Raise the Hammer

Renovate the bathrooms? Now who takes the prize as the most disgusting bathroom in Hamilton?

YES, the Hess on Locke crowd is back! Lol. Travel the world and the best cities have great patios all over the place. Yes, it's nice to have fun in a city once in a while. I hope this patio is as nice as it sounds in their plans...the city should demand it. I'm sure the world won't end because a patio opened in Hamilton.

This is the same lovely person who fought against less monopolistic food truck laws. Then called me names on Facebook when I told him it was a reason I wouldn't be visiting the restaurant again.

Ah, the old sticks-and-stones vs. bricks-and-mortar dilemma. This is why I have no problem with the demolition of buildings associated with unpleasant people or unenlightened historic periods. They probably had it coming.

Paperwork, regulation, oversight, all apparently in place. It can happen in any neighbourhood (or, as in the case of James North, several times in the last decade). It doesn't have to be a negative. Best of luck to Locke 3.0.

Despite the fact that I love the idea of more patios in Hamilton, there's something wrong when demolitions can occur in a week and getting anything built takes years. Too bad we need to gap tooth a street to enjoy a beer outside.

This looks like a good thing for Locke St... I just looked at the demolished building in google maps street view, and it was nothing I'll miss or would remember.

It'll be nice to have a large patio for the West Town. Something they've sorely needed for a while. Now if only they could update the extremely tired interior (most of the booths on the east side are a mishmash of patterns and fabrics, and have places where the fabric is threadbare or torn. The colour scheme's gotta go too. But they had absolutely fantastic nachos when we were there in July.

West Town - the only place in the city where a $7 sandwich consists of a mediocre creation on wonderbread plunked all by itself in the middle of a giant white plate without even a pickle on the side. I guess it's too much to ask for 50 cents worth of potatoes to be included.

How is it possible that there's nowhere good to eat in this city after 8pm?

Comment edited by brodiec on 2012-09-05 15:21:14

As a woman I'm used to being objectified by heterosexual men, but now I have to be objectified by gay men too? Great.

"As a gay dude it's super insulting and lame to be waited on by a pair of clueless tits instead of a competent person."

Fascinating! I hadn't noticed it before but as a heterosexual I am completely oblivious to shabby service, and incompetent staff is not insulting in the least.

"How is it possible that there's nowhere good to eat in this city after 8pm?"

I call hyperbole. Here are a bunch in Ward 1-2:

Black Forest Inn until 9-10pm
Boo's Bistro until 9-10pm
My Thai until 9-10pm
Wild Orchid until 9pm/12am
Kampai until 9-10:30pm
1010 Bistro until 9:30pm
Flavour of Himalaya until 9:30pm
Zum Linzer until 9:30pm
Gate of India until 10pm
La Piazza until 10pm
Lo Presti's until 10pm
Koi until 10pm
August 8 until 10:30
La Cantina until 11pm
Acclamation until 10-12pm

All eminently serviceable.

Slainte's batting average is higher than most people suspect, and their kitchen runs pretty late.

There certainly isn't much after 10:00 (which is when I finish at the gym on Wednesdays). So far, my best choices have been:

West Town (but you can only take so much of it) One Duke Augusta House

There's basically nothing else if you want a full meal and a pub atmosphere that late.

I could add Ray's Boathouse I suppose, but they don't offer much in the way of vegetarian, which keeps my gym buddy away unfortunately.

Merp. Zum Linzer is Ward 3.

Also "Acclamation until 10pm-12am"

Get me an IPA at any of these places and we'll be getting somewhere!

You are right, I did stretch it. I have most trouble after 9, not after 8. Showing up to most places after 9 means either a closed kitchen or reduced menu. Here's what I'm after - good beer and good meals served til 11. It's slim pickins!

Chuck's is open until 10pm and allegedly soon-to-be-licensed.

They've been 'soon to be licensed' since they opened over a year ago. I'll believe it when they get a location (or expand) to include comfortable seating.

Wimpy's 24/7/365/FL

I NEED MY IPA THOUGH! If I'm eating that late it means it was a hard working day and I deserve my Mad Tom or Boneshaker while I wait for my food :-)

You'll have to settle for The Ship. Or ice a six in your pannier bag.

Hey I love the ship but no food after 830-9 sadly. The thing is, if I have my act together early, I make my own dinner. I usually only eat out if I've run out of time. And then it's an IPA-less torment!

oh just ditch your hipster hopped up IPA and drink a lager and eat some barbecue at Rolly Rockets at 11.

I just walked past there at 11 and man, the joint is hopping! Lots of people taking your advice it would appear.

Hey I can't help having a palate so finely tuned to the sweet bitterness of lupulin.

If I'm gonna invest in my beer gut I want to be able to taste what's fattening me up!

I love a patio, and am happy to see many more in Hamilton than a decade ago.

It remains that empty spaces on streets break up the streetscape and make it less appealing to walk along.

I don't mind the demolition if it results in placing a two or three storey building that intensifies the use of the street. I do mind if we downgrade the streetscape and de-intensify the street, simply for a patio that will be used for half the year. Hopefully the city uses its various powers to prevent that from happening, although I must admit that I am losing hope in their rigour.

I noticed it last night walking home from work and it was pretty crazy that it was there on my walk to work and gone when I got home 12 hours later.

