Council’s Planning Committee approved a mixed-use development at 2640, 2646, and 2654 Binbrook Road that will add 33 dwelling units, 200 square metres of ground-floor commercial space, and extend the drive-thru queue of an existing Tim Hortons location which is presently causing pedestrian safety concerns.
City planning staff recommended approval of the Christemi Limited Partnership project.
The 33 dwelling units will consist of 18 block townhouses, 10 back-to-back townhouses, and a mixed-use building featuring five stacked townhouses above 200 square metres of ground-floor commercial space.
The only point of contention brought up by Council members during the Tuesday, February 24 meeting was the addition of queuing space for 13 additional vehicles for the adjacent Tim Hortons at 2660–2668 Binbrook Road.
Located adjacent to the Binbrook public library branch, the lands at 2640, 2646, and 2654 Binbrook Road are within the “mixed-use, medium-density, pedestrian-focused” area of Binbrook’s core.
Ward 12 (Ancaster) Councillor Craig Cassar expressed concerns about the incompatibility of a larger drive-through in this area.
“Part of the change in here is to basically double the size of a drive-through. Making it a very long drive-through… how does that fit into a pedestrian-focused area?” Cassar said.
City planner Shaival Gajjar stated that the expansion actually improves pedestrian safety by removing vehicle queues from the middle of the parking lot.
Acting Director of Development Planning Rino Dal Bello said the current drive-through is “short as per our standards” and causes interference with cars in the parking lot. “By providing this extra strip of land and pushing the queuing to facing the property… that eliminates the interaction of parked cars and pedestrians walking through those cars.”
Ward 11 (Glanbrook) Councillor Mark Tadeson voted in favour of the project, which is within his ward.
“I respect what Councillor Craig Cassar is bringing to the table here about the traffic concerns with parking concerns and the goal of having a walkable community,” Tadeson said. “The Tim Hortons is the only one in this region of Hamilton, and it draws a large number of vehicles, and the redesign actually makes it better.”
“People will have better access and the parking in the commercial zone will be safer,” he added.
Ward 3 (Central Hamilton) Councillor Nrinder Nann also voted against the proposal. She did not state her reasons for opposition.
The committee vote was 7-2 in favour of approval. The decision needs to be approved at the March 4 Council Ratification meeting.
In Favour: Ward 1 Maureen Wilson, Ward 4 Tammy Hwang, Ward 5 Matt Francis, Ward 8 Rob Cooper, Ward 10 Jeff Beattie, Ward 11 Mark Tadeson, Ward 15 Ted McMeekin
Opposed: Ward 3 Nrinder Nann, Ward 12 Craig Cassar
Absent: Ward 2 Cameron Kroetsch, Ward 7 Esther Pauls, Ward 13 Alex Wilson
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Published: March 3, 2026
Last updated: March 3, 2026
Author: Joey Coleman
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