BOH Edition 1

the best of 

hamilton 

Celebrating some of the people and institutions that 

have helped make Hamilton a world-class city 

THE BAY OBSERVER

contents 

50 

04 Welcome to the Best of 

Hamilton! 

06 Discover Hamilton 

08 Sports for Everybody 

10 Hamilton is about the arts 

12 Fairs, events and attractions 

14 Hamilton’s fabulous outdoors 

16 History comes alive at 

Hamilton museums 

18 Education that attracts students 

world-wide 

20 McMaster Innovation Park 

22 Mohawk College’s Applied 

Research is shaping Hamilton’s 

future 

24 Vrancor Group 

26 Dynamic medical research and 

health care environment 

28 Hamilton Health Sciences – 

Hamilton hospitals having a 

national and global impact 

32 St. Joseph’s Healthcare 

Hamilton 

33 Locke Street South/ Westdale 

Village 

34 Hamilton: the transportation 

advantage 

36 Introducing HOPA ports: 

waterfronts at work 

38 John C Munro Hamilton 

international airport! A major 

catalyst for economic growth in 

Hamilton 

40 Fluke Transport 

41 Hamilton is where innovation 

goes to work 

42 Meet 40 of Hamilton’s fastest 

growing companies 

43 Gala Bakery: proud of it’s 

growth 

44 Carmen’s Group: hospitality 

redefined 

46 WPE Landscape Equipment: a 

growing company that is loyal to 

its local roots 

47 Quality has a name: Max 

Aicher North America 

48 40 fastest-growing businesses 

list 

49 Hamilton’s business parks 

support growth 

64 

34 

16 

6 

2

66 

Cover Photo by Dave Gruggen 

Photography 

The Best of Hamilton © 2020 

Editor: 

John Best 

Sales Representatives: Hilary White, 

Rosanne La Scala 

Art Director: 

Catalin Ciolca 

Office Manager: 

Kaye Best 

Printer: 

Transcontinental 

Printing 

Operations and 

Marketing Manager: Taimoor Jamil 

Published by The Bay Observer 

THE BAY OBSERVER 

24 Flamingo Drive Hamilton Ontario L9A 4X7 

905-522-6000 www.bayobserver.ca 

Original photography for this publication by 

Dave Gruggen Photography 

54 26 

43 

12 

36 

the best of hamilton 

50 Hamilton is an architectural 

showcase 

52 Lamont Law: on the leading 

edge of evolving personal 

injury law 

54 Taylor Leibow: local expertise– 

global reach 

56 Safeguarding Hamilton’s water 

supply into the future 

58 Hamiltonians pitch in to make 

Hamilton beautiful! 

60 Agri-Food: a billion dollar 

industry 

62 Hamilton, a real estate market 

in the top ten 

64 Effort Trust: proud to be part 

of Hamilton’s growth for five 

decades 

65 Judy Marsales Real Estate Ltd. 

Brokerage, Sold on Hamilton 

66 Best of the best: The Argyll and 

Sutherland Highlanders of 

Canada (Princess Louise’s) 

68 Labourers’ International Union 

of North America 

70 Cable 14: your community 

connection 

72 FirstOntario Credit Union: 

powers nutrition programs to 

give students the boost they 

need 

74 Hamiltonians who made a 

difference 

83 St. Joseph’s Healthcare 

Hamilton 

84 The world sees Hamilton on 

the screen 

86 Hamiltonians who made it in 

film, music and the arts 

94 A picture-perfect wedding 

20 

3

Welcome to 

the best of 

hamilton 

More than a hundred years ago 

American entrepreneurs began 

scouting Canada for locations to 

establish branch factories, in order to gain 

access to the British and Commonwealth 

markets. They chose Hamilton because it 

had an excellent location with good access 

to rail and marine and was close to the US 

border. In addition, Hamilton had a skilled 

manufacturing workforce. Today the world 

is a much different place with globalism 

replacing tariffs, but many of the advantages 

that Hamilton enjoyed in the early 1900’s 

still exist … but have been greatly expanded. 

Hamilton was built around a legacy of 

advanced manufacturing, which continues to 

4


be a huge contributor to the local economy. 

Additional technologically-advanced industries 

have grown naturally to support the 

manufacturing cluster, creating a community 

that embraces cutting-edge science and 

technology. Hamilton’s most successful 

industries ship their products worldwide. 

As part of its 2019 Canada’s Best 

Communities rankings, Macleans Magazine 

has ranked Hamilton in the top 25 and third 

“Big City” overall. As part of the ranking process, 

Macleans gathered data on 415 towns 

and cities across the country and compared 

them in the following categories: wealth 

and economy, affordability, population 

growth, taxes, commute, crime, weather, 

access to health care, amenities and culture. 

This ranking, along with Hamilton 

being named in the top 2 in North America 

for tech cities of “opportunity” by CBRE 

recently, proves that the Hamilton economy 

is moving in a very positive direction. 

Hamilton is also home to world-class 

universities, colleges, and research-intensive 

companies that have created an ideal 

environment for new product development 

and innovation. Industry and academia 

work together in Hamilton to lower the cost 

of commercialization and bringing products 

to market. Startups and entrepreneurs 

thrive in this hard working, high-tech city, 

where the cost of entry is very competitive 

with other tech-centric cities in the region. 

Hamilton boasts one of the top hospital 

networks in Canada, has an internationally 

renowned music, fashion and film 

scene, and more affordable housing options 

in comparison to the Greater Toronto 

Area. In the past two years, Hamilton has 

seen a number of significant tech related 

investments from corporations such as 

L3 Wescam, Stryker, Pipeline Studios—a 

leading Canadian animation firm working 

with international brands such as Disney, 

Nickelodeon, Nelvana, and IBM Canada. 

Hamilton’s airport and Port are major 

economic drivers with significant investments 

made by companies like Parrish 

and Heimbecker, Panattoni and DSL—all 

of whom have made major investments in 

Hamilton. • 

5

h a m i l t o n t o u r i s m 

Supercrawl—a 

celebration of arts 

and music attracts 

thousands of visitors 

to Hamilton each fall. 

The Rock 

Garden 

at Royal 

Botanical 

Gardens 

6


Dundurn Castle, A Tuscan villa 

on the shores of Burlington Bay 

discover 

hamilton 

As Hamilton has become a magnet 

for newcomers from other parts 

of the GTA, many new arrivals express 

astonishment at the natural beauty of 

Hamilton—from its escarpment and 

waterfront trails to its network of parks— 

both formal and recreational. 

Hamilton boasts an array of architectural 

styles spanning more than two 

centuries. That is one of the reasons 

Hamilton has become so popular as a 

location for films and television productions. 

Hamilton is becoming renowned 

for its eclectic food scene, with new 

restaurants springing up all over the city, 

but particularly in the downtown core— 

James Street North and King William 

Street. 

Hamilton’s vibrant arts scene continues 

to flourish with numerous festivals 

and events taking place along side our 

art galleries, philharmonic orchestra, 

museums and live theatre. 

Hamilton is a sports town offering 

many spectator opportunities, both amateur 

and professional. The city also has 

many sports participation opportunities 

through its recreation centres, sports 

fields and arenas. 

Hamilton’s 

vibrant James 

Street North 

Canadian Warplane Heritage 

Museum, one of the finest vintage 

aircraft collections in North America. 

7


sports for everybody 

Hamilton’s reputation as a sports city goes back to the nineteenth century. The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are the 

direct descendants of the original Hamilton Tigers who were founded in 1869—making the Ticats the 

oldest professional sports team in North America. The Hamilton Bulldogs of the Ontario Hockey League began 

play in Hamilton in the 2015-16 season. They captured the Ontario Championship in 2017-2018. Now under 

a community ownership arrangement, the Hamilton Cardinals have been in the Intercounty Baseball League for 

more than 40 years. The newest entry in the Hamilton sports scene is Forge FC a member of the newly-formed 

Canadian Premier league. They captured the league championship in their 2019 inaugural season. 

Hamilton 

TigerCats 

made it to the 

Grey Cup in 

2019 with a 

15-3 record. 

8


The Hamilton Bulldogs 

OHL team 

Forge FC won the CPL’s 

first ever championship 

Hamilton Cardinals have 

been an Intercounty 

Baseball League mainstay 

for more than 40 years 

9


Hamilton Philharmonic 

Orchestra with 

conductor Gemma New 

Art Gallery of Hamilton 

10


enjoy arts 

in hamilton 

Nowhere in Canada is there a more eclectic 

mix of arts opportunities than Hamilton. For 

the classical enthusiast the Hamilton Philharmonic 

Orchestra under the baton of Gemma New, is 

regarded as one of Canada’s major professional 

orchestras. Outdoor music festivals have been a 

mainstay in Hamilton for generations, beginning 

with the Festival of Friends which has been entertaining 

fans from far and wide for more than four 

decades, and the It’s Your Festival which recently 

celebrated its 50th anniversary, through to the more 

recent SuperCrawl which attracts massive crowds 

to Hamilton’s downtown. Hamilton’s FirstOntario 

Centre has seen all of the major musical icons from 

Elton John to Paul McCartney. It has also hosted 

the nationally-televised Juno Awards. Founded in 

1914, the Art Gallery of Hamilton is the oldest and 

largest art museum in Southern Ontario with a permanent 

collection that is recognized as one of the 

finest in Canada. Embracing Canadian historical, 

international and contemporary art, the collection 

consists of more than 10,000 works. You can see 

superb pieces by Alex Colville, Tom Thomson, the 

Group of Seven, Emily Carr, James Tissot, Jean-Léon 

Gérôme, Gustave Doré, Norval Morrisseau, Keith 

Haring, Edward Burtynsky, Kim Adams, or Tyler 

Tekatch, to name a few. Theatre Aquarius is recognized 

as a leader in Canadian theatre. It produces 

work of the highest quality, premieres new plays, 

develops the skills of professional artists, invests in 

youth and families and contributes to the quality of 

life in this region. 

Theatre Aquarius 

Art Gallery of 

Hamilton terrace 

11


Hamilton’s growing restaurant 

scene on King William Street 

Fieldcote Museum 

Ancaster 

Rockton World’s 

Fair just one of 

numerous fall fairs 

in the Hamilton 

area. 

African Lion Safari 

12

The Around the 

Bay Road Race 

attracts distance 

runners from all 

over the world 

fairs, events 

and 

attractions 

Year round, Hamilton offers all kinds of festivals, 

fairs and annual sporting events like 

the Around the Bay Road Race. Hamilton boasts 

an exciting food scene with new restaurants 

opening all the time. Both James Street North 

and King William Street have become restaurant 

precincts offering dining for every taste. From 

strolling Hamilton’s waterfront parks to exploring 

Hamilton’s “other” downtowns in Stoney Creek 

Village, Dundas, Ancaster and Waterdown—There 

is never a dull moment in Hamilton! 

The African Lion Safari is home to over 1,000 

exotic birds and animals that roam freely throughout 

seven distinct drive-through Game Reserves. 

Late Summer and Fall Fairs abound in Hamilton. 

It is an opportunity to celebrate Hamilton’s agricultural 

heritage with fairs that take old and young 

alike back to a time of good old-fashioned fun. 


Take a tour on 

the Harbour 

Queen 

Held twice a year, The Christie Antique and 

Vintage show has grown to be Canada’s largest 

and most favourite antique show. 

Dundas 

International 

Buskerfest 

During the summer trolley 

tours will take visitors from 

the downtown, to Hamilton’s 

waterfront parks and trails 

13


The annual Mum Show 

at Gage Park is a major 

visitor attraction. 

Enjoying fall colours 

from Dundas Peak 

Gore Park in downtown 

Hamilton –Hamilton’s oldest 

public space 

The Royal Botanical Gardens 

Rock Garden has undergone a 

$20 Million redevelopment 

Websters Falls 

14


Hamilton’s Bayfront Trail system 

extends from Princess Point to the 

HMCS Haida and from the Beach 

Canal to Confederation Park. 

Gage Park offers an eclectic mix of 

formal gardens, sports facilities and 

walking or jogging trails 

hamilton’s 

fabulous 

outdoors 

Thanks to the foresight of a group of planning 

enthusiasts in the 1920’s, Hamilton is a city of 

parks. The City of Hamilton boasts over 3480 acres 

of municipally-owned parkland at 394 locations, 

50 shared School Board parks, over 49 kilometres 

of City-owned trails, and in excess of 2850 acres 

of open space property at 116 locations, offering 

many opportunities for people of all ages to get 

outdoors and explore nature. Our many recreational 

trails encourage hikers, cyclists, roller-bladers, 

and nature lovers to enjoy the natural landscapes 

of the escarpment and valleys. Bayfront Park, Pier 

4 Park, the Hamilton Harbour Waterfront Trail and 

Hamilton Beach Recreational Trail offer panoramic 

views of the Hamilton Harbour and northwest 

shoreline. Sam Lawrence Park and a number of 

other escarpments parks offer spectacular vistas of 

the city below and Lake Ontario as far as Toronto. 

Gage Park with its iconic beaux-arts fountain, 

formal gardens, over a hundred varieties of trees and 

modern greenhouse along with acres of meadow 

and trails, is one of the finest parks in Ontario. 

Hamilton Golf and Country Club 

has hosted the Canadian Open 

Championship a number of times 

Tews Falls 

15


Children 

getting a 

lesson in 

pioneer 

cookiemaking 

Whitehern, 

home to the 

McQuesten 

Family 

Battlefield 

Monument and 

House in Stoney 

Creek. 

The Hamilton 

Museum of 

Steam and 

Technology-- 

a fine 

example of 

Greek Revival 

Architecture 

history comes 

alive at 

hamilton 

museums 

Few communities place as much emphasis 

on preserving history and heritage as does 

Hamilton. Six of Hamilton’s museums have been 

designated National Historic Sites. Many of the 

museums and historical sites offer special programming 

for children. In addition, there is an interactive 

children’s museum just for kids. In all, Hamilton 

museums and historical sites offer more than 150 

annual events, immersive experiences, Curriculumlinked 

field trip options, birthday party packages, 

unique rental spaces, and much more. For the 

serious archivist there is also one of Ontario’s finest 

local history repositories in the Hamilton Public 

Library Special Collections Department. 

16


HMCS Haida is a warship 

that provided heroic 

support on D-Day 

Dundurn Castle; A fully restored 

Italianate villa, once home to Alan 

Napier MacNab, one time Premier of 

the Province of Canada 

Children peer into 

a Victorian parlour 

at Dundurn 

17

hamilton education 

Redeemer University College 

McMaster 

University 

is one of the 

top research 

universities in 

Canada 

education that attracts 

students world-wide 

Mohawk is one of 

Ontario’s largest 

Skilled Trades and 

Apprenticeship Colleges. 

A robotics competition providing 

STEM (Science, technology, 

engineering, math) to young minds 

Bishop Ryan RCSS 

Students at Columbia International 

College participate in a United 

Nations Day 

18


Mohawk College 

Hillfield Strathallan 

College 

19 

The City of Hamilton is an 

education destination for 

students from all over the 

world. Hamilton offers a wide 

choice of secondary and 

post-secondary study options 

and excellent opportunities 

for study and to live and work 

after graduation. 

At McMaster University, 30,000 

undergraduate and graduate students 

and 7500 faculty and staff 

are engaged in learning and research 

with a focus on community engagement 

and involvement. Mohawk College educates 

more than 17,000 full-time and 

apprenticeship students at three campuses 

in Hamilton. Recognized as a leader in 

health and technology education, Mohawk 

has achieved the highest student satisfaction 

scores among all colleges in the 

Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area for 

four consecutive years. 

Hamilton is served by four school boards. 

The Hamilton-Wentworth District School 

Board teaches approximately 50,000 students 

in its 97 neighbourhood schools. 

The Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic 

District School Board serves more than 

29,000 elementary and secondary students 

at 55 schools, and another 10,000 individuals 

through four St. Charles adult and 

continuing education centres. 

The French-language Catholic school 

board in the Centre-South serves over 

15,500 Students in 45 elementary and 

10 secondary schools covering much of 

Southern Ontario. 

Redeemer University College, a Christian 

university, offers its more than 700 students 

Bachelor of Arts, Science, and Education 

degrees with majors in more than 39 disciplines. 

Hillfield Strathallan Collge is an independent, 

co-educational day school in Hamilton. 

The academic program runs from Montessori 

Toddler and Pre-Kindergarten to Grade 12. 

Collège Boréal is one of Ontario’s 24 

community colleges and is the only Frenchlanguage 

college in Southwestern Ontario. 

Columbia International College, with 

2100 students representing over 70 countries, 

is the largest private junior and senior 

boarding school in Canada. •

McMaster Innovation Park 

(MIP) is where companies 

grow. After more than a 

decade in operation, many 

businesses from all industries 

call MIP home. 

