Hamilton This Week

West Harbour Project Question 4: Where is Hamilton's Real Waterfront?

Is the confusion over the use of the title "Waterfront" deliberate?  We have a lot of shoreline next to a lot of water.  Technically, Coote's Paradise is water-front.  So is the tiny West Harbour shoreline.  But, as in the case of Kingston, Brockville, Port Hope, Toronto, Mississauga, Oakville, Burlington, Grimsby, St. Catherines and a host of US cities, we have one real waterfront:  20 kilometers of beautiful and accessible shoreline on Lake Ontario.

Click Here and see Hamilton's real Waterfront

Harbour West Project Question 2: Who cares, who needs it?

When he was building his business in Hamilton would Ron Joyce let someone build a Tim Horton's on one of our corners before he first made sure there would be customers for the location?  Not likely.  Before we spend $81.5 million on wholesale changes in Harbour West as recommended to Council by Mr. Stewart, staff and consultants, could we look at the customer data:

Question 1: What would we do with $81,500,000.00 if we had it?

"Based on the draft financial strategy, the estimated total capital cost of the plan (including contingency, engineering and PST), as presented in May of 2007, is $81.5 million."

Scott Stewart, C.E.T.
 (Former) General Manager
Public Works Department
Report to Council, December 15th, 2008

Scott Stewart and friends at Public Works and a host of consulting companies have proposed to completely rebuild Harbour West, Hamilton's unique and highly successful recreational boating resource.  Some ideas just never seem to die.  This is the fourth or fifth time, since Urban Renewal died, that someone at Hamilton City Hall has proposed to spend tens of millions of dollars on turning the west harbour into a local version of Chicago's waterfront. 

Before we even start to look at whether or not this is something Hamilton needs, we might ask if we actually have $81.5million to spend?  If we do, should we look at different ways to spend it?