[the dude]

here's a picture of the renovations currently underway:
http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa121/the_dude1974/IMG_0306.jpg

30,000+ square feet of banquet and meeting space including a 400 seat lecture theatre and state-of-the-art technology. will serve the soon-to-be-named crowne plaza hotel next door.

[matt602]

Huge improvements they're doing to that incredibly boring, featureless building. Gotta give em credit for that.

[block43]

Hopefully the exterior of the hotel next door gets facade improvements.

[raisethehammer]

they've been working on the hotel facade all week.

[DC83]

Hopefully the exterior of the hotel next door gets facade improvements.

I think they only thing that could improve the Ramada is a wrecking ball! It's such a shame they tore down the old Terminal Bldg.

This convention ctr will definately add some much needed streetlife to this particular stretch of King... let's just hope Hamilton becomes a "convention" city much like London (Ontario) is right now. With all the hotel plans on the table, it just may be!

Now if we can only sell off HECFI!!!

[SteelTown]

Great to see progress being made with the conference centre. Funny thing is if you stick around you might actually see Lincoln Alexander whipping down King St to check up on the building on his scooter. Him and his scooter jeez he's everywhere!

[DC83]

^^ hahaha He's awesome! Such a great ambassador for the city.
He's actually housed in the old Cathedral Girl's school @ Main / Wentworth'ish.
That's why he's always scootin' around downtown!

Is this centre going to look like the original renderings? Or have they changed much? I can't seem to find anything on any of their sites.

[the dude]

there's a lot of prep work going on at the plaza hotel. my guess is they're getting ready for a fresh coat of paint.
http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa121/the_dude1974/IMG_0307.jpg

[DC83]

there's a lot of prep work going on at the plaza hotel. my guess is they're getting ready for a fresh coat of paint.

Not likely with Vranich. I'm guessing he'll be slapping on a fresh coat of stucco... just like the rest of his developments. Is anyone else starting to worry about these guys (Vranich's)???

[SteelTown]

Oscar Kichi owns the hotel.

I'll be satisfied once the grey old cement look is gone.

[DC83]

Oscar Kichi owns the hotel.

I'll be satisfied once the grey old cement look is gone.

Oh phewph... thanks for clearing that up for me, Steeltown.

[matt602]

Windows going in today. Basically big sheets of glass. Looks nice. Should be awesome for a dining or conversation area.

[raisethehammer]

yea, I saw that....nice to have windows on that wall now.
what the heck are they doing with the outside of the hotel though?? man, it looks really weird now. light coloured stucco next to the old grey concrete.

[matt602]

Yep. I thought it was going to end up that brown stucco looking stuff that was on there... then that cream coloured stuff came out of nowhere. Seems like that's the way it's gonna stay.

Alas, I don't think you can really make a building like that look any better. It's just dated. As long as it's full of people and making a profit, I'm happy.

[raisethehammer]

they could completely re-clad it in steel or glass with french balconies etc.... but yea, it'd be tough to do anything simple that changes the look of the place.
The lobby is gorgeous now. if they do that type of reno throughout the building, they should do good business.

[chris k]

I really hope so as the main problem with staying downtown is perceptions and looking at it now does not give the greatest first impression. I know the interior is more important so lets hope that they sell it nicelywith great interior shots.:cheers:

[matt602]

Windows! yay!

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k201/sugarton/convention.jpg

[raisethehammer]

lookin good. windows always make such a huge difference.

[chris k]

Looks pretty good just hope they do something nice with the entrance and cover up the black utility box and make it nice to stroll by.

Aslong as it looks good on the inside, that seems to be priority with this renovation to me. :cheers:

[raisethehammer]

I honestly expected them to do nothing with the exterior, so I'm happy they at least did windows.
we'll see how the whole thing shapes up. It's gotta be decent enough to become a Crowne Plaza.

[the dude]

it's funny, i think architecture and design are exciting things. the person in charge of this renovation, on the other hand, obviously has a real disdain for the art of design. at least it's something.

[flar]

I was downtown today, this place looks horrible. But what can you do? It's already built.

[raisethehammer]

doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason as to the placement of the windows....weird.

[matt602]

Well there really isn't much you can do with a brick box of a building. I think they did a fair job considering what they had to work with. The large glass windows are much better than tiny ones, especially if the put a dining area up against it or some nice displays.

[the dude]

^it was a blank slate. there were a million things that could have been done with it. those enormous windows look ridiculous.

[the dude]

wtf??? granted, it's not finished yet but...wtf?
http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa121/the_dude1974/IMG_0625.jpg

[chris k]

Wow these floors must be extremely tiny. Like 6' floors? Compare it to the building beside it. I hope thats like a large foyer with those windows.:cool: It also looks like they forgot about the top floor. I can't really say if it looks better then before???

[raisethehammer]

it looks better than before,but man, what a hack job.
looks like someone didn't measure properly that window on the right over the door.

[fastcarsfreedom]

Ummm...does anyone remember going inside when it was the old Odeon 1 & 2? It's an unusual building, considering it was two cinemas stacked on top of each other. It might just be that the window placement was dictated by the layout of the interior--just a hunch.

