Mex-I-can restaurant forced to shut down over building issues

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A popular mexican restaurant on James Street North in Hamilton, revered for its authentic fare, is about to shut down. Mex-I-can’s landlords have discovered major structural flaws in the building, forcing them to evict the restaurant with little notice until the site can be rebuilt. Tonight, the hunt is on for a new place to serve tamales and tacos.

With word of the impending closure, Mex-i-can ‘resort-aurant’ is packed with fans who need their last fix. The owner, Angel Avalos, says he didn’t know just how much his little piece of transplanted Mexico meant to people “the amount of support has been overwhelming.”

Mex-I-can and the buildings on either side are now owned by the Sonic Unyon partners, the same guys who started the Supercrawl. They were not planning to tear down Mex-I-can, but while they were designing the renovation, they got a devastating engineering report, and had no other option. The owners say there are some major structural issues in the three buildings they own. But the plan is they will fix those buildings, they’ll be structurally sound, they’ll fit the historic character of the neighbourhood – and they’ll be full of local retailers.

Jacquie Malley’s store “Compilation” had to move from the building next to Mex-I-can before renovations started. “The person I originally rented from, it was in his family for over 50 years, so I think they didn’t put much into it. So when it was bought they realized that the structural damage started from the foundation all the way up.”

Compilation is now across the street in the Sonic Unyon building. This part of the city was largely built in the mid 1800s, and Hamilton’s building department says unsurprisingly, many structures need attention. The city is trying to help Mex-I-can find a new location quickly.

Sunday will be the last day that you can eat at Mex-I-can, at least 150 people have already booked a table for dinner on Sunday night. Angel Avalos is doing his best to find a new location soon, and says he’s been gratified by the support he’s gotten from the city and fans and customers. He expects to start a crowd funding campaign to help him and the details will be announced on Mex-I-can’s Facebook page.