Hamilton's economy?

[Wheelingman04]

I know there are a lot of steel mills in the area. Are these steel companies shedding jobs or are they staying in good health?

Is the city revitalizing/gentrifying?

Is the proximity to Toronto/GTA a good or bad thing for Hamilton?


Thanks.

[crhayes]

Originally Posted by Wheelingman04

I know there are a lot of steel mills in the area. Are these steel companies shedding jobs or are they staying in good health?

Is the city revitalizing/gentrifying?

Is the proximity to Toronto/GTA a good or bad thing for Hamilton?


Thanks.

Someone else may be able to give a more detailed answer, but I'll take a shot at it.

As far as I know our economy isn't doing relatively terrible, but the steel mills have taken a big hit. One of our Largest, Stelco, recently shut down until next year (I believe) and 1500 jobs were lost. There have been layoffs in the Health Care industry as well, which is currently our largest (Hamilton Health Sciences being Hamilton's largest employer). HHS is still building massive expansions at three of it's five hospitals though, which is creating a lot of construction jobs.

The city is revitalizing, although it is a slow and painful process. There are a lot of developments that have been proposed/are in the works for 2009. Some of these include:

• 4 hotel developments
• McMaster University Innovation Park (Research Facility)
• Major expansions to Henderson/St. Joes/General Hospital
• City Hall renovation
• Lister Block renovation (heritage building)
• Proposed LRT public transportation (to hopefully start by 2013)

James Street North has been revitalizing steadily over the last few years and continues so this year. It seems all of the revitalization has been starting outside of our core downtown, and hopefully in the future will work itself inwards.

I can't comment on gentrification because I am not sure, but certain developments seem to be promising such as the Hamilton Grand boutique Hotel, which will include condominium units starting at $200,000. This could possibly bring some more affluent individuals into the core where a lot of lower income individuals currently reside.

The proximity to Toronto can be seen as both positive and negative depending how you look at it; it's pretty subjective. I think Toronto is a great city and it's nice to be only 40-60 minutes away. Another benefit from being close to Toronto is the proposed improvements to our infrastructure and public transportation via Metrolinx (the corporation that deals with transportation for the Toronto-Hamilton region). It is inevitable that Toronto get's the bulk of the funding, but because of the size of Hamilton and proximity to Toronto we have quite a few projects with high priority as well. By the same token, though, a lot of white collar workers that live in Hamilton commute to Toronto everyday which does not do so much for our local economy.

Hope that gives you some insight into Hamilton! Why are you wondering, if I may ask? Are you interested in moving here or just curious about Hamilton?

[SteelTown]

Hamilton's economy hit rock bottom during the late 80's and early 90's, the last recession. Thousands of jobs were eliminated from the manufacturing sector especially the steel sector. That recession did more damage than this current recession. So because Hamilton hit rock bottom is had nowhere to go but up.

Here's an example, Stelco once had well over 10,000 employees but currently there's probably only 1,500 employees at Stelco (US Steel Canada). So if Stelco were to completely to shut down it wouldn't really have a big dramatic effect to Hamilton's economy. We've been kind of lucky to have jobs eliminated over the years than have it hit all at once.

Health care and research is really the main drive in Hamilton's economy sort of like what's happening at Pittsburgh.

The city is currently trying to rezone the land around Hamilton's Airport for businesses (it's mostly all zoned for farming). Once that happens it'll open up a massive piece of greenfield for companies to build on. There's a group of people trying to stop this because they are afraid it’ll expand the urban boundary and lead to sprawl. They are unlikely to stop this from happening but likely to stall it.

Now if we get an NHL team that would to wonders to Hamilton's downtown core. It'll encourage more hotels, retail, stronger public transit for the region, and more white collar jobs, which will create a demand for more residential units in the core.

[adam]

Hamilton has several well established residential areas within walking distance to the core. Homes are cheap and are attracting many younger families who cannot afford homes in neighbouring Burlington or Oakville. Right now, these people commute to neighbouring cities for work and shopping along the highway. This should change with all the proposed changes and projects in the works downtown.

[Wheelingman04]

I hope Hamilton gets an NHL team. Those sunbelt cities don't support or know anything about hockey anyway.

[Millstone]

Originally Posted by adam

Hamilton has several well established residential areas within walking distance to the core. Homes are cheap and are attracting many younger families who cannot afford homes in neighbouring Burlington or Oakville. Right now, these people commute to neighbouring cities for work and shopping along the highway. This should change with all the proposed changes and projects in the works downtown.

I agree!

[adam]

WHAT?! Pinch me so I can stop dreaming ... Millstone agreed with me on something..

[highwater]

Originally Posted by adam

Right now, these people commute to neighbouring cities for work and shopping along the highway. This should change with all the proposed changes and projects in the works downtown.

Everyone I know in this situation hopes to find work and/or start their own business in Hamilton eventually. They view their commute as a temporary evil. How many of them will achieve their dreams is anyone's guess, but even if it's only a small percentage it will have positive ripple effects for Hamilton. When my hubby lost his job in Oakville 9 years ago, he started his own business here and employs several people.

[adam]

If I need something, I try to find a shop downtown that has it instead of going to a power centre in Burlington. However, with the 1 way streets and "No Parking" along the curbside lane for much of the downtown, its almost impossible to navigate with a car. Two-way conversion would make it sooo much easier to navigate the downtown. If you want to find a shop that you know is on King St., but you are too far west, you have to kind of *GUESS* where it is located and travel that guessed distance along Main St. Sometimes you miss it and have to make a loop or two.. Really baffles my mind how 1-way streets have lasted so long. They really hinder the downtown as a destination.

