Royal Connaught Hotel
Encyclopedia
The Royal Connaught Hotel is a 13-storey building, 50 metres tall, at the corner of King Street East & John Street South
in downtown Hamilton, Ontario
, Canada
. It was built by Harry Frost of Buffalo, New York
in 1914, who also started up and owned the Frost Fence Company in Hamilton.
inked a $9.5-million contract to purchase the Royal Connaught Hotel at Hamilton, Ontario. The agreement was secured with a $100,000 deposit and provided a 30 day conditional period for Stinson to secure financing. But financing was not secured. The concept included restoration and a substantial addition to the existing Connaught building to include a 100-room boutique luxury hotel and approximately 200 compact one- and two-bedroom multi-use condominium
units. Stinson's original grand vision included a 70- to 80-storey Sapphire Tower
and has now turned into a new 100-storey condominium tower, with a commercial gallery designed to be an architectural signature piece for downtown Hamilton. The price tag for the entire project was an estimated $300-million, but the project was never initiated and Stinson soon set his sights on other projects.
John Street (Hamilton, Ontario)
John Street, is a Lower City arterial road in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Originally it was known as Mountain Road or Ancaster Road. It starts off at the base of Arkledun Avenue, a Mountain-access road in the city, just east of St.Joseph's Hospital where it's a one-way street going north and tunnels...
in downtown Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. It was built by Harry Frost of Buffalo, New York
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
in 1914, who also started up and owned the Frost Fence Company in Hamilton.
Timeline
- 1911 - Businessman Harry Louis Frost approaches the city about building a grand hotel.
- 1914 - A building permit is issued for construction on the site of the Waldorf Hotel.
- 1916 - The hotel opens with a lavish banquet and dance on 5 June.
- 1922 - Prior to the 1922-23 season, the NHL would hold its Governors meeting at the Royal Connaught Hotel on King Street, where the visiting NHL teams who came to town to play against the Hamilton Tigers stayed as well.
- 1927- In 1927, CKOC radio station was finding the Lister Building accommodations unsatisfactory and the radio station was moved to the 11th floor of the Royal Connaught Hotel. The transmitter power was raised from 50 to 100 watts. For a brief time, CKOC and CHML shared the same frequency... 880 on the radio dial. In 1931, CKOC changed to the 630 on the dial and boosted power to a full 1,000 watts. The radio business was beginning to boom!
- 1929- The hotel expands into a neighbouring building.
- 1930- United Hotels Company, which owned the Connaught, announces it has been sold. The new owner adds 200 rooms and turns the bottom floors into offices and shops.
- 1952- The hotel is sold to the SheratonSheraton Hotels and ResortsSheraton Hotels and Resorts is Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide's largest and second oldest brand . Starwood's headquarters are in White Plains, New York.-Sheraton history:...
chain, which later completes a million-dollar renovation.
- 1973- The hotel is again sold, this time to Toronto-based Citicom. Another renovation worth $4 million is completed.
- 1988- The hotel is sold to Joymarmon Properties Ltd.
- 1992- Joymarmon loses the hotel when its mortgage holder forecloses.
- 1993- The hotel becomes a franchise under the Howard JohnsonHoward Johnson'sHoward Johnson's is a chain of hotels and restaurants, located primarily throughout the United States and Canada. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Howard Johnson's was the largest restaurant chain in the United States, with over 1,000 restaurants...
chain.
- 2002- Canmac Hotels Corporation, a master at reviving struggling hotels, buys the hotel, assumes its $6-million debt and promises full-scale renovations.
- 2004- Hotel closes after going into receivership.
- 2005- Five local businessmen buy the hotel for $4.5 million.
- 2008- Real EstateReal estateIn general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
developer Harry StinsonHarry StinsonHarry Stinson , born in Toronto and educated at the University of Toronto Schools, is a high-profile real estate developer from Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. He is president of Stinson Properties, Inc. He has been called Toronto's "condo king"...
makes a deposit with plans to reopen it for Christmas 2009.
- 2008- June 2nd 2008, Harry Stinson makes a public presentation of his proposed 100-storey Connaught Towers at the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce building. Once complete, it will become the tallest building in Canada. Three months later, on Thursday September 4th, Harry Stinson closes up the Connaught Towers sales office in downtown Hamilton and the project is officially cancelled.
Harry Stinson & The Connaught Towers
On 29 February 2008 Harry StinsonHarry Stinson
Harry Stinson , born in Toronto and educated at the University of Toronto Schools, is a high-profile real estate developer from Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. He is president of Stinson Properties, Inc. He has been called Toronto's "condo king"...
inked a $9.5-million contract to purchase the Royal Connaught Hotel at Hamilton, Ontario. The agreement was secured with a $100,000 deposit and provided a 30 day conditional period for Stinson to secure financing. But financing was not secured. The concept included restoration and a substantial addition to the existing Connaught building to include a 100-room boutique luxury hotel and approximately 200 compact one- and two-bedroom multi-use condominium
Condominium
A condominium, or condo, is the form of housing tenure and other real property where a specified part of a piece of real estate is individually owned while use of and access to common facilities in the piece such as hallways, heating system, elevators, exterior areas is executed under legal rights...
units. Stinson's original grand vision included a 70- to 80-storey Sapphire Tower
Sapphire Tower
The Sapphire Tower was a proposed luxury hotel / condominium skyscraper in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, to be built by developer Harry Stinson. It would have stood at 196 metres or 62 floors...
and has now turned into a new 100-storey condominium tower, with a commercial gallery designed to be an architectural signature piece for downtown Hamilton. The price tag for the entire project was an estimated $300-million, but the project was never initiated and Stinson soon set his sights on other projects.
See also
- List of tallest buildings in Hamilton, Ontario
- Harry StinsonHarry StinsonHarry Stinson , born in Toronto and educated at the University of Toronto Schools, is a high-profile real estate developer from Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. He is president of Stinson Properties, Inc. He has been called Toronto's "condo king"...
- Sapphire TowerSapphire TowerThe Sapphire Tower was a proposed luxury hotel / condominium skyscraper in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, to be built by developer Harry Stinson. It would have stood at 196 metres or 62 floors...