The Hamilton Spectator
Sport system under strain showed in Milan Cortina
Canada losing ground to other countries in the 2026 Olympic Games is a symptom of a sport system under strain, said a Canadian Olympic Committee leader Sunday. Canada finished outside the top five countries in the medal table at the Milan Cortina...
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Parents protest program overhaul at HWDSB
A jampacked room of parents and kids had a message for Hamilton's public school board: Save atrisk specialty programs. Better yet, expand them. More than two dozen people filled a HamiltonWentworth District School Board (HWDSB) committee meeting...
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HOCKEY HEARTBREAK
Team Canada's bench reacts to their 21 overtime loss to the United States Thursday in the women's goldmedal hockey game at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan. Canada held a late 10 lead, but the Americans rallied, scoring with the extra attacker in...
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Hamilton's rocky roads
From Main Street to Mohawk Road, Hamilton residents say Steeltown's streets are littered with potholes — and that the city isn't doing enough to make daily commutes less bumpy. “I have travelled around southern Ontario for work and Hamilton is the...
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The latest champ from city's first family of boxing
Moments after the ref was done raising his arm in victory and he was able to begin celebrating his latest win, Bradley Wilcox flipped the switch from disciplined boxer to wild party animal. As fast as he could get showered and dressed, he and his...
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Golden run for Canada's Oldham
Megan Oldham delivered Canada's second gold medal of the MilanCortina Olympics on Monday, winning the women's freestyle skiing big air competition. The 24yearold from Parry Sound, Ont., finished with a tworun combined score of 180.75 to edge...
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Mystery odour plagues Waterdown neighbourhood
The scent is sickly sweet, but also like chemicals. It pops up at least once a week, but only hits the nostrils of some people in the neighbourhood. Those who can smell it, though, suspect a nearby glass recycling plant is to blame. Since last...
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This madeinHamilton tool is helping make curling happen at the Olympics
A madeinHamilton tool is helping produce the perfectly pebbled ice for curlers competing at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics. Curling sheets are different from the perfectly flat rinks skated on by hockey players and figure skaters. Curling ice...
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Hamilton rapper lil OT killed in Burlington parking lot shooting
A lot of these “young boys joining the streets” think it's fun out here, lil OT says to the camera. “It's not fun out here.” He tells viewers he recently lost a “younger bro” and is a different person because of the losses he's experienced. “I don't...
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`They have to double it at least'
Those who rely on social assistance to get by in Hamilton are increasingly ending up homeless as rents outstrip their meagre incomes, says a new paper calling for reform. Provincewide, more than 30,000 Ontario Works (OW) and Ontario Disability Support...
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Speedskater Maltais hangs on for bronze for Canada's first medal
Valérie Maltais was cursing under her breath. The Canadian longtrack speedskater sat second in the women's 3,000metre race at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics following a solid twirl around the oval. The biggest issue? Four elite competitors she...
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LET THE GAMES BEGIN
Two freestyle skiers carried the flag and led the way for hundreds of Team Canada athletes Friday as the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics officially opened with a multisite ceremony spread across northern Italy. Moguls skier Mikaël Kingsbury, of...
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The HamiltonBurlington Olympic bunch
We're almost at the moment when many of us will start scouring our closets for those old, red Vancouver mittens and that wellworn newsboy cap from Salt Lake City. Then retiring to the couch where we'll spend the next couple weeks cheering wildly and...
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From McMaster to centre stage at the Olympics. Again
It was early one morning when she was sitting on an HSR bus heading to McMaster University. Knowing she had an exam waiting when she arrived, she was focused on her own thoughts and not really paying attention to much else. Suddenly her introspective...
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Illegal `fancy garage' demolished
Demolition of a poolside oasis and other structures built illegally on city parkland in Upper Stoney Creek is well underway. Joe Tarasca spent about $400,000 during the pandemic to build a glassenclosed building, driveway and fence on what turned out...
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`Something has to be done': Reports of flat tires from spikes spur investigation
Lisa Nicassio suspected a usual culprit when her car jammed up on Fifty Road last weekend. “My steering wheel wasn't turning, the tires weren't really moving. I thought, `OK, maybe there's slush or ice on the road and that's why I'm slipping,' ” the...
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`BLOOMLAND IN OZ' AT RBG
Follow the yellow brick road — or rather, Plains Road West — to Royal Botanical Gardens. “Bloomland in Oz” opened Saturday at Royal Botanical Gardens, returning the annual floral showcase with a storybook twist inspired by “The Wonderful Wizard of...
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BLACK HISTORY MONTH BUS BLING
When Hamilton artist Stylo Starr started riding the city bus as a preteen, she could have never imagined her work adorning a piece of public transportation. But that all changed Friday, as the Hamilton Street Railway (HSR) officially unveiled a new...