MIP is Canada’s premier research 

park offering a collaborative 

space for start-ups, entrepreneurs, 

researchers, and industry partners to connect 

and bring ideas to life. Companies 

coming out of this Hamilton innovation 

hub specialize in the biomedical, advanced 

manufacturing, and ICT industries. The park 

is where companies can come together 

to tackle the world’s biggest challenges to 

have a greater impact. In September 2018, 

the company welcomed a new CEO, Ty J. 

Shattuck, and he brought with him a vision 

for a sprawling park that provides members 

with the spatial alchemy necessary to tackle 

these global challenges in the most effective 

and efficient manner possible. Although tech 

and digitization has made global collaboration 

easier than ever, research shows that 

physical proximity is also a major factor 

in enabling innovation. MIP has plans for 

expansion with 6-8 new buildings over the 

next 5-10 years which will further provide 

the Hamilton innovation ecosystem with 

the resources, space, and amenities they 

need to grow and thrive. Whether you’re an 

entrepreneur looking for some support to get 

your business off the ground, or an established 

business looking to make meaningful 

connections and scale your company to new 

heights, MIP will help you find what you’re 

looking for. • 

20

mip is home to a number of impressive 

companies, check out a few of them below: 

QReserve can save your organization substantial amounts of 

time and money by helping to efficiently catalogue equipment, 

improve resource utilization, automate complex scheduling, 

and understand the hidden capacity and capabilities available 

to you. Major research institutions, government laboratories, 

research hospitals, universities, makerspaces, and companies 

around the globe have deployed QReserve to make it easier 

for employees and partners to find and use equipment and 

resources. 

LeafBox Concepts 

Inc. is a clean-tech 

company based out of 

the Forge Incubator 

in Hamilton, ON – 

Canada. We up-cycle 

used cargo containers 

into 100% solar-powered, portable, and experiential retail 

& event concepts. Our mission is to deploy and activate our 

concepts across the globe to help lead the transition into a 

carbon-free future by 2030. 

Our vision at the NCCMT is that all Canadians achieve their 

optimal health and well-being. We support this by working 

collaboratively with the public health workforce in Canada to 

develop the knowledge, skill and capacity to implement the 

most effective and cost-efficient programs and services. We are 

hosted by the School of Nursing at McMaster University and 

funded by the Public Health Agency of Canada. We are one of 

six National Collaborating Centres in Canada. 

LoAllay is dedicated to lightening the 

workload for entrepreneurs and small 

business owners. LoAllay offers a full 

range of services to help entrepreneurs 

focus on their visions, and with a team 

of 21 experts in their fields, take care 

of administrative, bookkeeping, digital 

marketing, IT, translations, legal, HR 

and various other functions that a small 

business requires. Founder of LoAllay, 

Theresa Horak, believes that a small business can hugely 

benefit from the resources that only a larger organization can 

afford to employ internally, which is why LoAllay was created. 

Our passion is to see entrepreneurs succeed.

(Left to right ) Back: Porsche Le (student), Benson Lam (EPIC), 

Zhenyu (Frank) Zhao (faculty), Majlinda Qarri faculty). 

Front: Zahraa Khalid (faculty), Zach Abrahams (student) 

MOHAWK COLLEGE’S APPLIED RESEARCH 

IS SHAPING HAMILTON’S FUTURE 

Applied research drives 

innovation by uncovering 

practical solutions for realworld 

challenges. Mohawk College is 

a leader and has been named #7 in 

the country according to RE$EARCH 

Infosource rankings for applied 

research. 

Mohawk’s expertise among faculty 

and students, advanced facilities, 

and deep industry connections have 

been critical to putting the Hamilton 

area at the forefront of advanced 

manufacturing, digital health, 

technology and energy. 

Applied research partnerships 

guided by Mohawk’s team provide 

cutting-edge experiential learning to 

students, and lead to solutions that 

increase productivity, revenue and 

market-share for industry partners. 

Mohawk’s IDEAWORKS catalyzes, 

funds and supports research across 

the college and operates three 

centres of excellence: the mHealth 

and eHealth Development and 

Innovation Centre (MEDIC), the 

Additive Manufacturing Innovation 

Centre (AMIC) and the Energy & 

Power Innovation Centre (EPIC). 

The following are four examples of 

applied research at Mohawk among 

dozens of recent projects. 

Digital electricity 

iLLUMA-Drive required independent 

validation of its new digital electrical 

platform for LED lighting systems 

for homes and businesses. EPIC 

students, staff and faculty designed 

and built a test bed to compare 

the energy efficiency, efficacy and 

flickering of the iLLUMA-Drive system 

vs. conventional AC lighting systems. 

Outdoor play 

Mohawk faculty, staff and students 

collaborated on research into how to 

embed the pedagogy of outdoor play 

into the Early Childhood Education 

(ECE) program. The result is a 

practical, hands-on guide that aims to 

combat children’s sedentary lifestyles 

one educator at a time. 

Customized IT 

A team of students, staff and faculty 

investigated and customized a 

scalable IT solution for Niko Apparel, 

a Hamilton sports company that 

allowed it to secure a lucrative 

contract with a multinational client. 

Virtual reality 

Students and faculty in Mohawk’s 

Building and Construction Sciences 

program helped structural steel 

company Walters Inc. to overcome 

virtual reality’s steep learning curve 

by recommending devices, software, 

and training and providing a stepby-step 

process to integrate VR into 

its workflow. 

Hear from the company owners and 

Mohawk researchers behind these 

projects at mohawknewsdesk.ca/ 

spotlight-on-projects.

MOHAWK 

FUTURE READY 

PREMIUM 

EMPLOYER 

Future Ready. Together. 

Connecting employers with students and 

alumni to build an exceptional workforce. 

Connect with us on our new Industry and Employer website today. 

Mohawk offers a wide range of recruitment, training 

and research opportunities for your business. 

mohawkcollege.ca/employers

20 George Street 

154 Main Street E 

Darko Vranich 

Hampton Inn by Hilton Hamilton/Student Residence 

It is often said that a journey of a thousand miles 

begins with a single step. For Vrancor Group, that 

step was taken in 1994 when Darko Vranich acquired 

his first hotel. Today Vrancor Group is a multimilliondollar 

hospitality, property management and 

development business, with 21 hotels across Ontario. 

Hamilton, home to Vrancor’s headquarters, remains 

a key focus for development activity. The team at 

Vrancor, many of whom reside in Hamilton, see 

Hamilton not just as an Ambitious City, but one that 

has rightfully taken its place as a leading economic 

powerhouse within Ontario and Canada. Fueled by 

Vranich’s drive to catapult Hamilton’s economy by 

a significant redevelopment of its downtown core, 

and by investing over half a billion dollars into the 

revitalization efforts, a modern, integrated design 

is now reflected across an impressive array of 

hotel, residential and commercial complexes. With 

an unwavering commitment to build a lasting and 

prosperous community, a vibrant and transformational 

Hamilton has emerged. 

V ranich, a Croatian-born Canadian, has focused Vrancor 

Group on its mission “to lead the creation of inspiring, 

award-winning environments for people to live, work, stay 

and play”. This vision stems from a deep understanding 

of essential infrastructure elements needed by evolving 

cities to foster growth and prosperity: strong residential 

communities, recognized and respected hotel brands 

and flourishing retail enterprises that support the needs 

of growing populations. While active across Ontario, 

Hamilton is the epicentre of Vrancor’s focus, with hotels 

that include Sheraton Hamilton, Homewood Suites 

by Hilton Hamilton, and Staybridge Suites Hamilton 

Downtown. Two new build hotels, Hampton Inn by 

Hilton Hamilton and Holiday Inn Express Hamilton will 

open in 2020. Now, with over eight hundred and fifty 

new or refurbished hotel guestrooms, Hamilton’s ability 

to successfully compete and win large national and 

international convention, sporting and entertainment 

events has significantly increased, as evidenced by the 

recent hosting of the Canadian Country Music Awards, 

RBC Canadian Open and the upcoming Grey Cup.

Future 

Downtown 

Hamilton 

Developments 

213 King Street W King Street W & Queen Street N Development 

More importantly, the pipeline for future tourism 

events is robust and growing stronger. A thriving 

tourism economy lifts all boats and this can be seen in 

the booming restaurant, art, transportation and music 

scenes right across the city. 

B y focusing investment in Hamilton, Vrancor has 

cultivated a sixth sense for how Hamilton is evolving 

and how future developments can elevate the urban 

landscape. These are exciting days as Vrancor’s robust 

pipeline of future developments include residential, 

student and retirement housing plus several prestige 

commercial projects to widen Hamilton’s appeal as a 

great city to live and work. 

T hese developments haven’t gone unnoticed. Vrancor’s 

dedication to revitalizing Hamilton has earned the 

company many accolades including “Developer of 

the Year” awards from both Hilton Worldwide and 

InterContinental Hotels Group, as well as the Outstanding 

Business Achievement Award from the Hamilton 

Chamber of Commerce. 

“I believe in Hamilton, a great city with unlimited potential,” 

The city’s vitality can be seen through its strong 

economic development, growth and revitalization,” says 

Vranich. And fortunately, his enthusiasm and passion 

are contagious as demonstrated by the renaissance 

underway across the city! 

“I BELIEVE IN HAMILTON, 

A GREAT CITY WITH 

UNLIMITED POTENTIAL” 

Vrancor’s Investments in Hamilton 

HOTELS 

Sheraton Hamilton 

- 301 guest rooms, 20,000 sq. ft. meeting space 

Homewood Suites by Hilton Hamilton 

- 182 extended stay suites, 10,000 sq. ft. meeting space 

Staybridge Suites Hamilton Downtown 

- 129 extended stay suites, 5,000 sq. ft. meeting space 

Hampton Inn by Hilton Hamilton 


Holiday Inn Express Hamilton 


RESIDENTIAL 

220 Cannon Street East 

- 100 rental apartments, 4,000 sq. ft. commercial space 

20 George Street 

- 242 rental apartments, 6,600 sq. ft. commercial space 

RETAIL / COMMERCIAL / FOOD SERVICE 

Shoppers Drug Mart 1599 Upper James St, Hamilton 

Shoppers Drug Mart 133 King Street West, Dundas 

151 York Blvd. 43,000 sq. ft. commercial space 

Starbucks, Sheraton Hamilton 

Marquis Gardens Hamilton 

Marquis Gardens Ancaster 

Holiday Inn Express Hamilton

1 2 

dynamic medical research and 

1. Commercializing medical 

research at the Fraunhofer 

Project Centre for Biomedical 

and Advanced Manufacturing 

(BEAM) 

2. The latest technology: a 

hybrid operating table that 

combines imaging with surgery 

3, 7. Hamilton Health Sciences 

trauma unit. 

4. St Joseph’s Healthcare 

pioneering robotic surgery 

5. Biomedical Engineering 

and Advanced Manufacturing 

(BEAM) research facility, will be 

home to several of McMaster’s 

leading researchers operating 

from a state-of-the art facility to 

be constructed at McMaster. 

6. Latest development in 

Mammogram technology 

8. McMaster School of 

Medicine 

9. Hamilton hospitals 

developing procedures to place 

the patient at the centre of 

care. 

4 5 

6 

7 8 

26

3 


health care environment 

Hamilton’s life sciences sector constitutes an intersection of 

innovation, research and business. The life sciences sector is 

now the largest employer in Hamilton with one of the strongest 

hospital networks in Canada. 

9 

Health care and social assistance is by 

far the largest employment category 

in Hamilton accounting for nearly 

one in five jobs and employing 38,000 full 

and part time workers. As the ambitious city, 

Hamilton offers life sciences’ companies 

the convergence of research, development 

and business collaboration in a unique and 

vibrant business setting. 

Between Hamilton Health Services, St. 

Joseph’s Healthcare, Bay Area Health Trust, 

Innovation Factory, McMaster University 

Faculty of Medicine and Mohawk College, 

among other innovators, a collaborative 

cluster utilizes technology to improve healthcare 

services. The Synapse Consortium supports 

the health sciences cluster by facilitating 

collaboration, accelerating commercialization, 

and promoting the impact of this 

valuable sector. The two major Healthcare 

networks combined attract more that $225 

Million in research funding each year, placing 

both in the top 40 of research hospitals 

in Canada year after year. 

At Mohawk College IDEAWORKS, the 

mHealth and eHealth Development and 

Innovation Centre (MEDIC) help companies, 

start-ups, not-for-profits, and government 

organizations develop and implement 

innovative digital health solutions to 

improve patient care. 

International investments like the 

Fraunhofer Project Centre are building life 

sciences capacity in Hamilton and positioning 

the city as an international leader. 

The Fraunhofer Project Centre for 

Biomedical Engineering and Advanced 

Manufacturing (BEAM) is accelerating the 

commercialization of research with a focus 

on T-cell therapies, point-of-care diagnostics 

and ophthalmics. Commercialization 

support exists for companies large and 

small throughout the health sciences industries 

in Hamilton. • 

27

Stem cell 

Dr. Kylie Lepic with Frank Tousaw 

Hamilton 

hospitals 

having 

national and 

global impact 

When it comes to health care, Hamiltonians 

have lots to be proud of. Hamilton Health 

Sciences is the only hospital system in Ontario 

providing specialty health care for the full 

spectrum of life’s journey, from pre-birth to 

end-of-life. Serving 2.3 million people throughout 

south-central Ontario, Hamilton Health 

Sciences is a leader in programs such as trauma, 

cancer, stroke, and child and youth mental 

health. It is also a world-renowned academicteaching 

hospital, an international leader 

in hospital-based research and the largest 

employer in Greater Hamilton. 

This is possible thanks to donor support 

through Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation. 

The Foundation provides vital funding for 

medical equipment and patient amenities 

(which aren’t funded by the government), 

innovative research, essential redevelopment 

of clinical spaces, and advanced education and 

training of health care providers. 

Learn more at 

hamiltonhealthsciences.ca | hamiltonhealth.ca 

transplants 

Leaders of the past, 

present and future 

For more than 35 years, Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS) 

has been a leader in stem cell transplantation, which 

has the potential to cure patients with blood cancers. 

Juravinski Hospital and Cancer Centre (JHCC), part of 

the HHS family, is one of only three hospitals in Ontario 

providing all forms of adult stem cell transplants. The 

site is a trailblazer in the delivery of this life-saving 

treatment, as well as research and education. 

A Canadian first 

In the past, transplants required stem cells – human 

cells that have the ability to transform into many 

different cell types – that were harvested from a 

relative of the patient. Historically, stem cells from an 

unrelated donor could result in fatal rejection by the 

patient’s immune system. 

In 1988, HHS’ Dr. Irwin Walker and Dr. Michael Brain 

performed the first successful Canadian transplant 

with an unrelated donor. The patient was infused with 

stem cells that were collected from a donor in the 

United States. 

“Now that we’re able to use unrelated donors, 80 

per cent of patients who need a stem cell transplant can 

receive one,” says Dr. Walker. 

Cancer journey 

leads to a hopeful 

tomorrow 

Frank Tousaw was diagnosed with double-hit lymphoma, 

an aggressive blood cancer. Without treatment he 

was in serious danger. Frank underwent chemotherapy 

and an autologous stem cell transplant. After spending 

84 days in hospital his cancer is in remission. “Now I 

have a hopeful tomorrow that will allow me to watch 

my kids make their way in the world,” says Frank.

Dr. Irwin Walker (right) arrives from the United States with the stem cells in 1988. 

Ongoing innovation 

In the early 2000s, the site headed the only Canadian 

trial on haploidentical stem cell transplants, a 

technique involving the use of stem cells from “halfmatch” 

family members. 

“Because of this, almost all patients can have a 

suitable donor, either a matched sibling, matched 

unrelated donor, or half-matched family member,” 

explains Dr. Walker. 

The centre was also instrumental in expanding the 

age limit for transplant patients. People who were 

once considered too old to receive the procedure 

now have the option of undergoing a transplant 

using reduced intensive conditioning – or minitransplant 

– which was piloted in Canada at HHS. 

In recent years, the hospital has worked hard to 

expand their program so more people can benefit 

from the treatment. In the 2018-19 fiscal year, 

JHCC performed 230 stem cell transplants, a nearly 

70 per cent increase over the last five years. In July 

2019, Dr. Brian Leber performed the site’s 1,000th 

allogeneic stem cell transplant. 

The future of transplants 

in Hamilton 

Cancer is the leading cause of death in Canada, 

so it is more important now than ever 

that HHS stays on the leading 

edge of care. 

In May 2019, the Ontario government announced 

an investment of $25 million to support the expansion 

of the adult stem cell transplantation unit. In addition 

to this investment, community and corporate donors 

supported Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation’s 

Tomorrow Stems From You ® fundraising campaign, which 

contributed $5 million to expand a dedicated clinical 

area and purchase vital equipment. Construction is 

underway and the expansion is expected to be open 

for patients in summer 2020. 

What is a stem cell 

transplant? 

A stem cell transplant is a method of replacing 

cells in the bone marrow that cause cancer. New 

stem cells are infused into the patient so they 

can attack the diseased cells. 

