[LikeHamilton]

Bill Kelly was interviewing a commercial realtor from a large firm (I missed his name and firm). He stated that since the opening of Canada Bread and the Maple Leaf Food announcement, that there has been a significant spike in commercial and industrial properties inquired about and sold in Hamilton.

[urban_planner]

I hope some of that is in the downtown area. Or atleast not walmarts or any other Big Box development!

[durandy]

I've noticed two new (I think) billboards on Main coming into town are BMO and Ross McBride business law. A nice change from the rows of slip n fall lawyers. That might be a signal. If the marketers see a trend maybe something's happening.

[CaptainKirk]

Anyone know anything about a Winners going into Eastagte Square in Walmart's current location once they move down the road to their new location by the QEW?

[thistleclub]

I've noticed two new (I think) billboards on Main coming into town are BMO and Ross McBride business law. A nice change from the rows of slip n fall lawyers. That might be a signal. If the marketers see a trend maybe something's happening.

Part of a campaign showcasing the many different services offered by Ross McBride. Billboards start at 1685 Main West (Divorce Law) and seem to run along Main. I wouldn't be surprised if Personal Injury was one of their calling cards. (http://www.rossmcbride.com/news/Best-Lawyers-2012-Hamilton-Personal-Injury-Litigation-Lawyer-of-the-Year)

[fuller]

Is imitation the sincerest form of flattery?

A Toronto city councillor has proposed that Toronto adopt a 'bold new city slogan'. And guess what it is?

A G&M story (http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/toronto/toronto-to-review-vitally-important-vision-for-future/article2291999/) quotes Peter Milcyn as suggesting it be something like “the best big city to raise a family.”

Copenhagen, for example, calls itself the “eco-metropolis of the world,” and New York claims to be the “most ambitious city in the world.” For Toronto, Mr. Milczyn suggests something like “the best big city to raise a family.”

There's no mention of whether he was inspired by Hamilton's vision statement, which only claims to be the best place (in Canada) to raise a child (, promote innovation, engage citizens and provide diverse economic opportunities.)

Without pausing to consider the validity of such claims, do we now need to 'upgrade' our statement in order to keep up with the neighbours?

[thistleclub]

do we now need to 'upgrade' our statement in order to keep up with the neighbours?

Right next door. (http://cms.burlington.ca/Page7403.aspx)

[Duckyboy]

Right next door. (http://cms.burlington.ca/Page7403.aspx)

Good for them! It's gotta feel good that your community is seen as a great place to raise kids, with low-crime & high-incomes (a great combo, for sure!).

Congrats, Burlington.

[drpgq]

Word is Absinthe is moving to the old Pepperjacks's spot.

Also a bubble tea place opened at the corner of John and King William (formerly Last Call), but I forget the name.

[fuller]

Absinthe is now open at the Pepperjack location on King William and Hughson. The opening party was Wednesday night.

I wonder what will take over the old King St. location.

[drpgq]

There's signs up at the old Street Meat place on John at Young for Rapscallion Rogue Eatery. I've heard the people from the Alex in Burlington are behind it, so hopefully there will be some decent quality food there.

[drpgq]

Anyone else heard any rumours about the Delta Bingo building downtown?

[SteelTown]

They want slots?

[drpgq]

I heard the building changed hands and something new is happening there but didn't know what. Could be slots, I guess and would be a logical place for a would be casino.

[Northern Stroll]

They decided to power wash their filthy sidewalk?

[coalminecanary]

I hope they install more huge pixel-y video screens facing the street!

[LikeHamilton]

I see they have started to paint the outside of the ex-Cottage Life/4 Bucks Saloon at King and Bay. Does anyone know what they are going to call it? The banner outside that they had put up before painting said:

Now hiring

Pour House

George Hamilton

Hooters

[SteelTown]

Checked the building permit and it doesn't include the name of the restaurants. This is all I got...

Description
Alterations to the main entrance of the 3-storey commercial building to create barrier free access.

[pEte fiSt iN Ur fAce]

Thank God there are so many ambitious people in this city willing to throw good money after bad.

That spot was the Regal Hotel for about a million years and has been through several incarnations in the past few years without anything really taking root.

Whatever it turns out to be, I hope it lasts more than a week.

[lucasmascotto]

Now, I could be wrong, but I believe this building will become a massive restaurant complex... :shrug:

Although, I did find this online job fair posting on Kijiji that might be able to answer some questions:

http://hamilton.kijiji.ca/c-jobs-bar-food-hospitality-Job-Fair-Hiring-Immediately-W0QQAdIdZ412414932

[movingtohamilton]

...

