RESTORE COOTES

"Created in 2002, the ACT Office (All-modes Commuting & Transportation) existed to inspire McMaster faculty, staff and students to bike, hike, take transit and share the ride to campus. In November 2008, the ACT Office transformed into the Office of Sustainability where initiatives relating to sustainable transportation will continue to thrive". http://www.mcmaster.ca/sustainability/alternative_transportation.html  "The university also hired an external consulting firm....the results of which strongly suggested the development of a ...TDM [Transportation Demand Management] scheme. It is unclear whether or not such a scheme was ever created." "Improvements in access to alternative transit and facilities have not been met with the anticipated participation increase due to lack of management policy that discourages driving and rewards modal change"   Jessica S. Becker, "Understanding commuting decisions:  a case study of students and staff...

"There is an increasing acceptance by the traffic engineering and urban planning professions of the concept that carparking should not become an end in itself, but be recognized as only one phase of overall planning and transportation policies. It is further recognized that carparking policies and pricing can have major influence upon the successful implementation of transport programs. Simply put, cheap parking encourages heavy usage of the private auto, and concurrently requires larger parking facilities and costly roadway improvement works…. We believe that the University should limit its responsibility in such access/egress matters to:   providing only a sufficient quantum of carparking to serve the needs of those users willing to pay the full charges for same;   soliciting and encouraging public transport authorities to improve service schedules and routes" R.F. Smith, Manager of Engineering, McMaster Health Science Centre, 4th March 1969 [Letter: P...

Hamilton's Trails Master Plan has a planned trail connection that would link the busy Hamilton to Brantford Rail Trail to the Spencer Creek Trail system in Dundas. The new trail would run roughly north - south along the Ancaster Creek valley between Main/Osler and Cootes Drive, and run parallel to the creek through McMaster's west campus, further enhancing McMaster's position as a hub for a regional network of trails. Trouble is, there needs to be enough room to fit the trail along the Ancaster Creek and McMaster's parking lots, which would require McMaster to act on their Campus Master Plan's call for a minimum 30m naturalized buffer between the creek and the McMaster parking lots in Lot "M." Unless McMaster fulfills this (minimum) requirement, any chance of a connecting trail will be weakened (hikes will be through paved parking lots), if not abandoned.

Banksy, "Parking" L.A. USA Like many others in the city, I find myself riding through Dundas Valley on my bicycle along the Rail Trail, enjoying the changing seasons, stopping to rest at a bench, maybe taking a lunch and eating it on a sunny hilltop. Yesterday, returning to the city across a newly-paved extension of the trail at its eastern reaches, we see train cars parked on the other side of a fence. The trail here parallels the train yard until the path veers to the right and joins the city street network. Those trains, or trains like them, once ran on tracks where we now walk and ride bicycles. There is a long history of trains bringing people between cities and towns, and farmer's produce to market here. The Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo Railway (TH&B, also sometimes referred to as "To Hell and Back") was incorporated in 1884, but by 1998 the track between Hamilton and Brantford had been removed and the rail bed transformed into a crushed grave...

Which of these proposed lots in West Campus were never built? (From "McMaster University Internal Traffic and Parking Report, Ultimate Campus Development" February 1969) (answers: W4 - 90 spaces  and Lot W6, 200 spaces on the west side of Ancaster Creek, both  to be built in 1972 . Also, the G4 section was to be a parking structure to hold 1,000 vehicles with a completion date of 1975)

Friday, March 9, 2012 Dear McMaster University Planning Committee, I am writing to follow up on the issue of paving in McMaster parking lot “M.” I had written to you previously in March 2011 with concerns relating to the section of Lot M, closed for the past three years due to construction of a Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) tank by the City of Hamilton. As well, I raised the issue of the entire parking lot’s proximity to Ancaster Creek. I had asked that the campus master plan’s “minimum” 30 metre naturalized buffer zone between the creek and the parking be administered to this area. The May 10, 2011 response from the committee through the Office of the Provost Vice-President (Academic) unfortunately declared, “the demand for vehicular transportation continues and the need for parking remains. We do, therefore, need to restore the parking Lot M” – on this point I must vigorously disagree. As the recent “McMaster University Campus Capacity Study” (April 2011) indicates,...

McMaster University Campus Master Plan 2002: "7.3.12 A number of opportunities exist for campus development to contribute to enhancing the water temperature, water quality and fish habitat of Ancaster Creek. A continuous stream buffer with a minimum width of 30 metres will be provided between the stream bank and the parking lot edges. This will in certain cases involve cutting back the edges of existing parking lots. The University will work with community partners to naturalize the buffer with native trees and shrubs." 30 metres from the creek, west end of Lot M   Volunteers from Ontario Public Interest Research Group (OPIRG) McMaster took measurements to see how far the 30 metre buffer zone between Zone M Parking at McMaster would extend into the existing parking area. 30m from creek, north side of Lot M, west end With the campus lots overbuilt for the current parking demand, there is ample room to rehabilitate a 30 metre buffer zone. If the university decide...