• Transplants using a patient’s own cells are 

known as autologous transplants 

• Transplants from a donor are known as 

“donor-matched” or allogeneic transplants

Family matters 

in mental health 

Counsellor Christine Vaughan during a session with 

Dawn at McMaster Children’s Hospital 

their own emotions about their child’s illness, 

and learn skills to help their child cope. 

“Increasing family and caregiver 

involvement is a priority in our program,” 

says Lori Issenman, director of Child and 

Youth Mental Health at MCH. “Research 

shows that when families are involved, young 

people with mental health issues do better.” 

Dawn is a registered social worker. She knows much 

more than the average person about mental health and 

helping people in distress. But when her eldest son’s 

mental health issues emerged, she felt lost. 

“It was emotional for our entire family,” she says. 

“We needed help learning how to support our son 

through this.” Dawn and her partner both took 

part in Emotion Focused Family Therapy 

(EFFT), a unique program offered in the 

Child and Youth Mental Health Program 

at McMaster Children’s Hospital 

(MCH). The program provides 

group and one-on-one 

training to parents and 

caregivers so they 

can process 

McMaster Children’s Hospital is the 

first publicly funded mental health service 

in our region to offer this evidencebased 

program. The generous support 

of Foundation partners like ArcelorMittal 

Dofasco has enabled MCH to train more 

than 60 staff and doctors in EFFT. They’ve 

had an overwhelmingly positive response 

from families. More than 98 per cent 

of participants said they were either 

extremely or very likely to recommend the 

program to others. 

“It was emotional, powerful, practical and really 

helpful,” says Dawn. “The program helped us work 

through our feelings and develop skills to help our son 

through different scenarios.” 

In addition to building better connections with parents 

and caregivers, the Child and Youth Mental Health 

Program is increasing collaboration with other services 

both at MCH and throughout the community. 

“Mental health care requires a shared approach,” 

says Issenman. “We are lucky to have Canada’s most 

comprehensive Child and Youth Mental Health program. 

We’re sharing our expertise and working with partners so 

we can serve the community even better.”

Jim is back 

behind the 

wheel after 

relearning how 

to drive. 

Back behind the wheel 

thanks to world-class stroke care 

Jim LaMontagne and his wife Cindy are avid sailors. 

During a trip to the Bahamas, he woke up on their boat 

in the middle of the night with no feeling in the left 

side of his body. He was having a stroke and needed 

immediate medical care. He was airlifted to Miami for 

emergency treatment. 

Once stabilized, Jim was flown by air ambulance to 

Toronto, and then transported to Hamilton General 

Hospital (HGH), home to the largest Integrated Stroke 

Program in Ontario, which combines both acute and 

rehabilitative care. The stroke program is world renowned 

for its clinical care, training and research. 

replicates nearly 100 common driving scenarios and road 

conditions. “It gives real-life scenarios of driving situations 

so we can assess how the patient would approach those,” 

says Kayla McDowell, an occupational therapist. “It helps 

us create a better treatment plan.” 

The simulator was purchased through donations to 

Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation. It mimics a real 

car, and features an adjustable seat, blinkers, and gas and 

brake pedals. 

“It allows patients like Jim to see what it will feel like 

to drive, and build confidence,” says Kayla. 

“It was a really scary time, but I was happy to be close 

to home and knew I would get excellent care,” says Jim. 

He was soon ready to begin stroke rehabilitation 

at HGH’s Regional Rehabilitation Centre (RRC), which 

provides specialized care to help people regain function 

after illness or injury. Relearning how to drive was at the 

top of Jim’s list of goals. 

Using cutting-edge equipment like this is just one way 

staff and doctors at the RRC help stroke patients recover. 

They use many evidence-based therapies to rebuild 

strength and dexterity, and teach people how to adapt if 

they aren’t able to regain full use of their limbs or voice. 

Jim LaMontagne practises driving using the simulator at the 

Regional Rehabilitation Centre. 

“I’m a driven guy, and it was always in my plans to get 

back to work and get back to driving,” he says. 

Jim’s outpatient rehabilitation team at the RRC 

introduced him to a brand new driving simulator that 

• The RRC’s inpatient rehabilitation program is 

the second largest in Ontario 

• They are the provincial leader for quick admission 

to inpatient rehabilitation—once a patient is 

ready, they wait less than one day for a bed 

• The outpatient neurology program team sees 

7,000 visits each year 

Learn more at 

hamiltonhealthsciences.ca | hamiltonhealth.ca

Social icon 

Rounded square 

Only use blue and/or white. 

For more details check out our 

Brand Guidelines. 

Dan-Bi Cho, 

Registered Nurse 

Dr. Bobby Shayegan, 

Surgeon 

Sri Duraikannan, 

Volunteer 

Hélène Hamilton, 

Patient and Family Advisor 

Learn more about who we are and our promise 

to our patients, families, staff and community at 

stjoes.ca/strategicplan 

A proud member of 

St. Joseph’s Health System


Lulu & Lavigne 

Home Studio 

Locke Street South is located in a unique area in Hamilton, 

nestled in the beautiful tree-lined Kirkendall neighbourhood 

just beneath the Niagara Escarpment. It has become one 

of the most popular destinations for Hamiltonians and visitors 

from the surrounding region. Enjoy shopping in the many 

eclectic shops located in this historic area. Home furnishings 

and accessories, unique boutiques, jewellery design, salons 

and spas, musical instruments, health and professional services 

are all part of the mix. Weary from shopping? Take a break and 

have a bite to eat in one of the many restaurants and eateries. 

For many, this charming spot in the city is one to which they 

return again and again. 

Nest 

David Clayton Thomas 

Band at the 2019 ArtsFest 

in Westdale Village 

Photo by Boxcar Media 

Westdale Village, established in the 1920’s, is a thriving 

and diverse shopping district with both vintage charm 

and contemporary flair. Situated next to McMaster University 

and McMaster Medical Centre, it features a variety of cafes 

and restaurants, unique boutiques, old-style bakeries and at 

its center, an Art Deco movie theatre The Westdale, which has 

been an entertainment destination since the era of silent films. It 

has been beautifully restored to a new hub for art and independent 

film screenings. The village is a lively place hosting many 

events throughout the year including ArtsFest, October West, 

Westdale Music Live, Jazz West, and Winter Wander. 

33

Hamilton benefits 

from its proximity to 

US Border crossings 

hamilton: 

the transportation advantage 

Hamilton is served 

by both Class A 

Railroads for freight 

and GO Transit and 

Visa offer frequent 

passenger service 

Whether 

shipped by 

road, rail air 

or marine, all 

goods finish 

their journey 

by motor 

transport. 

34

Hamilton 

International 

Airport is 

Canada’s 

number one 

scheduled 

cargo airport. 

Location–the asset that made 

Hamilton the heavy industrial 

powerhouse a century ago, 

is still the reason Hamilton 

is a desirable location for its 

advanced manufacturing, and 

knowledge-based industries 

today. 

Situated at the western end of Ontario’s 

Golden Horseshoe, Hamilton offers 

easy access to a network of highways, 

international rail lines, and the Port of 

Hamilton. Local air connections to international 

destinations are close by with John C. 

Munro Hamilton International Airport. 

The Queen Elizabeth Way provides ready 

access from the US border to both the 

Greater Toronto Area, a regional market 

of over 6 million people, and Highway 

401. Highway 401 is the Canadian link 

to the NAFTA super highway connecting 

Ontario with the I-75 serving Michigan, 

Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia and 

Florida and the I-90 connections to the eastern 

seaboard. With the U. S. border only an 

hour’s drive away, Hamilton is within half 

a day’s drive of key major urban markets in 

the United States. 

The Port of Hamilton is the busiest port in 

all of the Great Lakes. Hamilton’s John C. 

Munro International Airport is Canada’s top 

multi-modal cargo and courier airport and 

Ontario’s only 24-hour inter-modal cargo 

hub. Canada’s two national railways, CP 

and CN, provide complete rail freight services 

across North America for Hamilton’s 

industries and the city has a complete highway 

and ring road system to move goods 

throughout the city quickly. 

Hamilton’s port is the busiest 

on the Great Lakes, serving the 

steel industry, and increasingly, 

a growing agri-food industry 


Hamilton is 

served by three 

major 400 

series highways 

35

introducing 

hopa ports: 

waterfronts at work 

New marine transportation network aims to put 

the Great Lakes to work on GTHA congestion 

Ontario boasts 10,000 km of Great 

Lakes shoreline, and access to 

a marine highway in the Great 

Lakes-St. Lawrence that connects the North 

American industrial heartland to any market 

around the world. Yet, throughout southern 

Ontario, there are marine infrastructure 

assets that are unconnected and underutilized. 

By beginning to see these assets as 

part of an integrated network, one can start 

to explore innovative ideas to serve the 

growing region. 

This was the thinking behind the amalgamation 

of the Ports of Hamilton and 

Oshawa into a new, regionally-minded 

entity, the Hamilton Oshawa Port Authority, 

or HOPA Ports. These two ports are ideal 

bookends to the Greater Toronto Hamilton 

Area (GTHA), and together handle more 

than 12 million tonnes of the cargo that 

keeps this region functioning day-to-day, 

including everything from gasoline, to 

structural steel for construction, to fertilizer 

for Ontario greenbelt farms. “Coordinated 

planning will put the ‘right infrastructure in 

the right place’ to serve southern Ontario,” 

said Ian Hamilton, President & CEO of 

HOPA Ports. “Ultimately our goal is to get 

more cargo off Ontario’s congested highways 

and onto marine transport.” 

Infrastructure is key to a 

vibrant industrial future 

At the western tip of Lake Ontario, 

the Port of Hamilton is Ontario’s largest 

marine port, which spans 630 acres 

36


along Hamilton’s working waterfront. “This 

is not like any other industrial district,” 

notes Ian Hamilton. “The access to multiple 

modes of transportation in one location 

creates a special advantage. So uncommon 

is this combination of industrial space 

and marine-rail-and-road services that the 

port has attracted close to $350 million in 

new industrial investment inside the last 

decade.” Currently HOPA is in the midst of 

a $40 Million development in its Westport 

zone. This investment will modernize the 

oldest area of the port, with improved 

marine, road and rail connections. This 

enhancement to base infrastructure has 

spurred expansions by port partners Fluke 

Transport and Federal Marine Terminals at 

their port locations. 

Agri-food sector shines 

Hamilton has always been a place for 

making things, and these days, that is likely 

to include making good things to eat. The 

agriculture and food processing sector has 

taken over as Hamilton’s second largest 

manufacturing sector, generating over $1 

billion in economic activity annually. The 

Port of Hamilton has been a major driver of 

growth in this sector, now home to fourteen 

agri-food tenants. This year, port tenant 

Parrish & Heimbecker broke ground on a 

project to double the capacity of the flour 

mill that began operations just two years 

ago. All of the flour milled at this facility is 

used by commercial food processors within 

100km of the port. Also in 2019, port tenant 

SucroCan completed an expansion of its 

sugar refinery at Pier 10; this new local 

source of refined sugar serves as an important 

link in the regional food processing 

supply chain. HOPA Ports recently attracted 

$5.5 million from the federal National Trade 

Corridors Fund for infrastructure improvements 

that will improve goods movement 

capacity and reliability for both of these 

port users. 

By continuing to invest in marine infrastructure, 

HOPA Ports is helping to ensure 

that marine is part of the solution to southern 

Ontario’s congestion woes, while helping to 

drive a prosperous future, in Hamilton and 

across Ontario. • 

37

john c munro hamilton 

international airport! 

a major catalyst for economic 

growth in hamilton 

Hamilton International Airport has become a great alternative 

for Hamilton and Southern Ontario travellers looking for 

affordable travel opportunities in an uncongested airport 

environment. Flights from Hamilton reach across Canada, the 

Southern US, Mexico and the Caribbean. 

On the cargo front Hamilton 

International has experienced 

dynamic growth year after year. To 

support this growth, the Airport and its partners 

continue to invest in new infrastructure. 

Long-time Airport tenant KF Aerospace has 

undertaken a $30-million expansion of its 

aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul 

facility at Hamilton International. Adding 

150,000 sq. feet and over 275 new jobs, the 

project will drive new growth for Hamilton, 

the Airport and surrounding region. 

The centrepiece of the project is a new 

75,000 sq. foot hangar, introducing widebody 

aircraft capability and additional lines 

of maintenance to KF’s Hamilton operation. 

It’s expected to triple KF’s business in the 

Hamilton marketplace, expanding the company’s 

ability to support one of the country’s 

fastest growing airports and its international 

cargo and passenger airline partners. In 

addition, the expansion will also allow KF 

to provide state-of-the-art shops, classroom 

and hangar space for Mohawk College’s 

Hamilton 

International’s 

freight capability 

was greatly 

enhanced with 

the opening 

of a 77,000 

square foot, $12 

million dollar, 

Cargo Centre. 

Cargojet Airways 

is anchor tenant 

for the facility, 

occupying 

approximately 

half the space; 

while the 

second half of 

the facility is 

operated under 

a commonuse 

model 

by Aeroship 

Handling ltd. 

38


Hamilton International Airport 

is focused on being the best 

global gateway in Canada for 

affordable travel and goods 

movement. 

When completed, the resurfacing and strengthening 

of HIA’s main runway will accommodate the heaviest 

freighters and passenger aircraft. 

Aircraft Maintenance Engineer programs. 

A lifelong supporter of aviation training, 

KF Aerospace Founder and CEO, Barry 

Lapointe indicates the partnership with 

Mohawk College will help provide students 

with training that leads to rewarding careers 

in the rapidly advancing aerospace sector. 

With ever increasing passenger and 

freight activity comes the need to ensure 

Hamilton International’s air-side infrastructure 

can meet future growth needs. That is 

why the airport operator in partnership with 

Transport Canada’s National Trade Corridor 

Fund (NTCF) is investing $38.89 million, to 

fully restore its two main runways, supporting 

taxiways and lighting systems over the 

next four years. 

These projects will improve the efficiency, 

reliability and safety of airport operations, 

accelerate investment to accommodate 

the increasing use of larger wide-body 

aircraft for domestic and long-haul traffic to 

support current and future growth through 

Hamilton International. 

Hamilton International is an economic 

engine for the City of Hamilton and the 

surrounding region. Its latest Economic 

Impact Study demonstrated that in 2017, 

the Airport generated almost 3,500 jobs 

in the region (a 25% increase since 2013), 

labour income of $243 million, a GDP 

of $385 million and industry activity of 

$1.2 billion. Through the latest investments, 

these Airport projects will create more than 

350 construction jobs, with an additional 

863 full-time jobs to be created over the 

next five years, representing an additional 

$149 million in labour income. 

The Airport anticipates that the NTCF’s 

investment will facilitate approximately 

$2.1B in economic activity annually. 

Hamilton International remains Canada’s 

largest overnight express cargo airport and 

hub for ecommerce with an ever-growing 

passenger and destination base. Exceptional 

growth in both segments of its business and 

public/private investment towards invaluable 

airport infrastructure are clearly placing 

Hamilton International Airport in an optimal 

position to continue toward its company 

vision in being recognized by the world as 

the best global gateway in Canada for affordable 

travel and goods movement. 

39

Some will say 

they always knew, 

but I didn’t. 

I learned some of my most valuable life 

lessons the hard way. 

When I bought Fluke Transport over 30 years 

ago, those first few years were some of the 

busiest and most challenging ones of my life. 

While I was on the road travelling extensively 

throughout North America, I believed I could 

run two companies and be a full-time NCAA 

basketball referee. Looking back now, I realize 

how hard my wife and sons worked to fill my 

shoes while I was away. But it was this type 

of family effort and commitment that allowed 

Fluke Transport to grow from 3 trucks to 110 

trucks and 475 trailers. In addition, Fluke 

has expanded the warehouse and logistics 

operations to better serve our customers. 

Fluke Transport has been in business for over 99 consecutive years, the Fluke family is still welcome in our office and we continue to 

treat them like family. I reflect on how my team has grown over the years. We have evolved to build lasting relationships with our 

customers, we provide solutions that fit their unique needs, and we pride ourselves in staying a few steps ahead of the competition. 

Our experienced operations staff have successfully become cross border document and clearance experts, traffic gridlock combat 

specialists, compliance and maintenance professionals. Our dispatchers have the same level of reliability as air traffic controllers, 

and I assure you they can successfully navigate ground transportation in the greater Toronto, Halton, Hamilton, and Niagara regions. 

On a personal level, I am especially proud of my team’s success. I expect a lot from myself and from my team. 

We have to be responsive, reliable, and reactive to Hamilton and Southern Ontario’s growth and that’s why we have expanded our 

LTL, Warehouse, and Logistics. Hamilton is the perfect geographical location as it is central to everything. To be honest, times have 

been tough with unpredictable fuel prices and a plague of incidents leaving our highways closed several times this year. But at Fluke 

we understand that our customers depend on our ability to communicate and be transparent - these are not state secrets, but issues that 

everyone faces. We approach our customer’s solution in real time supported by technology that works for us, not the other way around. 