Hooters

Hooters? Oh for fcuk sake, is that the best that we can do in the heart of the city?

[mattgrande]

I don't think that's what's going in there. On The George is on George Street, I'd be surprised if it moved. Ditto Pour House, and I'd be surprised if we can support a second Hooters in this city.

[beanmedic]

I don't think that's what's going in there. On The George is on George Street, I'd be surprised if it moved. Ditto Pour House, and I'd be surprised if we can support a second Hooters in this city.

I agree. The pour house is at upper ottawa & fennell. And hooters is in the same building as the job fair. Maybe reading too much into this?

[thistleclub]

Maybe they're just going to install a sidewalk-level billboard on the east facade. Nothing would surprise me with that building anymore.

[drpgq]

Any one else heard the rumour about an Apple Store opening in Limeridge?

[movingtohamilton]

Any one else heard the rumour about an Apple Store opening in Limeridge?


If Apple opened a store in Jackson Square, the impact would be fantastic.

[thistleclub]

Any one else heard the rumour about an Apple Store opening in Limeridge?

Two-thirds of Ontario Apple Stores were opened between July and September.

Yorkdale Shopping Centre, Toronto: May 2005
Eaton Centre, Toronto: May 2006
Sherway Gardens, Toronto: Sept 2006
Fairview Mall, Toronto: Sept 2009
Square One, Mississauga: Aug 2009
Rideau Centre, Ottawa: July 2009
Upper Canada Mall, Newmarket: Sept 2010
Conestoga Mall, Waterloo: Aug 2011
Mapleview Mall, Burlington: Sept 2011
Masonville Place, London: June 2012
Bayshore Shopping Centre, Ottawa: Sept 2012

Q3 makes sense from a market perspective, since they're reliably driving year-end value.

[mattgrande]

On Wellington Wentworth Street South, there's a (formerly) gorgeous old mansion beside a four storey walk-up apartment. Both are boarded up, and have been for years. Does anyone know if there's anything planned, or if they're just sitting there rotting?

Google Maps Link: http://goo.gl/maps/kSVJm

[movingtohamilton]

I see that mansion nearly every day, and have wondered the same thing. Hard to believe it hasn't been brought back to its former grandeur, unless it was allowed to decay.

Since moving here I have been gobsmacked by the countless lovely homes in downtown Hamilton.

[drpgq]

If Apple opened a store in Jackson Square, the impact would be fantastic.

I live downtown and would prefer it at Jackson. One benefit would be that it would be easily accessible to Mac students, plus the increasing numbers of Columbia College. That said right now if it was going to go anywhere, it would be Limeridge.

[movingtohamilton]

I know that the likelihood of Apple (or any world-class brand) opening a store in Jackson Square is slim to none. But a rising tide does float all boats. Imagine an Apple Store there. In a heartbeat, other retailers would be competing for retail space, given the volume of consumers with spending power that Apple would draw.

With an Apple Store, Jackson Square would be transformed, more thoroughly than bringing in a grocery store.

[Frankenrogers]

On Wellington Street South, there's a (formerly) gorgeous old mansion beside a four storey walk-up apartment. Both are boarded up, and have been for years. Does anyone know if there's anything planned, or if they're just sitting there rotting?

Google Maps Link: http://goo.gl/maps/kSVJm

Looks like it is on Wentworth. Cool mansion though, I never go on that stretch between Main and Delaware so haven't seen it. Would love to see the inside.

[thistleclub]

I live downtown and would prefer it at Jackson. One benefit would be that it would be easily accessible to Mac students, plus the increasing numbers of Columbia College.

Burlington Transit's new express bus will get you from King and James to Mapleview in just over 20 minutes. Lime Ridge is just under 20 minutes by HSR from King and James. But it might also be that the GHA is seen as adequately served. Apple has traditioanlly been quite good at maintaining demand, and too many stores might be counterproductive. (Then again, post-Jobs, stores have apparently been paring back (http://wallstcheatsheet.com/stocks/is-apples-retail-model-set-to-change-forever.html/).)

On the face of it, LRM makes infinitely more sense than JS. Apple Stores (and other prestige brands) are not about dispensing social justice for BIAs or breaking open emerging neighbourhoods so much as about tapping into existing prosperity. They locate where disposable income is pooled deepest.

