Lament for downtown Canada...

[hmagazine]

What became of downtown Canada?

Kitchener, Ont., joins long list of cities seeking ways to revitalize the core; this time, it hopes it has the right formula

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servl...uery=kitchener

(Mentions downtown Hamilton a few times and is very fitting for what is going on right now - great article!)

[oldcoote]

Wow...great article.

I notice the price of gas is $1.20 today. At that rate, the suburbs and the downtowns will quickly switch places on the desirable scale.

[holymoly]

"In the 1970s and 1980s, downtown indoor malls sprung up in virtually every big and mid-sized Canadian downtown, from Richmond, B.C., to Hamilton, to Saint John, in a bid to take on suburban malls.... Smaller shops, often mom-and-pop outfits selling unique wares, which had set the downtown shopping experience apart, were knocked down to make way for cookie-cutter malls."

This made me curious... What got torn down to make room for Jackson Square?

[JT Jacobs]

Originally Posted by holymoly

"In the 1970s and 1980s, downtown indoor malls sprung up in virtually every big and mid-sized Canadian downtown, from Richmond, B.C., to Hamilton, to Saint John, in a bid to take on suburban malls.... Smaller shops, often mom-and-pop outfits selling unique wares, which had set the downtown shopping experience apart, were knocked down to make way for cookie-cutter malls."

This made me curious... What got torn down to make room for Jackson Square?

Old City Hall, I think.

[raisethehammer]

you name it....tons of diners, mom and pop shops, deli's, pharmacies, coffee shops etc.....

same with York Blvd.

[SteelTown]

Don't forget the old Farmers' Market Square.

[highwater]

Originally Posted by JT Jacobs

Old City Hall, I think.

Old City Hall was on the site of the current Hamilton City Centre.

[the dude]

that superblock [king-james-york-bay] was the historic centre of the city - market square. you can include york st on the list of lost heritage from that era as well. it's no wonder so many of us give a damn about the city's architectural heritage today.

[flar]

There are probably over a dozen books at the library that show pictures of what used to be in Hamilton, it's heartbreaking to look at them.

[Gurnett71]

The old triangular TD Bank building at the York/James/Market Street intersection--I can recall working at the old Eaton's store where there were some old elevators (used mainly for freight) that had a sign above them indicating the Market Street entrance...

[the dude]

ya, that was a cool building...from what i've seen in pics.

york cut through the area diagonally and the result was some awkwardly shaped buildings. some were attractive, others weren't.

it's a huge loss, something that many people still haven't gotten over some 35 years later. you can add the birks building to that category as well...and the lister?

[Gurnett71]

I think it would have also been nice if Eaton's had decided to actually renovate the old store instead of building new...there were some nice features in there...theatre on the 5th floor, the old elevators, the revolving doors, the nice picture windows at street level...guess it was too expensive to consider, but it could have been a showpiece for downtown instead of the monstrosity that is the HEC.

[raisethehammer]

this topic just kills me...I own most of those books, but haven't looked at them in a long time. too painful.

[the dude]

i was a miserable kid to take shopping, but between temper tantrums i recall a few things about eaton's - the elevators and the basement. i wonder if renovation was ever considered.

[Mack297]

