Raise the Hammer

Dear Mayor Eisenberger and City Councillors,

Tomorrow's vote on the location of the Pan Am Stadium will be a crucial moment in Hamilton's history. As the party providing the most money to build this stadium, the City of Hamilton must build it in a location that maximizes the benefit to the city as a whole, not just a sports team. The city's own reports clearly indicate that the East Mountain Stadium will be tens of millions of dollars more expensive, cause traffic gridlock on flood-prone roads, and steal development dollars from other areas of the city that desperately need it. A West Harbour stadium may not be the silver bullet that solves all of our city's problems, but it will certainly be a large step in the right direction. It shows that we don't want a city based around a "driveway-to-driveway" experience, but rather a city that embraces all the natural beauty of the West Harbour and the culture of the surrounding neighbourhoods. Most importantly it is a signal to developers and prospective Hamiltonians that we are not giving up on our downtown and that we are willing to make ambitious, progressive choices to bring our city into the 21st Century.

I urge you to reject the shameless politicking going on behind the scenes in Ottawa and Queen's Park, I urge you to reject Bob Young's hollow threats to move the Ti-Cats, I urge you to reject sprawl and regressive 1960's urban planning, and I urge you to reject the East Mountain stadium site. Your vote for the West Harbour will earn you the continued support of myself and the thousands of other Hamiltonians who signed up at OurCityOurFuture.ca who want to see this city thrive. Thank you for your time, I know you will make the right choice.

Regards,

Ryan Danks - Ward 2

Comment edited by UrbanRenaissance on 2010-08-09 12:35:08