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There is a re-birth happening at the Head of the Lake. Hamilton is expected to generate close to 900 million dollars in building permits this year, it's second highest number dating back to 2007.  Today at the General Issues Committee which had a lot on it's plate Neil Iverson Director of Economic Development gave his annual update. All the 2011 numbers are in and here are the highlights; building permits 731 million. The number of industrial buildings available to the market place decreased from 6.1 per cent to 3.4 per cent outperforming Burlington, Oakville and Mississauga. Downtown Hamilton office space for properties with at least 5 thousand square feet has dropped from 15 to 13 to 12 per cent since 2009. Assessment growth held at 1.3 per cent despite the fact 2011 came in three hundred million dollars shy of the record building permit year of 2010.
What does the future look like? In 2011 over 3 hundred companies were extensively interviewed by the department to find out what shape we are in. Fourty six per cent of companies said they will be hiring in 2012 with 37 per cent reporting room for expansion with 62 per cent of the companies suggesting in the survey they are growing. Over 77 per cent reported they would be introducing new products over the next two years.
Although steel and steel related industries remain a big player, Hamilton Health Sciences remains the largest employer with the Agra business becoming a very large player especially in the Red Hill Business Park and on the Harbour. The only area of concern was raised by Ward 5's Chad Collins who suggested that although he has been a supporter of banking business park lands around the airport he needs to know from airport officials themselves what they foresee in the short and long terms before he is willing to put any more financing into that particular portfolio especially with expansion of business park lands currently at an expensive OMB hearing. Staff has been asked to bring all interested parties together for a presentation before GIC sooner than later. By the way the Ward Councillor for the airport will be our guest tomorrow on "For the Record, Council Edition". Brenda Johnson will discuss airport development, PFOS contamination, economic development in her ward and of course the story of the week another paranoid implosion emanating from the Mayor's office. More on that is still to come. #HamOnt

A toxic relationship!!!

Toxic is a strong and harsh word don't you think? At what was a very polite and more often than not amiable Planning Committee meeting this day Ward 4's Sam Merulla used that harsh word to described the ongoing problems at the City Motor Hotel on Queenston Rd a story I'm sure most of you are aware of. From prostitution to drug deals to a recent public shooting incident with police calls every day, Merulla is pushing for an amendment to city bylaws that would place hotels and motels in the same category as bed and breakfast businesses currently covered. The motion was unanimously received and you should watch for it on the March 28th City Council agenda.
As well that evening keep an eye out for mention of this issue regarding sub licensing of taxi cabs. Representatives from the cab industry went before planning to ask that bylaw enforcement of what is an illegal action be stepped up or else there would be dire consequences for the cab industry in this town. When city legal staff were asked for input they advised that they had tried a prosecution under the existing bylaw and won the case only to lose on appeal. The reason, the current wording is "antiquated" and needs revising. Those revisions will be back before council before the end of the year.
Also before planning this day a proposal to expand the development at 401 Rymal East and 1620 Upper Wentworth better known as the Village of Wentworth Heights. There had been some design concerns that have been favourably resolved between staff, the developer and Councillor Scott Duvall who attended committee to explain his approval of the revised plans. This expansion is worth 60 million dollars with the committee voting unanimously to accept. As I mentioned this meeting was civil and business like with next up the General Issues Committee tomorrow morning at 9.30am.

Sentiment but no cigar!

