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THIS EDITION OF THE WARD 1 NEWSLETTER INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING:

• Strathcona and Kirkendall Complete Safe Streets Consultation - Dates and locations
• Churchill Park Phase 3 Overview and Informal Teaching Area Survey
• HAAA Park Renewal Features Survey - Options for Skate Dot, Outdoor Gym & Bouldering
• Snow Angels 
• Make Your Home Future Ready. Better Homes Hamilton Program
• Residential Zones Project - Reimagining Neighbourhoods Survey Ends December 8th!
• Stormwater Incentive Program Survey
• City Services & Assets Review
• New Short-Term Rentals By-law
• The Order of Hamilton Open for Nominations
• Events

Enhancing Local Road Safety in Strathcona & Kirkendall

Join your community in a discussion with the City's traffic safety team about your areas of concern regarding the safety of pedestrians, cyclists and motorists. Pinpoint specific sites or share your overall concerns. This is part one of a consultation strategy that will occur over the course of a year.

The Ward 1 Office has initiated a crucial review of designated neighbourhoods, focusing on implementing Traffic Calming Initiatives at problematic locations. This comprehensive assessment aims to establish guidelines for safety enhancements, considering various factors such as road width, classification, surrounding land use, proximity to schools/playgrounds, access roads from arterials, on-street parking, and other pertinent considerations.

In 2022, Councillor Wilson moved a motion authorizing and directing our staff to engage a consultant to address these objectives effectively. This consultant will conduct a thorough review of the Strathcona neighbourhood. The ultimate goal is to compile a comprehensive Complete Streets report. This report will meticulously outline areas of concern and present actionable recommendations, aligning closely with the foundational principles of Vision Zero and Complete Streets.

The study will begin its neighbourhood consultations this month with two independent meetings for Kirkedall and Strathcona. 

The presentation portion of the meeting will be recorded and uploaded to the Engage Hamilton website post the in-person meeting.  In addition to the video, there will be an interactive map where anyone may tag specific "hot spots" or themes. 

Churchill Park Phase 3 Overview and Informal Teaching Area Survey

Landscape Architecture Services has presented the next phase of a multi-phased master plan implementation at Churchill Park. The third phase of work involves:

• Asphalt walkway from the playground to Cline Ave. N.
• Informal teaching area south of the playground.
• Gravel walkway from Cline Ave. N. and Marion Ave. N. intersection to the Ravine Rd. trailhead.
• Walkway, accessible ramps, and landscaping improvements at the Parkside Dr. field house.
• Re-installation of the stairway on the northwest side of Parkside Dr. and Kipling Rd.

The City would like your feedback to choose a preferred design for the informal teaching area south of the playground.

HAAA Park Renewal Features Survey - Options for Skate Dot, Outdoor Gym & Bouldering

There is now an opportunity to select options for various features in the park. Take the survey and give feedback on the skate dot design, fitness equipment layout and bouldering option you like. The survey is now open.

For more information on the public engagement sessions leading to this point in the project, visit hamilton.ca/haaarenewal

Snow Angels 

The Snow Angels program is now a subsidy-based program for those who need assistance with snow removal.

The City of Hamilton will offer eligible residents up to $450 per winter season to help with the cost of snow removal from their sidewalk and front walkway (from November 1st to  April 30th). Residents will need to apply for the snow removal subsidy each winter season.

Note: Snow Angels no longer connects residents with volunteers

Review the details on the Snow Angel website hamilton.ca/snowangels

Make Your Home Future Ready

Want to enjoy a more comfortable and energy-efficient home? Welcome to the Better Homes Hamilton Pilot Program!

The City of Hamilton has committed to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050. One key way to reach this goal is by reducing our emissions at home. City Council approved the Better Homes Hamilton Pilot Program, intending to provide up to $1 million in loans to homeowners to implement energy efficiency retrofits. The program's pilot stage targets approximately 50 homes, with each property receiving a maximum of $20,000.

Details of the program are available via the project website 

Join City staff for an information session on December 11 or 14 about the Better Homes Hamilton (BHH) program eligibility, where and how to fill out the applications, and answers to your questions.

Residential Zones Project - Reimagining Neighbourhoods Survey Ends December 8th!

Residential zoning is changing across the City. The permissions for the types of housing that can be located throughout a neighbourhood are expanding to support growth more responsibly and equitably. The City’s Residential Zones Project looks at how different housing types can be built within and along the edges of neighbourhoods. Reimagining Neighbourhoods is about providing housing choices and more affordable housing options for the residents of Hamilton.

Within neighbourhoods, housing choice may mean more than one home on a property, the ability to convert a home into more units or build a triplex or fourplex. Along the edge of neighbourhoods, it may mean townhouses, mid-rise apartments or condominium buildings that take advantage of transit and help to create a more walkable environment.

Learn more about the Residential Zones Project.

Take the survey!

Stormwater Incentive Program

Each year, the City spends approximately $43 million on its stormwater program. Currently, most stormwater funding comes from the City’s water and wastewater utility revenues. This means the amount a property contributes to stormwater management is based on the amount of drinking water consumed. Properties with large areas of hard surfaces such as parking lots, or without a water or sewer connection, contribute very little despite the stormwater that runs off their site and into the stormwater system.

