Carmen’s C Hotel | 30m | 5 fl | Complete

[raisethehammer]

Lol.

[Hammer Town]

Wow When did the bowling alley close down?

[HAMRetrofit]

How about instead of Casino a public stock index?

[hammergirl]

Originally Posted by Hammer Town

Wow When did the bowling alley close down?

There are regularly cars in front of it. Not many but then I'm usually driving by around 5:30pm which I don't think is a popular time for bowling.

[SteelTown]

New Hotel Coming To Carmens
Ken Mann
10/7/2008

Another hotel is in the works on Hamilton mountain.

The city's planning and economic development has approved an application to build a 53-to-55 room hotel behind Carmen's Banquet Center.

Representatives for Carmens predict it will allow them to better market their facilities.

There's no word yet what brand the hotel will carry, but Economic Development Committee Chair Terry Whitehead says it could be up to eight storeys tall.

[SteelTown]

Updated the title...........

Carmen’s C Hotel | 30m | 8 fl | Approved

[raisethehammer]

the spec has a big piece about it.
The city seriously needs to update these insane parking requirements.

[SteelTown]

Carmen's planning east--Mountain hotel

October 08, 2008
By Eric McGuinness
The Hamilton Spectator

Carmen’s Banquet Centre plans to open what it calls Hamilton’s first boutique hotel in the spring of 2010.

The 53-to-55-room, eight-storey building would rise at the rear of the 1,000-seat banquet centre in the East Mountain Industrial Park on Stone Church Road East at Anchor Road.

The 25-year-old centre, a popular wedding venue, has hosted fundraising events featuring former U.S. president Bill Clinton, former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher, movie star Sophia Loren and former Israeli president and prime minister Shimon Peres.

City council’s economic development and planning committee is prepared to let the project proceed even though there won’t be enough parking. It also recommends giving Carmen’s — and any other new hotel outside the downtown core — a big break on development charges.

A rezoning bylaw for the development goes to the full city council for approval next Wednesday.

Former councillor Henry Merling, agent for the Mercanti family, which owns Carmen’s, said a feasibility study showed a need for lodging in the area, which is growing as a result of the Red Hill Valley Parkway opening.

“For Carmen’s, it’s a natural progression with all the action going on on the east Mountain. It would be a good thing for the city and certainly our business. With the Red Hill, clients are coming from Toronto and Mississauga, and the request is, ‘Do you have a hotel? Do you have a hotel?’”

Tim McCabe, Hamilton’s general manager of planning and economic development, told committee members Tuesday that the Courtyard by Marriott Hotel on Upper James Street was also allowed to pay development charges of $4.33 a square foot instead of the industrial rate of $17, but that the downtown core is exempt.

He said staff feel the lower rate outside the core is fair because hotels take in far less revenue than supermarkets and other big-box retail outlets.
Planning division director Paul Mallard said parking standards last revised in the early 1980s require one space for every six people in restaurants and other places of public assembly, a number that will be reviewed for the city’s new, comprehensive zoning bylaw.

Carmen’s now has 197 spaces, 13 more than required. Twenty-two will be lost to the hotel, leaving 175. A new stand-alone hotel would need another 53, but planners say the two uses can share parking on the site. Merling said offsite parking would be arranged for big events.

[geoff's two cents]

Originally Posted by raisethehammer

The city seriously needs to update these insane parking requirements.

Couldn't agree more. Unfortunately, given that the development is spurred largely by proximity to a new freeway, perhaps the additional parking lot is destiny. . .

It's funny how excited parts of the city are about LRT, but how much (most?) of Hamilton still thinks like it's the 1950s. Depressing.

[raisethehammer]

I know...it's kind of funny actually.
They talk about all this 'growth' in the east mountain due to red hill. whoopie...a bunch of box stores. wow.

[DC83]

I think it's funny that WE knew of this story 3 months ago, and The Spec is just publishing it today!

[raisethehammer]

for some reason I've been getting the Spec delivered to my home this week...promotion or something?? at least they're useful in the green bin. lol

[MsMe]

Originally Posted by raisethehammer

for some reason I've been getting the Spec delivered to my home this week...promotion or something?? at least they're useful in the green bin. lol

Probably a new delivery person.

