The Copps family political dynasty is remembered on the West Harbour
There's a new sign on Hamilton's Bayfront that has a familiar surname.
It doesn't roll off the tongue like Copps Coliseum" once did, but Copps Pier" goes some distance in recognizing one of the city's most influential political families.
And while the coliseum on Bay Street - now known as the FirstOntario Centre - was previously named for Hamilton's much loved former Mayor Vic Copps, the new sign also recognizes his wife Geraldine Gerry," a longtime city councillor and citizenship court judge; and daughter Sheila, who rose in federal politics to become deputy prime minister.
At the June 18 official opening of Copps Pier promenade at Pier 8, the four Copps siblings - Mary, Brenda, Kevin and Sheila - shared the stage. The afternoon was sunny and the mood celebratory. But, there were some lingering clouds from the controversial $3.5 million coliseum renaming deal eight years ago.
I can't say I wasn't disappointed to see the Vic Copps name removed from the coliseum in 2014," eldest daughter Mary Copps-Sutherland said in an emotional address. I am a financial person and I understand the reason but that doesn't mean I wasn't sad. Today, I'm happy and thrilled to see a new location bearing the family surname."
Sheila later told me - that different to her sister and some other members of her family - she accepted the decision. Corporate renaming of prominent buildings to raise funds is common these days. And dad didn't care about his name. He cared about the hockey arena and making it look good. So, he would have taken the (money). I know he would have. He was a practical realist."
And she noted: Copps Coliseum was a building and buildings get torn down. Parks are forever," she said.
Time will tell. But, I'm reasonably certain that Copps Pier will be around long enough for new generations of Hamiltonians to wonder where the name came from.
So, here is the story as best as I can tell it for those who don't know: It's an archetypal saga of triumph (Vic becoming one of the city's most popular mayors ever), tragedy (about his heart attack while in office in 1976 that left him severely debilitated) and rebirth (with daughter Sheila and mother Gerry pushing forward into politics where Vic left off).
And it matters. Vic, who died in 1988, was the key political figure behind the controversial urban renewal plan that led to Jackson Square, Hamilton Place, the Convention Centre and the coliseum that was named for him, among other buildings. Like it or hate it, his vision forever changed the downtown.
Sheila, 69, had her hand in the destiny of Hamilton Harbour as she ascended through the ranks of Jean Chretien's Liberal government. She brought the famous Second World War destroyer Haida to Hamilton as well as the ill-fated Marine Discovery Centre. And she was a key player in pushing industry out of the West Harbour to expand the recreational footprint on the waterfront.
Geraldine, who died in 2016, was Ward 4 alderman from 1985 to 2000 and, among other things, advocated for social and environmental reform and took a particular interest in the city's troubled wastewater treatment plant.
Vic was born in the small Northern Ontario community of Haileybury in 1919 and as a young man worked for a local newspaper in Timmins. In 1945, he was recruited by CHML radio in Hamilton as a sports broadcaster.
He met Geraldine, who worked for Stelco as a secretary, through her involvement with a woman's softball league. She would regularly approach Vic to try to get him to broadcast game results. They started dating and married.
In 1960, he was elected to the city's Board of Control before unseating incumbent mayor Lloyd D. Jackson in 1962.
He became Hamilton's first Catholic mayor and one of the first things he did was put an end to the anti-Catholic annual Orange Order parade, something that was very controversial at the time.
He also reached out to every minority community and flew their flags at City Hall on their national day. In those days it was kind of revolutionary," said Sheila.
His big focus of attention was Hamilton's downtown and finding a way to modernize it. He caused quite a bit of controversy because there were a lot of beautiful buildings that got torn down. His idea was to have Hamilton keep up with Toronto," Sheila says.
While the demolition of the core was upsetting to many, his unpretentious style had a way of winning over Hamiltonians. He was known for saying things like let the detractors call us a lunch bucket town."
He never spent a lot of money," Sheila says. He always wanted to stay at the same house. If he had a book and a bed, he would be happy. He was not a material person. He drove an old car and didn't care."
But then in 1976, he decided to run in the Around the Bay Road Race. He had plans to eventually take on the Boston Marathon. He trained. Got checked out by a doctor and took a stress test.
During the race, he had a heart attack. He fell. They were with him within a minute." But, it took several minutes to start his heart again.
He struggled through physiotherapy to walk and talk again, with some success. The brain damage from anoxia, however, was severe. He could never work again. Cared for by Geraldine at home, he lived another 12 years.
I asked Sheila if she thought her dad understood that she had followed in his footsteps into politics, with her first being elected as an MPP in 1981 and MP in 1984. She said she didn't think so.
If I told him my name he'd say, yes, yes, Stee-la.' You didn't know how much he really knew."
He used to like the joke How do you make holy water? You boil the hell out of it.' He laughed at that a thousand times."
Sheila thinks her parents would be very pleased about the family name on the promenade park of a vastly transformed West Harbour.
Both my parents are buried at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, across the water from the park," she said. My mother swam in that harbour. My dad ran in the Around the Bay Race. The harbour was a big part of both of their lives."