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St. Joseph's pitches $1.2 billion tower to tackle hallway medicine
St. Joseph's Healthcare has plans for a nearly $1.2billion renovation of the Charlton Campus that would see a new tower built and 128 beds added. In addition, the hospital wants to build 24 new kidney dialysis stations at the King Campus in Stoney...
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City of Hamilton budget cut reversals spur confusion
Mayor Andrea Horwath says she was as “surprised” as anyone to see the closure of the Stoney Creek Arena included in the fine print of a city budget proposal — the budget she herself announced publicly a week ago. Horwath told councillors at a meeting...
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Businesses trash plan to end recycling pickup
Businesses across the city are trashing a budget proposal to end cityfunded pickup of recycling from commercial properties. The proposed cut, included in the Dec. 12 staffproposed tax budget but only shared publicly Friday, would see cityfunded...
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`She's a pretty sturdy old gal'
Margareta Tukleris' family was certain she'd make it to her 100th birthday, no problem. The Stoney Creek family held a big party for the matriarch that year, feeling blessed to have been able to mark the milestone. Then Margareta's 105th birthday came...
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Hamilton digs out from under 20 to 25 cm of snow
The snow globe vibes aren't going anywhere any time soon. Residents across the city are digging out from a winter storm that swept across the region and dropped anywhere from 20 to 25 centimetres of snow on most parts of Hamilton on Sunday — even more...
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A revamped coliseum. The Junos. New festivals Is 2026 Hamilton's year of music?
TD Coliseum reopened late last year after a $300million revitalization with Paul McCartney performing. Days later came the announcement of Route 905 Country Festival, adding another music festival to Hamilton's bustling scene. Now, a new concert...
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FUN AT THE CHILDREN'S MUSEUM
The longanticipated return of the Hamilton Children's Museum has come with an unexpected hurdle: showing up in person no longer guarantees entry. Visitors to the newly renovated space — which reopened earlier this month after a nearly fiveyear...
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Homeless turn to library, mall for warmth
Noah Edgar, struggling with homelessness, takes a break from the bitter cold in Jackson Square's bustling food court in downtown Hamilton. He and his partner have spent the night bundled up under blankets by a vent blowing warm air outside the...
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`We want to make this a 21stcentury gallery'
Thousands of square feet of expanded gallery space, a new Main Street entrance — and a possible affordable housing tower, geared toward local creatives. Those are just some facets of the Art Gallery of Hamilton's (AGH) planned major revitalization...
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Her second marathon turned into a run to remember
She was a few kilometres from the finish line of the Houston Marathon when she glanced at her watch and started doing some mental calculations. If she could continue at this pace for just another few minutes, Erin Mawhinney realized she could post a...
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Bidders line up to build battery farms
Last year's sweltering summer strained the power grid as Ontarians struggled to keep cool. But the province had a powerful ace up its sleeve. Stored inside 278 giant lithiumion batteries — each the size of a tractortrailer — in rural Haldimand...
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Alone but not lonely
He lived alone, had no family by blood, and yet more than 60 souls packed a café on a cold night, on bruised Barton Street East, paying homage to him, lighting candles and telling stories marked by tears and laughter. Alan Reid, who died the week...
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`AN INVITE TO THE TABLE'
A Rubik's Cube at every seat set the tone for this month's older adult lunch: play. But a steady flow of conversation in the Faith United Church basement hall meant most cubes went untouched and a planned craft — tissuepaper flowers to brighten the...
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QUACKIN' GOOD TIMES
Paula Robinson works on her sculpture of a runner duck — yet to be named — during a pottery class at the Dundas Valley School of Art on Monday afternoon. The duck is a surprise gift for a friend, crafted at the community art school known for offering...
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These Hamilton businesses are feeling the love of the hit series `Heated Rivalry'
When Relay Coffee Roasters coowner Rachel Hofing booked a film shoot for a supposedly small production for her downtown Hamilton café last March, she didn't think much of it. Hofing knew the shoot was for a Canadian television series with a small...
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A ROUTINE MADE FOR ONE
Caroline DeJong shows off her figure skating moves for her sixmonthold daughter, Lucy, on the Watertown Rotary Skating Trail at Memorial Park in Waterdown on Thursday morning.
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Election tops list of city hall stories to watch this year
Brace for “silly season” with a looming municipal election expected to be one of the major stories of the year at Hamilton city hall. The 2026 municipal and school board votes will take place Oct. 26 — and election years tend to feature a “silly...
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A ROCKING GOOD TIME
Opportunities to enjoy rinks outside are likely getting paused this week as the temperature rises by the weekend — starting with a risk of freezing rain Tuesday morning. Getting ahead of the thaw, Nora McVea and her little brother Wyatt enjoyed being...