[movingtohamilton]

...On the face of it, LRM makes infinitely more sense than JS. Apple Stores (and other prestige brands) are not about dispensing social justice for BIAs or breaking open emerging neighbourhoods so much as about tapping into existing prosperity. They locate where disposable income is pooled deepest.

True indeed. But I would think that a prestige tenant would get a rock-bottom lease rate as an enticement. Funny thing that in a city like Hamilton the pool of deepest disposable income is a short drive from JS. The Apple store at Sherway draws customers from a very wide catchment area, and no one walks to that mall :)

[movingtohamilton]

Looks like it is on Wentworth. Cool mansion though, I never go on that stretch between Main and Delaware so haven't seen it. Would love to see the inside.

Yes, it's on the east side of Wentworth. We live reasonably close by and walk that stretch often.

[thistleclub]

True indeed. But I would think that a prestige tenant would get a rock-bottom lease rate as an enticement. Funny thing that in a city like Hamilton the pool of deepest disposable income is a short drive from JS.

Yale doesn't even have a JS website. That's not exactly going to recommend them as a tech-savvy node to the folks in Cupertino. (JS couldn't even hold on to a Bell Store.) But EcDev does offer a profile of downtown Hamilton (http://www.investinhamilton.ca/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/DowntownProfile.pdf), and to put it delicately, it's not much of a demographic match for Burlington (http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showpost.php?p=5819890&postcount=118). And again, Mapleview is close enough to Hamilton that it might be seen as adequate to meeting the market demand. Hamilton couldn't support independent Apple dealer Light Computer, post-Apple Mapleview (http://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.marketnews.ca/content/index/page%3Fpid%3D11537&sa=U&ei=UUqcULWgKYrbyQHX_4GQAw&ved=0CBcQFjAB&usg=AFQjCNHzAzAvmxJYyXUKG61LOooOLII8gQ), and that benefitted from Locke South. JS would be a much harder sell.

[fuller]

The Corktown Pub is for sale. The listing (http://www.icx.ca/propertyDetails.aspx?propertyId=12552478&PidKey=992282537) says it would make a great recording studio (it would, too) or maybe a condo development. I wonder why it's being sold; the Slainte people seemed to be doing a good business there, though perhaps not as big as their other location. I've always enjoyed both the food and the entertainment at the Corktown. It would be a real shame to lose this valuable neighbourhood amenity. http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/images/smilies/cheers.gif

This better not be your fault, Corktown NIMBYs! (shakes cane in air)

But seriously, I wonder why it's been put on the market, unless it's not as successful as I had assumed.

[coalminecanary]

It was terribly managed from the start. For every good experience you had, I probably had 5 bad ones. Kitchen closed at 8pm, showing up on a Saturday and finding the doors locked, being told to "drink up fast" cause the staff wants to close early... the list goes on. The problem is, it was left as an afterthought to slainte's and was managed for a long time by one person who I think just didn't have enough experience or drive. It's a huge job to keep a place like that full every day. It spends so many hours empty that i'm shocked it lasted this long.

I wish someone would buy it and let a proper restaurant manager handle the food side, a proper bar manager for the drinks and then get a professional booking agent to run the stage. Managed properly (by a dedicated team), that building should be full of people 6 days a week, with a dinner crowd melding into the concert crowd. It should be like Hamilton's horseshoe tavern - plus food.

[matt602]

I agree. I never had a good experience at the Corktown. The shows were lousy, overpriced and the bar drinks were exceedingly expensive. The service was also disinterested at best. I actually find Slainte to be the same. For a proper pub experience I just go to the Winking Judge, Cat and the Fiddle or Rebels Rock.

In my opinion the best live music venue in Hamilton is by far This Ain't Hollywood. I did hear that Corktown was a lot better about 15 years ago, though.

[mattgrande]

So, anyone want to loan me $900 grand?

[Duckyboy]

I agree. I never had a good experience at the Corktown. The shows were lousy, overpriced and the bar drinks were exceedingly expensive. The service was also disinterested at best. I actually find Slainte to be the same. For a proper pub experience I just go to the Winking Judge, Cat and the Fiddle or Rebels Rock.

In my opinion the best live music venue in Hamilton is by far This Ain't Hollywood. I did hear that Corktown was a lot better about 15 years ago, though.

That's because the Corktown was run (booked, at least) by the one of the owner's of This Ain't Hollywood! I'm friends with the owner's, and their intention with buying The Saint was to "re-create" the atmosphere of the Old Corktown.

And yes, Rebel's Rock is a fantastic place... has been for years.