The motion; Whereas the Caterpillar Corporation has breached the Investment Canada Act, and has been subsidized by Canadian taxpayers who have been betrayed by the closure of its Caterpillar Plant in London, Ontario, be it resolved, the City of Hamilton review its policy related to any business relationship with the Caterpillar Corporation and boycott Caterpillar and encourage all Hamilton, Ontario and Canadian businesses from doing business with the Caterpillar Corporation. Pretty clear right? Not so much. The issue of course the Caterpillar pullout from London. The sympathy for the workers who have now lost their jobs was palpable. The sentiment is to naturally support those workers and that was expressed by the majority of those who spoke at Hamilton City Council this evening. But. And there's always a but the motion failed 10 to 4 with Councillor Lloyd Ferguson not involved due to a conflict of interest. Voting for a boycott were Duvall, Collins, Merulla the author and McHattie. Why didn't this go through? Several councillors believe that if a boycott were put in place companies who have relationships with Caterpillar would then be hurt with job losses resulting, companies like Toromont who had appeared before the General Issues Committee. Some felt like Councillor Brad Clark that this was not a municipalities purview, that although pressure should be applied and concerns expressed to higher levels of  government cities are not in the business of worrying about the Investment Canada Act. Others thought if the motion had used the word condemned instead of boycott they could have supported. In the end this long and sometimes tedious debate almost erupted into open warfare when on a second go round mover Merulla tried to imply that Councillor Clark a former Provincial Conservative Cabinet Minister and former federal conservative candidate somehow in the same sentence was related to robocalls in Hamilton East and Stoney Creek in the last federal election. Like where was that going? The Mayor stepped in to caution Merulla at that point and then finally after some byplay ruled Merulla out of order who then suggested an amendment or was it a new motion, or was it an amendment to an amendment to a new motion, who knew? We were all looking at each other as Merulla continued to chirp and the Mayor appeared to be ready to blow. Finally the Mayor ruled everyone knew the intent so lets get on with the vote which failed.
In other news, baseball as far as Pan Am baseball or softball is concerned is dead. A recommendation to refer to the GM of Public Works for a report to the GIC on any interest the city of Hamilton might have was lost on a tie vote. The Mayor who received through his office the request for expressions of interest pleaded with councillors to at least gather information from staff to see if this request made sense for Hamilton to even consider. Leading the charge against was Ward 1 Councillor Brian McHattie who said he had no stomach to revisit any Pan American games initiatives based on how Hamilton he felt had been treated in the past regarding the stadium debate and the Velodrome. Voting against gathering any information at all were McHattie, Merulla, Morelli, Collins, Clark, Pearson, Johnson and Partridge. The Mayor asked the clerk plaintively do ties mean a loss? "Yes". The correspondence was received. Good bye.
In brief the expanding where you can't smoke bylaw has been put off for further study and input until October. A motion to appoint Farr and McHattie to a special committee comprised of city and Hamilton Wentworth District School Board trustees and support staff was passed unanimously. They should report back within a month re potential sites that will keep the school board downtown. And finally a little kfuffle near the end when a motion to forward some monies to Opera Hamilton enabling them to sign a significant guest performer in the fall raised a few alarm bells since Opera Hamilton has had some fiscal problems in the past. In the end the motion to make sure they were forwarded monies to sign the deal even though the 2012 budget has not been passed and won't be until March 28th was passed with two dissenting voices, Whitehead and Jackson. Good night.

When unanimous means thanks but no thanks!

