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April 21, 2004
RED HILL EXPRESSWAY STARTS TO PAY OFF
For anyone who wondered who might really benefit from the Red Hill Creek Expressway, the Hamilton Spectator provided some interesting insight in today's edition (reprinted below). Virtually every pro-expressway councillor has received campaign contributions from this developer or his companies. None who opposed the expressway have been so rewarded.
Summit Park will outbuild Ancaster's Meadowlands
By Mark McNeil
The Hamilton Spectator, Wednesday, April 21, 2004
It's called Summit Park but people will probably always know it as the start of Meadowlands East.
Whatever the name, the giant, sprawling $1-billion housing project on the southeast Mountain is planned to be even larger – on a residential basis – than its namesake in Ancaster.
By the time the 160 hectare-subdivision is finished more than a decade from now, its planners say more than 3,200 homes will be built.
That will create a 10,000-resident neighbourhood.
It's a project that suffered years of delays, an OMB hearing and an uncertain future because of postponements and challenges to the Red Hill Creek Expressway.
But now the main developer, Multi-Area Developments, is set to start selling the first 500 units on May 1. Company president Aldo DeSantis says he already has a waiting list of 75 people interested in homes that will sell for between $215,000 to $350,000.
"When the entire development is finished – including the commercial development – this project could come close to $1 billion," says DeSantis.
"Just the first phase of it will probably cost $130 million to $140 million."
The initial phase will consist of single-family detached homes, freehold town homes as well as 150 units that will form an adult, condominium-style community. Bicycle trails and parks are also part of the development.
The entrance to the first phase will be south of Rymal Road near where Upper Mount Albion Road ends.
"This is where the growth in the city is going to be for the next 10 to 15 years," says DeSantis. His company owns 105 of the 160 hectares between Trinity Church Road, Highway 56, Rymal Road and a hydro corridor, he said.
The development company, 100 Main Street East Inc., owned by Al and Ralph Frisina, is the second largest land holder with 38 hectares, of which 12 hectares are being used for commercial development and 26 hectares for residential construction. Several smaller land holders own the rest.
"Once the Red Hill (Expressway) is finished ... I would say this whole area will take a life of its own because ... almost everywhere else in Hamilton is pretty well out of land. If not for this project, Hamilton would have only two or three years of land left (for residential development)," said DeSantis.
He says the expressway connecting upper Hamilton to the Queen Elizabeth Highway "will be the lynchpin" that will open "Summit Park to a large group of potential new homeowners through increased accessibility."
DeSantis says roads and sewers will be built this summer and fall to lay groundwork for houses that will start being built in November. A model home and a sales office have so far been constructed.
Also moving ahead with its part of the development is 100 Main Street East Inc., starting with commercial construction first.
"It will be big box kind of stores with some restaurants and hopefully movie theatres," said Al Frisina.
It's expected the nicknamed Meadowlands East will have slightly more homes but only about a third of the commercial development of its Ancaster namesake, said Frisina.
Resale houses have been selling at a record pace. And last month Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC) said housing starts were up by 37 per cent over the same month last year in Hamilton.
The property used for Summit Park used to be Ontario Realty Corp. lands that were sold to developers in the late 1980s.
DeSantis bought his parcel of land in 1988. The land in recent years had been used as a sod farm. He is calling it Summit Park because "the highest spot in Hamilton" is there.
A spokesperson for the city of Hamilton's planning department said all the approvals are in place for the first phase. After that, another lane along Rymal Road will likely be required to handle traffic as well as infrastructure improvements that would include a pumping station.
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