[movingtohamilton]

...For a proper pub experience I just go to the Winking Judge, Cat and the Fiddle or Rebels Rock...

Looks like a good lineup of live music at Cat & Fiddle. But can't the owners sneak in one, just one decent beer?! The tap list is the usual shite.

[matt602]

Looks like a good lineup of live music at Cat & Fiddle. But can't the owners sneak in one, just one decent beer?! The tap list is the usual shite.

I agree, it's not that great at all. I made the mistake of having cider there once and it was a very bad experience. Still looking for a place with good cider, actually.

[drpgq]

Looks like a good lineup of live music at Cat & Fiddle. But can't the owners sneak in one, just one decent beer?! The tap list is the usual shite.

They added Mill Street recently, which is something I guess.

[movingtohamilton]

They added Mill Street recently, which is something I guess.

Good to know.

I do understand if there is reluctance or refusal to change up the tap list. If a bar sells X amount of beer week in and week out from Y number of taps, why mess with it. There is also a very entrenched incentive system which is lucrative for the bar and the macrobreweries. Some bars have long term contracts which keep out the small-volume breweries.

[Pearlstreet]

Che in Hess Village has their own tapped house brew, which sells for less. It must be difficult to break through without a large investment. It seemed to go well with the college crowd of course.

[Pearlstreet]

http://i47.tinypic.com/2s9w01d.jpg
It seems someone decided to do some soil testing at the corner of Wellington and King Streets. Something to fill the void here would be nice, it has great potential. The sign still says 'for Lease' however.

I took this while walking around Christmas shopping today. Jackson Square and the core had many shoppers milling about. Lots of displays and festive feel I have not seen here before.

[matt602]

I've noticed that too. The downtown is really getting a lot more streetlife than it used to have, and the majority isn't the usual suspects any more. It's very easy to see that downtown has turned a corner.

[pEte fiSt iN Ur fAce]

I'm not a 100% sure but I think Denninger's owns that corner lot. It's been vacant for a verrry long time.

And I hate that arch. It's gotta go, IMHO.

[SteelTown]

Yes, Denningers own the land.

[markbarbera]

I noticed recently when driving along Main that the Mirage nightclub at Walnut has closed (formerly Modern India Buffet, formerly Don Cherry's Grapevine). I saw a construction company's sign on the exterior. Anyone know what's happening to the site? The property owner was planning a hotel for the spot once upon a time but I don't know if that is still in play.

[pEte fiSt iN Ur fAce]

^Formerly X-seafood buffet restaurant, too but that's going way back.

I loved Don Cherry's Grapevine as a kid. I'm sure it was totally moronic but as a ten-year-old it was right up my alley. Saw a taping once with Rick Vaive. Amazing.

Great building though. Whatever happens, hope it gets repurposed and not razed.

[palace1]

I noticed recently when driving along Main that the Mirage nightclub at Walnut has closed (formerly Modern India Buffet, formerly Don Cherry's Grapevine). I saw a construction company's sign on the exterior. Anyone know what's happening to the site? The property owner was planning a hotel for the spot once upon a time but I don't know if that is still in play.

Here's a link to the 2009 article about a "$30-million, 160-room highrise hotel with underground parking"
http://www.thespec.com/news/local/article/96488--developer-set-to-build-30m-hotel-downtown

I just checked the city building permit inquiry and the plans have been downgraded slightly... it says 157 Main W will be a Dollarama.

Permit Type Status
12-123267-00 Stores Alteration Review
Description
Alterations to the 1-storey commercial building to create "Dollarama".

[movingtohamilton]

I just checked the city building permit inquiry and the plans have been downgraded slightly... it says 157 Main W will be a Dollarama.

Excellent. Another wonderful example of Hamilton's determined rush toward mediocrity. We just can't have enough dollar stores here. Presumably the one in Jackson Square is just too hard to get to. :(

[coalminecanary]

Get ready for more dollar stores and money marts if we get a casino, and a total evacuation of any contributing businesses & residents from the core. This place is becoming more of a disaster by the day.

[markbarbera]

Is there a city in Ontario that actually saw this happen? I have been to downtown Brantford after their casino opened and I saw lots of new shops and restaurants but I don't recall seeing any new Money Marts or dollar stores. Same with the casino in downtown Windsor. A vibrant dining and entertainment district exists next to their casino complex, but no Money Marts or dollar stores that I recall.

[movingtohamilton]

...Same with the casino in downtown Windsor. A vibrant dining and entertainment district exists next to their casino complex, but no Money Marts or dollar stores that I recall.

