Hamilton 1065 Paramount Drive | ?m | 8s | Mikmada | srm Architects

Chronamut said:
And yet hamilton in the 40s and 50s had far less people and had far more economic and cultural development. One only has to look at pics of the old downtown core to see it was JAM PACKED full of people, vibrant stores, and a healthy culture. It's not about the amount of more people you bring into the city, it's about the QUALITY of the people IN the city, period.

We need to focus on the optics of the type of people hamilton is stereotyped as being first. The homelessness issue, the price of living, of being able to provide affordable housing to those who currently live here (not just housing for poor people, but affordable living for the middle class) instead of bringing people here, promising them housing and not being able to deliver, on TOP of not being able to deliver on the people who are ALREADY here.

We need to focus on the feeling of safety so that businesses don't up and leave like they are - it's all optics. Do people feel safe? Do they feel there are people who will spend money? Do they feel hamilton is a gungy city full of sketchy lowlifes and is falling apart and not being maintained? I feel what is happening is the growing "pandemic" downtown and hamilton being seen as "hamiltony" is going to undo all the attempts to bring "quality" people , and KEEP people here when they realize they're far better off.. anywhere else. Half of our core is STILL boarded up.. it's insane.

Let's focus on a hamilton that is worth moving to vs just a hamilton with more people that will somehow solve all the problems just because of more bodies in the city. Didn't work for london in the oliver twist times. Our crumbling infrastructure barely supports us NOW.
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Hamilton could definitely benefit from attracting more high-income people. It was looking like it had some momentum for a few brief years, but I am not sure about now.
 
BCTed said:
Hamilton could definitely benefit from attracting more high-income people. It was looking like it had some momentum for a few brief years, but I am not sure about now.
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Yeah I definitely feel that too - pre-pandemic things definitely felt like things were turning around with all the benefits that were being offered for people to come and build here, then things just started to go downhill again - I feel we still have some gravity of that momentum pushing things along but I worry that may stagnate. I honestly don't know where the crossover line goes - you go to augusta street and its a very different vibe from other parts of the city. I feel like it's somewhere in the middle now, which is better than it WAS, but not where it needs to be yet.

We'll just have to see if more high income people, and more high income JOBS will solve that. If they're not all scared away from the core. There's obv gonna be resistance - remember the locks anti-gentrification issue a few years back where people were gluing locks shut and smashing windows? We're all just kinda watching with held breath.. which way will it lean?
 
Chronamut said:
And yet hamilton in the 40s and 50s had far less people and had far more economic and cultural development. One only has to look at pics of the old downtown core to see it was JAM PACKED full of people, vibrant stores, and a healthy culture. It's not about the amount of more people you bring into the city, it's about the QUALITY of the people IN the city, period.

We need to focus on the optics of the type of people hamilton is stereotyped as being first. The homelessness issue, the price of living, of being able to provide affordable housing to those who currently live here (not just housing for poor people, but affordable living for the middle class) instead of bringing people here, promising them housing and not being able to deliver, on TOP of not being able to deliver on the people who are ALREADY here.

We need to focus on the feeling of safety so that businesses don't up and leave like they are - it's all optics. Do people feel safe? Do they feel there are people who will spend money? Do they feel hamilton is a gungy city full of sketchy lowlifes and is falling apart and not being maintained? I feel what is happening is the growing "pandemic" downtown and hamilton being seen as "hamiltony" is going to undo all the attempts to bring "quality" people , and KEEP people here when they realize they're far better off.. anywhere else. Half of our core is STILL boarded up.. it's insane.

Let's focus on a hamilton that is worth moving to vs just a hamilton with more people that will somehow solve all the problems just because of more bodies in the city. Didn't work for london in the oliver twist times. Our crumbling infrastructure barely supports us NOW.
Click to expand...
In the 40s and 50s our culture was significantly different and the modal share wasn't 90% cars. Eastgate and Limeridge and other strip malls didn't exist yet, and the idea of driving to, and parking at a single large store was just becoming an idea.

You went downtown to shop. There's a reason Hamilton has far more commercial units than it seems like it needs. The intersection beside my house had three grocery stores in 1898 largely because it was pre-car. The closest grocer to my house is a 13 minute walk each way. With 12 hour work days, 6 days a week, and much larger even than what they had back then it would have been unacceptable to be that far from a grocer.

With the Advent of the automobile we need significantly more people to maintain the commercial and economic core of the city.
 
Then perhaps the focus shouldn't be on more people,. but more walkable down to earth communities with less need for cars - people who live work and shop downtown again at places that can pay them enough to afford to live downtown - a luxury for few I am sure - not so much that you form silo communities, but in a sense where you can rebuild some of that "going downtown to shop " vibe again - and building giant podiums with no walkable small businesses in them isn't going to help. Imo the "rowhouse" width type businesses which were deep but only like 6-8 feet wide per store made for a great shopping experience, with awnings to protect from the elements. I would love to see more of those come back. It's why james st downtown still feels "homey" in a sense. The king william cobalt podium isn't bad - I would accept more of that type as well. Too many podiums are just 10% store and 90% car storage.

I mean people already complain of the traffic - how is cramming more people into an already devastated road system going to help ? We already have some of the worst roads around that deteriorate their vehicles - not everyone can ride a bike everywhere Chris.

Also pretty sure center mall already existed at that point as it was opened in 1955 so that was already starting to change.

Hrmm.. should probably dovetail this back to the topic at hand or we'll get our wrists slapped again.. I get the nimbyism but until you put something of a new style in you can't claim there is no precedent for it - it's like saying you can't plant that cherry tree here because we've only ever had peach trees.. On the same note I'm sure you can design something that looks like it blends into the neighbourhood more.
 
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They have let in way too many of these newbie SSPers who just come on here and disrespect this site's culture. It is ruining the quality of life for the OGs who were here first.
 
Unfortunately it's the same handful. I pass over it too but it's still annoying. Anyway no more about that or I'm just as bad. Lol

Anyway this would be good density.
 
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