[matt602]

I went in a year ago. The first two levels of windows are in the same floor, I believe. They're both part of the foyer. It's a tall one. The stairs start go up, kinda across the windows on the left, 2nd row up.

Not completely sure however, it was a quick trip and I didn't spend much time in the front of the building. I never got in after.

[DC83]

ya, it definately looks weird in that pic... but I can tell you, at stree-level, it actually makes quite a difference.
The windows make it somewhat more inviting than a huge slab of brick!

[BrianE]

Just a thought, but could the top half of the building have no windows because they wan't to save room for a banner or a really big sign of some kind?

[fastcarsfreedom]

BrianE--they mention that there' s a lecture space/theater of some sort as part of the project. I suspect they left the upper cinema intact (Cinema 2) and that explains the lack of windows...though not certain.

[chris k]

I just hope they do something with the space there, i dont know how much worse it could look without anything there. Hopefully they add somethign elegant to dress it up a little.
:cheers:

[DC83]

I just hope they do something with the space there, i dont know how much worse it could look without anything there. Hopefully they add somethign elegant to dress it up a little.
:cheers:

Ya, I'm satisfied w/ even just windows. If they were to add some display in them, it would be 100% better than the slab of brown brick that it previously was.

[thistleclub]

After the fanfare, Linc centre shelves shows (http://www.thespec.com/News/Local/article/770695)

Paul Morse
The Hamilton Spectator
(May 17, 2010)

A mere two months after its glitzy gala opening, Hamilton's Lincoln Alexander Centre has been quietly shelved as an active performing arts theatre.

The hotel management company that has been running the Crowne Plaza and the theatre since January says it has shifted its focus to driving more corporate business into both.

Crowne Plaza owner Oscar Kichi opened the adjacent Lincoln Alexander Centre to great fanfare in March, with the hopes of bringing hot acts and quality programming there.

Meanwhile, Kichi had also turned over management of his hotel and attached theatre to Concord Management Enterprises, a large North American player in the global hotel management business.

"At the moment, our focus is to sell (the theatre) as a corporate facility," said Concord's Andrew Holmes, general manager of the Crowne Plaza.

Holmes, who runs both the Crowne Plaza and Courtyard Marriott on Upper James Street, which is owned by Concord, said the Crowne can not afford to be in the business of producing shows in the theatre at the moment.

"We haven't cancelled performing arts," Holmes said. "We'd be pleased to rent it out to people who want to produce their own shows.

"But, with the takeover, we don't want to produce our own, we don't want to bring in entertainers, sell tickets, that sort of thing, at the moment."

While the theatre has basic sound and lighting equipment, Concord and Kichi have cancelled plans to buy a high-end sound system and lighting technology needed for concerts or shows.

"It comes down to money. It is much more advantageous for us to sell it corporately, and that is where we want to focus at the moment," Holmes said.

Concord Management will reassess its decision later this year, he said.

Arts promoters are sad to see the hotel management company set its priorities on driving more corporate and conference business.

"I'm disappointed," said Lee Fairbanks, who was the centre's interim manager earlier this year.

"I hope they'll realize that the best use of the theatre is as a performing arts centre."

Sponsorships with arts groups have now ceased. For example, the Art Bus will no longer stop at the centre.

"I have to make money, obviously, and I'm disappointed we weren't successful," Kichi said.

The hotelier said his original intention when he renovated the old Hamilton Odeon Theatre was to make the downtown a destination again for the arts.

"I put a lot of concerts in there, but we didn't make any money. I would love to have this as a performing arts centre on a regular basis, but the bill has to be paid."

The Pearl Company's Gary Santucci, who produced several events at the theatre, said this is a setback for Hamilton's downtown.

"How do we get people to come to the core, what attractions are there? We need vital street level life. It's a great facility and a great example of an adaptive reuse of an existing structure downtown."

[DC1983]

This place is now/also L.A. Nightclub. Back to it's roots (Ballroom/Syndicate)!

[realcity]

I used to be there every Friday nite when it was the Acropolis, from opening day till the gangsters took it/closed it about 3 years later.

Before that I can remember seeing Rambo 3 (or maybe it was 2). First time I could see and AA movie.

[Gurnett71]

I used to be there every Friday nite when it was the Acropolis, from opening day till the gangsters took it/closed it about 3 years later.

Before that I can remember seeing Rambo 3 (or maybe it was 2). First time I could see and AA movie.

How many incarnations did that place go through after the Odeon closed?? I too recall the place being called Acropolis, but didn't they try to make it some sort of concert hall as well?? Nothing seemed to work. Crowds were usually quite small and we would move on to other established bars after a couple of drinks: Fever, Texas Border, Tailgates or whatever the place in the basement of Tailgates was called around that time. Oh, yeah, can't forget Grapes n things. Then up to Augusta street!

Last movie that I remember at the Odeon was "They Call Me Bruce" circa `82.

[palace1]

I saw the L.A. Nightclub posters around town and just assumed the name was meant as a reference to the Hollywood/Los Angeles/Celebrity party scene... never would have guessed it stood for Lincoln Alexander!