I hope you're right. But in Hamilton there is so little vision and forward thinking at the municipal level. A vibrant dining and entertainment district surrounding a downtown casino will emerge through determination of the entrepreneurs and massive private sector spending.

The tendency here is to do so little, repeatedly.

I did not link dollar stores to a casino, but rather do we need more of them (and Money Marts for that matter)?

[palace1]

The MoneyMart in Brantford is in an interesting historic building with topless women on the terracotta facade (a nice historical link to today's casino showgirls imho).

Here's the streetview: http://goo.gl/maps/NyOsN

Brantford also expropriated and demolished 41 buildings near the casino last year. Another great example of the power of casino profits!

Any new shops or revitalisation in Brantford's downtown are more likely due to Wilfrid Laurier setting up a campus with 2700 students in the historic Carnegie library and other buildings; also Nipissing University and Mohawk College have programs in Brantford.
Apparently Brantford used casino money in some way for this, but certainly the money could have been borrowed or raised other ways.

Niagara Falls has two casinos and millions of tourists but the downtown is very depressed and empty with a big stone abandoned railway station and vacant stores.

OLG should cease giving local bribes/payments and spread the profit evenly to all communities in Ontario. The direct employment created by the facility and any economic spinoff should be the only factors when deciding whether or not to accept the trojan gifthorse of a casino.

[Pearlstreet]

A dollar store just opened a few days ago at the corner of King and Victoria Ave. I really hope this rumour isn't true.

[markbarbera]

The MoneyMart in Brantford is in an interesting historic building with topless women on the terracotta facade (a nice historical link to today's casino showgirls imho).

Here's the streetview: http://goo.gl/maps/NyOsN

Brantford also expropriated and demolished 41 buildings near the casino last year. Another great example of the power of casino profits!

Any new shops or revitalisation in Brantford's downtown are more likely due to Wilfrid Laurier setting up a campus with 2700 students in the historic Carnegie library and other buildings; also Nipissing University and Mohawk College have programs in Brantford.
Apparently Brantford used casino money in some way for this, but certainly the money could have been borrowed or raised other ways.

Niagara Falls has two casinos and millions of tourists but the downtown is very depressed and empty with a big stone abandoned railway station and vacant stores.

OLG should cease giving local bribes/payments and spread the profit evenly to all communities in Ontario. The direct employment created by the facility and any economic spinoff should be the only factors when deciding whether or not to accept the trojan gifthorse of a casino.

Feel free to correct me but I believe that Money Mart predates the casino.

Money for the Brantford satellite campuses did come from the Brantford casino. I suppose one could say it could have come from somewhere else but other financial sources certainly were not forthcoming. Nonetheless, Brantford's' mayor was set against the casino when it was proposed and quite readily admits he was wrong now that he has seen the positive impact it has had on Brantford's downtown revitalization.

A new Laurier Athletics Centre and YMCA are being built in the area where those buildings were torn down in Brantford.

Downtown Niagara Falls has always suffered. The tourist are drawn to he falls and all the surrounding attractions. That city has never tried to draw some of that business downtown. Perhaps one of those Niagara Falls casinos should have been located downtown...

[realcity]

Downtown Niagara Falls has gone through a lot of improvements in the past few years. A major developer purchased almost all the downtown properties and fixed them up and attracted a variety of retail and food and beverage.

The train station is NOT vacant it is well used part of the VIA system and in the spring, and summer features regular GO transit.

http://www.niagarafallsdowntown.com/

[realcity]

Hillybilly Heaven is opening a downtown location. Not sure where.

[realcity]

Brantford created a great new pedestrian square near the casino with casino money. Their downtown has improved greatly in the last 10 years.

[palace1]

Downtown Niagara Falls has gone through a lot of improvements in the past few years.
The train station is NOT vacant it is well used part of the VIA system and in the spring, and summer features regular GO transit.

Thanks for the info., I'll have to check it out when I get a chance. I didn't realize GO buses run all year from Nash & Barton to the Niagara Falls VIA Station for about $10 each way.

The building I remembered as a train station that was boarded up the last time I was there turns out to be the 1885 Customs House and Post Office, and it has heritage designation so at least it has some legal protection from demolition.

[the905sDW]

I love Hamilton, and I love tall buildings. Our city is lacking a few tall ones. Although I don't think our city should be cluttered with skyscrapers, they sure are nice to look up at!