Maintaining my businesses in Hamilton is an easy choice... Ron Foxcroft. 

CHECK OUT OUR 

www.fluke.ca 

NEW WEBSITE! 

If you see our slogan on the roadways remember where we call home. 

If It’s On Time… It’s A “FLUKE”. 

40 

www.fluke.ca

hamilton 

the best of is where innovation goes to work 

Innovation 

Factory 

McMaster Industry 

Liaison Office 

Dedicated to helping 

new products reach their 

intended markets by 

creating links between 

academia and industry. 

The Forge 

Tech start-up incubator within McMaster 

Innovation Park, providing seed funding, 

workspace, prototyping equipment, and 

mentorship. 

It’s all about our talented workforce. 

The city’s existing workforce is highly 

skilled, well educated, and diverse. 

There is also an available workforce of 2 

million people within an hour’s drive of 

Hamilton. Several prestigious educational 

institutions are continuously strengthening 

the labour pool. 

Office spaces in Hamilton are on 

average $18-$25/sq ft (CAD) for modern 

high-rise spaces, converted lofts, and 

updated, yet funky, inspirational spaces. 

In comparison, Toronto’s Bay Street 

office spaces are $68.91/sq ft on average—more 

than four times the cost, yet 

you can reach the same markets, workforce, 

and supply chain from Hamilton. 

Hamilton nurtures talent and ideas in 

numerous ways • 

Helping entrepreneurs build businesses 

around their product/service and guiding 

small and medium-sized enterprises to 

scale through workshops, programming, 

and mentoring 

IDEAWORKS at 

Mohawk College 

Offers participating 

businesses customized 

research applications for 

specific projects, while 

simultaneously providing students with 

real-world, hands-on research experience. 

Surge 

Provides one-on-one mentorship to 

current students or alumni 41 of Mohawk 

College who are entrepreneurs or who 

want to become entrepreneurs

h a m i l t ow n h’ y s b u rf laisnt ge st to-ng r o w i n g 

40 meet 

hamilton’s 

fastest-growing companies 

The Hamilton Fast 40 program is part of the Economic 

Development Action Plan to feature 10 Hamilton-based 

businesses in the Canadian Business (CB) Magazine’s 500 

Fastest Growing Businesses list (the Growth 500). 

The Fast 40 program is designed to 

not only get a greater understanding 

of the local state of the economy, 

but encourage firms to apply for the CB 

Magazine ranking,” says Glen Norton, economic 

development director for the City of 

Hamilton. 

This great business opportunity is open 

to all Hamilton companies that meet the 

following criteria: 

• Have a head office in Hamilton 

• Questions will mirror the Canadian 

Business Magazine’s Growth 500 

competition, with similar evaluation 

metrics (growth measured by five-year 

change in revenue) 

• Companies with two or more years 

of history but less than five can also 

participate 

The City of Hamilton has encouraged all 

local businesses to consider this national 

opportunity and review the Fast 40 application. 

In partnership with some of its 

Invest Hamilton Partners, the city is committed 

to creating an annual business recognition 

program to identify and highlight 

Hamilton’s fastest growing businesses. 

“We think this is a great way to raise the 

awareness of this national opportunity to 

our local business while at the same time 

advance and celebrate those businesses that 

may be currently flying under the radar. It’s 

a simple process and we hope that many 

companies contact us for more information 

so we can help with raising their profile in 

the city and the country,” says Norton. 

For three decades, Canada’s Fastest- 

Growing Companies program has identified 

and celebrated the most important and 

innovative businesses in the country. Since 

launching in 1989, it has ranked Canadian 

businesses on five-year revenue growth. • 

42

c o m p a n i e s 


gala 

bakery 

proud of it’s growth 

What a success story for Gala Bakery 

over the short span of 10 years! It all 

started for Gala as a neighbourhood bakery. 

The Janosevic family has owned and 

operated successful local grocery 

stores since the year 2000. To this day, 

the family still runs the Glendale Bakery & 

Deli. In 2002, a representative from Traynor’s 

Bakery Wholesale, a Hamilton-based ingredient 

distributor who would become an 

important partner for Gala Bakery, visited the 

deli to appraise the Signature Vanilla Custard 

Squares for Fortino’s. Shortly after this visit, 

Fortino’s was secured as its first customer 

and Gala Bakery was born. According to 

Jacqueline Janosevic, the president of Gala 

Bakery, “We opened a small plant of 3,000 

square feet and had a staff of 3. At that time, 

we did not fully understand the complexities 

of the business but we jumped in with both 

feet!” Since then, Gala Bakery has been on 

an upward trajectory and their product line 

has grown to over 50 sweet and savoury 

products. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food 

and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA), another essential 

partner of Gala’s, has been instrumental 

to Gala Bakery’s growth over the years. In particular, 

OMAFRA assisted Gala in navigating 

the food safety certification process. These 

certifications are a requirement of working 

in the food industry and are crucial to Gala’s 

ability to compete in the marketplace. That 

was exactly 10 years ago. Four years later, 

Gala had earned the Global Food Standard 

Initiative (GFSI), the highest standard of 

certification for the food industry. OMAFRA 

also enlightened Gala about the various 

grants available to small manufacturers in 

Ontario; these grants enabled Gala to automate 

and consequently, increase production 

capacity. Jackie expressed gratitude 

to Fortino’s as well, for giving Gala 

Bakery its first break in wholesale, 

and to RBC Commercial Group 

(Hamilton), another important 

partner, who has been consistently 

supportive of Gala Bakery 

and critical to the company’s 

financial stability. 

“We are really proud of 

the entrepreneurial spirit 

in Hamilton”, said Jackie, 

“We are glad to be located 

here and be a part of 

the vibrant manufacturing 

sector of Hamilton. We 

look forward to continuing 

to grow in Hamilton and 

we are hopeful that our 

next plant will also be in 

Hamilton.” • 

Jacqueline 

Janosevic 

43


Lakeview 

Photo by: Becky Lynne Photography 

hospitality 

redefined 

Carmen’s Group has grown from a small local Hamilton bakery 

into a hospitality brand that has built and operated several 

renowned event venues, a nationally recognized boutique 

hotel, a lively Italian restaurant, a successful catering company, 

and even a celebrity event division that has raised millions of 

dollars for charity. 

Carmen’s Banquet Centre is Hamilton’s 

most beloved event venue. This luxurious 

space has been host to thousands 

of events since opening its doors in 

1987. The banquet centre can accommodate 

events up to 1000 guests and is known for 

its timeless interior, exceptional cuisine and 

warm service. 

The Best Western Premier C-Hotel by 

Carmen’s is located next door to its banquet 

centre. Previously named one of the 

top hotels in Canada by Trip Advisor, this 

boutique hotel features comfortable accommodations, 

sleek furnishings, stylish event 

spaces, and a modern Italian restaurant 

called Baci Ristorante. The facility features 

two event spaces; the classic Castelli ballroom 

and Dolce, a breathtaking rooftop 

lounge and patio offering panoramic views 

of the Niagara Escarpment and the Toronto 

skyline. 

Lakeview by Carmen’s is Hamilton’s 

only waterfront wedding venue. The venue 

embodies charm and a rustic event space set 

44


C Hotel, Dolce rooftop 

Photo by: Wendy Alana Photography 


against the tranquil shores of Lake Ontario 

in the heart of beautiful Confederation Park. 

The Hamilton Convention Centre by 

Carmen’s is one of Canada’s first full-service 

event facilities located in the heart of 

beautiful downtown. The facility has been 

rejuvenated with over one million dollars 

in renovations with more to come in 2020 

and under the new leadership of Carmen’s 

Group has become one of Ontario’s most 

prominent event and hospitality destinations. 

With Carmen’s Group’s tremendous success 

in the event and entertainment industry, 

they continue to redefine hospitality 

through its several growth initiatives and 

investments within the Greater Hamilton 

Area. • 

Hamilton Convention Centre 

Baci Ristorante 

Carmen’s Banquet Centre 

Photo by: Love Madly 

45

WPE’s proposed new headquarters 

west of Clappison’s Corners, now 

under construction 


wpe landscape equipment 

a growing company that 

is loyal to its local roots 

From its humble beginnings 

as a Dundas lawnmower 

repair shop, WPE Landscape 

Equipment, formally known as 

Windmill Power Equipment, 

has been serving the 

landscaping, construction and 

farming industries for more 

than 30 years. 

Now recognized as one of Hamilton’s 

“Fast 40” companies because of its 

amazing growth, WPE is set to 

embark on a new chapter in its growth with 

the construction of upgraded and increased 

service areas and a new showroom and 

office space west of Clappison’s Corners. 

For all of WPE’s success and growth, the 

one thing that hasn’t changed, says President 

Vince Borgdorff – is WPE’s focus on providing 

the best personal service to its loyal 

customers by the company’s 20 trained 

equipment specialists. 

With a second location in Mississauga, 

WPE serves a clientele that extends across 

southern Ontario. “We are a family operation,” 

says Vince, “and when we choose 

the equipment we sell, we try to choose 

family-owned companies with a solid reputation.” 

The most recent product acquired 

by WPE is the Mahindra line of tractors. 

Mahindra is the #1 selling farm tractor 

in the world. Recognized companies like 

Stihl, Toro, Ventrac, Western and many 

others round out WPE’s product offerings. 

WPE prides itself on community involvement 

with its support of events like the 

Cactus Festival and the sponsorship of 

sports teams. The company also offers co-op 

placements for high schoolers. “There is an 

excellent opportunity for young people to 

acquire the skills they need for well-paying 

landscaping or construction careers,” says 

Vince. WPE’s local commitment will not 

change with its move to a new location. 

“We needed better highway access to serve 

our customer base,” says Vince, “but Dundas 

is family to us.” Despite its amazing growth, 

WPE remains committed to the personal 

touch. “When a company gets bigger, 

often customers can no longer talk to the 

owner,” says Vince. “We don’t 

intend to let that happen at 

WPE.” • 

WPE 

Landscape 

Equipment has 

been 

family-owned 

for more than 

30 years. 

Pictured (L-R) 

Pauline 

Borgdorff, 

Vince 

Borgdorff, 

Dan Borgdorff. 

46



quality has a name 

MAX AICHER 

NORTH AMERICA 

Towering over New York City at 

West 57th Street and Broadway is 

the Central Park Tower. At 1550 

feet in height, it is the world’s largest residential 

tower. Max Aicher North America 

produces the high strength concrete reinforcement 

steel for the massive high rise 

tower in Manhattan. Across town, Hamilton 

steel is going into a residential tower at 

the Museum of Modern Art. Max Aicher 

products are being used in commercial 

and industrial construction projects across 

North America, including the new Gordie 

Howe Bridge that will link Windsor with 

Detroit. 

Recently, MANA was honored as one of 

Hamilton’s 40 fastest-growing companies 

due to its explosive growth. In 2019, the 

company doubled the volume of output 

from the previous year, and the company 

expects to double its production again by 

2023. 

While output at the MANA Hamilton 

operation is currently focused on the construction 

market, with threadable reinforcement 

bars being its flagship product; 

within the next month the plan is to 

diversify MANA’s product lines to include 

specialty steels for the automotive industry. 

The operation is also capable of producing 

stainless reinforcing steel, making 

it the only plant in Canada with that 

capability. 

MANA Steel also offers a wide range 

of technical support to its customer base, 

and its metallurgists are routinely involved 

in joint research and development activities 

with customers. 

The MANA operation’s 120 employees 

are currently working two shifts to keep 

up with demand. The company believes 

supporting the local job market and economy 

are top priorities, as MANA offers 

young aspiring apprentices with programs 

to jumpstart their careers in the steel 

industry. 

MANA is making major capital investments 

to improve operations and to meet 

the growing demand for its products. 

The company also is also making plans 

to develop 60 acres of prime waterfront 

industrial land on its site that are surplus 

to its needs. 

“Our goal is to be a reliable partner for 

the Canadian construction industry, said 

MANA’s senior management, we want to 

continue to be a sustainable and attractive 

partner for the Hamilton community” • 

Max Aicher reinforcing steel was used in the 

Central Park Tower in Manhattan (right) and 

in construction sites across North America. 

MANA 

management 

are planning 

to double 

production by 

2023 

47


the 40 fastest-growing 

companies in hamilton 

CAN-AM Cryoservices Corp POSH The Generator 

Catalyst Specialized Personal Training ALP Training Institute The Laundry Design Works Inc. 

Nix Sensor Ltd. Clifford Brewing Webility Solutions Inc. 

QReserve Inc. Engagement Agents CENG Technologies Inc. 

A.S. Security & Surveillance Laura Gyldenbjerg & Associates Inc. Jet Propelled, Inc. 

Collective Arts Brewing Paramount Safety Consulting Marci’s Bakery 

CoMotion Group Inc Spring Travel Service Ltd Max Aicher North America LTD 

Equal Parts Hospitality Auto Key Pro MCC Controls Inc 

MERIT Brewing Company CARSTAR P.S. MediaHouse 

Orbis Communications Caliber Communications Inc Fairway Electrical Services 

RSK Automotive & Collision Epic Tool Inc. Guest Plumbing and Heating 

Roma Bakery Joseph Haulage Canada Corp. Millgrove Farms/Singh Greenhouses 

SM Cladding Solutions One:One Manufacturing WPE Landscape Equipment 

Balzac’s Coffee Ltd. 

48



hamilton’s business parks support growth 

Hamilton offers 8 business parks featuring different properties across the city 

AIRPORT EMPLOYMENT 

GROWTH DISTRICT 

The Airport Employment Growth District is 

Hamilton’s largest business park geographically 

with 1,300 Ha of employment lands near 

the John C. Munro Hamilton International 

Airport - ranked as Canada’s busiest overnight 

express cargo airport and open 24/7, 365 

days a year with no curfew. The park is well 

situated for those companies focused on justin-time 

delivery in particular and includes 

fully serviced land that can accommodate 

major light manufacturing and warehousing/ 

fulfillment centre operations. 

ANCASTER BUSINESS PARK 

The Ancaster Business Park has 660 gross site 

acres of employment and features industries 

in life sciences, advanced manufacturing, 

food and beverage production and commercial 

warehousing. 

BAYFRONT INDUSTRIAL 

AREA 

The Bayfront Industrial Area is located in 

the north end of the city. The total area is 

approximately 3,700 acres is the heart of 

Ontario’s heavy manufacturing sector- particularly 

large-scale steel production 

EAST HAMILTON 

INDUSTRIAL AREA 

The East Hamilton Industrial Area is located 

in the north-east end of the City adjacent 

to the Red Hill Valley Parkway and Queen 

Elizabeth Way. The area comprises approximately 

560 acres and is bounded by Nash 

Road in west, Grays Road in the East, Barton 

to the south and Queen Elizabeth Way to 

the north. 

FLAMBOROUGH 

BUSINESS PARK 

The Flamborough Business Park is located 

above the Niagara Escarpment. This location 

includes approximately 630 acres of 

land within the boundary of the Park. Major 

employers include advanced manufacturing, 

life sciences and defence imaging systems. 

RED HILL BUSINESS PARK 

NORTH AND RED HILL 

BUSINESS PARK SOUTH 

The Red Hill Business Parks are 1,552 acres 

(in two distinct parcels- Red Hill Business 

Park North, and Red Hill Business Park 

South), zoned industrial, and located at 

the south end of the city. The Parks are 

strategically located at the junction of the 

Lincoln M. Alexander Parkway and The Red 

Hill Valley Parkway, and only minutes from 

the Queen Elizabeth Way and Highway 

403. Home to Canada’s largest commercial 

bakery, major life sciences employers, and 

international auto manufacturing distribution 

centres. 

STONEY CREEK 

BUSINESS PARK 

The Stoney Creek Business Park has a total of 

1,856 gross acres of employment land within 

the Stoney Creek Business Park and many 

employers focus on advanced manufacturing 

and metals and materials finishing. 

WEST HAMILTON 

INNOVATION DISTRICT / 

MCMASTER INNOVATION 

PARK 

The West Hamilton Innovation District 

Special Policy Area is a regional technology 

node that functions as a centre of innovation 

for corporate, academic and government 

research in science and technology and is 

recognized as a major entry point in to the 

City. The park contains Canada’s pre-eminent 

materials testing laboratory, an internationally 

renowned auto resource centre, 

focusing on vehicle electrification, autonomous 

vehicles and hybrid technologies 

and a major Fraunhofer Institute from the 

European Union. • 

49

1 2 

3 

4 

5 

14 

hamilton is an 

13 

1. Pigott Building, 1926 

2. THB, 1933 

3. Scottish Rite, 1895 

4. Right House, 1893 

5. Victoria Hall, 1888 

6. LIUNA Station, 1931 

7. Medical Arts Building, 1929 

8. Lister Block, 1924 

9. Hamilton Place 

10. Hamilton City Hall, 1960 

11. Carnegie Library built in 1913, one of 

over 2,500 library buildings endowed by 

Steel Magnate Andrew Carnegie. 