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PRO HOCKEY'S JOYOUS RETURN
The PWHL game between the Toronto Sceptres and Seattle Torrent drew a crowd of more than 16,000 to TD Coliseum on Saturday. Was the Hamilton stop on the Takeover Tour a test run for a possible expansion franchise?
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FROM CANES TO CHACHA
Seniors arrive at the YMCA on the central Mountain using walkers and canes, but over the course of a onehour specially designed class, they are dancing the chacha. “It sounds difficult, but it isn't because it's fun,” said 90yearold Hans Schulte...
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PWHL brings Takeover Tour to Hamilton
She's played in arenas all over the world. Denmark, Czechia, Finland, South Korea, China, Sweden, Germany and on and on. Closer to home, there aren't too many significant rinks across North America her skates haven't touched. But when was the last...
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2025 in Graeme MacKay's CARTOONS
Spectator's cartoonist Graeme MacKay looks back at 2025 with some of his highlights. Visit on New Year's Day to see MacKay's full gallery.
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Planning a trip to the tropics?
Trips to the tropics are meant to be carefree — but vacations, like life, aren't immune to the odd curveball. A widespread blackout in Cuba last year left some Canadians stranded in resorts for days. When Hurricane Melissa hit Jamaica in October,...
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Five years later, Phil gets his voice back
For most of the past five years, Phil Serez has sounded more than a bit like a robot. That's not a complaint. Honestly, it's a blessing my buddy sounds like anything. ALS has stolen so much from him. He can no longer move any part of his body except...
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Vinny Tirabassi lived through riches and ruin — then died in a place meant to help him
Vinny Tirabassi was on the right track. After money and relationship trouble left the man once married to a $10.5million lottery winner homeless, Tirabassi checked into a downtown men's shelter on Nov. 7, 2024, signing up for lowincome housing,...
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Dog park still shut six months after `temporary closure' for soil testing
A City of Hamilton dog park remains closed six months after it was shuttered due to potential soil contamination. The Birch Avenue leashfree dog park was closed until further notice by the city June 13 “as a precautionary measure” over health...
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Most city police officers now wearing body cameras
Next to a gun, a bodyworn camera (BWC) is the most powerful piece of equipment carried by a Hamilton police officer. They are intended to expand the scope of evidence in criminal and civil matters, capture incidents that can result in complaints or...
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There's only one real choice for local athlete of the year
There are three things you can have absolute confidence in over the next few weeks. People around you will complain about the weather, that bloody Mariah Carey Christmas song will be played on an endless loop to the point you're bordering on homicidal...
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Inside Hamilton's Amazon holiday hub
Thousands of Hamiltonians will likely turn to Amazon this holiday season to knock something off their list as they prepare to gather with family and friends. That could be a lastminute gift for a white elephant exchange with colleagues, decorations...
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Paul McCartney's Ontario backup band
At Hamilton's TD Coliseum, as 2025 was winding down, so was Paul McCartney's latest — some wonder if it's his final — North American tour. This penultimate show was another pilgrimage, some 18,000 adoring, cheering, weepy fans coming from around...
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STEVE'S STILL `OPEN' AT 50
In this final column before Christmas, here's an appreciation for two timeless delights in the city enjoyed by folks going on more than five decades. Open on James 50 years The restaurant business takes no prisoners, yet here I am, on Wednesday...
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Mac eyeing data centre proposal for former Spectator building
McMaster University will consider a pitch to transform the former home of The Hamilton Spectator into an “innovation hub” that includes an artificial intelligence data centre. The university announced in a media release on Wednesday that it was...
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Greenbelt review spurs questions following landswap scandal
The province says it will get on with a delayed review of the Greenbelt — but with few details available about how the government will conduct the mandatory exercise, Hamilton supporters of the protected band of green space are leery of carveouts for...
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`Unnecessary loss of life'
On the last day of her life, Kathryn Ellen Pryla shopped for groceries, hoping to cook and freeze some dinners in advance of her son's birth. Pryla was eight months pregnant, and she and her wife, Kaitlin Schroeder, had already picked out a name for...
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Staffers targeted by U.S. are resolute in face of sanctions
Judges and prosecutors at the International Criminal Court are trying to live and work under the same U.S. financial and travel restrictions brought against Russian President Vladimir Putin and Osama bin Laden. Nine staff members, including six judges...
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How police nabbed alleged jewelry store thieves
It is still dark as police officers gather in the office of the break, enter, auto theft and robbery (BEAR) unit when the briefing begins at exactly 7:16 a.m. Thursday. The assembled detectives are supposed to be preparing for earlymorning searches at...
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Boy, 7, dead after being struck by Hamilton bus
A sevenyearold boy is dead after being struck by an HSR bus. Hamilton police say the fatal collision occurred at Emerald and Wilson streets, just east of J.C. Beemer Park, around 1:10 p.m. on Thursday. The child was rushed to Juravinski Hospital...