I'm divided on this. We are absolutely missing some outside flavour on this street and patios really bring a street to life. Beyond NaRoma and The Courtyard's backyard patio there is nowhere on the street to enjoy outside and people watch. I live around the corner and I can sit in my backyard, but sometimes I don't feel like inviting a large group of friends to my house after sports or moving etc.

That all said, I agree with the comment above that it stinks that a building had to disappear to accommodate this. I won't necessarily miss the building but the gap really sticks out and I was hoping that some more retail would be opening up on the street in that spot. Hopefully they board up the back so you have a visual wall to block the alley and fill it somehow in the winter to not make it as empty.

the KNA has nobody to blame but themselves for this. The West Town wanted a patio in the completely logical spot next to the old Kataya store. The NIMBY's did their thing, and now this is the result.

Comment edited by jason on 2012-09-05 09:58:36

So your saying west town's logical spot was beside Kataya? They own the Kataya building! Where else would a patio go? They'll be a walkout in the section to the north inside west town it's perfect!

He owned the Kataya building and wanted a patio in the space on the side of the building along Chatham (I think that's the street). The KNA had it defeated, and now that space is adorned with 3-4 cars everyday instead.

It wasn't that simple, Joe had one application in to LCBO, a different application in to the city and made an even different presentation to the public, it got difficult to trust which version of his plan was the real one.

I certainly don't know all the details, but I know enough of the NIMBYism that goes on around here to have no problem believing he was trying to do the Hamilton dance. What should be a straightforward proposal gets mucked up by the crazy Hess on Locke crowd.

"...but I know enough of the NIMBYism that goes on around here..."

Once again raising the question of how much influence/input 'locals' should have in the development of their own neighbourhood. What's the balance? What's 'reasonable'? Should 'locals' be able to dictate to an enormous extent what happens on their streets? (If so, then the one-way/two-way reversion should be pretty straightforward, if there's clear support) If you have an anchor business in an area...such as West Town...for a quarter-century, I'd have thought that their goodwill and community cachet should mean something. Fears about 'Hess Villaging' Locke are, to me, in the same category as those who maintain with clenched fists that we'll be going to Hell in a communal, gridlocked handbasket if we revert some of our one-way thoroughfares.

As was mentioned in the Opinions section op-ed by Premi and Shaker, http://www.thespec.com/opinion/columns/a... we need better discussions to address such situations, discussions in-person, not online.

Comment edited by ThisIsOurHamilton on 2012-09-06 05:24:38

Keep your voice down, some people are trying to have a nap DAAAGNABBIT

Picks & sticks moved to a great location, that building needed to come down. If any of you know Brandon at all you'd know he'll never allow Hess on Locke to happen in his Bar &Grill. West Town is West Town because of the decor! Do you go to Wasterbrooks and say these tables and stools need to go? Do you go to Hutches on the beach strip and say why do they keep these old dusty photos hanging up?

Sorry iPhone auto correct - Easterbrooks

Rose-Ann, who works at the West Town, is the best waitress in Hamilton, probably Ontario, perhaps the country, maybe the world.

Recently I saw Gorilla Cheese at the Locke Street Art Market and thought that it was the best thing that happened on Locke Street in awhile. Whoever arrange that to happen should be given credit in helping to bring more culture to a street controlled by a handful of property owners and business friends that wants to block out the competition and make life difficult for any person that do not believe in their way of thinking.

It is already difficult for an individual to set up a new venture 'legally' without having your neighbours bitching about everything you do because they may lose a few sales. Maybe they need to focus on their business and product mix and stop worrying about what other property owners and businesses are doing to promote their businesses.

thats all . . .

insult spam deleted

Comment edited by administrator Ryan on 2012-09-11 20:59:56

I understand Westtown is the best real working man bar in the city and James North is just full of elitist artists and hipsters.

A superb bit of trolling, but only one person here is calling one group better than another. Stop being so elitist.

Pretty sure that was a satirical riff on this.

Reduce on street parking to extend the sidewalks out for patios and plants (like Peterborough did with Hunter Street if anyone's familiar) and partner with some of those proposing condos in the area to provide some public parking --- underground where it belongs. Too radical? It's been done successfully elsewhere.

That's going to be one ugly, claustrophobic patio. There is absolutely no vista view, just two blank walls and a tiny view onto the street. Why couldn't he have built a rooftop patio instead?

One of the aspects that has made Locke successful is its walkability and any walkability study will inform that creating gaps in the streetscape, for parking or patios, hurts the walkability.

I think if Joe had posted the Demolition Permit publically, the reaction by locals might have been a little more positive. The issue that we neighbours have with Joe is that his story keeps changing.

sorry I can't agree that demolishing a building for a lame patio -- useful for 30% of the year -- is improving the street's livability. That patio will not be well used. Besides I prefer to be in the interior of restaurant in the hvac and enjoying the company I'm with, rather than sitting outside in skortching hot 33-degrees or freezing 9-degrees weather.... watching around because the company I'm with can;t keep my attention beyond, "So ya, so you know, I was like ..... totally"

This is not good for Locke. The only good thing is when he realizes the mistake the patio gap tooth was will be infilled with a 6-storey residential building, with ground floor LoSo retail.

The building in question was nothing more than a barely serviceable shack with dangerous electrical. It won't be missed. A patio on Locke will be a nice addition. The Westown actually has amazing food. Ask to see the daily specials. They will suprise you.