12. Bank of Montreal, 1928 

13. Dundurn Castle, 1835 

14. Landed Banking Building, 1908 

12 

50

6 7 


architectural showcase 

10 

11 

It’s easy to see why filmmakers choose 

Hamilton for locations—its diverse 

architecture can provide realistic backgrounds 

for almost any period in the past 

two centuries. From Dundurn Castle, built in 

1835, through Treble Hall 1879, the Tuckett 

Mansion (1895) and the Right House (1893) 

the Nineteenth Century is well represented. 

The decade ending in the mid-1930’s at the 

height of the Depression, marked a massive 

change in the skyline of Hamilton, with the 

construction of the Piggot Building (1928) 

Classical revival Bank of Montreal Building 

(1928) Two iconic railway stations (1931 and 

1933) and the Gothic masterpiece-Christ the 

King Cathedral(1933). It was this point in 

time that architecture started making the shift 

from neo-classical to modern, The CNR and 

TH&B stations were opened less than two 

years apart, yet show starkly different styles. 

Architect James Balfour designed the 

Tuckett Mansion and Treble Hall. Pigott 

Construction built the namesake skyscraper 

and the Cathedral. • 

8 

9 

51

lamont 

law: 

on the leading 

edge of evolving 

personal injury law 

For 43 years Michael Lamont has 

seen a lot of changes in the practice 

of personal injury law. One thing that 

hasn’t changed is the focus on ensuring 

the client comes away from the process 

with a sense of satisfaction. “We try to 

make sure our clients can experience a 

measure of healing—that they can still 

get on with their lives with dignity,” 

says Michael. “The future can be a 

scary place after an injury.” 

That won’t change as Michael’s 

daughter Erica assumes the lead role 

in the firm. The transition is part 

of careful succession planning that allows 

Michael “to step back…not out,” as he puts 

it. “The companies that are successful are 

ones who develop succession plans that 

assure longevity, stability and the ability to 

adapt,” says Erica. “Lamont Law is successful 

because we focus on being a boutique firm 

that adapts to change and we really care 

about our clients.” 

Erica was born and raised in Hamilton, 

Ontario. She attended the University of 

Waterloo, obtaining an Honours Bachelor 

of Science Degree in Science and Business, 

specializing in Biochemistry with a minor in 

Economics. After her undergraduate degree, 

she attended the University of Calgary 

where she earned a Masters of Science 

52


degree specializing in Biochemistry and 

Molecular Biology. Throughout her experience 

and her educational journey, she kept 

circling the field of law. With a background 

in science, Erica believed she could use her 

knowledge when reviewing client’s medical 

information and building a case. She 

returned to the University of Calgary and 

graduated with a Juris Doctor in 2013. 

She knew she would be a good fit at 

Lamont Law because Michael Lamont was 

not only her dad, but also her first employer. 

He believed in demonstrating a strong 

work ethic with his children and she started 

answering the phones for the firm and running 

errands when she was 14 years old. 

She is trying to inspire the same work ethic 

with her three boys, who come to “work” 

on PA days. 

Erica is a conscientious litigator who 

advocates for her clients while treating 

them, and their families, with compassion 

and respect. Her practice includes all areas 

of personal injury law including motor vehicle 

accidents, motorcycle accidents, pedestrian/car 

accidents, trucking accidents, 

bicycle accidents, slip and fall accidents, 

dog bites, dog attacks, nursing home negligence, 

sexual assault cases and medical 

negligence. Additionally, Erica advocates 

for individuals who have been denied long 

term disability. 

As Lamont Law moves forward it remains 

focused on the needs of individual clients—a 

strategy the company has followed 

since Michael founded the firm more than 

four decades ago and will continue with 

Erica at the helm. 

“After a serious injury 

a person has to 

adapt to a new way 

of life. We care about 

our clients and telling their 

stories. Our aim is to help 

them navigate the legal 

world so they can focus on 

recovering.” Erica Lamont 

53

taylor leibow 

local expertise–global reach 

Taylor Leibow is one of the largest and most respected 

independent accounting firms in the Greater Hamilton and 

Burlington area. 

At a time when many of the 

national accounting firms moved 

out of Hamilton, Taylor Leibow 

has stayed true to the local commitment 

made in 1947 when Sam Taylor and 

Kevey Leibow started the firm in downtown 

Hamilton. CEO Nigel Jacobs says 

the company has grown to 12 partners 

and over 70 staff by constantly seeking 

to implement best practices, hiring the 

best people and providing excellent client 

service. Occupying a suite of offices 

covering two floors in Effort Square, the 

full-service firm’s largest service offerings 

are accounting and taxation, but it also 

offers expertise in business valuations 

and litigation support, restructuring and 

insolvency services for individuals and 

corporations. In addition, Taylor Leibow 

has developed a number of niche services 

including professionals, not-for-profits, 

auto dealerships and real estate. 

While maintaining its local expertise, 

Taylor Leibow has expanded its global 

reach through its membership in DFK 

International - a global association of 

independent accounting, tax, legal and 

business advisory firms. DFK represents 

more than 220 firms with 419 offices in 

92 countries worldwide with member fee 

income of $1.3 Billion. Nigel Jacobs now 

serves as President of DFK Canada, which 

54


comprises of 13 independent member firms 

with over 124 partners and 595 staff in 

most major centres in Canada. “The value 

of DFK is that we are independent and yet 

we share best practices to learn from each 

other which is very valuable for our firms. 

In addition, our firms are able to service 

our clients across the globe and provide 

Canadian expertise to our international 

members,” said Nigel. Between serving on 

the board of DFK International representing 

Canada and his duties with DFK Canada, 

Nigel is on the road frequently. Recent stops 

include Dubai, Munich, Honolulu, Madrid, 

Prague, Singapore and London, as well as 

many Canadian and North American stops. 

“It’s all about building relationships,” says 

Nigel. Everywhere I go I am waving the 

Canadian flag and promoting Hamilton 

and Burlington.” At a time of mergers in the 

accounting industry how does a company 

like Taylor Leibow not only stay independent 

but thrive to the degree it has? “The 

key,” says Nigel “is to have a good succession 

plan and the resources to attract good 

people and provide great value-added services 

to clients. We go beyond traditional 

‘bean counting’ to meet our clients’ needs. 

A number of the mergers in the business 

these days are brought about by the lack 

of succession planning. Partners retire with 

no plan in place to transition existing client 

relationships resulting in the business being 

sold or merged into larger firms.” By contrast, 

Taylor Leibow is now managed by its 

third generation of partners. 

A talented and committed workforce 

is essential to maintaining a successful 

organization. Taylor Leibow knows one of 

the keys to attracting and retaining a new 

generation of talent is to live the firm’s core 

values, ongoing engagement and community 

involvement which appeals to younger 

professionals. “Our retention of talented 

professionals is high,” says Nigel. “We 

are also very active in the community,” he 

adds, “not just by providing financial support 

to worthy community organizations 

but also by encouraging our employees to 

actively participate in events- volunteering 

and interacting with the community whenever 

we can. We appreciate the ability to 

get involved and give back to the community 

where we are located.” • 

Taylor Leibow 

CEO, Nigel Jacobs 

55

The new buildings at the Woodward 

Avenue Treatment plant retain echoes 

of the Greek revival architecture of the 

original 1859 pump house, now home 

to the Hamilton Museum of Steam and 

Technology. 

safeguarding 

hamilton’s 

water supply into the future 

It is one of the biggest single projects ever undertaken by 

the City of Hamilton. When it is completed, the Woodward 

Wastewater Treatment Plant Upgrades will represent an 

investment of $340 million. 

The City of Hamilton has committed 

more than $530 million to the 

Clean Harbour Program including 

the Randle Reef containment project and 

remediation of the Windermere basin to a 

sanctuary for wildlife and a healthy, diverse 

Great Lakes costal wetland. Investments in 

natural habitat restoration create opportunities 

for recreation and make Hamilton 

a more attractive site for new businesses. 

These are important investments made 

by the City of Hamilton with the support 

of other funders, often the Province of 

Ontario and Government of Canada. 

The largest investment of the Clean 

Harbour Program is the Woodward 

Upgrade project, which aims to meet the 

targets set out in the Hamilton Harbour 

Remedial Action Plan. There are three main 

components to the Woodward wastewater 

treatment plant upgrades—a new main 

wastewater pumping station, the addition 

of Tertiary Treatment and new electrical 

system upgrades. The current pump station, 

nearing 60 years of service, handles all of 

the city’s sanitary waste, before it enters the 

wastewater treatment phase. The new pump 

station will be able to handle up to 1.7 bil- 

56


” A bird’s 

eye view of 

the massive 

concrete pour 

for the new 

pumphouse 

lion litres per day reducing the likelihood 

of the treatment plant being overloaded 

during wet weather, which can result in 

raw sewage overflows into the harbour. The 

addition of Tertiary Treatment garners the 

greatest environmental impact at an investment 

of $165 Million. This new process 

will improve removal of total suspended 

solids and total phosphorus going into the 

harbour. The third major component is the 

70-million dollar upgrades to the electrical 

system, which will power the facility with 

new higher capacity generators. In the past 

25 years, thanks to consistent leadership 

and investment by the City of Hamilton 

and other partnering agencies, the quality 

of water in the Hamilton Harbour has 

improved by leaps and bounds. And the 

new upgrades will ensure Hamilton residents 

will have a reliable and safe wastewater 

treatment process as the city experiences 

significant growth in the years ahead. 

The Woodward 

Avenue upgrades 

represent the largest 

single infrastructure 

project in the 

history of Hamilton 

Quantities to end of June 2019 

57

Hamilton’s 

popular 

traffic island 

beautification 

sponsorship 

program has 

delighted 

residents and 

visitors to the 

city 

Volunteers from 

ArcelorMittal 

Dofasco’s Team 

Orange clean 

up around 

Woodland 

Park, just 

one of many 

community 

volunteers 

groups helping 

to keep 

Hamilton 

beautiful 

58


hamiltonians pitch in to make 

hamilton beautiful! 

Hamilton prides itself on 

the way members of the 

community devote their time, 

energy and resources towards 

beautifying their city. Imagine 

a community program with 

25,000 volunteers! 

That’s how many Hamilton residents 

turn out each year for the city’s 

Team Up to Clean Up program. This 

program provides all the tools needed to 

run a community cleanup including gloves, 

recycling bags and specially marked garbage 

bags. These dedicated volunteers invest more 

than 45,000 volunteer hours to help clean 

our community. 

Traffic Island Beautification 

The Hamilton in Bloom sponsorship program 

turns traffic islands into beautiful flower 

beds. The program offers sponsors a 

unique and highly visible opportunity to 

reach a target market in an innovative way. 

Sponsorship is recognized in several ways, 

including the installation of a sign visible to 

motorists and pedestrians who travel by the 

flower beds every day. The response from 

residents and visitors to this innovative sponsorship 

program has been overwhelmingly 

positive. The Hamilton In Bloom program 

benefits us all in so many ways—it improves 

our air quality by reducing airborne dust 

and pollution and the vibrant colours and 

lush greenery in the traffic islands provide 

both residents and tourists with a sense of 

peace, pleasure and civic pride. The cost 

of sponsoring goes toward maintaining the 

flower island-planting, including watering 

and weeding. Packages range from $750 to 

$2500. 

Great parks make 

great neighbourhoods! 

The concept of a group of individuals coming 

together to become the caretakers of their 

park is what defines an Adopt-a-Park group. 

Adopt-a-Park groups consist of volunteers 

from businesses, service groups, schools and 

neighbourhood associations. These groups 

help to maintain their park by undertaking 

litter clean-ups, planting and weeding gardens, 

and reporting vandalism and graffiti. 

Some groups hold community barbecues 

and events in their parks to encourage community 

engagement. Working with City staff, 

these volunteers help to improve park amenities 

and create clean and safe parks. The 

program helps keep public places in your 

neighbourhood clean and safe for everyone. 

You can host a clean up event on City property 

including: parks, trails, alleyways, streets 

and parking lots. • 

City of 

Hamilton’s 

Community 

Clean Trailer 

providing tools 

and equipment 

for clean-up 

volunteers 

59

Hamilton has 227,000 

acres of prime 

agricultural land 

agri-food 

a billion dollar industry 

Hamilton is home to over 120 food and beverage manufacturers 

and over 9,500 skilled workers across the agri-business and 

food processing supply chain. Located in the centre of one of 

the largest regional food processing clusters in North America, 

Hamilton is the ideal destination for food industry investment. 

Agriculture is a significant component 

of the local economy and generates 

over a billion dollars in economic 

activity into the City of Hamilton on an 

annual basis. It’s not just food processing 

that drives the Hamilton Agri-food sector. 

Hamilton is an area with a strong agricultural 

land base, the majority of the 227,000 acres 

within the Hamilton boundaries qualify as 

prime agricultural lands. 

More than $200 million has been invested 

in agri-food facilities in the past decade. 

More than 3 million metric tonnes of soybeans, 

corn, wheat and other commodities 

are shipped from the Port of Hamilton annually 

— a third of the port’s cargo, and the 

second largest shipping category after steel. 

Some highlights of the growth of 

Hamilton’s agri-food sector include: 

• Mondelez candy factory with the 

announcement of a $40-million plant 

expansion which will ship product across 

North America. 

Bread on 

assembly line 

at Canada 

Bread’s 

Hamilton 

plant—the 

largest bakery 

in Canada 

60


• Parrish and Heimbecker who installed 

60,000 tonnes of storage space in two 

large domes and built the province’s first 

flour mill in 75 years has a further expansion 

underway to double milling in the 

Hamilton facility. 

• Sucro Sourcing — The sugar refinery 

opened on Ferguson North with a $10 

million storage and processing facility. 

• Bunge —expanded its Burlington Street 

operation with a $60-million edible oil 

refinery. 

• The rise of new craft breweries is the 

new normal in Hamilton which now has 

more than a half-dozen breweries, whose 

popularity has given rise to organized bus 

tours. • 

Processing 

cooked meat at 

Maple Leaf foods 

in Hamilton 

Collective Arts 

Brewery—one of the first 

of Hamilton’s growing 

Craft Breweries 

61

CIBC Place, 1 King St. West, Hamilton. 

Proudly managed by Effort Trust 

effort trust 

proud to be part of 

hamilton’s growth 

for five decades 

At Effort Trust we are specialists in real estate financing and development, 

with expertise in mortgages, commercial and residential development, 

property and asset management. For more information www.efforttrust.ca


judy marsales real estate ltd. 

brokerage sold on hamilton! 

Judy Marsales 

Broker of Record 

Since opening their doors in 

January 1988, Judy Marsales 

Real Estate Ltd., Brokerage has 

carved a special niche as one 

of the area’s few independently 

owned and operated real estate 

firms. The company has earned 

a reputation for exceptional 

client service, professionalism, 

strong business ethics and most 

importantly, performance. They 

believe that being independent 

allows the flexibility to choose the best 

approach to serve the real estate needs of 

their clients. Since buying or selling a home 

or property is one of the most important decisions 

clients ever make, it’s important to have 

confidence and trust in your realtor. With 

three offices and over fifty salespeople, The 

Judy Marsales Real Estate Ltd. team offers 

amazing real estate expertise across a wide 

spectrum of knowledge and experience. 

Believing that it is important to contribute 

to the community in which 

we live and work, Judy Marsales and 

her many colleagues play an active role 

in local affairs and community events. 

Judy has been an outspoken champion 

for the City of Hamilton as President of 

both the Realtor’s Association of Hamilton 

Burlington and Hamilton & District 

Chamber of Commerce, has sat on many 

boards of directors is a respected public 

speaker and a strong supporter of the arts. 

She is a former MPP for Hamilton West and 

2011 Inductee in the Hamilton Gallery of 

Distinction. Once a month, Judy hosts her 

own radio show, Sold on Hamilton, which 

highlights some of the city’s community 

supporters, musicians and innovations. • 

Three locations to serve you 

Westdale 

Ancaster 

Locke 

www.judymarsales.com 

65

est of the best 

the argyll and 

sutherland highlanders 

of canada (princess louise’s) 

“An infantry regiment,” Capt Claude Bissell wrote, consists of little except human 

beings.” As such, they are defined, like human beings, by their character. The 

range of human organizations is considerable but few have their history written 

in blood. During the First World War, the Argylls first great commander, LCol 

Lionel Millen, DSO, wrote (4 April 1916): my duty is the care of ... [the] men ... 

We have just to do the best we can, in our own way, and looking forward to the 

day when the war is over.” 

Argylls, Provincial Reconstruction 

Team, Afghanistan 2009 

66


CSM George 

Mitchell, C 

Company, 

Argylls accepts 

German 

surrender on 20 

August 1944 at 

St Lambert sur 

Dive, France. 

A 

few months later, he wrote: “... it 

is a hard, hard game and I hope 

the day is not very distant ... when 

it will all be over. So many of our best and 

finest going.” During the Second World War, 

the Argylls’ great leader, LCol Dave Stewart, 

DSO, wrote: “It wasn’t long until it was evident 

that I commanded the best Battalion in 

the Brigade.” 