Interesting start to Hamilton's General Issues Committee budget discussions this day. The Mayor's Executive Assistant Peggy Chapman had a quiet conversation with Councillor Brad Clark who is in the chair for the month of March. As the meeting got underway a piece of paper was circulated for discussion, receipt or whatever council wished to do with it. What was in the piece of paper you wonder? It was the opinion of ex city clerk Kevin Christensen recently hired by Mayor Bob Bratina as his Municipal Adviser that on the issue of decorum at last Friday's meeting of the GIC  (perhaps better known now as "gavel gate") that the Chair, Brad Clark had done nothing wrong, that even his very loud use of the gavel was appropriate. When Clark asked what anyone wanted to do with the opinion from the Mayor's office he received this opening salvo from Sam Merulla, "I'm not willing to accept it, it usurps the position of the clerk's office. Ward 5's Chad Collins joined 4's Merulla pointing out that going down this road could be very dangerous. Around the table it went to the point a motion was put forth by Merulla to "not receive" the advice. It passed unanimously. One wonders what the Mayor or his office was thinking by putting this opinion forward. Clearly the clerk of the committee is in charge of decisions regarding what is in order and what is not. It is their opinion that matters under law and no one else's. Clearly the Mayor who ought to know better or someone else in his office who should know better interjected themselves into council business and pretty much got smacked up the side of the head for sticking their nose where it wasn't wanted.
Onto other business now. Just what is going on with the controversial "swing space" that McMaster University claims is integral to their three way deal with the city and the Hamilton Wentworth District School Board. As you know the University has given its other two erstwhile partners an ultimatum to either get this issue resolved by the end of the week or else "Mac" is walking away from the deal. The latest events went something like this;  withdrawn from today's agenda was the entire issue of "swing space" since it now appears according to representatives of the Right House where Public Health currently leases space that the City Centre is now part of ongoing talks. And we also know that the Right House itself has been in discussions with city staff and will be allowed to make a more formal presentation to the GIC either Thursday or Friday of this week. We are well beyond the 11th hour on this one.
As for the budget discussions we are told now that city wide the current preliminary budget increase has dropped to 1.3 %. However because of reassessment and area rating Glanbrook this year will see a 4.4 % increase Flamborough 3.5, Dundas 3.1, Stoney Creek 2.8 and  Ancaster 2 %. But the budget is still not done and will not be completed until at least two more budget meetings take place after the March break for presentation to council on March 28th.
Oh, and one final note and you can see the sides lining up on this issue GIC did today authorise the General Manager of Public Works to move forward on the Accessible Transportation Services program enhancement to the tune of 850 thousand dollars in 2012. I'll back up and explain. This enhancement becomes law Province wide in 2017. It allows those people who are cognitively disabled and unable to get on a DARTS bus without a companion to qualify. In total the program implementation could cost 5.7 million dollars to comply. Councillors were quite happy to provide the funds and applauded staff on their prudent planning but then those dividing lines started to appear. Several councillors are questioning some of those who currently qualify with Russ Powers of Dundas suggesting everyone around council knows of individuals who abuse the current system. Others namely Merulla and Jackson have stated clearly during past discussions on this that they do not require any review of current qualifications because they don't want to see "that can of worms opened up". Tomorrow evening a full city council beginning at 5pm with a tape delay broadcast on Cable 14 at 7, and I'll be there arming myself  for a chat with Councillor Clark on Thursday's "For the Record, Council Edition".

The art of gavelling!

Crack!  Most of us jumped six inches.  You're out of order sir! No you're out of order! You are out of order councillor, crack again. Oh boy we've got two very angry men going at it. Finally silenced Ward 10's Loyd Ferguson after the second use of the gavel by Deputy Mayor of the month Brad Clark half rising out of his chair wanted to know if Clark wanted him to come over and use the gavel on Clark's head. Ferguson then saying I've had enough of you, picked up his budget documents and left the General Issues Committee meeting not to return. This followed an angry confrontation between Clark and Councillor Terry Whitehead their third in two meetings. Is there something in the drinking water at the hall? Is this information overload during the budget session that is bringing on the heated exchanges? Don't know, but although it was entertaining for the media I do know this, today's lack of decorum has tongues wagging and social media buzzing. Clark at the end of today's session calmly explained why he had to bang the gavel so hard. What couldn't be explained however was the abruptness of the confrontation seemingly out of nowhere. Councillor Clark by the way will be my guest on "For the Record, Council Edition" next Thursday at 5pm on Cable 14.
Couple more GIC notes from today with the first revolving around a request from the Pan Am games organising committee who have asked communities if there is any interest in hosting some baseball and softball games in 2015. This was brought forward by Mayor Bob Bratina. Immediately glasses were tinkled. First up Ward 1's Brian McHattie who suggested he wanted nothing further to do with the Pan Am organisers after their handling of the Velodrome and stadium files. Ward 5's Chad Collins suggested that if the Pan Am people wanted to rent Bernie Arbour stadium for a couple of weeks then they should get in line with the rest of community to do so. Tom Jackson from Ward 6 suggested if there is one extra dollar of impact on the community he would not be supportive. Ward 8's Terry Whitehead on the other hand pointed out that the city does have recreational needs and so at the very least should listen to what the Organising Committee has to say for the needs may align with the proposal. Staff will get back with a report. Speaking of staff many thanks were expressed for the hard work they have done on getting budgets down. Currently the operating budget sits at a 1.4 per cent increase but again several councillors said they were not prepared to sign off on the budget at next week's city council meeting without further attempts to get the budget under 1 per cent. Last year for example it came in at .8 per cent. The next budget session is set for March the 6th.

