Articles filed in the Town and about
Backyards by the track…
…and a few acres of snow
This Canadian Pacific Railway line in Hamilton, Ontario, separates from the main line near the escarpment and crosses people’s backyards and busy streets in the lower city. It ends at the Stelco and the Arcelor-Dofasco Steel mills on the shores of lake Ontario.
I took this picture near Maplewood Ave. and Gage Ave. earlier this year in February.
My thoughts on bottled-water-containers
Last Monday, the council of the city of London, Ontario, voted 15 to 3 to stop selling bottled-water in all city-owned buildings.
I agree it’s a step in the right direction to protect the environment from the accumulating plastic in our landfills. City officials point out that only 50% of single use bottles actually end up being recycled. They also argue that it will cut the amount of energy needed to truck-in the bottled water.
Refreshments Canada on the other hand say that the City of London should instead have put more effort in educating its residents about recycling, because plastic bottles are 100% recyclable and some cities like Hamilton recycle at a rate of 91% (if it’s true - Whohoo !).
United Pigeons Toronto Confluence
2008 Session, Union Station, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
“Mr. Secretary, scouts have reported of intruders from south of the border. Unconfirmed reports also point to a certain Hamiltonian attempting to show them a good time.”
“Do you have a strategy ?”
“Yes Sir. We will target the Hamiltonian first by pooping into his lunch …”
iPhone mania ! Really ?
This morning’s news were all over the launching of the iPhone today for the first time in Canada. Representatives from Rogers Communications, who is the official carrier of the iPhone in Canada, were grilled over the prices, while the buyers were asked if it was really necessary.
Apple thretened Rogers by pulling the iPhone last week for ripping off customers by offerring only one plan which was outrageous and overpriced: 60$ a month for 3 years, 150 minutes and only 400 MB of data. Under pressure from consumers and Apple. Rogers announced other plans as listed on their website.
It was reported by AppleInsider that Apple had already diverted shipments bound for Canada to Europe creating a shortage. Thus participating Rogers stores are officially stocked with only 20 iPhones and limiting two per customer.
LIUNA changes mind agreeing to Lister Block Deal
Just last week, the City of Hamilton proposed a deal that LIUNA build a second phase next to Lister Block, if the city bought and restored the building. The proposed phase will bring $600 000 to the city in tax dollars.
LIUNA rejected the deal outright describing it unacceptable and declared that their business with the city was as good as dead.
However, last night, LIUNA turned in a signed deal over to city officials - just hours before the promised $7 million funding by the Province of Ontario expiring.
Under this deal, LIUNA will also restore Lister Block before the city moves into the building by 2012 and buy it for $25 million.
It was clear that nobody wanted to loose the $7 million grant. For more information, check out a draft of this story on CHCH news .
I think this is a good time to take a break from stories about Lister Block for a "few months". Obviously I am getting very excited with any new developments and it’s holding me back from other things I need to do !
Also, Happy Canada Day fellow Canucks. Hope you have a great day. I’ll be unfolding a chair in my balcony in the evening to watch the fireworks.
City council kills Lister Block deal
This morning, CHCH news reported that The Hamilton City Council met Wednesday night with LIUNA, the current owners of the historic Lister Block for a round of talks to buy the building. This time city proposed that LIUNA would agree to build a second phase next to the building, if the city bought restored Lister Block.
The proposed second phase would hold a senior’s residence and several retail shops. It is estimated to bring $600 000 a year in tax dollars back to the city.
Lister Block
There are buildings that you admire for their beauty and their height like the Empire State building. Then there are buildings that have stood the test of time like the Great Pyramids. But there is yet another category or buildings that have their own story to tell: of construction and survival and destruction. As I write, the White House is coming to my mind but I am actually talking about a building with no significant impact on world history, and that most people outside this city of Hamilton don’t even know it exists.
The Lister Block is an eighty four year old, six-storey building that sits on the corner of James St. and King William in downtown Hamilton, Ontario. If you walk by this building, chances are that you will not even notice it and ignore it because it’s windows are boarded-up and there’s graffiti all over. The most you will want to care about is that it is abandoned and is falling apart and that you want to walk faster ! To Hamiltonians however, Lister Block is part of their history and the building’s history holds a sentimental and nostalgic value to them.
Conquering the Escarpment
It was a heartbreakingly beautiful day today, 20°C with a cool breeze and sunny with a few clouds in the sky. Since I wasted the day yesterday staying indoors, away from the rain, I was not going to waste today, and decided to go hiking and exploring the Niagara Escarpment.
Hamilton is known Canada-wide for it’s steel industry and the pollution that comes with it; but that was all in the past. Today, the steel industry is only part of it’s economy, along with health care, education and a growing biotechnology industry. Hamilton has many best kept secrets like and its natural beauty and biodiversity is one of them.
The Niagara Escarpment is the very cliff over which the Niagara river plunges to form the Niagara Falls and it runs through south-western Ontario following the Georgian Bay shore, into Michigan and finishes in Illinois near Chicago. In 1990, it was designated as a UNESCO world biosphere reserve, which means all non-conservation activities along and near the escarpment are prohibited.
Books you will find at my local library - Part II
Dear Lord ! Have Mercy !
Books you will find in todays local library - Part I
As computer technology rapidly changes and as more people go online, so do libraries need to keep up with emerging trends and technology.
The weather outlook
Not so bright !
Look Franklin, a broken dime !
American change often makes it into our pockets up here in Canada. It is almost always through buying at stores - whether it be coffee, groceries or that big screen tv, thanks to tourism in the summer and a very large number of truckers that cross the border on both sides all the year round.
American coins are always exchanged on par with Canadian money knowingly and mostly unknowingly because of similarities in sizes and appearance.
Snow !
Hamilton was greeted by a snow storm Saturday night with its second snowfall of the season. The storm was part of a system that hit Buffalo, Southern Ontario and Montreal with freezing rain and around 10 centimeters of snow. But some forecasters are expecting 30 centimeters of more snow today ! Hamilton received a moderate snowfall, not in storm conditions though, but the roads were bad !
Snow from the first snowfall last Saturday had already melted but this snow is here to stay. Winter has oficially arrived !
Do I need a Blokester invitation??? 
