[SteelTown]

Hamilton Next
Focus on the future city

July 05, 2008
The Hamilton Spectator

Ideas gush out of Glen Murray like a geyser as he takes in Hamilton. Here are just a few:

* More signage pointing pedestrians to destinations along the waterfront

* Development that will make waterfront areas of Bayfront Park, Pier 8, year-round, 24-hour destinations, including office space, condos, hotels, restaurants, outdoor art gallery or sculpture park

* A historic-looking trolley running down James Street, linking the waterfront to the escarpment and showcasing the restaurants, shops and galleries along the street

* Anchor the Lister Block with a library or other public destination, maybe high-end liquor store, maybe public sculpture park, district energy solution, try to attract non-governmental organizations

* Digital audio tours of the city and its landmarks

* Plaques telling the story of notable buildings

* Rapid transit strategy that looks at innovative, green technology such as light rail that runs on optical readers, or personal rapid transit that runs individual, computer- operated cable cars on tracks above the streets

* Arm's-length agency to broker deals between investors and the city, help property owners negotiate financing and zoning hurdles, tap into heritage tax credits and brownfield incentives and act as a lender of last resort

* District plans that map out centres of industry, commerce, architecture, matched with action plans and incentive programs to create restaurant rows, discovery districts, gallery blocks or ethnic villages

* Connect districts with interesting pedestrian corridors

* Create a spirit of risk-taking, entrepreneurship at City Hall

In his words: "The most successful cities in the world all share two things: a great university and old architecture. Hamilton has both."

"You couldn't afford to build like that now. This is authentic. There is a real presence of history here," looking at 8-10 John Street South, which appears to be mostly vacant.

"We used to build buildings that were representative of our values and civic esteem. We didn't build high schools that looked like fertilizer factories. We have to reach back to those buildings for our pride today. Architecture should be a celebration of who we are and what we deserve."

"You have two waterfronts in Hamilton, the industrial, practical side and the natural, commercial, cultural and residential side. It's one of the most beautiful waterfronts in Ontario."

"It's like time stopped here. You have beautiful buildings from the 1920s and '30s and then it just jumps to the 1970s and '80s. Those were bad decades for men's hair and urban architecture."

"Downtowns used to be the tax engines of cities. When commercial centres failed, cities started to struggle ... When the tax engine comes roaring back to life, the whole city comes along."

"Ten square blocks of downtown creates the whole image of Hamilton. If it's empty and dead, you can't attract investment."