Yeh .. the certainly performed a gutting on the city when they tore down the core for Stelco Tower/Jackson Square.
That was when we thought history was an impediment to progress ... if it's old, tear it down ... hind sight ..20/20 ... eh?
I lived in the old King George Hotel in the mid 60's. It sat at McNab, just about where Stelco Tower sits now ... about a twenty second walk to the 'Grange' .. of Ronnie Hawkins fame .. The Market was sort of surrounded by hotels ... The Waldorf was one, along with the 'George' .. can't remember the rest ..oh .. The Iroquois on Mcab and King .. all pretty seedy but full of 'personality'.
I had to laugh when they opened the new 'Honest Lawyer' in Jackson Sq. The original was over at Mary and Rebecca, right behind the old Central cop shop. The police station was also 'night court' back then and the lawyers would meet with their clients in the 'Honest Lawyer'.
I'm not sure what it was later called, a girls name I think, but rumour had it that the Hamilton Law Society was going to sue the owners because by using the name 'Honest Lawyer' they were suggesting that there was such a thing as a 'dishonest lawyer'!
The place was torn down for a parking lot about fifteen years ago.
But that block, right behind the old market, where Jackson Square and the Copps was built , was full of life .. albeit of questionable moral contribution to the good name of Hamilton.
One of the excuses, back in the day, was that with the building of Jackson Square and the fact that York Blvd was the 'Gateway To The City' .. and was, to say the least, somewhat old and worn, everything along York Blvd was to be razed so as to present 'The Ambitious City' in a manner which she deserved.
Shops, restaurants, homes, all literally bulldozed, right from McNab to Locke Street, both sides. It was the original settling point for Hamilton's Jewish community .. the original synogogue sits on Peter and Hess ( I think that's the corner..) It's now a Christian church.
Hmmm .. shortly thereafter they built the 403 .. so much for York Blvd. as the majestic entrance.
The one place I really missed was 'Bolashlovski's Deli', a real old fashioned family deli, on York Blvd...( Al .. if your reading this, please forgive me for the spelling..).
Al later opened 'Al's Deli in the old THandB in the early 60's when the bar around the corner was hot ... 'The Junction' ... Al and his wife had the best corned beef on rye in the city ... latkas .. homemade 'brown betty' .. it ran until about , I'm guessing '82. The Junction closed and the THand B announced plans, I think it tied into the new Go Station idea. I believe Al retired up to the Muskokas ...
so .. now for a 'real' corn beef on rye I have to venture to 'Toronto' spppfft! and visit The Mutual Street Deli or on rare occasions, up around Bathurst and Dufferin.
Just daydreaming about some of the fun ... and good music ... that once was so common in that area bounded by Main, Cannon, James and Bay ... old time Hamilton and I'm so damn thankful that I managed to enjoy some of it, even though only for a few of it's final years.

Mack

[raisethehammer]

wow....awesome stuff Mack.
Makes me wish I was born 30 years sooner.

[the dude]

you should write a book, mack. love hearing these stories of better times.

[Millstone]

Mack's stories make me sad.

[matt602]

Awesome stories but very depressing.

[Mack297]

Well .. I just love to talk .. ask my wife .. and putting things on the net seems like a logical extension of my talkingitis ... my wife calls it ..'b...s...itis'.
Somewhere I have a blog .. can't remember where it is. When I got my new laptop, I didn't put the link on here ... it's up on my wifes machine someplace. I think it's on 'MySpace'.
Anyway ... on the music thing ... I did a little 'Wikepediaing' and came up with the following ..
"Ronnie Hawkins came to Canada in 1958. His first gig was at the Golden Rail ( Now ''Budinski's joint , more or less ...Mack )in Hamilton where he became an overnight success. It was a result of Hawkins success in Hamilton that he decided to move to Canada permanently. His career spans over five decades and 25 records. His hits include, “Forty Days”, “Mary Lou”, and “Hey Bo Diddley”. Colonel Harold Kudlats, was given nickname “The Colonel” by Ronnie Hawkins. It was Kudlats who booked Ronnie Hawkins and the Hawks in Hamilton for the first time. He's worked with acts Fats Domino, Duke Ellington & Louis Armstrong. Kudlats later went on to become agent for Levon Helm and The Band. He is also the Eugene Levy's uncle( the Hamilton connection?Mc). Also in 1958, Conway Twitty, singer-songwriter and his band were in town and were playing at the Flamingo Lounge where Hamilton Place is located today. Legend has it that the drummer, Jack Nance, wrote "It's Only Make Believe" between sets, although another story puts them at the nearby Fischer Hotel. The song was recorded in 1958 and became the first of nine Top 40 hits for Twitty, selling eight million copies.[22]

The Hamilton region has produced a number of talented musical artists over the years. Some of these include King Biscuit Boy (Canadian blues musician), Steve Negas (drummer for progressive rock band Saga), Skip Prokop (drummer and band leader for Lighthouse + The Paupers), Stan Rogers(Canadian folk singer), Neil Peart[27] (drummer and lyricist for the progressive rock band Rush (Hagersville, ON)), Lorraine Segato (lead vocalist for 80s pop group The Parachute Club), Ian Thomas[29] (singer/ songwriter), Jackie Washington[30] (legendary Canadian blues singer) and Tom Wilson[31] (veteran of the Canadian music scene).