I was playing around with Cinema 4D and Photoshop the past few weeks, making some cool modern looking skyscrapers that I thought would be a cool addition to the Hamilton skyline. Imagine what our skyline would look like if we had some hight to our city.

Keep in mind, I am not an architect nor a 3D pro. The buildings are all designed by me in C4D. Google Street View shot of Hamilton.

http://dustinwilliam.com/HamOnt_SkyScrapers_Concept_Dustin.png

Image © DustinWilliam

[SteelTown]

Nice.

With 900 units that would likely be a new tallest for Hamilton.

[MeIsThomas]

Very cool rendering, I'd love to see something that tall built in Hamilton

Nice.

With 900 units that would likely be a new tallest for Hamilton.

If Stinson's Connaught plan had 800 units and it was going to be the new tallest in the country, wouldn't 900 units in a more squared off building (not a thin pyramid) be around the same and be a definite tallest for the city?

[Beedok]

If Stinson's Connaught plan had 800 units and it was going to be the new tallest in the country, wouldn't 900 units in a more squared off building (not a thin pyramid) be around the same and be a definite tallest for the city?

It depends on the size of the units doesn't it? It would almost definitely be a new tallest, but not necessarily anywhere near Stinson's pyramid scheme.

[the905sDW]

Very cool rendering, I'd love to see something that tall built in Hamilton

Thanks! I'd love to see something with some amount of glass, a nice modern contrast to the history that is below. The glass CIBC Building isn't tall enough to really be seen in many places outside of downtown. The reflection of a glass toper would be nice to see from a distance. I'd also love to see a building with a pyramid capped roof too - sort of like my rendering. I think that would make the defining feature of the new skyline.

[Pearlstreet]

A proposal was submitted of turning this Studebaker factory and property into an office multi-unit complex. Anyone hear of progress made with 440 Victoria Ave North? There has been alot of improvement of that area recently. I hope this has not died... I haven't heard a peep about it since this article : http://www.thespec.com/news/local/article/780513--former-studebaker-plant-faces-wrecking-ball-again

http://i48.tinypic.com/kclzbd.jpg
The Spec

[matt602]

A good chunk of that property, mainly the warehouse part to the North and East has been brought down. I believe they're planning to get the part on the Southwest corner though, the office building part.

[mattgrande]

I thought they were planning on turning that into some sort of sports complex?

[Pearlstreet]

They were, but it fell through. This plan was then proposed after. In my eyes a much better idea. :)

[Jon Dalton]

Does anyone know who bought the Tregunno Seeds building on Catharine Street?

http://www.thespec.com/news/business/local/article/874262--tregunno-seeds-closing-after-100-years

Spec says a purchase offer led to the decision to close. I am very sad about this as I love that store and go there for all my gardening needs. I just hope it's something that will serve the neighbourhood that's going in there.

[SteelTown]

Does anyone know who bought the Tregunno Seeds building on Catharine Street?

http://www.thespec.com/news/business/local/article/874262--tregunno-seeds-closing-after-100-years

Spec says a purchase offer led to the decision to close. I am very sad about this as I love that store and go there for all my gardening needs. I just hope it's something that will serve the neighbourhood that's going in there.

New life for Tregunno Seeds building

http://www.thespec.com/news/business/local/article/877054--new-life-for-tregunno-seeds-building

Tregunno Seeds is closing for business, but their building at 126 Catharine Street North is opening a new chapter.

It’s been bought by Hamilton architect David Premi and Jeff Feswick, owner of Historia Building Restoration.

Feswick’s company is restoring the historic Treble Hall on John Street, and he sees a similar treatment for the Tregunno building, which he suspects is about 100 years old.

Inside, the post and beam construction will be highlighted. Outside, cladding will be taken off to reveal the handsome brickwork, and old windows, long covered, will be replaced with custom wood reproductions in the original sizes.

Both Premi and Feswick will move their offices there, a Toronto printing company is a prospective new tenant, and they will create more office space for “young urban professionals” to lease.

“We’ll have showers in the building, a communal kitchen, bike racks outside, and maybe even a car share on site,” says Feswick.

Tregunno Seeds is closing Feb. 2. The building renovation is scheduled to start in March, with completion in late spring.

[drpgq]

New life for Tregunno Seeds building

http://www.thespec.com/news/business/local/article/877054--new-life-for-tregunno-seeds-building

Tregunno Seeds is closing for business, but their building at 126 Catharine Street North is opening a new chapter.