If it ain't broke no need to fix it!

A reprieve but no end game. With the Hamilton Wentworth District School Board agreeing to partner with the City of Hamilton to find an appropriate site for a new education headquarters in the downtown core we are still left with the thorny question of what to do with 100 Main Street West, the current headquarters. Let me back up a bit. There is no guarantee that the Board and the City will find an appropriate site downtown and Crestwood could still be the ultimate destination but at least after intense pressure the Board has recognised that with consultation and the potential of very cheap square footage there is the possibility of staying in the core. Now to the very thorny and divisive issue of knocking down 100 Main for that is still the plan of the Board if it signs off on a deal with McMaster University. Where does that stand? McMaster officials made it clear yesterday in front of city councillors that they are now up against time constraints if they can't sign off soon with the Board. Holding up their deal is the issue of swing space in the Robert Thompson building where the Board would find themselves while building elsewhere with the intent on the city's part (supposedly) to move a concentrated Public Board of Health in afterwards. But more than one councillor is questioning not only the process for chosing the Thompson space, for instance there was no RFP done although in the real estate department an RFP isn't necessary it's just one of a number of options, but also the fact that the Right House which will have more than 53 thousand square feet available to lease when Community Services moves into the Lister Block, and that happens soon, is also the current home to most of Public Health. The required space is 53,200 square feet and thus many asked why was the Right House not considered and if there were concerns about the location were they ever addressed with the Aragon Group who manage a number of properties in Hamilton. The answers at times seemed to distress certain councillors who had heard a presentation from Irene Hubar who manages the Right House that she only knew of the Thompson building option when she read it in the paper. She went on to tell councillors that if the city moves out, the income from other tenants would only add up to 2 hundred thousand bucks forcing her as she said "to buy a lot of plywood to board up the windows". The upshot to this leasing deal is council deferred a decision until their March 7th council meeting where all heck could break loose. If the city decides to tender this project at this late date which is an option, the McMaster/Board of Ed deal could fall apart because of the aforementioned time constraints. If the city decides not to move to the Thompson building managed by Yale Properties and decides to stay in the Right House what happens to the McMaster/Board of Ed deal? It likely collapses because then the Board and/or McMaster would have to come up with their own "swing space" deal which when uttered openly during yesterday's marathon session brought a quick smile to Councillor Chad Collins face. This is going to be a very interesting vote because although the city wants McMaster to increase it's presence in the downtown core they don't want that presence at the cost of the demolition of 100 Main W. Here's an early look at the players and their attitudes. I will go ward by ward. In 1 McHattie was part of the presentation before the Board that helped create some breathing room looking for a new home for the Board. He's also a heritage guy and I personally don't think he's in favour of giving up on the current building. In 2 it was Jason Farr who led the charge to involve the Board in looking for a new home. His questioning of Hubar led me to believe that he's back on the fence regarding the "swing space". Morelli was in and out and did not speak but I think would follow the lead of Councillors Merulla and Collins. Merulla has already declared his support for