Tim Hortons Museum and Store #1 Renovation
 

it was posted about in the Rumour Mill but now it seems to be a reality...?

http://www.thespec.com/news-story/46...g-to-hamilton/

(^With Rendering)

Tim Hortons museum coming to Hamilton
By Samantha Beattie
(The Spectator)

It's a historic moment for Tim Hortons first location.

Plans were announced Thursday to transform the restaurant at 65 Ottawa St. N. into a two-storey restaurant and museum by November.

"We're creating a showpiece for the neighbourhood by doing something very different and unique," said Tim Hortons COO David Clanachan.

The museum will exhibit the coffee chain's memorabilia, which is currently housed at its Oakville headquarters.

"We believe the memorabilia belongs in Hamilton to pay homage to our history," said Clanachan.

When visitors walk through the front doors, they'll see a sleek modern-style serving counter, as well as a 10-seat bar facing the street.

Stairs and an elevator will take people to the second floor, which will have a seating area equipped with a fireplace and TVs. This space will hold up to 40 people.

Running along the back of the second floor will be a series of six rooms forming the museum.

Visitors will be able to walk through time, with the first room beginning in the 1960s and the subsequent rooms progressing through the decades and ending in the future.

The museum will also highlight Tim Hortons Hamilton roots.

Restaurant No. 1 was opened in a converted car repair garage on Ottawa Street North on May 17, 1964. Founder Tim Horton won the Stanley Cup playing with the Toronto Leafs weeks before he launched his business.

In 1965, Hamilton police officer Ron Joyce took over Restaurant No. 1. By 1967 he opened two more stores and became equal business partners with Horton. When Horton died in a car accident in 1974, Joyce bought the shares from Horton's wife and became sole owner of the chain.

That year he also helped in the creation of the Tim Horton Children's Foundation, a charitable organization that runs camps for children from economically disadvantaged homes.

Under Joyce's leadership, Tim Horton's spread across Canada and became the country's dominant coffee shop. Now it has more than 4,000 restaurants in Canada, 800 in the United States and two dozen in the Middle East.

The outside of restaurant No.1 will be transformed into a neighbourhood hub that features a wrap-around patio at street level, as well as trees and flowers, an expanded parking lot and a bronze statue of Tim Horton.

Hamilton Mayor Bob Bratina said the development fits well within the city's revitalization efforts.

"I think the community is going to love it," he said. "Having a company like Tim Hortons make an investment of this size in our city goes to show you there's serious growth and vitality here."

The city approved the company's plans on Wednesday. That means there will be enough time to get the renovations done within the company's 50th year.

To make room for the expansion, Tim Horton's purchased the two adjoining residential lots along Ottawa Street North, north of the store, said Clanachan.

awesome news. wrap around patio and second floor museum. it will fit in nicely with ottawa street. I see they also bought the 2 residential properties to the north for added space. the lot was small to begin with

also not really getting the first comment on that spec article. the inside and outside of the store has been gutted numerous times. there isn't much noticeably identifiable left from the original building. I dont see why this renovation would face any opposition when it's already been renovated numerous times

My preference would be to have it return to its original state > Lots of yellow. Lots of brown. But this is certainly more ambitious.

I actually heard a rumor from a few different people that the current building isn't even the same one as the original at all, and that it was demolished decades ago and replaced with this one so if true, that comment on the spec is pointless.

I'm all for this reno since it's 100% privately funded and judging from the renderings, it looks to be a high quality, urban build. Exactly what Ottawa Street needs, especially the outdoor patio space.

I have no problem with this as it's privately funded.
It's just too bad that the first Hortons wasn't downtown so it would have more exposure - but you can't change history.

However, I'd prefer they just make it look like the original (even if it's not using anything from the original building) and throw a bigger Hortons/museum downtown.

Even if the structure is the same, it's been massively altered both inside and out.

The historical appeal of a replica of the original store is big. But I really like the concept they presented and I think it will be great for Ottawa Street. It should be an idea they pursue in more higher-density urban locations too.

looks good. They're also incorporating a mini museum at the new Tim Hortons in downtown Buffalo in Terry Pegula's new Harborcentre. It even has a special Tim Hortons/ Buffalo Sabres logo as well as a statue for Tim himself.

http://www.harborcenter.com/timhortons/

Damn that went up quick.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B13y75aIYAEIouq.jpg:large
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wow. I like it. I wonder what the neighbours think though.

I don't see why anyone would be against it. It's a huge improvement to the corner, even if it's just a Tim Hortons.

I just thought they may be upset about the shadows and the extra height blocking the backyards.

I know Tims bought adjacent housing for more parking. Have those houses been torn down yet or are they what we see in the above picture?

I'd like to see Tims do something like this with it's locations at John and Jackson, and King at Caroline. Way better for urban areas.

The two houses to the north along Ottawa St. were demolished around the middle of August.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B2mcmX_IgAA-tAg.jpg
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Larger Size:

For sure, that was quick. When I was househunting in Hamilton in April (barely more than half a year ago!) I was drinking coffee in this very location, the OLD Tim Horton's at this corner, they hadn't yet shut down to be demolished for this new museum-restaurant-cafe attraction. That thing wasn't even announced yet!

Now let's hope JamesNorth GO gets a similar expediency -- it's running slightly late for PanAm.

Yeah, if I remember correctly they had the old store demolished and the site prepped for construction in 3 weeks to a month. I believe they're aiming for a Christmas opening date and it looks like they're on track to meet it.

Maybe it will be a temporary one day partial occupancy permit for Christmas!