use that as the COVER of the Hamilton Tourism Guide? Would anyone who wasn't Hamiltonian understand that it's a exhibit at the AGH?? No, they'd prolly think it's just another run down vehicle in the city's east end hahaha

And are those ppl actually there? I'm pretty sure they're photoshopped in! hahaha



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