[astroblaster]

Originally Posted by highwater

Everyone I know in this situation hopes to find work and/or start their own business in Hamilton eventually. They view their commute as a temporary evil.

couldn't agree more!

[omro]

Originally Posted by highwater

Everyone I know in this situation hopes to find work and/or start their own business in Hamilton eventually. They view their commute as a temporary evil. How many of them will achieve their dreams is anyone's guess, but even if it's only a small percentage it will have positive ripple effects for Hamilton. When my hubby lost his job in Oakville 9 years ago, he started his own business here and employs several people.

As someone who has recently moved here, finding work locally would be my ideal! That was one of the reasons why I moved to a smaller city. I wanted to be able to live and work and have fun within a smaller area, preferably all within walking distance. I wanted to escape the London Underground morning sardine packed commute and the London Underground must commute to anything social. If I have to commute to Toronto initially for work, then I will, but I'll actively seek local work opportunities.

Short term goals, find job downtown and then move more downtown (though Barton/Wentworth seems quite downtown, I'd like to be a little closer to the core).

Funnily enough, one of my long term goals is to start up a business. This is something that's being considered once I'm more settled and have sold up my property in the UK to use as seed money.

[ryan_mcgreal]

Originally Posted by adam

Really baffles my mind how 1-way streets have lasted so long. They really hinder the downtown as a destination.

The purpose of the one-way streets is to facilitate traffic flow through the city, not into it. Downtown vitality has been sacrificed so people just passing through can do so a few minutes faster.

[adam]

Omro, I think you're just a bit ahead of the curve, but more and more people want the same as time goes on. This is totally contrasting to Richard Florida's prediction that we should have high speed trains as the preferred form of transportation and people will live in Hamilton and working in Windsor, for example.

No matter how fast the train is, I think many people would prefer to walk to work. Most people don't want to sit in traffic or sit "packed like sardines" as you put it... its just so unnatural!

[Millstone]

Originally Posted by adam

If I need something, I try to find a shop downtown that has it instead of going to a power centre in Burlington. However, with the 1 way streets and "No Parking" along the curbside lane for much of the downtown, its almost impossible to navigate with a car. Two-way conversion would make it sooo much easier to navigate the downtown. If you want to find a shop that you know is on King St., but you are too far west, you have to kind of *GUESS* where it is located and travel that guessed distance along Main St. Sometimes you miss it and have to make a loop or two.. Really baffles my mind how 1-way streets have lasted so long. They really hinder the downtown as a destination.

I agree!

[matt602]

Ok. This is getting weird.

[adam]

Yep, I'm feeling nauseous (LOL)

[omro]

Originally Posted by adam

Omro, I think you're just a bit ahead of the curve, but more and more people want the same as time goes on.

I'm behind the curve, people in the UK and Europe have been making such choices for years...

[highwater]

Originally Posted by omro

I'm behind the curve, people in the UK and Europe have been making such choices for years...

No doubt geography and the cost of petrol () had alot to do with those choices. Is that why you moved to the Hammer? So you could be somewhere so far behind that you're ahead?

[omro]

Originally Posted by highwater

No doubt geography and the cost of petrol () had alot to do with those choices. Is that why you moved to the Hammer? So you could be somewhere so far behind that you're ahead?

Nope, I moved here because all the signs are that it's an "up and coming" city, ripe for improvement and redevelopment. I want to ride the wave, rather than have missed it!!

I did it before. Walthamstow was dirt cheap and everyone said it was a crap area to be in. Two years after I moved there it suddenly was an "up and coming" area after professional people began to move north, as Islington and Angel got too expensive and the areas of Seven Sisters and Tottenham were still considered too grotty to invest in. Four years later, it was a property hotspot, when people realised the property was underpriced and that the "village" area of Walthamstow was actually quite charming. A decade later, the property I bought is still worth, even after the property price crash, nearly four times what I paid for it originally. That said I never planned to live there so long. A move to another country was always on my "life map" and I've been in "Canadian Limbo" for the last 2 and a half years. Once the recession starts to lift, I can sell up in the UK and establish myself more here.

In many ways I'm much happier with the decision to move to Hamilton rather than Vancouver. The only thing I may miss out on is the lack of a large "community" network, but I'll survive I'm sure.

[sofasurfer]

Originally Posted by omro

Nope, I moved here because all the signs are that it's an "up and coming" city, ripe for improvement and redevelopment. I want to ride the wave, rather than have missed it!!

Pretty much this for me, too.

Let's get something straight: the cost of petrol/transport is very much relative. Distance, wages, etc. are all very different between here and Canada, and it's way too over-simplistic put an emigration decision in those terms (not to say that some people don't do this!!). My wife and I earned a LOT more in direct headline UKP/CAN$ conversion terms, but rent/petrol/transport/child care was similarly way more expensive. (FWIW, I understand from mates in Australia that it's the same kind of thing - you simply can't just apply a conversion rate and say it's better by a factor of Y. Lots of things to aggregate)

What is *very* apparent, IMO, is that the scope for improvement and development here is massive. It's happened in the UK and Europe in several cities (Sheffield and Nottingham seem the most relevant examples from personal experience, I suspect Lille might be another one but apart from a couple of quick visits I couldn't say for sure) and several things are coming in to place for this to happen in the coming years, in the same way it's happened where Omro and I hail from in the last 10-15 years.