Crews rush to get old Consumer's Glass site ready for Pan Am parking
The property is about two blocks away from the new Tim Horton's Field
City crews hope to have part of the old Consumers Glass plant demolished by May — in time for the property to be used for 2015 Pan Am Games parking.
The property at Lloyd Street and Gage Avenue North is the future home of an outdoor sports facility, which will be an $8-million project that will replace the former Brian Timmis Field.
We’re trying to do the best we can to get ready for Pan Am.- Rom D'Angelo, manager of corporate buildings and technical services
But in the meantime, it will fit up to 900 cars if Pan Am organizers need it, said Rom D’Angelo, Hamilton’s manager of corporate buildings and technical services. And crews are hurrying to get it ready in case that happens.
“We’re trying to do the best we can to get ready for Pan Am,” he said. “We’re hoping we’ll have it done by end of April, mid May.”
The property is about two blocks away from the new Tim Horton's Field, which will host the soccer games for the 2015 Pan Am Games on July 10 to 26. The city has divided the property into two phases — the west portion and the east portion, D’Angelo said. The focus is on the east portion, where the Pan Am parking would be.
City crews spent November and December disconnecting utilities and doing “substance abatement,” which is removing toxic materials such as asbestos from the former factory. Demolition started on Jan. 27.
After months of negotiation, the city finalized the purchase of the brownfield site, sometimes referred to as the old Dominion Glass property, in July 2014. It’s still working out exactly what will go on the site, and it will hold public meetings this year to discuss it, said Paul Johnson, director of neighbourhood and community relations.
“We’re glad to have it and we’re glad it’s moving along,” he said.
What is known is that with the stadium and a new planned public high school, it’s part of about $25 million in new government investment in the Pan Am precinct. Coun. Bernie Morelli, who represented Ward 3, announced the outdoor field project in December 2013, one month before his death from cancer.
Meanwhile, the stadium project is eight months behind. Crews were supposed to have it substantially completed to hand over to the city on June 30, and has missed numerous deadlines since then. The Hamilton Tiger-Cats played much of their 2014 season at McMaster University because of it.
Infrastructure Ontario told CBC Hamilton on Tuesday that Ontario Sports Solutions, the Canadian and French consortium building the stadium, planned to schedule a city inspection this week. The inspection would be a prelude to substantial completion.
But as of Thursday afternoon, the city hasn’t received an inspection request, said Ed VanderWindt, the city’s chief building official.