the deal to bring Mac downtown is rescinded because he doesn't want to lose the Right House or spend the city's contribution of 20 million dollars. In 5 Collins from day one has not liked this deal but reluctantly supported it. If there is a force on council who can bring together a block of votes against  the swing space deal, it's Collins. Jackson in 6 has stated repeatedly he did not like the fact the City was hustled into a deal last summer that he was led to believe was imminent and hinged on city support. With no contract signed he remains a leaner I believe away from the current deal. Duval in 7 didn't have many questions but he's starting to feel the heat from his constituents who are just waking up to the Board of Education's plans for Crestwood. There is a growing movement to stop the Board from going there because of the number of  vehicle visits to the so called "birdland" neighborhoodMerulla and Clark join forces the majority will soon follow. Pearson in 10 a hard read on this one for she has stated this is a school board decision and if they want to do a deal with Mac and move to the mountain so be it but on the "swing space" aspect it's hard to say which way she will turn. Johnson in 11 gave the impression she was not convinced the Thompson building move was necessary and she is usually very tight with the taxpayers dollars and cents. Ferguson in 12 did not appear to buy into the Thompson building arguments at all and is a fiscal conservative. Powers in 13 is a consensus builder with recent proof the compromise worked out with Collins and followed readily by the majority of council regarding our new waste management contract. Powers is sensitive to the authority of the Board and does wish to see McMaster downtown. I got the impression that if somehow there was a good compromise to be found he'd be there to support if not craft it. Pasuta in 14 had little to say on this particular issue but is a team player and if there is consensus building that this "swing space" is not palatable with his colleagues he'll be there with them. Partridge in 15 although she has stated publicly in the past that this is the Board's affair I believe moved back to the fence after the presentation from the Right House. At the very least she'd probably like more time to study all the ramifications of this deal that was knocked together last summer. Mayor Bratina's thoughts are very clear on this. He wants Public Health in the Thompson building and the deal done between Mac and the Board of Ed completed tout suite. So what am I trying to say here? I think there are enough votes on council to nix the "swing space" move to Robert Thompson. If that is council's decision it may be the only way to save 100 Main from the wreckers ball. If there is no deal for space and costs become prohibitive and time runs out on a deal McMaster at least for now does not move downtown and knock down that 1966 building. But how then does the very big picture get resolved? The best result in my estimation is McMaster comes downtown with their jobs and occupies vacant office space in the Stelco Tower or the Robert Thompson building. It doesn't need a Taj Mahal at the corner of Bay and Main to stroke any philanthropist egos. The Board itself can renovate and expand into it's own parking lot at less cost than to move to the mountain. To me that's a win-win for the downtown. The worst case scenario sees the Board taking 4 hundred jobs to a site in someones back yard on the Mountain, McMaster moving downtown but knocking down the Board of Education headquarters in the process, "swing space" arranged in the Robert Thompson building so Public Health can eventually coalesce there with the end result that the Right House is boarded up for lack of tenants. That's the big picture that some people adhere to. That's not a big picture I can support and like many Hamiltonian's watching this debate closely one I suspect they can't support either. In other words if that building ain't broke............

