Ward 2 Hamilton

Officer's Jeep seen with symbol ‘appropriated by’ neo-Nazis, group says, after Hamilton police OK him to work | CBC News A Hamilton community group is calling for action after it says a resident discovered a police officer's vehicle is once again displaying a sticker “associated with white nationalist extremism." Police...

I'm deeply concerned upon reading this article from the CBC today. As such, and as a police board member, I have brought this matter to the attention of the Board and have asked my colleagues to reconsider the motion asking for an independent external review. #HamOnt

Today, the Bennetto Elementary School stands in the North End as a legacy of her teaching career and her fight for pay equity. It's also a lasting legacy of the advocacy of North Enders, which has remained an important part of their neighbourhood spirit.

Emma and Lizzie Curno attended Picton Street School when it opened and they were often on the annual student honour roll. Miss Bennetto remained principal until she passed in autumn of 1919. On June 10, 1920 it was proposed that Picton Street School be renamed in her honour.

Months before, the female teachers petitioned to change their payment. Pay was based on the grade taught, starting at the lowest grade with $250 per year and going up $25 with each grade. Teachers were requesting both a pay increase and to be paid by length of service. This was denied by the Board.

At the Board's meeting in July 1888, it was decided that Susan Bennetto, a well regarded teacher at the time, would be the head teacher at the new school. She made $600 a year when the average female teacher in Hamilton made $330, "which is at present not large enough to afford a bare livelihood".

The Board of Education moved fast. In April 1888, they received 38 tenders for the recently purchased lot at the northeast corner of Catharine Street North and Picton Street East. The plan went to the lowest bid at $13,910. The next month, the Board agreed on a new name, Picton Street School.

It was also in 1887 when Ontario established kindergartens throughout the Province. This was a hotly debated topic during the early part of the decade. By 1888, there was already a shortage of kindergartens in Hamilton, but particularly so in the North End.

Classrooms across the city were severely overcrowded, with more than 60 students per teacher. Between 1885 and 1887, overall school attendance rose from 6,647 to 7,860 students. As a result, more than 500 children citywide were forced into half day schedules or were refused attendance at school.

This week, we are taking a quick look back at the Picton Street School and the growing North End. On December 8, 1887, Joseph Curno, a carpenter living on Picton Street East, brought forward a petition with 236 signatures requesting a new school for the area. #HamOnt

Reminder that applications for Ward 2 Community Grants for all of 2026 are due before this coming Saturday, March 7. If you need more information, see the post below or visit ward2hamilton.ca/grants. #HamOnt

I don't know about that specific circumstance, sorry. Email us at Ward2@hamilton.ca and we can find out for you.

I’m working on the slip lanes and the Bay Street review work be out soon for community feedback. As for data, send an email to Ward2@hamilton.ca and we’ll look into that.

A new red light camera is coming to Bay Street South and Hunter Street West this year. Here’s a short video on the intersection and why it matters. Pedestrian and bike safety is important, especially so close to an elementary school. #HamOnt

The Mayor's 2026 Budget officially wrapped this week. Thanks to Council for supporting my amendments to provide adequate funding to the library and the farmers' market and to continue the business recycling program until the end of the calendar year. These programs and services matter. #HamOnt

The library isn’t the crisis, it’s the symptom Upper levels of government have failed to act with the urgency the moment demands.

Thanks to the Spec for publishing my opinion piece today. The library is the symptom, not the crisis. As I say in it, "My efforts will continue to be focused on supporting residents, not pitting them against one another". We urgently need the Doug Ford to address his policy failures. #HamOnt

See you tomorrow night Beasley and Central neighbours! #HamOnt

It doesn’t include Jackson Square.

For transparency, I'm not at the Planning Committee right now as I'm with the Downtown Hamilton BIA Board of Directors. I have a few other meeting conflicts for today so I might miss it entirely. Sometimes there are conflicts. I'll catch up on the Planning Committee items at Council. #HamOnt

I think there are things Council can say, and things we can do to demonstrate solidarity with the community, but we can't do a single one of them if we can't agree these issues are serious. The silence is so obvious to me. Also, Councillor Nann has spoken up on these issues, many times.

We need a united Council when it comes to tackling white supremacy and far right nationalism, now and in the future. So far this term, it's been dead silence from the overwhelming majority of my colleagues, even when it's happening on their doorstep at City Hall.

White supremacist rally at city hall a ‘blatant act of hate’: Horwath Involved group has been behind other, similar protests in Hamilton — including one in December

I appreciate the Mayor calling this out and the Spec for reporting it. Just because it's not immediately obvious, it doesn't mean it's not white supremacy. White supremacists and far right nationalists are organizing in our city. Silence is not an option. #HamOnt www.thespec.com/news/hamilto...

Ward 2 Newsletter - Issue 35 February 20, 2026

The latest edition of the Ward 2 Newsletter is out. I write about the Central Branch of the Hamilton Public Library, the CN shunting yard near Bayfront Park, the motions I put forward to amend the Mayor's 2026 budget, and the special meeting to discuss Barton-Tiffany. #HamOnt

See you next Thursday at Simone Hall in Beasley Park at 7pm. Details below. Hope to connect with you in person! #HamOnt

I hope you enjoyed this look at the rooftop restaurants that could have been. For those following recent developments, this dream has become a reality with new buildings on Augusta Street hosting rooftop restaurants.

Residents moved in starting in 1974, but with no restaurant. By August of 1976, there were $500,000 in liens against the property, one third of which were for work done on the restaurant, and in November of 1976 mortgage holders took the building after the owner defaulted.

The builder's intentions remained. When building at 100 Main Street East, the "Empire State Building of Hamilton", plans called for a revolving rooftop supper club for 465 guests, and even a heliport. Apartments would have had a closed circuit television channel to view the day's menu.

121 Hunter Street West finished construction in 1964. The Clarendon, as it was called, was 18 stories of "distinction, grace and dignity". While the details of the restaurant are lost to time, a 1974 Spectator article mentions a fire on the roof structure intended as a restaurant.

On May 1, 1979, the land was put up for a mortgage auction, still with the site plan and zoning approval for a 17 storey mixed residential and commercial highrise. Today, the Guise Street Housing Co-op sits comfortably in its place, built in 1984.

The 10,000 square foot restaurant, with slanted glass and raised tables, would "fill a real need in Hamilton, which sadly lacks this type of facility". In 1969, after much negotiation with the Harbour Commissioners, the project was given the green light, however, nothing came to fruition.

In 1966, eight lots on the southeast corner of James Street North and Guise Street were auctioned off. Vanamco Enterprises, excited by the new Marina Towers and North End urban renewal, wanted to build a 15 storey, 100 unit residential and commercial highrise, with, of course, a rooftop restaurant.