Waterfront Shores has been given preliminary approval to build a new 1,500-home community, along with shops and cafes, on Hamilton’s west harbour.
Hamilton’s general issues committee announced its decision following a lengthy closed-door session on Wednesday afternoon. Final approval is up to city council next week.
The consortium’s lead architect is Bruce Kuwubara, who grew up in Hamilton’s north end, and spoke about the vision for a “compact, walkable neighbourhood” at Pier 8 as part of a video submission for the winning bid.
He’s talked about “coherent diversity,” a series of “progressive, modern and ambitious buildings” which stand out as “individual artistic statements while remaining legible as a whole.”
Ward 2 Coun. Jason Farr calls it a “monumental day,” adding the Waterfront Shores proposal reflects “the city’s values and vision” for the waterfront.
Mayor Fred Eisenberger adds that the Pier 8 development opportunity “represents the culmination of nearly 30 years of political and financial commitments from past and present councils, along with partners at other levels of government.”
Eisenberger also stresses that the embattled Discover Centre property has not been put up for sale, and is not part of the development agreement.
Construction is expected to start around mid-2019.