Is Hamilton Doomed to Repeat Its Past Mistakes?
From the Nest, Issue 11
by Matt Grande
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
The 1960s’ vision of “progress” was much simpler than today’s. A growing population demanded more cars, wider roads, and faster speeds above all else. To that end, the Regional Municipality of Hamilton-Wentworth proposed a connection to decrease travel time between the western end of Burlington Street and Highway 403. This connection was to be known as the “Industrial Perimeter Road”.
In the original plan, Burlington Street would be widened to six lanes until it reached Victoria Street North. There, it would turn southwest until it neared Ferguson Avenue North and Strachan Street East. It would then run between the Canadian National Railway (CN) tracks and Strachan Street in a new trench.
As an aside, I’ve found that you can use the word Strachan as a kind of shibboleth for determining if someone was raised in Hamilton. Hamiltonians generally pronounce it as “strah-chan”, while those from other areas pronounce it closer to its Scottish origins, “strawn”.
A highway-style interchange would be built at Bay Street North, but most other intersections would be removed by building elevated sections. Travelling further west, there were two options.
The first option was to build on infill in the Harbour, north of the CN yard. Bayfront Park did not exist at the time, and the Waterfront Trail had only recently been proposed. It would continue behind Dundurn Castle and meet Highway 403 near Burlington Heights.
The second option saw the road go over the CN Yard, tunnel under Hamilton Cemetery, and connect with the 403 behind the cemetery, where Kay Drage Park now stands.
Both options were expensive, unpopular, and environmentally damaging, so the Region immediately voted in favour of moving forward. The Parks department opposed the plan as it would prevent them from building the popular Waterfront Trail; the Harbour Commission opposed the impact that the infill would have on boaters and fish; and many historical groups opposed digging under a pre-Confederation cemetery.
Between 1963 and 2003, the Perimeter Road was studied at least six times and was finally removed from the City’s official plans in 2012. Nothing was built, but much was destroyed.
The result was that the houses along the south side of Strachan were quickly expropriated, and soon demolished. Starting in 1965, 102 homes were destroyed in the North End, with nearly 300 residents evicted. Today, only one house, 72 Strachan Street East, survives on the south side of the road.
In addition to the demolition of the homes, two bridges were torn down at Catharine Street North and Mary Street, severing the neighbourhood from the nearby shops on Barton Street East.
The Italian Pentacostal Church on James Street North was demolished, and the Canadian Cotton Mill complex was torn down on the block bordered by James Street North, Ferrie Street West, MacNab Street North, and Strachan Street West.
This block was then earmarked for 106 public housing units, which eventually became the Jamesville development. The intention was to have the people who were evicted from Strachan move into the new housing units. Unfortunately, the evictions began in 1965, and the new housing units didn’t become available until 1969.
Eventually, they were constructed, but far too late to be of much use for their intended residents. But they were built, and for nearly 50 years they housed hundreds of families. Unfortunately, maintenance was needed, and decades of underfunding for social housing led to the housing falling into disrepair.
CityHousing Hamilton (CHH) began relocating residents in 2015. As of now, they have stood completely empty for over 4 years. The people who once lived in them were promised new housing on the site, however demolition has not yet begun, and construction of the new building is still years away.
CHH currently has a waiting list of more than 6,500 families, and the need for affordable housing continues to outpace the rate of new units being built. Once again, Hamilton’s unofficial policy of “destroy first, build later” has left residents with fewer places to live.
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
Matt Grande is a lifelong Hamiltonian, co-owner of Mosaic Beer Bar, software developer, video creator, cult member, and amateur drone photographer; when Matt’s not at Mosaic, he can be found all over the City, taking photos and filming the next episode of Faded Hamilton.