Ancaster Creek, pre-parking conditions at McMaster (C1965) McMaster University Campus Master Plan . March 2002 7.3.11 Existing treed areas along the rail alignment, Cootes Drive, Ancaster Creek and adjacent to Westaway Road, will be preserved as much as possible as the West Campus becomes intensified. 7.3.12 A number of opportunities exist for campus development to contribute to enhancing the water temperature, water quality and fish habitat of Ancaster Creek. A continuous stream buffer with a minimum width of 30 metres will be provided between the stream bank and the parking lot edges. This will in certain cases involve cutting back the edges of existing parking lots. The University will work with community partners to naturalize the buffer with native trees and shrubs. 7.3.13 Development of West Campus should proceed on the basis of an appropriate, state of the art stormwater management plan that directs site-related stormwater run-off water into a system of wet ...

A chance to catch the vision for east Dundas!: Dundas Eco-Gateway Plan Walk-About What’s a Walk-About? It’s a tour of the study area to show the public the potential changes to the area when the Dundas Eco-Gateway Plan is implemented. It’s also a great way to get some exercise and see one of Hamilton’s beautiful natural areas that has the potential to be so much more. The Hamilton Conservation Authority, the City of Hamilton and Royal Botanical Gardens have developed a draft plan for the “Dundas Eco-Gateway Plan”. The plan presents a future vision for natural area preservation and trail linkages along Cootes Drive in Dundas, from McMaster University to Main Street. It also includes a more detailed design plan for King Street East in Dundas, from East Street to Olympic Drive. The detailed design includes a rehabilitation plan for the former Veldhuis Greenhouse site. Join us if you can, and wear appropriate footwear. Date: Wednesday, July 14, 2010 (weather permitt...

The eastern end of Dundas could really use a vision , and this project has it in spades. The potential for the canal property to be the catalyst for beneficial and transformative changes to this area of town that has been the subject of so much recent controversy . The philosophy that guides the plan is absolutely what we need more of: restoration of natural habitats . The only bit of information I would add to the article is the danger the intersection of King and Olympic presents. I've seen some awfully close calls when cars make a left turn onto Olympic here. Closing King would not be a big deal, really . C'mon Hamilton, get over your cars first ideals. Plans for former greenhouse property move ahead Fundraising and approval for project are starting now Craig Campbell, Dundas Star News Staff,  Published on Jul 01, 2010 A phase three environmental assessment to determine if soil contamination is leaching into the Desjardins Canal will take place after Hamilt...

Very welcome news for Cootes Paradise!  Public wins Pleasantview fight Jun 16, 2010 The city and local residents have successfully preserved the Pleasantview area of Dundas from urban development. The provincial government has now refused a developer-sought amendment to the Parkway Belt West plan and is tranferring the rural Dundas lands to the protection of the Niagara Escarpment Commission. A June 2 provincial cabinet decision signed by the Minister of Natural Resources Linda Jeffrey adds the Pleasantview lands and five other parcels in other parts of Ontario to the Niagara Escarpment Planning Area. The shift takes effect on July 1 and affects “the lands lying west of the westerly limit of King’s Highway No. 6 and north of the northerly limit of King’s Highway 403 to the easterly limits of Olympic Drive and the northerly limits of Cootes Drive” between those boundaries and the current escarpment plan area. Tim McCabe, the city’s head of economic development an...

Two weeks ago, Restore Cootes was asking "How well thought out is this plan?" to put a Velodrome on Olympic Park. The question was mostly rhetorical, and our concern is borne out in this latest news from the Dundas Star. Zoning and soil do not support velodrome at Olympic Park, say city, RBG officials Craig Campbell, Dundas Star News Staff Published on Jun 03, 2010 Olympic Sports Park is on top of a former landfill and not capable of supporting a building, according to one conservation expert. City of Hamilton planning staff would not elaborate on the comment made by Tys Theysmeyer, head of conservation and natural lands for the Royal Botanical Gardens, which owns property not far from the Olympic Drive natural area. But according to the city’s planning department, the property’s zoning only permits outdoor recreation. The National Cycling Centre of Hamilton says a feasibility study it completed on building a cycling velodrome in the city concluded the Dundas park...

Is Dundas more of a "cycling town" than Hamilton? Not sure I'd buy that, but regardless of the designation, the idea that NCC's Andrew Iler puts forth that "the Dundas location does not create barriers to use that exist at the planned west Harbour site" is very arguable. His reason against the west harbour site: “An urban core deadlocked by big urban streets is not ideal,” he said. We see, I suspect, a suburban bias in this decision from the NCC. How else does an urban core become a liability? It means being closer to more potential users of the facility, based on urban density, with decent public transit available. Other benefits of an urban location would be spinoff improvements to the "big urban streets" that could then sport bike lanes and wider sidewalks and the development of other urban commercial, retail and other amenities. Same can't be said for the Dundas site which is isolated and accessible primarily, if not exclusively, by car...