U.S Steel, show us the money!!!

And so another dance with an American company resumes.
You know the story. American company buys Canadian property but doesn't treat it the same as its U.S holdings. On one nationalistic level I get that. If there is a downturn around the world and there was and we're still crawling out of it the tendency is to take care of your own meaning American steelworkers vs Canadian. That's an understandable reflex. However I seem to remember arguing in the late 80's against free trade with our American friends because once they had a deal in place they would not respect the deal they had been signatories to. All through the 90's especially during the recession our American friends continuously threw road blocks in front of that free trade agreement that Brian Mulroney so desperately wanted. Many many times and you can check this out, Stelco, Dofasco, Ipsco and Algoma Steel had to band together to attend hearings, lobby Ottawa, lobby Washington to have the American government actually live up to what the free trade agreement stated and at some cost. We, their greatest trading partners at the time (somebody will tell me if China has now surpassed us) were constantly lumped in with the dumping nations of Brazil, South Korea, Taiwan et al, nations pushing their businesses to do whatever it took to undercut American and Canadian steel makers. Has anything changed today? U.S Steel made a decision to purchase Hamilton Steel/Stelco because they thought they might make a profit especially off of the relatively up to standard Nanticoke operation. They knew there would be resistance and so they made promises. Promises to this day they have not lived up to. They have tried to break unions at Nanticoke and at Hilton Works and to some monetary degree they have by locking out their employees and forcing agreements they the steel maker can live with. They could lock them out of course because the world was in recession and so the corporate mentality was let's give the business of steel making to plants in Gary Indiana and elsewhere while we put the screws to the Canadians who apparently believe in health care, safety and pensions. Yeah, I get it U.S Steel. When times are good, when money is there to be made Hamilton and Nanticoke are great acquisitions, but when there is a recession and apparently your economists didn't recognise we were headed for a bubble that had to burst, it's a different story. It's called screw the Canadians and instead of actually putting money into the Hamilton plant you put it into hiring some of the biggest legal names around to fight against the Canada Investment Act all the way to our Supreme Court where you were told again and again through the legal process you didn't have a leg to stand on. So you did a deal and got an out of court settlement with Ottawa, brokered a deal with the Hamilton local, promised to fire up the plant and then, pulled the plug again. Now despite assurances at Hamilton City Council from Mayor Bob Bratina that there are signs U.S. Steel is getting close to firing up Hilton Works in the second quarter to actually make steel instead of just shipping coke to Nanticoke there are many sceptics in this city who want to see it before they believe it. And so at city council Ward 4's Sam Merulla passionately appealed to his colleagues to ask U. S. Steel to come before City Council and explain themselves, and explain to the people of Hamilton what is going to happen at Hilton Works. Part two of that motion which carried unanimously by the way also wondered out loud what the current official stance is of the Federal Government who did sign on to that out of court settlement last year. Indeed a further motion from Councillor Terry Whitehead is coming that will query the very makeup and execution of the Canada Investment Act. In fact it was Whitehead who suggested that under the Harper government there is one rule of thumb for the west and another for the rest of us.  Merulla who as I mentioned addressed council with great passion suggested this was a matter of sovereignty, that in fact the Canada Investment Act was operating like the "screw Canada act" his words. I can't disagree.
And folks it's not just about my community and it's heritage of steel making, this is also about London where Caterpillar is the big ugly American who first took our incentives, then tried to beat our workers into the ground and who has now announced those workers are toast because they're shutting the plant and stripping the place of it's equipment that many Ontarians and Canadians helped pay for. Hello Dalton, how about an injunction to stop them from moving anything out of that plant. This is about our friends in Quebec where aluminum was god, until a foreign entity purchased Alcan and started selling off divisions. Rio Tinto Alcan is no longer a Canadian owned manufacturing giant but is now just another division of another Multi-National.
What about Inco and Falconbridge giants that made us the leading Nickel producers in the world? Gone as well. What about steel? Wholly owned Canadian companies like Stelco, Dofasco and Algoma Steel are owned by Americans and Indians. From all over the world companies are looking at buying Canadian made assets and doing so while our federal government does nothing except for the case of  Potash Corp. The Government of Canada said it did not see a net benefit to allowing BHP Billiton to take it over and thus BHP backed away. That was 2010. When was our last federal election that gave Stephen Harper his majority? May of 2011 is the answer and in Saskatchewan you might suspect because of the federal intervention the NDP was shut out in what is traditionally a strong NDP province. The final tally there Conservative 13 Liberals 1 cuz nobody can beat Ralph Goodale. Folks this issue is bigger than our city council motion. I hope you are taking notice. There is a majority in Ottawa that has an agenda which we are just going to have to survive for the next three years. What we should not have to survive however is an assault on our working force by our so called friends from south of the border. We have been targetted and jobs in London, Hamilton and wherever there is a Zellers store are on the line. If we don't do something, if we don't start fighting back those jobs will be gone or they will be minimum wage. Hats off to Councillor Merulla for bringing the fight to council and hats off to his colleagues for supporting unanimously his request for an explanation about our future. I hope other municipalities and then provinces get in on the act to defend Canadian jobs. I hope we have the guts to say enough is enough.