Raised in 1903, the 91st Highlanders, 

later the Argylls, have a history marked by 

service and sacrifice and the continuous 

striving to be the best. The Regiment’s great 

symbols are kilts and bagpipes but, from 

1903 till today, the hallmark of the Argylls is 

service to Canada and the sacrifice that may 

attend it. Over 5,000 served in the First War, 

the casualty rate was over 60%; over 3,000 

served in the Second, the casualty rate was 

over 33%. Their service and sacrifice were 

marked symbolically by the Pipes and 

Drums of the 19th Battalion (our battalion 

in the First War) playing a victorious 

Canadian Corps across the 

Rhine River into Germany 

in November 1918; in July 

1945 the Argyll Pipes & 

Drums led the Canadian contingent 

in the British victory 

parade in Berlin. 

Yet, there is more to a 

Regiment than its symbols. At 

the core of 116 years of history is sacrifice. 

From 1903 till today, thousands of men and 

women from the Hamilton area have devoted 

several nights weekly and one weekend 

or so monthly to train as the primary reserves 

of the nation’s armed forces. The lure of 

the profession of arms, a sense of duty, the 

intense camaraderie, and the need for extra 

income explain, in part or in combination, 

the attraction to the Regiment and the service 

it embodies. It requires a sacrifice of 

personal time far beyond most extra-curricular 

pursuits and a sustained commitment 

to professionalism. This dedication has 

framed Argyll service every week of every 

month of every year, and in two world wars, 

civil emergencies, the augmentation of UN 

and NATO deployments overseas: Cyprus, 

former Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, Africa, 

Ukraine, Latvia, and Lebanon. 

The Regiment draws its strength from 

what it is and what it gives to its sons and 

daughters. Pte James Farrell, a Second 

War veteran observed; “…in the army 

…it’s hard to explain; - you’re automatically 

a friend, you’re one of them. And 

no matter who you are or what you are 

– colour, creed or anything – you are one 

of them and that’s it…” Tom Kedney, 

another private and fellow veteran, 

described a ‘Fantastic bunch 

of fellows’. And when you 

talk, ‘One for all and all 

for one’…I can honestly say 

that means for everything 

they have for their mind, for 

their possessions, for everything. 

And the esprit de corps 

type of thing…I’m certainly 

glad that I went though it and I’ll never 

experience that type of thing again…” 

Here is the Regiment’s sustaining power 

from this quality, an experience rare within 

human society, but common to the Argylls 

and revealing of the best of the human 

condition, then, now, and tomorrow. • 

67

labourers’ international 

union of north america 

In the nearly 70 years of 

its existence in Hamilton 

LIUNA Local 837 has 

made tremendous strides 

in improving the life of 

construction workers. 

From its beginning as a labour organization 

fighting to improve the treatment 

of immigrant workers, LIUNA 

now is a major provider of specialized 

training and apprenticeships. Today LIUNA 

Local 837 represents approximately 4,000 

workers and their families. The LIUNA 

Pension Fund over its 40 years of existence, 

has invested heavily in construction projects 

that have transformed Hamilton and 

provided employment for its members. The 

conversion of the former CNR station into 

the banquet and conference facility, LIUNA 

Station was the first major investment in the 

James Street north area, and was the biggest 

single catalyst for the renaissance of the 

area into the arts and entertainment district 

that is today enjoyed by thousands. The 

restoration of the Lister Block after several 

decades of neglect was another illustration 

of LIUNA’s vision in re-imagining Hamilton. 

More recently LIUNA’s re-development of 

the William Thomas Block into modern, 

affordable student housing, has made an 

impressive addition to Hamilton’s skyline. 

For all of its success in infrastructure 

investment, LIUNA is still about people. 

It starts with LIUNA’s focus on providing 

the next generation of construction workers 

with the specialized knowledge and 

skills necessary for a career in today’s 

Young people exploring 

the many training 

opportunities offered by 

LIUNA at a job fair. 

transforming 

68


highly-technical construction industry. It 

includes a major focus on safety, both in 

the operation of tools and equipment, and 

in handling hazardous materials. LIUNA 

provides annual scholarships to the children 

of its members and works closely with 

educational institutions to support apprenticeships 

and training. With all of these 

initiatives, LIUNA has not lost sight of its 

initial mission, to provide job security and 

improved opportunities for its members and 

their families. • 

LIUNA and its members support many local charities, 

including the St Joseph’s Hospital Foundation. Pictured, 

LIUNA Local 837 Secretary-Treasurer and Assistant 

Business Manager Riccardo Persi (Left) and International 

Vice President and Regional Manager for Central and 

Eastern Canada, Joseph Mancinelli with organizers of St. 

Joe’s Around the Bay Road Race fundraiser. 

Young 

trainees 

get some 

pointers on 

safe use of 

equipment. 

hamilton 

69 

Two LIUNA projects that have transformed Hamilton’s 

downtown: the Lister Block (right) and The newly 

completed William Thomas student residence (rear).

Our talented staff 

guide a group 

of committed 

community 

volunteers to 

provide the best 

in community 

programming. 

your community connection 

In the nearly fifty years since Cable 

14’s predecessor started operations on 

Hester Street in Hamilton providing 

programming to six cable services, the 

goal has not changed. Today as in 1970, 

Cable 14 has been committed to showcasing 

the Greater Hamilton area as the best 

place to live, work, play and learn, by promoting 

innovation, engaging citizens and 

providing an avenue for diverse voices and 

alternative points of view. From community 

events, engaged opinion, coverage of 

arts, comprehensive focus on the municipal 

political scene, to quintessentially 

local programs like Kiwanis Bingo, Cable 

14 seeks to include the entire community 

with its diverse interests in its community 

access programming. At a time when 

local news and public affairs coverage is 

uncertain in some communities, it is vital 

that Cable 14 continue on its mission of 

connecting to the community. 

Our technology is second to none. 

We have been broadcasting in High 

Definition since 2013 and in 2015, Cable 

14 launched a new service that lets 

Hamiltonians watch live and on-demand 

video content, all curated by people who 

love Hamilton. It combines the passion 

and expertise of our Staff, Community 

Producers and Production Volunteers with 

the latest technology to deliver compelling 

local programming wherever and whenever 

our viewers demand it. Cable 14 

could not exist without the investment 

and support of our shareholders; Cogeco 

Communications Holdings Inc. and Rogers 

Communications Canada Inc. • 

70


Our state-of-the-art studios and mobile 

facilities provide our viewers with quality, 

High Definition local programming. 

IS 

LIVE 

LOCAL 

ONLINE 

who we are 

Whether it was Cable 8, Cable 4 or Cable 

14, the commitment to connecting viewers 

to the community has not changed. 

Cable 14 is a local specialty channel 

serving the Hamilton and Haldimand 

communities for over 45 years. 

Our viewing area includes the 

amalgamated communities of Ancaster, 

Dundas, Stoney Creek, Mount Hope, 

Binbrook and parts of Flamborough 

(excluding Waterdown), as well as the 

surrounding communities of Cayuga, 

Dunnville, Hagersville, and Caledonia. 

There are approximately 130,000 

subscribers in Cable 14’s service area. 

71

firstontario 

credit union 

powers nutrition programs 

to give students the boost 

they need 

Andy starts every other Tuesday at a Hamilton elementary 

school before his workday even begins. After he hangs his coat 

up in the small prep room just before the principal’s office, he 

and the other volunteers get to work. 

The second day of the school week 

means fresh-cut cucumber slices, 

granola bars and yogurt tubes. The 

snacks are prepped, sorted and hand delivered 

to each classroom. He’s off to work 

before the students even realize he was there 

at all. 

These are your local student nutrition programs 

at work and they were implemented 

to ensure young students get a good start to 

their day with healthy breakfasts and snacks. 

Andy is a FirstOntario Credit Union employee 

and he is part of FirstOntario’s Blue Wave 

staff volunteer team. These volunteers have 

devoted more than 10,000 hours of their 

time since 2010, and many of these hours go 

to nutrition programs all which span the four 

different regions where FirstOntario services 

its Members. More than 74,000 kids benefit 

with an improved school performance and 

increased energy level. 

“We know the immediate, positive 

impact these types of nutrition programs 

have on young students,” said 

Joanne Battaglia, Vice President, 

Marketing, Communications and 

Community Partnerships and 

Blue Wave volunteer. “Our 

Blue Wave volunteers genuinely 

care and they want to 

make a difference. As a credit union, this 

is how we reinvest our profits for a higher 

purpose, by supporting these programs that 

are vital to our communities”. 

Close to 300 employees play an important 

role in many different events and initiatives. 

Since 2014, FirstOntario has invested more 

than $1.25 million into student nutrition 

programs that provide these healthy snacks 

to elementary school students. More than 

70 Blue Wave volunteers 

have given over 

2,800 hours to 32 

different programs by 

72

Photo courtesy of the Hamilton Bulldogs 

helping to prep, package, deliver and even 

serve. 

The credit union is also partners with the 

Hamilton Bulldogs Foundation. They work 

together to support Adopt a School which 

gives students a chance to connect with 

Bulldog players and community leaders. 

The goal is the same – to give the kids the 

healthy snacks they need to have a fun 

and productive day at school. FirstOntario 

backs this initiative with funding and volunteers 

“The partnership between FirstOntario 

and the Bulldogs Foundation is truly something 

special in our community,” said Peggy 

Chapman, Director, Hamilton Bulldogs 

Foundation. “FirstOntario is not only the 

main corporate sponsor, their Blue Wave 

volunteers bring hands-on support essential 

for the delivery of our nutrition program. 

Without these 

dedicated volunteers, 

we wouldn’t be able to 

feed the amount of students 

we do every day.” 

The hours that are accumulated by Blue 

Wavers do not go unnoticed. When a volunteer 

reaches 96 hours of service, not only are 

they recognized and celebrated, but they get 

to choose a charity that’s important to them 

to share in their achievement. FirstOntario 

donates $500 to the charity for the first milestone, 

$750 for the second and $1,000 for the 

third. To date, $23,500 has been given to various 

local charities including Wesley, Good 

Shepherd and the Ronald McDonald House. 

Doing things for the right reasons is reflected 

both in the value FirstOntario offers in its 

products and services and in the values it 

embodies as an organization. For more than 

80 years, the credit union has offered competitive, 

market-leading lending rates, deposit 

interest rates and services with low or no 

fees, all while making significant community 

investments. Visit FirstOntario.com to learn 

more about the credit 

union, what it has to 

offer and how it continues 

to make an impact 

locally. • 

73

h a m i l t o n i a n s w h o m a d e a 

may carpenter 

hamilton’s first female political heavyweight 

The only 

known 

portrait 

of May 

Carpenter 

Prime 

Minister 

MacKenzie 

King relied 

on May 

Carpenter 

as a political 

organizer 

When history buffs think of Hamilton female political pioneers, 

normally the names of Nora Francis Henderson and Ellen 

Fairclough come to mind. 

But May Carpenter was ahead of them 

all. Before Norah Henderson became 

Hamilton’s first female alderman and 

later, controller, May Carpenter had already 

become one of the most politically influential 

women in Canada. Born in Dutton, Annie 

May Cascaden attended the University of 

Toronto, married lawyer Harry Carpenter in 

1898 and moved to Hamilton. It’s 

unclear when she first became 

politically active but she caught 

the eye of future prime minister 

Mackenze King during the 1911 

Ontario election when they were 

both campaigning for candidates 

in Hamilton. He recalled her 

from university days describing 

her as “a charming women... lots 

of character and sound commonsense.” 

By the early 1920’s May 

Carpenter was a leader in both 

the Hamilton Council of Women 

and the National Council of 

Women and extremely active in 

national and provincial politics. 

Women now had the vote and in 

the 1921 federal election which 

saw Mackenzie King become 

prime minister, May Carpenter 

campaigned across Ontario, culminating 

with her sharing the 

podium with King at a massive rally in 

Toronto. 

Turning her attention to provincial 

politics in 1922 May Carpenter became 

president of the Ontario Women’s Liberal 

Association and was actually nominated for 

the party leadership, which she declined. 

1926 was another year of firsts as husband 

Harry unsuccessfully contested a seat in the 

September federal election and then two 

months later, May became the first woman 

nominated as a provincial Liberal candidate 

in Hamilton. An advocate of prohibition, 

May was roundly defeated in a city where 

workingmen preferred the Tory promise to 

legalize the sale of beer. 

Clearly the Carpenters had proven their 

loyalty to the Liberal cause and in 1928 

Harry Carpenter’s name was put forward 

for a vacant judgeship. Carpenter won the 

appointment but King’s diary made it clear 

Harry...”owes his appointment mostly to his 

wife who has been a great worker in the 

Liberal cause...It is very hard to get good 

men...” 

Following Carpenter’s appointment to the 

bench May had to reduce her partisan 

Liberal activity, but she still felt free to 

take an interest in municipal politics. In 

November of 1931 she became the first 

woman ever to run for Hamilton Board of 

Control, finishing 7th in a race for 4 positions 

and capturing a respectable 7,000 

votes. After this, May Carpenter appears 

to have pulled back from her political 

activism, sticking to Council of Women’s 

activities. 

The Carpenters had no children and in 

1937 Harry died. May lived on in their 

home on 30 Hess Street in Hamilton until 

her own death in 1949. 

Although elected office eluded her, May 

Carpenter’s career is noteworthy. Her nomination 

for the Ontario Liberal leadership 

and her election to the party executive were 

proofs of her skill at gaining the confidence 

of both men and women. Her pioneering 

political efforts were an inspiration to 

people like Norah Henderson and Ellen 

Fairclough who followed her lead into 

politics. • 

74

d i f f e r e n c e 


chester walters 

perhaps the most honoured public servant 

in ontario history was a hamiltonian 

A poor kid with little formal education Chester Walters rose to be 

one of the most powerful and feared public servants in Ontario 

government history and the possessor of no less than 7 honorary 

degrees from universities. 

Born in 1878, Walters moved to 

Hamilton at the turn of the last century 

to pursue his accounting career. 

He soon became involved in local Liberal 

politics which brought him into the orbit of 

Thomas Baker McQuesten, who was a rising 

young Liberal organizer at the time. 

Walters and McQuesten were both members 

of Hamilton City council when Walters 

successfully ran for mayor in 1915. The 

Great War was on and the 37 year old 

Walters, an Argyll, volunteered for the 

army eventually rising to the rank of Major 

and serving in both Europe and in Siberia 

in 1919. 

On his return to Hamilton Walters was 

appointed Dominion tax collector for 

Hamilton and soon the newspapers were 

full of stories of Walters’s acumen in collecting 

taxes and ferreting out tax cheats. Soon 

he was promoted to a senior posting the 

Federal Tax office in Ottawa where again he 

garnered praise for his aggressive collection 

methods. Even after the Liberals lost out 

to the R.B. Bennett Conservatives Walters 

survived the transition and was doing well 

until 1932, when he was abruptly demoted 

to a minor position. 

Walters was not sidelined for long. In 

1934, Mitch Hepburn swept to victory in 

Ontario and brought with him, Walter’s 

old friend Thomas Baker McQuesten as 

Highways and Public Works Minister. In 

no time, McQuesten had installed Walters 

as his deputy minister and from there his 

financial brilliance was soon noticed by 

the Premier who, within months, appointed 

him Deputy Minister of Finance. Over the 

ensuing years Walters gained almost dictatorial 

powers over the bureaucracy and 

indeed politicians. Even members of the 

cabinet, when promoting various spending 

measures would be told, “you’ll have to 

check with Chester.” 

The Hepburn Liberals including 

McQuesten were routed in the 1943 provincial 

election, and Walters might have 

expected the axe to fall, especially 

because of his close personal ties 

to Hepburn and McQuesten, but 

incoming Premier George Drew had 

seen Walters up close over the years, 

and decided to keep him in the 

deputy finance role. When Drew 

retired, his successor Leslie Frost 

made the same decision. By now 

Walters was being described in 

media reports as a finance wizard, 

seemingly indispensable to the government 

of the day. Walters didn’t 

retire from the Deputy Ministership 

until he was 75 in 1953, but even 

then Premier Frost insisted that he 

stay on as his own special advisor. 

Working right up to the end, 

Walters died in 1958. He 

was 80. • 

Walters joined 

the Canadian 

Expeditionary 

forces at age 

38 and rose 

to the rank of 

Major. 

75


attracting 80 new 

businesses to hamilton 

in five years! 