[SteelTown]

Hopes for economic activity begins with hotel proposal

By Kevin Werner
News
Oct 10, 2008

It's time Hamilton Mountain asserted itself economically from the rest of the city.

And businessman Peter Mercanti is doing his part to kick-start the area's renaissance.

Mr. Mercanti, chairman of Carmen's Banquet and Convention Centre, is proposing to construct an eight-storey, 53-room hotel on top of his current banquet centre located on Stone Church Road.

"It's about time for something like this in the area," said Mr. Mercanti. "The Mountain has to start stepping up its service. This will benefit all of the mountain. And it will mean a lot of activity for the area."

Mr. Mercanti said since the opening of the Red Hill Parkway, people have been asking where to stay on the Mountain while attending one of Carmen's wedding events. Since their business has expanded into the Niagara and Greater Toronto Areas, people need a place to stay while attending an event on the Mountain, said Mr. Mercanti.

"We have had a lot of calls from people asking if we could stay (at Carmen's)," he said.

Members of the public works committee this week agreed to a zoning application to allow the hotel construction. In addition, councillors also approved changing the development charges policy for hotels outside the downtown area to industrial, providing an extra incentive for developers to construct prestige hotels.

Politicians will vote on the committee's recommendation at their Oct. 15 council meeting.

City officials argued by changing the development charges policy for hotels, it will help make Mr. Mercanti's project "financially viable."

Mr. Mercanti expects the estimated $8 million hotel project to be completed in the spring of 2010.

City staff did not recommend adding more parking spaces to the facility. Carmen's can accommodate about 200 parking spaces.

Tim McCabe, general manager of planning and economic development said the 40,000 square foot facility is expected to generate about $1.5 million in revenue, plus additional economic spin-offs for the area.

"The additional jobs and taxes for the city, the hotel component is a natural fit for the area," said Mountain councillor Tom Jackson, who represents the ward where Carmen's is located.

"For them to make a legitimate go of this, we need to make it financially viable."

Although Mr. Mercanti described the proposed hotel as a "boutique" operation, he is actively pursuing the possibility the hotel could become a "flag operation" for a well known hotel chain.

"We are exploring that option," he said. "We are committed to the project and are pretty excited about the possibilities surrounding it. This is good news for the entire area despite the grim economic news."

[realcity]

okay this 'boutique hotel' term, or how it is used is driving me nuts. It has about 4 different definitions.

1. unbranded/independent/no chain banner
2. without all the amenities (like HI Express)
3. with tons of amenities and services (like someone on here pointed out)
4. small and/or exclusive

This is not going to be an upscale hotel, certainly not in/bordering a light industrial suburb.

[raisethehammer]

I say scrap the financial breaks for suburban hotels. Why force people to stay out in the middle of nowhere??

[FairHamilton]

Originally Posted by realcity

okay this 'boutique hotel' term, or how it is used is driving me nuts. It has about 4 different definitions.

1. unbranded/independent/no chain banner
2. without all the amenities (like HI Express)
3. with tons of amenities and services (like someone on here pointed out)
4. small and/or exclusive

This is not going to be an upscale hotel, certainly not in/bordering a light industrial suburb.

Agreed. I hate how the definition of these terms are stretched to include places that are far removed from the originators of the term.

Reminds me of an old co-worker in Toronto who would tell people she lived in 'The Beach'. She lived north of the Danforth, and I'd always mutter under my breath, "Yeah, 'The Beach' of Lake Iroquois maybe, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glacial_Lake_Iroquois.............."

[realcity]

^ that's funny

i remember when "The Beach" was called "The Beaches", why did that term change? "The Beaches" sounds better

[adam]

No local folk still call it "the Beaches"

[realcity]

Like people who really live in the Beaches? not the north of Danforth residents?? LOL.

Good because I refuse to call it "The Beach". it's the BEACHES.

Hamlton's "Beach Strip" is a cool name too. I remember a friend from Montreal visiting in Hamilton and when he translated "Beach Strip" in his head, he thought it was a nude beach?