It’s been bought by Hamilton architect David Premi and Jeff Feswick, owner of Historia Building Restoration.

Feswick’s company is restoring the historic Treble Hall on John Street, and he sees a similar treatment for the Tregunno building, which he suspects is about 100 years old.

Inside, the post and beam construction will be highlighted. Outside, cladding will be taken off to reveal the handsome brickwork, and old windows, long covered, will be replaced with custom wood reproductions in the original sizes.

Both Premi and Feswick will move their offices there, a Toronto printing company is a prospective new tenant, and they will create more office space for “young urban professionals” to lease.

“We’ll have showers in the building, a communal kitchen, bike racks outside, and maybe even a car share on site,” says Feswick.

Tregunno Seeds is closing Feb. 2. The building renovation is scheduled to start in March, with completion in late spring.

It's too bad Premi didn't already have an office in century plus building. Oh wait...

[durandy]

that's surprising. I've been in that building and never noticed it had any historical value. I'm also surprised they're moving out of downtown - this is pretty close, but it's really in the middle of a residential neighbourhood. It's also got a huge setback so will have no street presence. You'd think Treble Hall would have been ideal for the kind of offices they are talking about.

[CaptainKirk]

that's surprising. I've been in that building and never noticed it had any historical value.

Not sure about "historical value" ( Don't even know what that really means), but I was also in that building about 25 years ago on business and remembering being surprised and in awe of the huge posts and beams all throughout it. It was quite impressive and made a lasting impression.

Isn't there another architect's office near there on the north west corner of Catherine and Cannon? It has the fancy wrought iron on the windows and huge mural on the Cannon Street side...

[thistleclub]

McCallum Sather Architects (http://msarch.ca/) is at Cannon and Catherine.

[durandy]

that's right, it has huge solar panels on the roof. So it will be an architect's alley.

I was just there today, everything 30% off at the seed store. I suppose the interior is nice enough, but I still think it's an odd location. Maybe they're counting on the Cannon knitting mills happening and the area improving. But so long as the area south of them remains the parking wasteland it is, it feels like miles away from downtown.

[matt602]

Although I lament them moving from their building in the gore, I think this is a great idea. We need more creative industries (and architects) moving into areas like this. I'm not a fan of the big setback though...

[PBRSTREETGANG]

Brantford created a great new pedestrian square near the casino with casino money. Their downtown has improved greatly in the last 10 years.

Their downtown has improved radically, but not because of the casino, which is not even really downtown. The real reason for Brantford's rise is Wilfrid Laurier, which has gobbled up much of the downtown and has renovated and built new buildings. A few thousand students downtown spending money helps too.

[SteelTown]

$6.5 million from the Brantford casino went toward Wilfrid Laurier, Nipissing University and Mohawk College through in-kind donations and grants.

http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2013/01/25/how_brantford_used_casino_dollars_to_save_itself.html

Would be great to have a Mohawk College campus in downtown Hamilton.

[PBRSTREETGANG]

$6.5 million from the Brantford casino went toward Wilfrid Laurier, Nipissing University and Mohawk College through in-kind donations and grants.

http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2013/01/25/how_brantford_used_casino_dollars_to_save_itself.html

Would be great to have a Mohawk College campus in downtown Hamilton.

Sure, that money came from the casino, but that's not what rejuvenated downtown Brantford. WLU and the other institutions did. WLU has poured money into the downtown. And they were going to do what they did independent of the casino monies.

Putting a casino in an area where pre-prosperous (so, poor) people live and congregate means that the city, any city, will be generating revenue from the very people it should be helping.

[SteelTown]

Either way a Wilfrid Laurier campus in Brantford would have never happened without the casino.

[PBRSTREETGANG]

Either way a Wilfrid Laurier campus in Brantford would have never happened without the casino.

Agreed. And it would be nice to see more of a downtown presence by our post-secondary institutions. I've long felt that MAC should house its fine arts departments downtown. Buy an old warehouse and let them do as they see fit. Kind of like MIT's building 20. Ryerson's Sheldon Levy is a genius--the campus/garrison mentality is a mistake. Universities need to be vitally apart of the communities they serve.

[thistleclub]

Toronto theatre operator eyes Westdale's vintage movie house (http://www.cbc.ca/hamilton/talk/story/2013/02/18/hamilton-theatre.html)
(CBC Hamilton, Paul Wilson,Feb 19, 2013)

Walk through the doors of the Westdale, last single-screen theatre in Hamilton, and you step into the golden age of Hollywood.

