{"id":16652,"date":"2025-03-10T16:30:21","date_gmt":"2025-03-10T20:30:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/acorncanada.org\/?post_type=news&p=16652"},"modified":"2025-03-10T16:30:21","modified_gmt":"2025-03-10T20:30:21","slug":"the-spec-committee-delays-parking-decision-for-james-south-redevelopment-but-renters-want-a-solution-that-doesnt-displace-families","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/acorncanada.org\/news\/the-spec-committee-delays-parking-decision-for-james-south-redevelopment-but-renters-want-a-solution-that-doesnt-displace-families\/","title":{"rendered":"The Spec: Committee delays parking decision for James South redevelopment but renters want \u2018a solution that doesn\u2019t displace families\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tenants facing displacement from two James Street South buildings<\/a> have more breathing room after a city committee delayed a decision relating to their landlord\u2019s redevelopment plans.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe underlying issue is we want a solution that doesn\u2019t displace families and people living in these buildings,\u201d tenant Pamela Cooper said after the committee of adjustment\u2019s tabling motion Thursday.<\/p>\n

Cooper and dozens of others at 325 and 325A James St. S. have received notices from their landlord to vacate their apartments for renovations.<\/p>\n

With the goal of staying put, they\u2019re contesting those notices before the Landlord and Tenant Board, with hearings scheduled this spring.<\/p>\n

Toronto-based real estate developer Arkfield aims to increase the number of apartments to 164 from 107 by subdividing larger units into smaller ones.<\/p>\n

Parking permissions through the committee of adjustment \u2014 that don\u2019t add spaces to the mix, but keep the count at 52 \u2014 figure into the overall plan.<\/p>\n

The proposal is backed by city staff, but it has sparked concerns about parking, not only from the tenants, but others who live in the busy area around St. Joseph\u2019s hospital on Charlton Avenue East.<\/p>\n

Parking is tight as it is, 325 James tenant Kristy Attridge<\/a> told The Spectator.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe weren\u2019t able to get a spot in our own building,\u201d she said. \u201cWe have to pay for street parking, if it\u2019s available.\u201d<\/p>\n

The two buildings are within walking distance of the Hunter Street GO station and HSR lines, planning consultant David Falletta told the committee of adjustment.<\/p>\n

When the ownership group bought the pair of buildings, which date to the 1920s and 1950s, the plan was to leave them as is, but a subsequent assessment revealed they were in \u201cfar worse shape than originally identified.\u201d<\/p>\n

The \u201csignificant issues\u201d require major HVAC, plumbing, mechanical and electrical work, Falletta said.
\nHis clients appreciate the tenants\u2019 concerns about displacement, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I think what\u2019s also important is retaining the rental housing stock in the city,\u201d he said. \u201cThis is part of the challenge in older cities like Hamilton.\u201d<\/p>\n

The tenants, who have enlisted the help of Hamilton ACORN, told the committee the renovation plans would eliminate affordable, family-sized rental housing in Hamilton.<\/p>\n

Noting new information was presented Thursday, the committee decided to table a decision on the application.<\/p>\n

Afterward, Cooper, 62, said that was the right move.<\/p>\n

She and her daughter Emily, 31, who has disabilities that require her to live with her mother, want to move into the other building while theirs is renovated.
\nAnd then when work shifts to that building, they can live with the commotion, Cooper said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re willing to put up with renovation noises. We know what that means, but it also means we won\u2019t have to lose our home.\u201d<\/p>\n

The prospect of securing something she can afford after nearly 11 years in the James building in Hamilton\u2019s escalated rental market is dim, Cooper said.<\/p>\n

They pay just over $1,200 a month for their three-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment, she noted.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow that only gets you a junior or bachelor these days.\u201d<\/p>\n

Previously, Arkfield director Amin Jalalpour told The Spectator<\/a> via email \u201ccritical safety concerns\u201d that had \u201cgone unaddressed for years\u201d made it \u201cinfeasible and even unsafe\u201d for tenants to stay.<\/p>\n

Jalalpour said the firm has held meetings with tenants to hear their concerns and \u201cfind individual solutions\u201d for them.
\nThe application for parking tweaks doesn\u2019t reflect the magnitude of the \u201cbroader issue\u201d of tenant displacement, said Karl Andrus, executive director of the Hamilton Community Benefits Network.<\/p>\n

Rather than the committee of adjustment, the proposal should be put to city council, Andrus suggested.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was about parking, ostensibly under the Planning Act, but it was really about knocking down a bunch of units and changing and remodelling the building.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\nArticle by Teviah Moro for The Spec<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","front_page_slider":[],"campaigns":[62],"featured_news":[],"class_list":["post-16652","news","type-news","status-publish","hentry","campaigns-housing-tenant-unions"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/acorncanada.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/16652","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/acorncanada.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/acorncanada.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/acorncanada.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16652"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"front_page_slider","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acorncanada.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/front_page_slider?post=16652"},{"taxonomy":"campaigns","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acorncanada.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/campaigns?post=16652"},{"taxonomy":"featured_news","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acorncanada.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/featured_news?post=16652"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}