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Bocelli creates night of true beauty
There were thousands of people with enormous smiles on their faces when Andrea Bocelli walked out on stage on Tuesday evening and belted out his first notes. Yet none were beaming more than Gabe Macaluso. Hearing the beautiful beginning to “La Donna è...
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SHAI'S STAR SHINES BRIGHT
Shai GilgeousAlexander has parlayed one of the best seasons in NBA history into his second Northern Star Award as Canada's athlete of the year for 2025. The 27yearold Oklahoma City Thunder guard from Hamilton beat out more than a dozen other...
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$5.5M plan to help nonprofits buy rental buildings launched
Hamilton is launching a $5.5million initiative to help nonprofits buy apartment buildings before forprofit players scoop them up and jack their affordable rents. Through such purchases, the aim is to maintain affordability in 100 rental units over...
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Six Nations restaurant is diabeticfriendly
In June, John Joseph was unwell. “I was about 70 pounds overweight” with diabetes, and high cholesterol and blood pressure. His liver was in rough shape, and he had “no ambition, no drive, no energy,” he told The Spectator. The doctor told him he was...
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Income shapes who drives electric
Income appears to be a barrier to widespread electric vehicle adoption around Hamilton, according to a new analysis by The Spectator. Based on public data from Ontario's Ministry of Transportation, there were 12,480 hybrid or fullelectric vehicles...
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Married 41 years, these seniors are back in school — together
Gabriel Kryzyworaczka sat at a desk opposite the teacher mulling over a math problem involving division and schools of fish. At the other end of the classroom, his wife, Emma, carefully copied sentences onto a lined sheet of paper in wobbly but...
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Teenage equestrian back in the saddle after brain surgery
Jumping over a threefoottall fence on horseback at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair last month was child's play compared to the health hurdles Haldimand teen Kylie Searles had to clear in recent years. Early in the young equestrian's training,...
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Landlords push back as rental licensing becomes permanent
City councillors have approved a permanent rentalhousing licensing program, despite landlord complaints it adds red tape without protecting tenants from shoddy conditions. The permanent version set to take effect in January replaces a pilot program...
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BANKING ON HAMILTON
It sounds too good to be true. But for more than 50 years, Hamilton was home to a financial institution that literally had a licence to print money. Then, in 1924, the Bank of Hamilton was taken over by the Canadian Bank of Commerce, and in 1934 the...
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`We can just be ourselves'
Roommates Li Jiang and Elaine Jongsma are 31 years apart in age, but they have much in common. Their late November birthdays fall one day away from one another. They love debriefing after first dates, lingering in each other's doorways to chat about...
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Two stars, one wild journey
Eric Robertson, the chef with an international reputation whose finedining restaurant in Niagara is ranked No. 1 in Canada, plucks an orange pepper from the soil. “I promise it's not a prank, it's not spicy — I'll eat it first, OK?” he says, tearing...
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DUNDAS DECKS OUT
City workers deployed the Christmas tree in Dundas in the nick of time this past week, beating the first sustained flurries of the winter season forecast for the weekend. Dylan McIntyre and Frank Muraca added adornments to the towering tree in Memorial...
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OHIP frustrations push surgeons out
Dr. Ronen Avram wanted to find a better way to surgically reconstruct breasts for women who had mastectomies following a devastating cancer diagnosis. The Hamilton surgeon, together with his surgical colleague Dr. Chris Coroneos, borrowed a technique...
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Peoples Church completes $12million transformation
Peoples Church on the west Mountain draws more than 1,000 people each week to Sunday services, and is home to the city's largest singlesite daycare and myriad youth sports leagues. It was distinctive even before its $12million expansion and...
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`A great boon to the downtown'
Electric Diner owner Erika Puckering had marked Friday night down in her calendar months ago. Nov. 21, 2025 — the day Sir Paul McCartney would roll into town to play the newly renovated TD Coliseum, drawing roughly 13,000 fans to downtown Hamilton for...
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Delayed Garner Road construction expected to wrap up a year late
The seemingly neverending construction on Garner Road in Ancaster is expected to wrap up later this month — more than a year later than originally planned. Ed English, the city's construction manager, recently told The Spectator the $5.2million...
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REMEMBRANCE DAY SERVICE
For a moment Tuesday morning, a hush fell over Gore Park in downtown Hamilton to honour the fallen and recognize all those who served in defence of Canada. Hamilton residents, active military personnel and veterans congregated at the downtown cenotaph...
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What can be done to make the city safer?
Shootings, violent youth crime, intimate partner violence and the rise in hate in Hamilton were the focus of Mayor Andrea Horwath’s community safety summit. The summit, at Liuna Station on Monday, heard from community and social service agencies about...
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