‘Leave grandma at home': Critics say Sam Lawrence Park redesign doesn't consider accessibility

Hamilton Spectator

27-05-2025

One person will no longer bring his older parents to visit Sam Lawrence Park.
Another tried to visit and was unable to find parking.
They are among scores of Hamilton residents who have voiced concerns about the changes to the west side of the 18.6-acre park —
a former quarry named after a former Hamilton mayor
— situated at the top of the escarpment where the Jolley Cut meets Concession and Upper Wellington streets. The changes to the west side of the park, which to date have a $1.1-million price tag, have reduced parking from 22 spaces to eight — with plans to eliminate it entirely.
The city says street parking along Concession Street will help offset the lost spaces.
A City of Hamilton rendering shows the existing temporary parking solution in the western part of Sam Lawrence Park. The lot formerly had 22 parking spaces and has been reduced to eight. The traffic flow in the design has been changed to flow clockwise.
After a story about concerns around the redesign
, The Spectator put out a
survey for feedback on the changes
, which attracted more than 250 responses. The majority of respondents opposed the changes, citing accessibility concerns for older adults and people with mobility issues.
Mark Dyment said his parents are older and have mobility issues, so he would drive them to the park to enjoy the view.
'Where you could park the car, you could see the city — and if you're parking over on Concession (Street), there's not much point,' he said, adding he would like to see the parking revert to the previous layout.
He said the removal of parking has made accessing the park very difficult for any older people who use a wheelchair, walker or 'don't get around that quickly.'
'They want to park as close to the edge as possible,' he said. 'They're just not going to bother going.'
Anthony Quinn, chief operating officer of the Canadian Association of Retired Persons (CARP), said the removal of parking prevents many Hamiltonians — particularly those with mobility or breathing issues — from accessing 'this valued public space.'
'This policy is really saying, 'Leave grandma at home if you're visiting Sam Lawrence Park,'' he said.
He said these types of decisions — made by council after recommendations from city staff — are 'oblivious to the needs of older adults and frankly they don't seem to care.'
Quinn added while active transportation is often used in planning, it ignores a large segment of the population that is aging or disabled and is often not able to ride bicycles or public transit.
'Eliminating parking actually makes the park less accessible and it becomes the sole domain of the physically fit,' he said.
The final proposed design of the parking lot in the western portion of Sam Lawrence Park would remove all parking spaces and create a fully pedestrianized observation area.
Bill Dell, who is 77, said he recently tried to visit the park and was unable to find parking 'within a reasonable distance.' He said the changes make him less likely to visit in the future.
Dell said he is fortunate to still be quite mobile at his age, but he knows many people younger than himself who have serious mobility issues.
'Now they've made it so you have to be able-bodied just to get there,' he said of the parking changes. 'They've forgotten several generations.'
Dell, whose wife is a grandniece of Sam Lawrence, said he doubts Lawrence would approve what has been done to the park.
'To make the changes that they did, for the theme of making it accessible for pedestrians and bicycles, really eliminates a population who actually remembered who Sam Lawrence was.'
Shirley Trimmer, who lives on the Mountain, said she regularly visits the park, including to watch storms. Trimmer, who is in her 70s, said she has friends who bring their parents, who are in their 90s, to the park.
She said older people don't want to walk from the street into the park — and people who visit the park to watch storms don't want to stand out in the pouring rain.
'My biggest concern is people who drive there … like my friend with her 90-plus-year-old father,' she said. 'She drives him and he looks. He doesn't get out of the car.'
Jean Ralph and her dog Junebug survey the redesign of the western portion of Sam Lawrence Park. The Concession Street resident said she has already witnessed
the current parking layout be a hindrance to people with mobility challenges.
Meanwhile, Jean Ralph — who lives nearby and regularly visits the park — said she has already seen the current parking layout be a hindrance to people with mobility challenges.
She said she watched one woman unable to get a walker out of the trunk of the car for her mother, due to the parking.
'If somebody has a wheelchair or walker, how are they supposed to get it out of their trunk?' she said. 'Whoever approved that needs their head examined.'
City of Hamilton landscape architecture supervisor Meghan Stewart said via email that the design aims to address 'public safety and accessibility concerns.'
She said the proposed design was shaped by public feedback and expert research, and safety and accessibility were identified as key areas for improvement during the engagement process.
In fact, Stewart said public feedback indicated the western portion of the park lacked accessible connections to the rest of the park and and that the park overall suffered from underuse and illicit nighttime activity.
She said the plan includes relocating parking spaces from the western parking lot to Concession Street to allow for new barrier-free pathway connections, an improved pedestrian-focused space for viewing, gathering and events, improved lighting, additional seating and a connection between the east and west side of the park so pedestrians can safely access either side.
In response to parking concerns, Stewart said the parking lot on the east side of the park is expected to be expanded in a future phase of the park project. She added the plans for the park will continue to be 'implemented in various stages.'
'This parking lot offers (the) opportunity for those who want to drive to the park to take in the views or connect to future barrier-free garden pathways or future entry plaza and bridge over the Jolley Cut.'
For more information on plans for Sam Lawrence Park, visit
hamilton.ca/samlawrencepark
.