Ottawa St looking north from Cannon.

Trucks, roads, and transportation reviews

November was an exciting month for the usually cautious city council in Hamilton. First, the city voted to freeze the urban boundary despite pressure from developers keen to build vast tracts of low-density suburban homes for automobile dependent commuters on agricultural land. A little more than a week later, the city transportation planners were unceremoniously …

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Michael Carruth
Michael Carruth inside his restaurant. Photo by Sean Hurley

Down The Street Food Co.

Tucked between Hambrgr and Burger Lab on Ottawa Street North, is a small, dimly lit, unassuming little building housing the Down The Street Food Co., owned and operated by chef Michael Carruth who serves up soup and sandwiches. Between burger joints and opposite Simply Italian Bakery and the new Ottawa Market, both of which serve …

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The corner of Ottawa and Cannon.
The corner of Ottawa and Cannon facing 180 Ottawa St. N. Photo by Sean Hurley

The hex on 180 Ottawa street is finally over

A boarded-up building with a troubled history at 180 Ottawa St. N. at Cannon is coming to life.  Contractors hired by social housing provider Indwell, are conducting restoration work inside a gutted interior which has experienced fire and water damage.   To Councillor Sam Merulla the Indwell purchase of this property is nothing short of a …

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Collision at the intersection of Ottawa and Cannon.
Collision at the intersection of Ottawa and Cannon.

Car crash central: Ottawa and Cannon

Two recent instances at Ottawa and Cannon last year, where drivers lost control of their cars and smashed into buildings, have highlighted the issue of road safety for local residents and merchants in the Crown Point area. Fortunately, nobody walking along the sidewalk during these incidents were injured or killed, but many residents are deeply …

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Ottawa St. N. during the pandemic.

Things are still happening on Ottawa Street

The pandemic may have induced a lockdown and provincial state of emergency, but life and business continue in Crown Point. There will be two new cannabis stores opening up in the neighbourhood. Each are on the east side with one conveniently close to Roxborough and the other closer to Barton. True North Cannabis Co., near …

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Ottawa Street North
Photo by Sean Hurley

Master Plan for Ottawa Street North?

It was fall 2013 when I first talked to Khaldoon Ahmad, a planner with the City of Hamilton, who was developing a street master plan for the one-kilometre long stretch of Ottawa Street North between Main Street East and Barton. Major funds had not yet been put aside at City Hall for a makeover, but …

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Review: When Poverty Mattered: Then and now

Like many Canadian cities, Hamilton is beset with crises of poverty. From the steady erosion of affordable housing, to an increasingly visible homeless population, to addiction, mental health, and the stigmatization of entire neighbourhoods, Hamilton struggles with both the direct and indirect costs of poverty. Society relies upon volunteer organizations and underfunded social services to …

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Answers to fishy questions

I’m going to answer a couple of the most often asked questions at the restaurant. Why is halibut so expensive? Halibut is perhaps the most valuable of the groundfish fisheries in North America. The U.S. and Canada do not want another Grand Banks incident. I’m referring to when the cod stocks were all but collapsed …

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