C.W. Kirkpatrick coined the 

phrase “The Ambitious City” 

The years immediately following the 

First World War were a swashbuckling 

time for industry in Canada. That 

is when, after a successful career In journalism 

in Hamilton and Buffalo, Clarence 

Willoughby Kirkpatrick was appointed 

industrial commissioner for Hamilton. He 

came into the position at a time when 

American manufacturing companies were 

setting up branch plants in Canada as a way 

of avoiding the tariff barrier that denied them 

access to Canadian and British markets 

In his first year in the position Kirkpatrick 

was credited with attracting some 33 businesses 

representing a capital investment in 

today’s dollars of $265 Million. All this on an 

office budget of $4,000. Between 1919 and 

1924. Kirkpatrick was credited with attracting 

more than 80 businesses to Hamilton, 

many of whom continued operations 

in Hamilton for decades: 

Firestone, Fuller Brush 

Co., Beech Nut, Libbey- 

Owens and Dominion 

Glass, Dexter Lock, 

Hamilton By 

Products Coke 

Oven Co., Hoover, 

Maple Leaf 

Milling, Quaker 

City Chemical, 

and United Gas 

(now Enbridge) to 

name but a few. It 

also must be acknowledged 

that some of the 

companies announced, 

Kirkpatrick’s first of many promotional 

publications for Hamilton industry. 

never materialized; such was the haphazard 

manner in which start-ups were capitalized 

in an era before strict investor protection 

legislation was implemented. 

The Hamilton Herald of 1919 is filled 

with articles praising Kirkpatrick’s accomplishments 

with headlines like, “Another 

new industry…Kirkpatrick lands it,” or “It’s 

a poor day when (Kirkpatrick) doesn’t get 

one now.” Of Quaker City Chemicals’ relo- 

76



cation to Hamilton, the headline, “Industrial 

Commissioner Kirkpatrick still at it.” 

Kirkpatrick produced a handsome 

37-page promotional booklet, Hamilton, 

Canada, the City of Opportunity—500 

Diversified Industries in which he extolled 

the virtues of Hamilton as a place to 

do business. He coined the phrase “the 

Ambitious City”. Many of the advantages he 

described still resonate today—Hamilton’s 

proximity to US markets, the harbour, rail 

connections. An advantage then that is not 

present today was the availability of cheap 

hydro-electric power. During Kirkpatrick’s 

time as Industrial Commissioner, Hamilton 

was ranked third or fourth in industrial 

output among Canadian cities and number 

one on a per capita basis. By 1924 nearly 

50 percent of the Hamilton workforce 

was engaged in manufacturing. Kirkpatrick 

eventually left the industrial post with an 

unmatched record of success behind him 

and finished his working career as secretary 

of the Automobile Club. He died in 1944. 

The Spectator obituary describes a man 

of “cheerfulness, broad sympathies and 

broad winning smile. If a load of care 

weighed heavily upon him at any time no 

one ever knew it.” there is no doubt C.W. 

Kirkpatrick could take credit in large part for 

the emergence of Hamilton as an industrial 

powerhouse. • 

C.W. Kirkpatrick’s prowess as industrial 

commissioner made him a media darling in 

Hamilton and Toronto 

The Hamilton Firestone plant in 1924—one of Kirkpatrick’s successes 

77


ckoc founder 

foresaw the age of chain retailing 

Remembered today primarily for 

his founding of Hamilton Radio 

Station CKOC, Herbert Haslam 

Slack hit his peak as a merchandiser at a 

time when Canadian Tire Corporation, the 

future giant with a similar product line, 

was just getting launched. At the time of his 

death in 1932 at the early age of 37, Herb 

Slack had built what was then described as 

Canada’s largest radio and automotive supply 

business. The Wentworth Radio and Auto 

Supply Company Limited ultimately boasted 

stores in Hamilton, Toronto, St Catharines, 

Kitchener and Montreal. Herbert Haslam 

Slack was born in 1894 in Nottinghamshire, 

England. In 1919 he set up Wentworth Auto 

Supply on Barton Street, taking residence in 

an apartment above the shop. The business 

prospered quickly and by 1922 Herb moved 

the business to a new location on John Street 

in Hamilton. It was here in the same year 

that Herb purchased a licence to operate a 

radio station—CKOC. It was only the second 

commercial radio station In Canada after 

XWA, the forerunner of CFCF Montreal, was 

licensed in 1919. 

The licensing of CKOC immediately 

served to provide a powerful marketing 

tool for Wentworth Automobile Supply. 

Indeed, much as would happen with the 

Internet later, the early users of radio saw 

it as a promotional gimmick for core commercial 

businesses. Slack soon added radio 

receivers to his automotive product line 

and changed the name of the company to 

Wentworth Radio and Automobile Supply 

Company. 

The addition of the radio line to his company, 

supported by the promotional power 

of CKOC , led to a period of extraordinary 

growth for Slack, now barely 30. By 1928 

Wentworth Radio and Auto Supply opened 

a second branch on Bay Street in Toronto 

at Bloor, a location now occupied by Bay- 

Bloor Radio. Enthused the Toronto Globe 

regarding the opening of the Toronto store, 

“A new epoch will be written in the annals 

of the Wentworth Radio and Auto Supply 

limited.” To demonstrate the increase in 

the importance of radio to the venture the 

paper described a “luxuriously appointed 

demonstrating studio where radios ranging 

in price up to $2,000 were to be found.” 

Following the Toronto expansion, a flood 

of new Wentworth Radio branches quickly 

followed . By 1929 the company could 

boast of three stores in Toronto. Hamilton 

now had three locations, two stores were 

opened in Montreal, and one each followed 

in St Catharines 

and Kitchener. 

The 1929 

Wentworth catalogue 

described a 

radio department 

alone with a fleet 

of 20 cars and 40 

servicemen . 

Just as the company 

had enjoyed 

explosive growth 

from 1928 to 

1929, by mid 1931 the Depression had just 

as quickly begun to erode the company’s 

fortunes. Sales for that year were off by 17 

percent and the company posted a loss of 

$32,000. An October 1931 report revealed 

that the company had closed unprofitable 

stores and was bracing for further losses. 

As all this was happening Slack contracted 

appendicitis, and after an operation, contracted 

septic poisoning and died, 

Slack’s untimely death at the beginning 

of the Depression affected his personal 

fortune. On probate, his estate was valued 

at $184,000—the equivalent of over 

$3Million in contemporary dollars—but 

over 70% of the estate was in stocks which 

were not necessarily liquid assets in the 

depths of a depression. • 

One of Slack’s 

many stories in 

Ontario by 1930 

78



florence lawrence 

“first movie star” came from hamilton 

Almost totally forgotten today, 

Florence Lawrence was a dominant 

leading figure in US cinema in the 

first two decades of the 20th century. She 

made and lost fortunes and died under tragic 

circumstances. Florence Annie Bridgewood, 

usually known as “Flo” Lawrence, was born 

in Hamilton, on January 2, 1886 and lived 

at 46 Jackson Street East. After a divorce her 

mother took Florence to New York and, the 

next few years were spent on the road and 

on the theatrical stage. Florence began her 

career in the motion picture industry with 

a role in an Edison Company short, Daniel 

Boone/Pioneer Days in America in 1907. 

Moving to the American Mutoscope and 

Biograph Company, Lawrence appeared in 

most of the sixty short motion pictures that 

D.W. Griffith directed in 1908. As her effect 

on audiences became measurable, she set 

herself apart by insisting on weekly and 

not daily wages, twice the normal salary, 

and her own makeup table. Following the 

Biograph policy of not identifying players 

in order to keep them from demanding 

more pay, she was known as “the Biograph 

girl. Due to her growing demands on the 

Biograph management; she and her director 

husband Harry Solter were fired. They 

were soon hired, however, by producer 

Carl Laemmle, who had just started the 

Independent Motion Picture Company, better 

known as IMP 

Now promoted as a picture personality 

with a name, Lawrence, along with Solter, 

worked at IMP for eleven months and made 

approximately fifty films. Sometime around 

1911 Lawrence and her husband started 

one of the first US film companies to be 

headed by a woman: the Victor Company. 

Formed in 1912 with backing from Carl 

Laemmle, the first Victor studio then set 

up in Fort Lee, New Jersey, and salaries 

were raised to $500 a week for Lawrence 

and $200 a week for Solter. The studio was 

not a success., however and following the 

breakup of her marriage, Lawrence’s career 

began to slide. 

Florence Lawrence attempted a return 

to the screen in 1921, but she found it 

extremely difficult to find acting work—she 

even underwent plastic surgery on her nose 

in 1924, hoping to improve her luck. For 

the next few years Florence invested in a 

number of unsuccessful business ventures. 

In the sound era, Lawrence, like many 

former stars, began around 1936 to get 

bit parts at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, earning 

$75 a week. But Florence Lawrence’s health 

had failed by now. Still suffering chronic 

pain from an accident she suffered while 

performing a stunt in a film years earlier, 

and now very ill with a debilitating bone 

marrow disease, On December 27, 1938, 

Lawrence was found unconscious in her 

West Hollywood apartment: she had killed 

herself by eating ant paste. The Hamilton 

girl’s note to her landlord read, “Dear 

Bob, Call Dr. Wilson. I am tired. Hope 

this works. Good bye, my darling. They 

can’t cure me, so let it go at that. Lovingly, 

Florence - P.S. You’ve all been swell guys. 

Everything is yours.” • 

Florence Lawrence 

in some of her 

screen roles 

79


sol mintz 

a colourful sportsman, 

businessman, political organizer 

When Solomon (Sol) Mintz died 

in 1951 A Spectator columnist 

eulogized him thusly: “In the 

death of Sol Mintz, Hamilton has lost one 

of its finest and warmest personalities...Mr. 

Mintz had a tremendous fund of interesting 

stories and he told them well. No story we 

ever heard from him was designed to gain 

laughter or applause at the expense of anybody 

else.” 

If Sol Mintz was a master story 

teller, he came by it honestly, 

because he lived a rich life 

as a sportsman, salesman, 

horse trainer and in his 

best known role, one-time 

manager of the career of 

Tom Longboat—the Six 

Nations distance runner 

who was at one time 

considered the world’s 

best. 

Sol’s parents were in 

the hairdressing trade, 

which included wig-making. 

The family business, I 

Mintz Hair Emporium, first 

appears in city directories 

around 1900. The business appears 

to have been a prosperous one and 

Sol took up the hair trade with his parents. 

Within a few years the family was living in 

a fine home on James Street South. 

While still working in his parent’s business 

Sol Mintz became a well-known 

horseman. His name frequently appears in 

the Toronto press as a successful owner and 

trainer. One of his horses, Caper Sauce, was 

a ten year old, who, despite its age, was a 

big winner, providing Mintz with 8 wins, 8 

places and 6 shows over a two year period. 

Mintz’s name showed up frequently in the 

Toronto sports pages. 

At the same time as he was investing in 

horse racing, Sol became involved in what 

he later would say was his favourite sport-- 

-marathon running. In 1909, Sol purchased 

from Tom Flanigan, the management contract 

of Tom Longboat, the Six Nations runner 

who a year earlier had won the Boston 

Marathon. Longboat was past his peak at 

this point, but Sol arranged a race with the 

famed British runner Alfie Shrubb at New 

York’s Madison Square Garden. Two years 

later Longboat purchased his contract back 

from Sol, but the two remained friends. 

After the First World War Sol became a 

real estate agent—a career he pursued for 

the next decade or more. Around 1930 

Sol became active in local Liberal politics. 

He headed a group of Liberals who 

revolted against a clique headed by T.B. 

McQuesten who tightly controlled Liberal 

affairs in Hamilton. When McQuesten was 

named President of the Ontario Liberal 

Association, Mintz fired off a letter to 

Liberal Leader Mackenzie King predicting, 

“our most excellent chances in federal and 

provincial elections would be ruined by this 

man as president.” It took a few years but 

eventually Mintz and his supporters wrested 

control of Hamilton Liberal affairs from 

McQuesten, as Mintz became president of 

the Hamilton West riding association. 

Ever the promoter, just before his death 

Mintz was in Toronto promoting the legalization 

of pinball machines against stiff 

opposition in the staid city. When he died 

a Spectator editorialist wrote, “with friendship 

for all and malice towards none, might 

be a fitting epitaph for a fine and gracious 

character.” Sol Mintz had lived a full life. • 

80



norah frances henderson 

champion of social justice, 

equality for women 

Norah Frances Henderson didn’t 

make many friends as the only 

female on Hamilton’s Council and 

Board of Control for 17 years but she served 

as a role model for socially conscious women 

in the 1930’s and 1940’s; and in some ways 

her legacy grew after her death. Today, both 

a hospital and more recently, a public 

school bear her name. Before entering politics, 

Norah enjoyed a successful career as a 

journalist with the Hamilton Herald, serving 

as “women’s’ editor.” But far from covering 

society teas and charity bazaars, Henderson 

was writing about such subjects as the plight 

of beggars in Hamilton, the need for women 

on hospital boards and City Council. She 

was active in the local Council of Women, 

and, with the onset of the Depression and 

unprecedented social problems, it was this 

group that urged Henderson to run in the 

1931 municipal election. Successful in her 

first attempt at elections, the feisty Henderson 

entered council declaring herself ready “to 

begin irritating people on a large scale.” And 

so she did, championing the policies of the 

League for Social Reconstruction founded 

by left-wing Canadian intellectuals. Soon 

she was advocating a complete re-thinking 

of the Canadian financial system. In 1935, 

backed by the same Council of Women that 

had first elected her to council, Henderson 

captured a vacant seat on Hamilton Board 

of Control. She advocated for an increase 

in the city’s welfare budget to support the 

more than 8,000 families on relief but was 

unsuccessful. Quickly realizing she could 

not bring about fundamental change from a 

post at the municipal level, Henderson ran in 

the 1935 federal election. She had chosen to 

run as a candidate for the Reconstructionist 

Party- an offshoot of the Conservatives and 

was soundly defeated. Back at council, she 

urged the shift of welfare expense away 

from municpalities to the provincial government—with 

some modest success. Her 

remining time in public office was marked 

by a strange mix of social justice advocacy 

coupled with advocating prudent spending. 

With the end of the war, labour unrest 

was rampant in Canada, and 

in perhaps the most notorious 

event in her career, Norah 

Francis Henderson, 5 feet 1 

inch, crossed a steelworkers 

picket line in the 1946 Stelco 

strike. She braved catcalls, jostling 

and a kick from an angry 

crowd of 1,000 picketers. The 

issue for her was the fact that 

the strikers were occupying 

the plant and holding prisoner 

a group of workers who 

had refused to join the union. 

She took the position that even 

though she favored the right 

of workers to organize and to 

strike, it was wrong to hold the 

workers against their will. The 

incident marked a watershed 

for Henderson who realized 

her crossing of the picket line 

would alienate many voters. 

She did not run in the 1947 election and 

instead took a position as executive director 

for the Children’s Aid Society. In a parting 

shot to council, who snubbed her by not 

inviting her to the 1948 Council inaugural, 

she said, “may you have a minimum of 

headaches and enjoy yourselves in your 

solitary male splendor.” Norah found the 

CAS work much more satisfying than endless 

jousting with council colleagues, but 

the respite was relatively short-lived. She 

contracted an undisclosed illness that hospitalized 

her, and she died in March 1949 

at age 51. • 

Norah-Frances 

Henderson made 

national headlines 

and local enemies 

when she crossed 

the Stelco picket 

line during the 

1946 strike. 

81

hamiltonians who made a difference 

ellen fairclough: 

canada’s first 

woman in cabinet 

Ellen Fairclough continued a tradition of Hamilton women who 

made a significant impact in politics. The tradition started in the 

1920’s with May Carpenter rose through the ranks of the Liberal 

Party and became a close advisor to Prime Minister Mackenzie King. 

The mantle was then picked up in 

the 1930’s and 1940’s when Norah 

Frances Henderson pursued a successful 

career as Hamilton’s first woman 

controller. Ellen Fairclough was a chartered 

accountant by training, and ran an accounting 

firm prior to entering politics. She was a 

member of Hamilton, Ontario City Council 

from 1945 to 1950. She also served as a 

member of the executive for the Girl Guides 

of Canada prior to her election as a Member 

of Parliament. 

Fairclough first ran for federal office as 

a Progressive Conservative in the 1949 

federal election, in which she was defeated 

by incumbent Liberal MP Colin Gibson in 

Hamilton West. When Gibson was appointed 

to the Supreme Court of Ontario the 

following year, however, Fairclough ran 

in and won the resulting by-election. 

Early in her career as a Member 

of Parliament, she advocated 

women’s rights including 

equal pay for equal work. 

When the PC Party 

took power as a result of 

the 1957 federal election, 

Prime Minister 

John Diefenbaker 

appointed her to the 

position of Secretary 

of State for Canada. 

In 1958, she became 

Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, 

and from 1962 until her defeat in 1963, she 

was Postmaster General. As Immigration 

Minister in 1962, Fairclough introduced 

new regulations that mostly eliminated 

racial discrimination in immigration policy. 

She also introduced a more liberal policy 

on refugees, and increased the number of 

immigrants allowed into Canada. She was 

defeated in the 1963 election by Liberal 

Joseph Macaluso. 

In 1979, she was named an Officer of 

the Order of Canada, and was promoted 

to Companion in 1994. In the fall of 1996, 

she received the Order of Ontario, the 

highest honor awarded by the province. In 

1982, a Ontario government office tower 

in Hamilton was officially named the Ellen 

Fairclough Building. 

