Scenes from a History Hike

At the Binkley Family Cemetery, photo by Szara Joy

A lucky group of 13 enjoyed the perfect weather during the hour-long Ponds to Parking lunchtime History Hike jointly conducted by Restore Cootes and OPIRG McMaster.

The history walking-tour includes the founding of McMaster University in Hamilton in 1930, the original six buildings meant to be "indistinguishable from the neighbouring Royal Botanical Garden parkland;" an overview of the importance of the ecology of neighbouring Cootes Paradise; the H&D Railway (1880), Cootes Drive (1936) as one of the first "modern" highways in Canada; and in the west campus, the loss of Royal Botanical Gardens' land in the 1963 as McMaster expanded an ambitious parking plan into Coldspring Valley Nature Sanctuary (1958-1963).

[more photos on our Facebook page]

McMaster's parking expansion (1969) was based on projections that suggested 7,000 spaces would be required by 1980. Currently there are just under 4,000 spaces, with peak demand well below capacity (only 2,803 spaces required at peak) - this is where history helps define the future: with excess capacity, and a falling off of demand for parking, there is now an opportunity to apply the expertise of university researchers to actively restore the lost floodplain ecology.

Two separate projects initiated by Restore Cootes are currently underway: one, to work with the University, the Hamilton Conservation Area, and other agencies and groups like the RBG and Hamilton Naturalists Club to see a minimum 30metre naturalized buffer created between the Lot M parking and Ancaster Creek. HCA measurements suggest a loss of 318 parking spaces to achieve this important buffer to enhance the health of this cold-water creek.

The other more ambitious project involves several different faculty departments to gain access to a larger area beyond the 30m buffer, in order to restore the wetland buried beneath the parking lot in Lot M. Based on peak demand for parking, the majority of Lot M could be brought into a project such as this with no loss of parking for current users.

So history with a purpose: if you are interested in helping out in any way, please get in touch with restore cootes at dundastard@gmail.com or contact OPIRG McMaster at 905-525-9140 ext. 26026.

Comments

a vision for nature in Cootes

View the Eco-Park Document here Make Cootes national park, group urges TheSpec.com - Local - Make Cootes national park, group urges Create eco-park in urbanized area Eric McGuinness , The Hamilton Spectator (Jan 28, 2009) The idea of a Cootes Paradise National Park is being revived by local conservationists. But they say it is jeopardized by plans for a self-storage warehouse beside the Desjardins Canal at the east entrance to Dundas. They point to a new vision of an urban eco-park -- maybe a national park -- incorporating the Cootes marsh, drafted by Urban Strategies Inc., the firm responsible for McMaster University's campus master plan among other Hamilton projects. Joe Berridge, a partner who has helped reshape waterfronts in Toronto, New York and London, produced the concept document at the invitation of Ben Vanderbrug, retired general manager of the Hamilton Conservati

Where did the water go? Art action in Lot M Parking

West Campus Eco-Art Project A walking activity and site activation on McMaster’s West Campus. West Campus Eco-Art Project is a project that incorporates creative walking activities and an artistic site activation connected with the West Campus Redesign Initiative at McMaster University. The initiative provides opportunities for connecting with nature through an on-line informational video, walking excursions and creative activities that deepen knowledge and experience with place in all its complexities (social history, citizen science, ecology and diversity). Focusing on the Coldwater creek valley on McMaster’s West Campus, participants will learn about the history and unique features of the area and will be invited to then engage with the site through observation, sketching and stencil-making. Stencils will be used to paint text and image on the parking lot asphalt to delineate a blue line that marks an historic water route. The project is supported by the McMaster Museum of Art (

McMaster's Parking Problem: Next Level

I'm sharing a recent article published in the Dundas Star News about McMaster's plan to build a - get this - $17-million dollar parking structure. Seventeen million. Yes, $17,000,000.00 That's a lot of money to provide temporary shelter for vehicles of people who choose to drive to campus. We will be following this closely. Here's the article. Cootes Drive six-storey McMaster University parking garage under review Variances or amendment to zoning bylaw expected to permit parking structure Craig Campbell, Dundas Star News, Friday, March 5, 2021 Zoning bylaw variances, or amendments, could be required for a planned six-storey, 567-space McMaster University parking garage west of Cootes Drive, and north of Thorndale Crescent. University spokesperson Michelle Donavon said the $17-million structure on parking lot K at Westaway Road will help ongoing efforts to re-naturalize parts of the west campus, by moving some surface parking into the structure. “These plans will increa

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