An ambitious Hamilton is ready to shine

I was ready begin this post with a picture of the triumphant Hamilton Tiger Cats players with the Grey Cup held high. The script was not meant to be. But it does not change the tune about the City of  Hamilton’s rise to prominence.  

The personal reconnaissance to learn about Hamilton began a number of years ago. Many of those who live in Southern Ontario, myself included, have provided negative connotations towards Hamilton – dirty city, armpit of Canada, etc. Over the summer, I visited their downtown, The Mountain, Locke Street and Hess Village just to disprove my thoughts about the city. But I knew there was something more.

I viewed the city’s recently-released and very powerful economic development video “Ambitious City.”  I was wowed!

Several hours after retweeting the link, I received a tweet from a representative of the Economic Development Division asking me to do a tour of their industrial and downtown development.

Since Hamilton’s amalgamation in 2001, it has brought opportunities not only to the city but the region. A recent Brookings Institution report: “Metro North America: Metros as Hubs of Advanced Industries and Integrated Goods Trade“, said Hamilton’s trade with the United States is approximately $9.2 billion US ($9.7 billion CDN), which is ranked 10th in traded commodities nationally. Hamilton is definitely a regional player from Burlington to Niagara and Western New York.

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Hamilton is not resting on its laurels. Understanding that the city is attempting to move away from its Steel City moniker, they are now moving towards diversifying its economy through manufacturing, innovation and sciences. US Steel announced in October that they will be closing their iron and steel-making operations at the end of the year. Alfonso Principato, the city’s business development consultant, says it is not all doom and gloom. The city is continuing to work with US Steel for a smooth transition, whereby an effective brownfield development strategy can take place after its closure. All the while, economic developers have been able to attract businesses such as Canada Bread, Maple Leaf Foods, Navistar and Anderson Water to their industrial parks creating local jobs in the meantime. In 2011, CANMET materials lab moved from Ottawa to Hamilton, right next door to the McMaster Innovation Park. This year, CANMET won an award for brownfield development all the while being certified as LEED platinum building.

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The creative class, who mainly comprise of the Gen Y and Millennial generations, are looking for better live-work opportunities with better accessibility and mobility. The Seedworks is an example an opportunity where small start-up businesses can thrive in a shared workspace and also learn from others along the way. Bike lanes will be in place on Cannon Street and transit options will be improved with all day GO Transit service and ongoing talks of an LRT through downtown.

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While Toronto is still debating on changing the by-laws to allow food trucks, Hamilton has been well on their way. Restaurants owners do not see food truck operators as competition but rather as a benefit to their businesses.  An example where foodies can congregate is  Sew Hungry, which is a social media-driven initiative where food trucks gather on Ottawa Street, the fashion garment district.

Local businesses are driving downtown and the urban areas on corridors such as James Street and Locke Street. As Marketing Coordinator Michael Marini stated “It’s like baseball – we are hitting many singles, not just home runs.”

Urban planners, city builders and residents are coming together to build the new Hamilton – The Ambitious City. To continue the story, follow the conversation on twitter #AMBITIOUSHAMONT