Metrolinx has announced that it will be demolishing almost two dozen properties along Hamilton’s light rail transit (LRT) corridor in the interest of community safety.
In a release, the provincial government agency says the demolition includes 21 now-vacant properties that were acquired to build LRT, in order “to reduce the risk of fire and other potential hazards.”
Most of the buildings have been vacant for longer than a year and Metrolinx stresses that the demolition isn’t related to construction of any particular transit project in Hamilton.
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The agency is still awaiting decisions arising from recommendations from the Transportation Task Force, which was set up by the provincial government after it pulled the plug on the city’s LRT project.
The demolition process is expected to begin sometime this fall and be finished early next year.
The announcement is likely to disappoint a tenants group, which represents more than 80 displaced households, and has demanded that vacant LRT properties be used to address the city’s affordable housing crisis.
Metrolinx, however, insists that vacant structures can become safety hazards, prone to vandalism and break-and-enter.
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