At SilverCity, the screen is bigger, the images sharper, the sound more clear. But there’s history in this Art Deco relic, a magic not duplicated at any big-box plaza.

There is only one Westdale and it’s been showing pictures, night after night, since 1935. That, however, is not a record.

According to management of the Fox Theatre in the Beaches neighbourhood of Toronto, no theatre in Canada has been running longer than theirs. Next year, it will have logged 100 straight years.

That said, over at the Fox they’ve been casting admiring glances at Hamilton’s old theatre. They’d love to be running the show here and are now telling the owners of the Westdale exactly that.

The Westdale is not for sale. For decades, it’s been owned by the Sorokolit family of Toronto. They also have two vintage single-screen theatres in Toronto – the Mount Pleasant and Regent – plus a newer multi-screen cinema in Pembroke.

[drpgq]

I heard there's a metal fest planned for the parking lot at the corner of James and King WIlliam in August. Could be interesting.

[coalminecanary]

Like, welding? :D

[PBRSTREETGANG]

Last Thursday's Spec, toward the end of the business section, had a picture of bulldozers working at the back of 220 Dundurn ST S, and the caption said something about early work for the warehouse's conversion to lofts.

Can we confirm this? If so, isn't there a thread for this particular building somewhere? (I couldn't find it).

I sincerely hope it's true.

[CaptainKirk]

Last Thursday's Spec, toward the end of the business section, had a picture of bulldozers working at the back of 220 Dundurn ST S, and the caption said something about early work for the warehouse's conversion to lofts.

Can we confirm this? If so, isn't there a thread for this particular building somewhere? (I couldn't find it).

I sincerely hope it's true.


http://www.raisethehammer.org/blog/2578/possible_redevelopment_of_220_dundurn_south

The owner, Denis Vranich, approached the City in August 2012 under the City's Formal Consultation Process to discuss a proposal to convert the building into multi-residential luxury rental apartments with one or two added storeys, a use that is allowed under the building's current zoning with some variances.

[PBRSTREETGANG]

http://www.raisethehammer.org/blog/2578/possible_redevelopment_of_220_dundurn_south

Okay, thanks, but so is the project actually underway now?

[Pearlstreet]

Old article from The Spec, but I found it interesting enough to post. I did wonder if the washrooms hidden under Gore Park still existed...

Would be a neat consideration... I would predict maybe a hotbed for crime if actually opened.

http://www.thespec.com/news-story/2136411-going-at-gore/ - Oct 24 2007.

http://i43.tinypic.com/2w4k7lv.jpg

[pEte fiSt iN Ur fAce]

As far as I know, there were no issues with safety in the old days. I wouldn't be surprised if they had someone sitting down there keeping a perverted eye on things. I'd love it if they reopened those washrooms. Good find.

[LikeHamilton]

As far as I know, there were no issues with safety in the old days. I wouldn't be surprised if they had someone sitting down there keeping a perverted eye on things. I'd love it if they reopened those washrooms. Good find.

I can remember that there was always someone done there working. As a child I can remember that the toilets cast a dime to get into.

[LikeHamilton]

John Picard is nuts about his beer

By Lisa Marr thespec.com

Nothing says summer has started like the May 2-4 weekend, the only Canadian holiday nicknamed after a case of beer.

Two area companies are getting ready to capitalize on our love of summer and beer with their own innovative twists on the beverage, part of a wave of new craft breweries across province.

John Picard, of Picard's Peanuts fame, is adding beer to his line of snacks with his Ramblin Road Brewery Farm in LaSalette, in Norfolk County.

His brewery features a lager, a cream ale and a pilsener and, in about a month, a potato beer. The potato beer is made using a combination of beer and the wash used to make beer-washed kettle potato chips, another of his new product offerings.

"It's so cool," he says with a grin. "You've always got to find something different."

Vincent Villanis and Kirk Harasym have got the cool factor figured out, too. The pair is heading up a new company creating what they believe is the first Bamboo Beer — for the masses.

The idea started with Villanis, who established the Ontario Bamboo Company. He invited Harasym, whom he met while working in finance, to join him.

For the past two years, they, along with two other Hamilton investors, have run focus groups and set up a business built on "conscious capitalism."

The beer is a traditional beer infused with the light flavour of bamboo. For now, it is made at the Cool Beer Brewing Company in Toronto but the plan is to establish a brewery in Hamilton.

:cheers:
The rest of the story.

http://www.thespec.com/news-story/2879220-john-picard-is-nuts-about-his-beer/