Hamilton’s ‘most distinctive’ siding at Caroline and King to be stripped

A historic downtown Hamilton building hidden under brown cladding that's lamented as an eyesore will make way for a modern condo.

I'm sure all of Hamilton is familiar with this site. It's the city's most distinctive decorative siding."

That's how Coun. John-Paul Danko introduced 206-208 King St. W. to the city's planning committee Tuesday.

True that," agreed Coun. Jason Farr.

The 13-storey condo that rises at the site of the former Hamilton Store Fixtures at the corner of Caroline Street North won't sport its ironically celebrated brown cladding.

But developer King Stuart Developments Inc. plans to use bricks on the first four floors of the 123-unit building in homage to the one it replaces.

Of 37 vehicle parking spots, 36 will be in a 12-bay stacker system" with movable platforms. There will be 123 bike spaces.

Farr said the building's vehicle spaces might not be enough but noted developer Vrancor is providing a 500-spot parking facility as part of its nearby projects that residents could use.

But there are really zero on-street" parking options, he said.

Franz Kloibhofer, a planning consultant for King Stuart, noted the project is targeting students or young professionals who won't own cars.

The design calls for a fifth-floor terrace and two rooftop patios. The ground floor will be commercial space.

A review found the Hamilton Store Fixtures building was not structurally sound and couldn't be restored to its original condition, which led to a recommendation that it be demolished, a staff report noted.

The building has also been so disguised by the metal cladding" that its original design and character are no longer apparent," the report stated.

But original beams, joints, masonry, floorboards and tiles should be salvaged and incorporated" into the future residential building's common areas to commemorate its commercial history.

Before Hamilton Store Fixtures - which sold kitchen appliances, equipment and supplies - set up there about 50 years ago, the U-shaped building was home to a radio station, former Spectator columnist Paul Wilson reported in 2018.

And before then, Regal Shirt Company operated there in the 1920s and '30s before it became McGregor Shirt in the '40s.

In May 2018, a vicious wind storm ripped off a large chunk of the building's brown siding.

On Tuesday, the city's planning committee backed zoning changes to allow the project to go ahead. That decision still needs a final approval at council next week.

Teviah Moro is a Hamilton-based reporter at The Spectator. Reach him via email: tmoro@thespec.com