The Hamilton Spectator Article
One of the goals of former Ward 4 Coun. Sam Merulla’s 22-year council career was to revitalize a downtrodden community with a legacy-inspired mixed-use development in Hamilton’s east end.
That dream has become reality as the first phase of what is a “game changing” affordable housing development at 8 Roxanne Dr. on the former Roxborough Park School site, has been constructed, with a 103-unit affordable and accessible building now open to former residents.
“This is the most significant and largest residential infill redevelopment project in the history of Hamilton,” said Sergio Manchia, president of Urbancore and Roxborough Park Developments, who along with Nick Carnicelli of Carriage Gate Homes and Legacy Constructors and David Horwood of Effort Real Estate Corporate partnered with CityHousing Hamilton to create the vast development near Queenston Street and the Red Hill Parkway.
“This was not in our eyes a regentrification but revitalization and here today, we are creating a thriving mixed income community of municipal housing, new rentals, (homes) for first home buyers and market units at affordable pricing,” said Manchia.
Hamilton East-Stoney Creek Liberal MP Chad Collins, and former Ward 5 councillor, who lived in a CityHousing Hamilton unit on nearby Oriole Crescent when growing up, praised Merulla, a friend and council colleague for being “the driving force on this project.” Merulla was not at the grand opening.
“It was his idea,” to create affordable housing on this site,” said Collins.
But he also congratulated the private sector for its “hard work and vision” for investing in an idea as well as the Hamilton community.
The public private partnership was forged in 2016 by Merulla as he prepared nearby residents for what would be the biggest catalyst for the revitalization and diversification in their McQuesten neighbourhood. It took about four years to navigate the bureaucracy, including remediating the property, and receiving the necessary approvals from the city and other levels of government. The area was once the site of the Hamilton Municipal Airport built in 1929 and had small homes for pilots. The facility closed when the Mount Hope airport opened in 1940. CityHousing Hamilton took over the 104 units that had been around for about 60 years on the 13 acre-site.
The development prompted new separated storm water and sanitary sewers, upgraded park features, including revitalizing the spray pad, playground equipment and playing fields.
“We need to work collectively with the private sector,” said Collins. “All three governments will not be able to do this alone.”
The 103-unit, 10-storey CityHousing Hamilton Roxanne apartment has one, two, three and four bedroom units that is 20 per cent accessible, said Chief Executive Officer Adam Sweedland. The building is “beautifully designed” to passive housing standards — an international standard of energy efficiency and building performance — that will see reduced energy costs.
When the entire $400-million development is completed by 2026-2027, it will include a various mix of housing units including The Roxton, two attached rental apartments with 352 units currently being constructed behind the CityHousing Hamilton building and is projected to be completed by June 2024; 126 market townhouses that are nearly completed that were sold in 2020; 164 back-to-back townhome units that will be constructed in 2024 and even condominiums in an “affordable range.”
Carnicelli said the original idea to build stacked townhouses ended up being too expensive.
“So we’ve got all the spectrum here,” said Carnicelli.
Manchia said The Roxton is the result of a federal housing program and Hamilton council’s decision to extend a Community Improvement Plan to the neighbourhood allowing for the development of the rental units.
“We utilized every tool in the tool box and we are now using them to build these units,” said Manchia.
The new affordable housing units will help reduce the 6,000 people on the waiting list for affordable housing, said Collins.
FEDERAL GRANTS
Hamilton West-Ancaster-Dundas Liberal MP Filomena Tassi announced $133 million in federal grants and loans to the development with a majority of the money already used during construction.
“It is all new money that hasn’t been announced,” said Tassi, acknowledging the complicated partnership the city and private sector created to redevelop the site.
The announcement included $7.1 million in federal funding for 103 affordable units, along with $10.8 million in Rapid Housing Initiative funding that will be used to construct 42 affordable units in transition housing for women and children at 1620 Main St. at the Queenston traffic circle. And another $115 million in a low-interest repayable loan for The Roxton building at 16 and 20 Roxanne. The City of Hamilton provided a $15-million loan and $6.7 million was contributed by CityHousing Hamilton. For the Roxton rental units, Hamilton contributed $8.3 million, $7 million in cash equity from Roxboro flats and $10.6 million in land equity from the developers Roxborough Park Inc.
“Hamilton is really taking a major step forward,” said Tassi.