June 25, 2025
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I would really like that exposed concrete between the second a third floor to have some sort of frieze along the entire length. Or a patterned relief of some kind with a bit of colour.
I like this build and I hope the ground floor attracts some interesting tenants. The only downside is the fact that James street here is just so damn harsh.
 
Definitely Hamilton's biggest building boom in decades. But many other places in Southern Ontario have experienced arguably bigger changes... Vaughan, Mississauga, Toronto, Kitchener, others.

I could be wrong, but it feels like red tape, height limits, et cetera, literally limited Hamilton's growth when there was seemingly much more opportunity there to harness momentum and build up the tax base, and so on.
 
Hamilton's permitting and regulatory environments, minus the 30-storey limits, are one of the most friendly in the GTHA. Development in the downtown enjoys no community charges, development charge discounts which amount to some of the cheapest DCs in the GTHA (around $22,000 for a 1-bed unit, compared to $52,000 in Toronto and $91,000 in Vaughan!), as-of-right zoning with a relatively simple site-plan process, affordable and simple landscaping and construction staging requirements which help keep construction costs down.. no green standards or parking requirements, city allows above-grade parking, lower land costs, etc.

It's one of if not the cheapest place to build an apartment building in the GTHA. Which is important because it also commands some of the lowest rents.

Yes, it's costly and complex to try to do more than 30-storeys, but that size of project can work fine financially and if you do the 30-storeys you can build an apartment building relatively cheaply and with minimal red tape from what is typical in the rest of the GTHA.

The reason Hamilton hasn't seen more growth downtown isn't because of municipal red tape or financial burdens placed on development, it's because the downtown has a certain reputation and market realities which make it challenging (relatively low rents and sale prices, dense downtown sites but still relatively high parking demand, etc.).
 
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innsertnamehere said:
Hamilton's permitting and regulatory environments, minus the 30-storey limits, are one of the most friendly in the GTHA. Development in the downtown enjoys no community charges, development charge discounts which amount to some of the cheapest DCs in the GTHA (around $22,000 for a 1-bed unit, compared to $52,000 in Toronto and $91,000 in Vaughan!), as-of-right zoning with a relatively simple site-plan process, affordable and simple landscaping and construction staging requirements which help keep construction costs down.. no green standards or parking requirements, etc.

It's one of if not the cheapest place to build an apartment building in the GTHA. Which is important because it also commands some of the lowest rents.

Yes, it's costly and complex to try to do more than 30-storeys, but that size of project can work fine financially and if you do the 30-storeys you can build an apartment building relatively cheaply and with minimal red tape from what is typical in the rest of the GTHA.

The reason Hamilton hasn't seen more growth downtown isn't because of municipal red tape or financial burdens placed on development, it's because the downtown has a certain reputation and market realities which make it challenging (relatively low rents and sale prices, dense downtown sites but still relatively high parking demand, etc.).
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Good to know the hard facts. Thank you. But it is still tough to shake the feeling of missed opportunity, whether real or imagined.
 
FF407 said:
I don't even think about lot of people inside of Hamilton realize.
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This is true, I think.

And it's often the people living in the suburban areas who are oblivious to it. Some will complain about congestion (supposedly due to removal of many of the out-dated one-way streets, though in my opinion it's more about evolving transportation demand and travel patterns as the city slowly continues to transition from being a hub for heavy manufacturing), the LRT plan, and the social issues that pervade the central city. But I have to wonder how many have actually experienced any of it.

My parents are a case in point. They're now around 80 and doing well but their trips largely involve medical appointments and groceries, and that's all generally close to home in East Hamilton and Stoney Creek. But they'll read an opinion story or letter in the Spec about the downtown area and believe it word for word. I doubt they've been downtown in years, and the last visit was probably to a restaurant with me as driver and maker of arrangements.
 
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