More than two years after Mayor Andrea Horwath exercised her first-ever Strong Mayor veto, the City of Hamilton has formally opened the land-lease process for portions of a downtown Stoney Creek municipal parking lot at 5 and 13 Lake Avenue South.
The project represents one of the Mayor’s top priorities during this term of Council, and remains the only time Horwath has exercised her veto powers.
During the March 27, 2024, City Council meeting, Ward 5 Councillor Matt Francis argued the removal of 57 of the site’s 162 parking spaces would severely impact downtown Stoney Creek businesses, medical clinic patients, and local events. Francis secured enough votes to defeat Horwath’s motion to declare portions of the property surplus on an 8-8 tie vote.
Immediately following that deadlock, Horwath issued her veto.
“Leveraging municipally owned properties for the construction of sorely needed affordable housing is a vital step towards addressing the pressing and urgent crisis of housing affordability and homelessness in our city,” Horwath stated in a written release announcing the decision. “The decision to use Strong Mayor Powers is not one that I make lightly.”
The City’s April 2025 expression of interest posting included preliminary modelling showing 5 Lake Avenue South can accommodate a three-storey building with 24 studio units, while 13 Lake Avenue South can support a five-storey building with 43 one-bedroom units. The posting explicitly stipulates that the City’s financial contribution to the development is strictly limited to the nominal land lease.
Francis continues to oppose the initiative and has stated the bid process should be cancelled. If re-elected, he plans to move a motion to end the project shortly after the next Council term begins on November 15, 2026.
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Published: May 2, 2026
Last updated: May 2, 2026
Author: Joey Coleman
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