Starting in September 2025, a stormwater fee will replace the current inequitable stormwater funding model. Properties will be charged based on the load (or use) they place on the stormwater system. Residential properties will pay based on the type of dwelling (e.g., single-family detached dwellings, duplexes/townhomes, and multiplexes). Non-residential and large, multi-residential properties will pay based on their measured imperviousness (the amount of hard surface on their property).

When this new funding model is implemented, water and wastewater rates will be reduced as they will no longer be used to fund stormwater management activities, and the stormwater fee will be broken out as a separate line item on utility bills.

Feedback on an Incentive Program

The City of Hamilton is inviting residents and property owners to provide input on a financial incentive program for properties that implement measures to reduce their impact on the stormwater system.

Like other municipalities that have implemented similar stormwater funding models (Mississauga, Kitchener, and Guelph, to name a few), an incentive program is being considered. This could include credits or subsidies to help lower the stormwater fee for industrial, commercial, institutional, and large multi-residential property owners who implement on-site measures to reduce the amount and/or improve the quality of stormwater runoff from their property. Subsidized programs to support better on-site stormwater management for residents are also considered.

An incentive program will not only help property owners reduce stormwater fees but also encourage and support on-site stormwater management that better supports the natural water balance and protects the natural environment.

The survey is broken into three sections, residential, industrial and agricultural.  Find out more on the project website.

City Services & Assets Review

The City of Hamilton provides many services to customers, including residents, business owners, students, commuters and tourists. This includes services you might not even think about, such as clean drinking water and working hydrants in case of an emergency. The City delivers these services using taxpayer money, and the City wants your feedback on how it is doing.

The City of Hamilton strives to measure the services its customers receive and its effectiveness at delivering them. Hearing a range of perspectives will allow the municipality to ensure that future planning of services aligns with customer needs.

Open Surveys include Tourism & Culture, Recreation & Golf, Parks & Cemeteries, Forestry & Horticulture, Animal Services, Licensing & Municipal Law Enforecement

New Short-Term Rentals By-law

To meet the requirements of a new city by-law, starting December 1, 2023, short-term rental operators and brokers will be required to apply for a municipal business licence to operate a short-term rental in their own principal residence legally.

Enforcement of the new Short-Term Rental (STR) by-law will begin on January 1, 2024. This by-law introduces new licensing, fees, registration and inspection requirements, including limiting short-term rentals for operators and hosts to only their principal residence.

The STR by-law reflects council's commitment to balance the needs of the City of Hamilton and the evolving changes in travel and tourism, as well as meeting the City’s objectives of increasing housing supply while aiding homeowners with escalating housing costs.

For further information on the Short-Term Rentals Bylaw, its implementation and how to apply, please visit www.hamilton.ca/ShortTermRentals.

The Order of Hamilton Open for Nominations

The Order of Hamilton recognizes the contributions of individual Hamiltonians for community building and/or service in the City of Hamilton and is awarded at the Mayor’s New Year's Levees, to be held in January.

Individuals residing in the City of Hamilton at the time of the awarding of the Order must have demonstrated an exceptional voluntary contribution to community building and/or service in the City of Hamilton. Their contributions must be determined to have gone above and beyond their professional contributions to the City of Hamilton. Since its inception in 2019, 40 Hamilton residents have been awarded the Order of Hamilton.

Nomination forms can be found online at www.hamilton.ca/orderofhamilton and in person at Hamilton City Hall, all Municipal Service Centre locations, and all Hamilton Public Library branch locations.

The deadline for nominations is Friday, December 15, 2023, at 4 pm.

Events

• 12th Annual Westdale Living Advent Calendar. December 1-24, 2023. Various Locations Official Facebook Site or alternative listing 
  
  Join us for our 12th annual Westdale Living Advent Calendar! Each day in December, a decorated window will be revealed in homes around the neighbourhood. Community members are invited to take a stroll and enjoy the sights! 
  
  
• Strathcona Living Advent Calendar. Dec 1-24, 2023. Various Locations: Official Site or alternative listing
  
  Please enjoy an uplifting daily walk in our neighbourhood this December! Follow Strathcona's Living Advent Calendar. Note some locations will be accepting donations on behalf of the Strathcona Pantry.
  
  
• Kirkendall Winter Window Walk. Various dates and locations.  Link
  
  
• Hamilton Aviary Craft Sale. December 10, 2023, 1:00-4:00 PM. Location:  85 Oak Knoll Dr, Hamilton
  
  Come out and support The Hamilton Aviary by buying items from our vendors at our first craft sale! 100% of the profits go directly to caring for the birds  Check out the jewellery, paintings, knitting,  and interact with our Flock! 
  
  
• Shop Local! The Locke Street Shops and Westdale Village have FREE parking until December 24th
  
  
• Save the Date for the Strathcona Community Council AGM. January 25, 2024, 7:00 PM Online. More details to come.

Ward 1 Infrastructure Updates

There are multiple projects taking place across the Ward. We have tried to encapsulate the information on a new web page.

Projects in every neighbourhood include park renewal and water chamber replacement. 

Greener Ward 1

Let's do our part in Ward 1 to create healthy, biodiverse neighbourhoods for all living things!

Signup for the Ward 1 Newsletter email