Larry's Corner

Hamilton’s Economic Summit

By Larry Di Ianni
(posted May 5, 2008)

I was scheduled to go and was sorry an out-of-town engagement kept me from attending this high-powered summit of Hamilton’s top 150 leaders. The enthusiasm was apparently real; and the speakers were first class. And what made it best of all, they were all focused on the greatness that Hamilton should, can and will achieve.

So, why is the local press running a story with the headline “An Economic Resurgence for Hamilton?” Why the question mark at the end of that statement? Why not an exclamation point asserting the inevitability of the outcome?

Let me retrace some steps. When I became Mayor in 2003, my platform was based on an economic plan to benefit the entire community: transportation enhancements (Red Hill Valley Parkway); Airport lands development to attract employment; preserving employment lands and servicing the North Glanbrook Industrial Park; Harbour clean up and the establishment of a secondary plan for the waterfront, including the Stuart Street shunting tracks relocation; downtown redevelopment, the establishment of a high tech industrial complex within the city (McMaster Innovation Park). We made progress on all these fronts. We were actually assisted by the community in a yearly ‘think tank’ process organized by Powergroup Communications and the effervescent Laura Babcock, where community leaders were brought together to rate the progress being made and give the Mayor and Council feedback on next steps. These sessions were always successful and informative.

Now, the Chamber of Commerce under the expert tutelage of Tyler McLeod, its president, and the capable John Dolbec, its CEO, have picked up the slack. Richard Korocil, CEO of the Hamilton International Airport animated and encouraged this economic summit from the beginning and he should be commended for his drive.

By all reports, the speakers were very bullish on Hamilton’s future. Richard Florida praised the city’s location and history and encouraged all to embrace the ‘creative class’ as a driving force in our resurgence. Glen Murray, former Mayor of Winnipeg, exhorted the group with the sobering thought that Hamilton’s greatness is inevitable, but that downtown redevelopment will only occur if entrepreneurs get in on the act. Heritage protectors cannot ever succeed without the missing ingredient provided by entrepreneurs: money. And everyone in-between talked of the destiny which is Hamilton’s.

So, why the question about our future as a city in The Spectator? Perhaps the answer is in the skepticism spoken of and reported in the accounts of the role of our political class. The speakers and audience seemed not to share any level of confidence in our elected officials’ ability to deliver on this economic destiny for Hamilton. In fact, another recurring theme was that Hamilton’s Economic Development Department should be taken away from City Hall and placed in the hands of the community.

Because I was not there, I can’t attest to the strength of conviction by the participants for these viewpoints. I can only glean from the few discussions I have had and the reportage in the local paper. Even David Estok, however, the Spectator’s Editor-in-Chief, confirmed the pervasiveness of the above conclusions in his weekly column.

If indeed there is lack of confidence in our political class, this flagging support comes on the heels of some good moves by Council. The Economic Development budget has been enhanced and that is positive. Tim McCabe, an able bureaucrat is in charge of planning AND Economic Development. He has been known to deliver on his goals. That too is very encouraging. Council has created a community sounding board on economic matters headed up by the successful Mark Chamberlain and experienced Tim Dobbie. These too are very good signs.

What else can Council be doing in order to gain confidence in its actions?

Get on with the Airport employment lands development. Right now the unwieldy committee put together by Council is filled with obstructionists. Get rid of them. Actions speak louder than words and the Airport is important to us.

Get on with the Brownfields process. Don’t quibble with expert reports on what constitutes brownfields. Accept the findings and spend time on the rehabilitation aspects of the report.

Co-operate with the Province on the all important Mid Peninsula Corridor process. Don’t allow this opportunity to bypass Hamilton. It is too important.

Work with the Port Authority and the Discovery Center to bring more attractions to the waterfront near the wildly successful William’s Coffee Pub. A great steak house would also be well received by the community and be an economic generator for the north end.

Get on with the servicing of the North Glanbrook Industrial Park. The Province gave us over $20M to do this work. If there hasn’t been one already, there should be a public report outlining progress on the project. This will show the community that projects started are finished in a timely way.

Move expeditiously on downtown redevelopment. Avoid the long drawn out processes and paralyzing delays. Make decisions and act on them. Preserve heritage at every opportunity, but be realistic about buildings that are falling on their own. Be ahead of gravity. Engineering assessments on the downtown stock is a good initiative. Continue with the Incentive programs.

Finally, Council should be united. They should line up behind the Mayor on all these major issues. Hamilton needs one strong voice as the face of the community, not sixteen disparate ones. There is room for healthy democratic debate, but there is also a need to lead in one direction. Otherwise the community will pass you by; and the headlines in local newspapers will continue to include question marks!

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