Quote:
Originally Posted by king10
I feel you’re over exaggerating with the every other City in the country comment. The same sentiment on tall builds is shared in neighboring communities of Oakville and Burlington as well as others across the country.
The private gated community comment is off the mark IMO. The majority of people want smart growth which includes tall buildings in the appropriate areas(downtown). Not height for the sake of height in suburbs that lack the needed transit connections.
|
I dont think its an exaggeration at all. Hamilton is not, and should never see itself as, a suburb of Toronto like Burlington, Oakville or even Sauga/Vaughn. I mention the first two because we are a real city, with a real, tangible downtown that needs development. frankly, while every city holds a NIMBY presence, Hamilton has embraced their mindset and enabled them to dictate policies. What city in their right mind turns away meager 40fl buildings right in their downtown (especially cities needing urban revitalization, like Hamilton)? Oakville and Burlington have at least some merit to turn these developments away, as a far larger portion of people living there are true suburbanites for Toronto. But even that argument doesnt hold up, as the aforementioned Bridgewater project has gone forward, along with various others across the region.
If anything, the people in Hamilton who advocate against the taller buildings
want them in suburbia, where they can't be seen. They frankly do not care about "smart growth", and would rather encourage suburban development as a whole. We see it all the time, and its frankly discouraging to see 40+ detached homes get approved without a hitch out on the east mountain on empty farmland while any given 20+ floor condo building has to go through a thousand hurdles to get approved on an empty lot. Of course, This project isn't in a good location. It doesn't make any sense when considering urban planning at all. But I see it as a big 'fuck you' to the city rather than a legitimate proposal. Hamilton is one of the largest cities in Canada, and the third largest (proper) city in Ontario (I dont count Mississauga since its so close to Toronto). It's time we act like it. Sadly this long-running anti-business, anti-development mindset runs deep in our city and has done so for almost 50 years now. These suburban skyscrapers here are just a symptom of a larger issue. I know I've deviated a bit from your original point, but I hope to just add some context to this whole project how I see it.