Comment 27652

By City Square (anonymous) | Posted December 01, 2008 at 16:53:07

There are a lot of positives to this idea, but its success will hinge on finding an interested buyer for City Hall--Main St. Without that the numbers are all speculation. So far Mac has been mentioned, but not by anyone at Mac so far as I've seen.

The garage behind City Hall was built as a foundation for future expansion. Nice place for a condo tower. Could the property be split, for and aft? Would RTH posters put up for the type of co-op to condo project touted here in past articles?

Would City Hall and the forecourt be suitable as a hotel? Can Hamilton support more hotel rooms downtown? The city has significant tourism potential (that word again) but appears to lack a singular, high-profile attraction or focus.

One of the best aspects of this proposal is that it would push some of the retail space in that big shopping complex back out to the streets, where it belongs. Moving retailers from streetfronts to inside the mall has proven one of the biggest mistakes of the 60s-70s downtown urban renewal movement. Re-purposing more Jackson Sq. retail space, perhaps by expanding the city's trade-show and convention facilities there, might help drive the downtown economic recovery. Medical and health care industry trade shows and conventions are an area the city has not exploited the internationally recognized local growth of medical talent and expertise, I suspect.

Just trying to think outside the box, like The Brat.

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