Hamilton was also an important centre of punk rock in the 1970s and early 1980s, spawning influential acts such as Teenage Head, Forgotten Rebels, Simply Saucer and The Dik Van Dykes.

A number of recording studios call Hamilton home. The Sonic Unyon label started and fostered the Hamilton sound in the early 1990s and continues today as one of Canada's most successful independent record labels and distributors.[32] In 1985 Daniel Lanois, opened up Grant Avenue Studios a landmark in Hamilton.[33] A solo artist in his own right he's made his mark as a producer for some of the world's biggest musical acts. Some of these include Bob Dylan, Peter Gabriel and U2.[34] Steve Negas is also a producer with a studio in town. Some of his clients include Chris De Burgh, The Nylons, Liona Boyd and Saga.[24]

Hamilton has hosted the Juno Awards a total of five times, in 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999 and 2001. The Juno Awards are awards of achievement presented to Canadian musical artists and bands. 1996 was the most memorable one. Anne Murray was the host for the ceremonies and prominent nominees were Alanis Morissette and Shania Twain. The Canadian Music Hall of Fame Inductees that evening were: David Clayton-Thomas (Blood, Sweat & Tears), Denny Doherty (The Mamas & the Papas), John Kay (Steppenwolf), Domenic Troiano (played w/ various artists) and Zal Yanovsky (The Lovin' Spoonful).[35]

Acts currently prominent in Hamilton's music scene include singer-songwriters Mayor McCA and Wax Mannequin, indie rock bands Cities in Dust, Sianspheric and A Northern Chorus, and electronica artists Junior Boys, Caribou and Brian Melo, Winner of Canadian Idol season five."
I'm sure many of the younger members will know most of the aforementioned groups ..who the hell were 'The Van Dykes' and 'The Rebels'?

Note: "Also in 1958, Conway Twitty, singer-songwriter and his band were in town and were playing at the Flamingo Lounge where Hamilton Place is located today. Legend has it that the drummer, Jack Nance, wrote "It's Only Make Believe" between sets, although another story puts them at the nearby Fischer Hotel. "

A number of years ago, before the Fischer Hotel, Corner of York and Bay, I think, was torn down, I was told by a local songwriter the story about Conway Twitty and 'It's Only Make Believe'.
My brother, twelve years my younger, was a huge Twitty fan. So I took a picture of the Fisher Hotel ( a nice 8x10 BW ) and mailed it to an address in Nashville that was supposed to be connected to Conway Twitty. I asked if it was in fact a true story.
About three months later I recieved the photo back with Conway Twitty's autograph on the bottom .. in quotation marks it read " It sure wasn't make belive ..it was the truth!"
I framed it and gave it to my brother for a house warming gift when he bought his new home in Pickering. Don't see him much, he's moved twice now and his lifestyle has changed somewhat ... I'm sure he still has it somewhere.
Anyway ... 'Millstone', don't be sad. Cities are living things ... and even though we get to tweek the growth from time to time, the end result relies to a great extent on evolution. In forty years from now someone will feel sad when they hear how you saw the city ... take pictures, keep notes ....
Actually, my obsession for talking to people and my simple love of interacting with my fellow travellers is what keeps me driving a cab in steeltown .. it sure as hell ain't the money ...
I should point out that I spent 30 years in the fire service before I retired in '95... but I've had a cab licence for longer than that ... both callings have allowed me close contact with people .. I've loved it all!

Mack