In recognition of her status as a pioneering 

woman in Canadian politics, she was 

granted the rare honour of having the title 

Right Honourable bestowed upon her in 

1992 by Queen Elizabeth II, one of very 

few Canadians to have the title who had 

not been Prime Minister, Governor General 

or Chief Justice. In 1995, she published 

her memoirs, Saturday’s Child: Memoirs of 

Canada’s First Female Cabinet Minister. 

She died in a Hamilton, on November 

13, 2004, aged 99 years.. On June 21, 

2005, Canada Post issued a postage stamp 

in honour of Fairclough. • 

82

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Kindness of 

Strangers had 

its debut at the 

2019 Berlin 

International 

Film Festival 

A Hamilton industrial property 

used in filming of Shazam! 

Hamilton’s 

Scottish 

Rite forms a 

background for 

Handmaid’s Tale 

the world sees hamilton on the screen 

Moviegoers and TV watchers around the world may not know it but often they are looking at Hamilton. Year after year more 

producers choose Hamilton for location shooting – whatever filmmakers need, Hamilton can be gritty and beautiful, and 

offers resources for film crews that include Hamilton-based film businesses, a wide range and great quality of hotels, accommodations, 

and restaurants, and by filming here you can access tax credits. 

Hamilton is the second busiest film location in Ontario and hosts hundreds of productions every year who come here because 

of our location, wide range of neighbourhoods and architecture, small town feel with big city backdrops, diverse rural landscapes, 

and our people. There are many reasons why Hamilton has been chosen for film locations. They include, location-Located within a 

one-hour drive to Toronto and the US border. Hamilton’s location makes it the first city outside of Toronto to be eligible for tax credits 

and other incentives. Most important though, are the locations with 200 distinct neighbourhoods representing many different eras, 

old and new architecture: thousands of acres of green space: parks and conservation areas and film-focused businesses and talent. 

Hamilton’s LIUNA Station showcased 

in the hit series Umbrella Academy 

84


Filming the Netflix series Designated 

Survivor starring Kiefer Sutherland 

Kurt Russel 

plays Santa in 

the Christmas 

Chronicles 

It Chapter two 

has grossed 

over $459 

Million 

Many Hamilton landmarks 

are familiar in the Murdoch 

Mysteries series. 

85

h a m i l t o n i a n s w h o m a d e i t i n 

eugene levy 

Eugene Levy, a Westdale and McMaster grad, is the only 

actor to have appeared in all eight of the American Pie 

films, in his role as Noah Levenstein. Since 1971 he has 

appeared in over three dozen movies and countless TV 

series, starting with SCTV. Levy received the Governor 

General’s Performing Arts Award, Canada’s highest honour 

in the performing arts, in 2008. He was appointed to the 

Order of Canada on June 30, 2011. He currently stars as 

Johnny Rose in Schitt’s Creek, a comedy series that he 

co-created with his son and co-star, Dan. In 2019, he was 

nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding 

Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. 

martin short 

Martin Short came to prominence for his work on the 

television programs SCTV and Saturday Night Live. He has 

starred in numerous comedy films, such as Three Amigos 

(1986), Innerspace (1987), Three Fugitives (1989), Father 

of the Bride (1991), Pure Luck (1991), Captain Ron (1992), 

Father of the Bride Part II (1995), Mars Attacks! (1996), 

Jungle 2 Jungle (1997), the Santa Clause 3 and The Escape 

Clause. He created the characters Jiminy Glick and Ed 

Grimley. In 1999, he won a Tony Award for his lead performance 

in a Broadway revival of Little Me. 

86

f i l m , m u s i c a n d t h e the abest of rhamilton 

t s 

daniel 

lanois 

Daniel Lanois has released several albums of his own 

work. However, he is best known for producing albums 

for a wide variety of artists, including The Spoons, Bob 

Dylan, Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, Emmylou Harris, 

Willie Nelson, and Brandon Flowers. The co-founder 

of Hamilton’s Grant Avenue Studios, Lanois also collaborated 

with Brian Eno: most famously on producing 

several albums for U2, including the multi-platinum The 

Joshua Tree and Achtung Baby. Three albums produced 

or co-produced by Lanois have won the Grammy 

Award for Album of the Year. Four other albums received 

Grammy nominations. Lanois wrote and performed the 

music for Billy Bob Thornton’s film Sling Blade. Rolling 

Stone called Lanois the “most important record producer 

to emerge in the Eighties”. 

steve smith 

Versatile Steve Smith singlehandedly created his own production 

company, starting with the musical-variety show 

Smith & Smith, starring Steve and wife Morag, at CHCH in 

Hamilton starting in 1979. In 1985 Smith created the family 

sitcom Me & Max. followed by The Comedy Mill, which 

ran for four years. In 1991 Steve created and starred in the 

Red Green Show which filmed more than 300 episodes and 

was successfully syndicated throughout North America. He 

toured as Red Green in 34 US cities in 2019. Steve Smith 

was made a Member of the Order of Canada, and received 

an honorary Doctor of Letters from McMaster University. 

87


valerie 

tryon 

Born in Portsmouth, England, Valerie Tryon was performing 

regularly in public while still a child. She became one of 

the youngest students ever to be admitted to the Royal 

Academy of Music. She has performed piano concertos 

with the Hallé Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic, London 

Philharmonic, London Symphony Orchestra, Toronto 

Symphony Orchestra, Brott Music Festival and other 

major orchestras. In 1976 Valerie Tryon became Associate 

Professor of Music at McMaster University; in 1980, the 

post of Artist-in-Residence at McMaster was created for her. 

She became a naturalised Canadian citizen in 1986. 

boris brott 

Boris Brott was born in Montreal to a classical music family 

He studied violin with his father, and performed at the age 

of five with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra. Later he 

studied music in Montreal and went to Europe where he 

conducted orchestras in England including the Royal Ballet 

Covent Garden. He served as assistant conductor to Leonard 

Bernstein, with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra in 

1968-69. Moving to Hamilton he headed the Hamilton 

Philharmonic Orchestra for more than 20 years, elevating it 

from amateur status to a major professional orchestra. He 

now heads the Brott Music Festival and the National Academy 

orchestra and is a sought-after guest conductor around the 

world. He is a member of the Orders of Canada and Ontario. 

88


t s 

skip 

prokop 

Skip Prokop was born in Hamilton, and attended Hill Park 

Secondary School. He learned to play the drums as a member 

of the Navy League and Sea Cadets, winning a competition 

at age 17. His first band was The Paupers, a mainstay in 

Toronto’s Yorkville during the 1960’s. He went to the US as a 

session man and recorded with Janis Joplin He also did sessions 

with Carlos Santana and Peter, Paul & Mary and other 

musical artists. He co-founded the pioneering jazz-rock 

band Lighthouse in 1969, which had a successful run until 

1975. After Lighthouse Skip worked in radio both behind 

the microphone and in advertising sales. He died in 2017. 

rita chiarelli 

Born and raised in Hamilton, Ontario, Rita Chiarelli, is 

Canada’s most highly acclaimed female roots and blues 

artist. She started her career playing with the Ronnie 

Hawkins Band, and has performed throughout Canada, 

the United States and Europe throughout her career. 

She filmed the musical documentary, Music from the 

Big House at Louisiana’s Angola prison and released the 

soundtrack – her 9th recording. With a JUNO award and 

4 subsequent JUNO nominations, she is known across 

Canada as the “Goddess of the Blues”. Showing no signs 

of slowing down, Chiarelli continues to tour incessantly in 

North America and Europe and intends to spend more time 

performing in the U.S. over the next few years. 

89


tom wilson 

Tom Wilson has been a prolific writer and performer 

for many years. Wilson’s eclectic musical style has 

ranged from the psychobilly / R&B sounds of the 

Florida Razors, to the western/roots style of Blackie 

and the Rodeo Kings and the funk/blues inspired 

rock of Junkhouse, the band he fronted in the 1990s. 

His songs have been performed by Mavis Staples, 

Colin James, Stephen Fearing, Adam Gregory, Billy 

Ray Cyrus, and others. Numerous Wilson songs have 

been used in television, commercials and film. In 

2017 Wilson published a memoir of his life to date, 

titled Beautiful Scars, addressing his discovery of his 

Mohawk heritage. His latest musical group is Lee 

Harvey Osmond. 

graham 

greene 

Born in Oshweken, Graham Greene lived in Hamilton as a young 

adult. He studied theatre in Toronto and started his acting career in 

1974 in Canada and the UK. After working in various roles in film and 

TV Graham’s Academy Award–nominated role as Kicking Bird in the 

1990 film Dances with Wolves brought him fame. He followed this 

role with films and performances on TV series, including Thunderheart, 

Benefit of the Doubt, and Maverick, and the television series Northern 

Exposure and The Red Green Show. Greene also acted alongside 

Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson in the 1995 film Die Hard with a 

Vengeance. Graham Greene was awarded an honorary doctorate at 

Wilfrid Laurier University and is a member of the Order of Canada. 

90


t s 

ivan reitman 

Ivan Reitman, OC was born in 

Czechoslovakia. His Family brought him 

to Canada where he graduated from 

McMaster University where he produced 

films. He worked with David 

Cronenburg in the 1970’s. His first big 

break came when he produced Animal 

House in 1978. Notable films he has 

directed include Meatballs (1979), 

Stripes (1981), Ghostbusters (1984), 

Twins (1988), Kindergarten Cop (1990), 

Dave (1993) and Junior (1994). Reitman 

has also served as producer for such 

films as Beethoven (1992), Space Jam 

(1996), Private Parts (1997) and Up in 

the Air (2009), the latter of which was 

nominated for the Academy Award for 

Best Picture. 

brian linehan 

Born in Hamilton, Linehan moved to Toronto at age 

19, where he worked for Odeon Cinemas and later 

Janus Films. He joined Citytv in 1973 as the host of City 

Lights, a program which would eventually become 

syndicated throughout Canada and the United States. 

Linehan was renowned for his composure, interview 

skills and meticulous research, often leading to 

in-depth questions that could last for minutes. His 

guests often responded to his questions with astonishment 

at his depth of knowledge. From 1996 to 1998, 

he hosted a second show entitled Linehan, which 

was produced for CHCH-TV in Hamilton. He won a 

Gemini Award as Best Host in a Lifestyle or Performing 

Arts Program for his work on the show.[4] After that 

show ended, he taught a television production course 

at Toronto’s Humber College. He died in 2004, leaving 

his estate to a foundation that supports film. 

91


frank 

pannabaker 

Frank Pannabaker showed early promise as an artist, and 

his father was so encouraged that he was able to attend 

the Ontario College of Art under Arthur Lismer and J.E.H. 

MacDonald. He continued his artistic studies at the Grand 

Central School of Art in New York City A self-supporting 

professional artist for his entire adult life, he began his 

painting career during the Great Depression in Hamilton, 

where he lived with his wife Katherine. He achieved his first 

success in 1933 when at a Toronto show Sara D. Roosevelt, 

mother of Franklin D. Roosevelt, purchased one of his 

paintings. The ensuing publicity resulted in Frank selling 

18 more. Several of his works depicted familiar Hamilton 

scenes and form part of the art collection at ArcelorMittal 

Dofasco. Pannabaker died in 1992 aged 87 years. 

ian 

thomas 

Starting his career with the group Tranquility Base, 

Ian Thomas burst on the international music scene 

with his hit song “Painted Ladies”, which became 

a U.S. Top 40 hit. The song “Runner” was recorded 

by Manfred Mann’s Earth Band. He has also 

provided musical composition for about a dozen 

films and television shows. In 1974, he won a 

Juno Award for “Most Promising Male Vocalist of 

the Year”. That year he toured in eastern Canada 

with April Wine. Many of his songs have been 

covered by popular artists, including “Hold On” 

(Santana, 1982), “The Runner” (Manfred Mann’s 

Earth Band, 1984), and “Right Before Your Eyes” 

(America, 1983). 

When he isn’t performing his own shows, he 

tours the country with good friends Murray 

McLauchlan, Marc Jordan, and Cindy Church in 

a band called Lunch At Allen’s. 

92


t s 

steve 

paikin 

Born in Hamilton Steve Paikin was educated at Toronto 

and received a Masters of Journalism in Boston. After 

reporting jobs in private radio and print media, including 

the Hamilton Spectator and Toronto radio station 

CHFI, where he was Toronto City Hall reporter from 

1982–85, Steve worked for CBC and CBC Newsworld. 

In 1992 Steve Paikin began his lengthy career with 

TVO, hosting a number of current affairs programs 

until the Agenda With Steve Paikin was launched in 

2006. He acted as a moderator for federal leaders 

debates in 2006, 2008, and 2011; and for Ontario 

provincial leaders debates in 2007, 2011, 2014, and 

2018.He is the author of several books on politics and 

is a member of the Orders of Canada and Ontario. 

dave 

thomas 

In a four-decade acting career, Dave Thomas has 

won most of the major awards-ACTRA, Emmy, 

Juno and Grammy. After a short career in advertising, 

Dave joined the cast of SCTV in 1976 where 

he worked with fellow performers, Eugene Levy, 

John Candy and Martin Short. It was there that he 

created the beloved character Doug, of Bob and 

Doug Mackenzie that went on to be featured in 

Saturday Night Live. Since then he has enjoyed a 

prolific career in TV and movies as actor, producer 

and writer with more than 60 productions to his 

credit. 

93

Photo by: Brian St. Denis 

Photo by: 

Joani Wedding 

Décor 

A picture-perfect wedding 

At Ball’s Falls Conservation Area 

What could be more perfect 

than a wedding in a natural 

heritage setting? Ball’s 

Falls Conservation Area offers 

unforgettable backdrops with 

two magnificent waterfalls, picturesque hiking 

trails, and wedding venues in a historical 

village from the 1800s, nestled on the scenic 

Niagara Escarpment. 

From engagement shoots and intimate 

ceremonies to reception celebrations, our 

distinctive properties offer majestic scenery 

as the perfect setting for a storybook wedding 

and the start to your ‘happily ever after’. 

When you celebrate your wedding in one of 

Niagara’s most unique places, you can choose 

from a variety of indoor and outdoor spaces 

that boast both elegance and romance. 

Photo by: Tiffany Clark 

OUTDOOR NATURAL CEREMONY 

There’s something so effortlessly romantic 

about an outdoor wedding ceremony. You’ll be 

surrounded by lush, full and beautiful green 

trees, gorgeous blooming flowers, or spectacularly 

coloured leaves. Our picturesque backdrops 

are stunning settings for your outdoor 

ceremony. Ball’s Falls features 4 locations for 

outdoor ceremonies, with our V-section that 

can accommodate up to 190 persons being the 

most popular, located behind the Big Barn. 

HISTORICAL CHAPEL 

Our historical chapel is the perfect setting 

for your dream wedding, this fully-restored 

and newly upgraded chapel features warm 

wood tones; both rustic and elegant, wonderful 

ambiance, and seating for 110 guests, 

with two aisle ways. 

Celebrate in elegant rustic beauty. Email or


Photo by: Dragi Androvski 

THE BIG BARN 

The Big Barn provides a rustic venue with 

some fresh air on the big day, bring your 

own decorator and caterer and make this 

unique venue your very own. The Big Barn 

can accommodate the ceremony and the 

reception, with seating for 190 guests. 

GLEN ELGIN ROOM 

This high-style and elegant reception venue, 

located inside the Ball’s Falls Centre for 

Conservation, provides year-round accommodation 

with spectacular views through 

floor-to-floor ceiling windows overlooking 

nature. The Centre for Conservation is a fully-accessible, 

green building surrounded by 

gorgeous blossoms during the summer, and 

frosty snowflakes in the winter. The Glen 

Elgin Room seats up to 150 of your closest 

family and friends, and offers you the opportunity 

to turn your dream wedding into a 

reality… 

Surrounded by gorgeous blossoms during 

the summer, and frosty snowflakes in the 

winter, our Glen Elgin Room offers you the 

opportunity to bring your dream wedding 

to reality. As with the Big Barn, the Glen 

Elgin Room is fully furnished with tables and 

chairs, awaiting the creative touches of your 

decorator and caterer. 

The Glen Elgin Room overlooks the beautiful 

scenery, which leads to the Upper Falls. 

Couples will have access to a patio for an outdoor 

ceremony and/or cocktail hour options, 

or for dancing under the stars at night. 

BRIDAL SUITE 

Our Bridal Suite is exclusive to couples 

booked at one of our venues, and is available 

to assist with your special day. Brides 

or grooms and their wedding parties will 

have access from 8 a.m. until the end of your 

wedding day. We are certain that your hairdresser, 

make-up artist, and photographer 

will all love this large room, as it offers comfort, 

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give us a call! | @NPCA_Ontario 

Our Customer Relations Representative 

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step of the way! Contact us today 

by email at weddings@npca.ca or by 

phone 905-562-5235 ext. 21

Price: $12. 95

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