Opinions split ahead of final council vote on Stoney Creek parking lot

A Stoney Creek parking lot proposed for an affordable housing project has split public opinion ahead of a critical vote expected on Wednesday at city hall.

The parking lot at 5 and 13 Lake Avenue South is at the centre of an uproar that has divided people and politicians across Hamilton.

Found just off of King Street, the lot runs parallel to the central roadway and provides free parking, including for those heading to the local medical centre of businesses.

“Almost a unanimous amount of people in my community right here are opposed to turning these parking lots into anything different. They want to keep them as parking.” said Councillor Matt Francis.

A city council committee last week rejected a proposal to turn parts of the parking lot into housing, but the issue will be back to the full city council on Wednesday where some councillors hope for a pro-housing decision.

WATCH MORE: Motion to turn 2 parking lots into affordable housing struck down: Hamilton council

“I don’t think this is a discussion about parking versus housing. If you listen to the arguments for the parking lot, frankly a lot of it is nimby hyperbole.” said Councillor John Paul Danko.

Stoney Creek businesses say they need parking for customers to come to their area, even if its a compromise of a partial development.

One local church says a lot of its followers rely on the parking lot.

“From the church’s perspective we’re in favor of affordable housing because there’s a huge need. But we are concerned about restrictions that the parking lot development could have for this general area.” said Rev. Mark Winger of Stoney Creek United Church.

The proposed development wouldn’t cover the entire parking lot. It would result in the loss of 57 of 162 total parking spots, but would close off access onto what is known as “Veteran’s Lane” leading to the legion.

READ MORE: City of Hamilton enters 3rd day of ‘cybersecurity incident’

Some people say this alone is enough reason to keep the parking lot open and the local councillor says Stoney Creek’s needs should be considered first.

“I’m very disappointed with the way it’s been categorized as parking over people. It’s very dehumanizing to the people that use this building. this medical building across from us here. These people matter too.” said Matt Francis.

Other councillors, though, say housing is a priority in Hamilton.

“All that we’re doing is identifying it for a higher need and as affordable housing is one of the biggest needs in Hamilton right now it’s something that we can move forward with right now.” said Danko.

READ MORE: Road closed after watermain break floods Stoney Creek intersection

Protestors are camping at city hall in an effort to drive home the point that Hamilton needs to act on its housing problem.

“So I think they need to start with that project. it will bring in more solutions and they’ll actually have solutions for people because there’s no hope out here.” said Angela Vos.

Last week’s council vote on the issue was evenly split, leading to it being struck down.

At this time, there is no indication that any councillors will be changing their vote and the mayor hasn’t confirmed whether she will use strong mayor powers to make the decision.

With housing at stake, councillor Danko is asking the city to end Stoney Creek’s free parking and begin charging, with some of that money to then be used for housing.