Waterfront development driver

The Spec's Meredith MacLeod reports:

'Now that the city has laid out a broad vision for a bustling west harbour, the next step will be finding the money to make it happen.

It's expected to come from the public and private sectors, and partnerships between the two.

The city is working toward setting up an arm's length but municipally owned waterfront development corporation that would either develop land itself or facilitate deals.

A proposed mandate, governance structure and financing options will be presented to city councillors sometime this summer.

City councillors were presented with a master plan earlier this month. That has set in motion the process to include the vision in the city's official plan.

The project, estimated to cost about $143 million in public and private money, will cover the entire stretch of city-owned land from Bayfront Park to Pier 8. The plan calls for restaurants, cafes, shops, boat rentals, waterfront trails and many other amenities.

Chris Phillips, senior adviser in the planning and economic development department, has studied a range of waterfront development corporations in order to bring a report to council.

He said it would be an agency of the city with an independent board, much like HECFI or Horizon Utilities.

It would work in conjunction with the Hamilton Waterfront Trust, says Phillips, which focuses on recreational uses and public access.

Councillor Chad Collins, chairperson of the HWT, says the development corporation should focus on leveraging action at the waterfront deeper into the neighbourhoods surrounding it.

He says the city and the trust regularly get inquiries from private investors willing to sink money into the waterfront.

"Those lands at the water's edge will go no problem. They'll be automatic. It's the properties a block from the waterfront or with contamination that are not such an easy sell."

A development corporation is strongly endorsed by the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce, says CEO John Dolbec.

"It's a fabulous way to move this issue forward and hopefully depoliticize some of this," he said.'

What do you think? Is this a sensible approach to development, or would another strategy make more sense?

Comments

[Kathy hagan]

Just because our council does not have a brain between them they have now come up with the idea that " others" can give them ideas just more political maneuvering and flim flam

[Peter Swire CMA]

From my experience, using not-for-profit thinking (the City or a trust) to operate a for-profit enterprise such as a restaurant can be a recipe for disaster. Has anyone suggested getting a developer of a theme park to bid on the development? They would be using their expertise and capital to make a go of it.

At least taxpayer money would not be required. Further, as a commerical entity, the city would collect property taxes!

The reason that private people are kicking the tires at HEFCI is that they believe they can do a better job using their own management and capital than the City.

[ed]

"finding money to make it happen" what a joke. The city lies all the time about our finances. To us, money is tight, to their pet projects, we have money to burn. Taxes and levies all went way up during accessments but services all went down. Problem is the quality of work, all the new roads built on the mountain are crumbling after 2 years, on franklin road they've been fixing the same pot hole for 6 months, fun stuff. 70 million dollars to make cityhall look the same with cheaper materials. I wouldn't trust the city to develop anything other than an attitude.

[Markalanwhittle]

If this Agency is modelled after HECFI, whose to say it won't be another black-hole for taxpayers money?

Why not just form a group of the actual people who own the property, especially the various Marina facilities, and find some concensus there on moving forward with development plans that include them as part of the plan.

Nobody should get the short end of the stick.

And the Pan-Am Track and Field Stadium should not be erected there either, hopefully Mr. Fenn will see to that "Mistake by the Lake".