Slate, City of Hamilton, HOPA outline major projects

Slate Asset Management, developer of the 800-acre Steelport multi-use project on Hamilton, Ont.’s waterfront, was a headliner as local builders gathered to scout out project leads at the Hamilton-Halton Construction Association’s annual Construction Forecast presentation recently.

The Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board (HWDSB), the Hamilton-Oshawa Port Authority (HOPA) and the City of Hamilton were other key presenters with projects to announce.

Slate acquired the waterfront industrial parcel from Stelco in 2022 and 2023 was a year of master planning, designing, branding and early works on the site, said Steve Dejonckheere, Slate’s senior vice-president.

“We’ve been working closely with the city to go through the details of a master plan,” Dejonckheere said. “That application is going in the next couple of weeks, and we hope to get shovels moving on that later this year.”

The master plan envisions subdividing the property into approximately 18 parcels for future development, with access to rail, road and shipping networks. Blocks will include a mix of large-scale industrial, mid to small bay, flex office, institutional, retail and public realm spaces. A new public road network will have about 10 kilometres of new streets.

“This is a big, complicated site as I’m sure everybody’s aware,” said Dejonckheere. “What’s exciting for this group is that early estimates of full buildout of both the public roadways and vertical construction is estimated to be north of $3 billion.”

Stelco will retain 100 acres of property for its steel operations, leaving 700 acres for new Steelport tenants. The site has 3.4 kilometres of deep-water port, with a significant amount of water’s edge to be allocated for public spaces.

The first tenant, GH Power, a green hydrogen producer, was unveiled last year.

A general contractor will be named later this year, said the Slate VP.

“There’s a pretty significant remediation scope as well,” said Dejonckheere. “We’ve been working through the specifics of planning out what the remediation strategy will be. And that’s another scope of work that should be starting later this year.”

The major news from City of Hamilton presenters Robyn Ellis and Anne McArthur is the launch of work on the city’s $330-million, $42,800-square-metre HSR Bus Maintenance and Storage Facility at 281 Birch Ave. Construction is expected to conclude in 2026.

Another current city project is the $11-million Sir Wilfred Laurier gymnasium expansion project. The city is adding a double gymnasium to the existing Sir Wilfrid Laurier Recreation Centre at 60 Albright Rd.

DON WALL – Slate’s senior vice-president Steve Dejonckheere says the developer anticipates submitting a master plan for Steelport to the City of Hamilton imminently.

The project includes renovation of the existing facility. Substantial completion is targeted for January 2025.

Upcoming projects in- clude work on Ward 1 fieldhouses (HAAA, Churchill, Alexander Park, Victoria Park), Macassa B Wing Expansion and the Waterdown Fire and Police Station.

The biggest news out of HOPA lately was the recent announcement that Sucro Can Sourcing will build Canada’s largest sugar refinery with an investment of $135 million on HOPA lands. The plant is expected to have an annual refining capacity of one-million metric tonnes.

The investment is representative of the changing nature of trade at the Hamilton port, said HOPA engineering manager Louis Fortier.

“Steel raw materials have been steadily decreasing over the past few years, but that has been offset by an increase in agricultural products,” he noted.

HOPA has an infrastructure budget of $43.5 million this year — that’s a record, said Fortier.

Upcoming Hamilton port tenders include:

Pier 10, Collective Arts Office Roof Replacement, construction tender in Q1;
Pier 10, Access Control Upgrades, engineering RFP in Q2;
Pier 10, 12,000-square-foot Fabric Building, engineering RFP Q1;
Pier 15, electrical distribution upgrades, construction tender Q3;
Pier 15, Randle Reef Surcharge Material Supply, construction tender Q1;
Pier 15, 204 Hillyard Fire Watermain Replacement, engineering RFP Q3;
1632 Burlington electrical upgrades and equipment procurement, construction tender Q2;
Pier 23, wharf condition assessment, engineering RFP Q2; and
Pier 25, 98 Eastport Blvd. demolition, construction tender Q1.

HWDSB capital projects director Amie Myszkowski listed dozens of projects on the school board’s upcoming capital program. For the 2023-24 budget year, capital investments included $48.5 million for construction projects in progress, $18.4 million in school condition improvements and $8.8 million for school renewal.

Myszkowski said she expected the same level of spending when the next budget is approved.

“We’re noticing that the costs that are coming in are obviously greater every single year,” she said. “That means less work for the same amount of money, which is unfortunate.”

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