City fights landlord of James North thrift shop in court
By: Teviah Moro
(The Hamilton Spectator: Thursday, May 07, 2015)
The city is waging a legal battle against a North End landlord over a longtime thrift shop in her building.
Lory James, who owns 520 James St. N., is chalking it up to more tony municipal ambitions for the traditionally working-class but increasingly expensive area.
"They're basically wanting to kick out the thrift shop because they're gentrifying the neighbourhood, as far as I can see," James said Wednesday.
But the city says the property is residential and no longer carries the zoning it once did for second-hand retail and rental storage units.
"There is enforcement on the property currently before the court for the illegal use of the thrift shop," said city spokesperson Ann Lamanes.
James argues the original use of the 23,000-square-foot building, a textile factory built in the late 1940s, has been grandfathered.
But Lamanes says the "legally established nonconforming use" of that factory "has been lost through discontinuance" because it was abandoned in favour of a warehouse.
The dispute is scheduled to be settled at trial in provincial court Oct. 30.
"I am not ceasing use. I am not going to kick out the thrift shop," said James, a Toronto-based entrepreneur who was charged in May 2013 for allegedly using the property as a commercial business, contrary to the bylaw.
Her tenant, the New Horizons Thrift Store, is watching from the sidelines.
"It's a healthy and important part of the neighbourhood," said Jennifer Kellner, executive director of the Welcome Inn Community Centre on Wood Street East, the charity that operates the store.
The Welcome Inn, which has a mission to eradicate poverty, took over the 4,500-square-foot thrift shop in 2008, but the store has operated at the same site for about 30 years, Kellner said.
Proceeds from its sales support the charity's services, including a food bank, youth drop-in centre, after-school programs and seniors' dining.
That's between $5,000 and $10,000 a year, she said, noting the centre also relies on other funding sources. The charity's average yearly operating budget is about $400,000.
The thrift store sells second-hand clothing, games and toys, household items, books and DVDs. Apart from a part-time manager, it's run by volunteers.
New Horizons serves residents in the North End who have scant access to inexpensive products, says Tom Cooper, director of the Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction.
It's also a solid, community-run social enterprise that serves as a neighbourhood hub, Cooper added. "I really do hope they find a solution to this and find a way to stay open."
Kellner, who said she's not privy to details of her landlord's legal battle, isn't certain eviction is imminent.
But if it comes to that, New Horizons will search for a new location, she added.
"From our perspective, we are committed to being in the North End."
James says bylaw officers have issued her business, Glacier Trading Company, with zoning violation notices a few times since she bought the building in 2000.
Those were settled without legal wrangling, she says.
"Four times it's been put to bed. Now, this is the fifth time it's reared its ugly head again."
If convicted on the provincial charge, her company could face an initial fine of up to $50,000 and, after that, a daily maximum of $25,000 if more convictions follow for ongoing noncompliance.
Coun. Jason Farr, whose ward includes the North End, declined to comment because the dispute is before the court.
There is other commerce in the mixed-use strip. New Horizons is next to Dowsar Marine Supplies, at the corner of Macaulay Street East.
A bar called Our Corner, the James Milk convenience store and Fisher's restaurant are also in the area, which has single-family and multi-residential homes.
It's one of 11 prioritized areas in the city's Neighbourhood Action Strategy, an effort to help residents with projects aimed at improving their communities.
The historically working-class North Enders have watched property values spike considerably, in part with the prospect of a new GO station on James North.
Last year, building owner James voiced concern about gentrification of the area during a public meeting dealing with the impacts of the future railway station.
Such change shouldn't be forced overnight, she said Wednesday.
"For me, that's bullying."
Cooper said mixed-income neighbourhoods are healthy but worries low-income residents are being pushed out.
"It's something our community needs to take seriously."