Raise the Hammer

My email:

To Members of Hamilton City Council,

I am a proud resident of Ward 2 who believes strongly in the future of Hamilton's downtown core, and am writing to urge you as our elected council to show strong, creative leadership in the ongoing stadium debate. I ask that council propose to the PamAm Host Committee that Hamilton build a small (5,000 seat) community stadium along with a Velodrome and associated athletics centre at the West Harbour location.

I believe this solution has strong community support and is an ideal solution for the following reasons: it will serve to remediate a polluted brownfield site and thus unlock potential for additional, private investors on the WH, it will benefit the entire community throughout the year and help encourage fitness in the local downtown community (thus contributing to the goal of making Hamilton the best place in Canada to raise a child), and it will attract high-performance athletes and athletic competition to our city even after the Pan Am games. I think this is a legacy that you as a council and we as residents of the city will be proud of for many years to come.

I think it is obvious to all observers by now that the Ti-Cats will only co-operate with the city on this initiative if they can accrue the preponderance of benefits for themselves. I never was in support of our city's Future Fund being used to spur the development of a privately-owned stadium parking lot and precinct. Instead, I would like to see my federal and provincial tax dollars, as well the city's Future Fund be used in a way that will bring maximum benefit to the residents of Hamilton.

I am a lifelong Ti-Cat fan, but if they think the solution to their woes is a suburban Aldershot stadium then I wish them well in their pursuit. I do believe most strongly that they need to use private funding to get it built. (And as this seems extremely unlikely perhaps the 5,000 seat WH stadium could be scaleable to a potentially much larger stadium while we are at it). The PanAm funds are for Hamilton and we should not throw this opportunity away and let this money go to Burlington.

Please make us proud, Hamilton council!