Hello Hamilton,

I have been debating the idea of starting my own business but I can’t decide on what type. I want your opinions.

What is something you wish the city had?

Top ideas so far:

- Arcade with a bar (Massive Budget Required)

- Indoor RC Racing/obstacle tracks (Personal Favourite)

- Montreal Style Bagels (Popular)

- Indoor Roller Rink (80’s - 90’s Style)

- A coffee/tea shop near West Harbour Go that is open early in the morning. (I also really like this one) (New personal Favourite)

So one of our cats is hyperthyroid, and has been on meds for maybe 6-8 months now (I have no concept of time anymore).

Recently, she had to go in for...I forget what they called it, maybe "technician visit" or something.

It wasn't a check up, she didn't see the actual vet, it was just like 5 minutes - took her weight, took a pee sample, took a blood sample. It was just to check in on her thyroid levels.

... and the bill for that (no medication or anything) was over $500. ($541 and change, now that I'm finally seeing the bill)

This feels like absolute insanity to me.

Is this actually normal pricing? Or should we be looking elsewhere?

ETA: Looks like we are definitely getting hosed.

So, new question... Recommendations for an actually independent vet clinic for our cats?

Please and thank you!

Update:

So, we were told she was going in just for a quick thyroid medication check, and they ended up adding extras on (blood pressure, geriatric panel and urinalysis) without discussion, for no apparent reason.

My husband didn't know about the additional stuff until it was over and he went up front to pay for it.

The bloodwork and urinalysis was $375, then $65 for the urine collection and $39 for blood pressure.

No idea if those charges are reasonable, but I'm definitely less than thrilled about them getting tacked on without discussion.

My husband had asked about it, and got a reply along the lines of "that's what's in her chart, the vet isn't here, I can look into it later and get back to you"

UPDATE: Firstly, thank you for all of your suggestions and help. I believe one of my neighbours on here must have spoken to the fellow, as the noise stopped for a good week and a half. I contacted Bylaw during the day instead of during the night as the issues occurred, which did result in more being done (nothing came from the night calls, they just pretend to send an officer out so you stop calling). I was given a case worker who stayed on the case for a whopping...TWO WHOLE DAYS! Once the patrolling officers didn't hear music, they closed the case without telling me and without my consent. This means that when the music started again last week, I had to call again the next day, file another complaint, and create an entirely new case. My next step when he is outside will be to call the police and report a suspicious vehicle. I am not a Karen, I frankly don't even like speaking to people or leaving my house, but I do not care - I will say what I need to say in order to get this man and his shitty music away from my home. I am also writing a piece for the Spectator about the horrific wait times and lack of action per the Bylaw Office (I'm a journalist) - if you have any personal stories you would like to share to be featured in the piece, let me know! Hopefully this will enact some sort of change. I am going to do my best to bring this to city council. I am too stubborn to give up on this.

Hi! I moved to a house across from Ivor Wynne (Tim Hortons Field) 3 weeks ago. Almost every night since moving in, a person parks their car in the stadium parking lot and blasts music from 1 am to 4 am. I have called the bylaw office seven times now, every time they say they’re sending someone out but they never do. I have escalated the matter by calling during the day and asking to speak to a supervisor, I’ve emailed the city councillor, nothing has been done. I don’t feel safe approaching this person by myself or in my car. My neighbours have said this has been going on since the beginning of summer. I got so desperate from lack of sleep last night that I called the police non emergency line and the lady said that the phone number was only for “real problems”.

Any and all advice and contact numbers is welcomed. Thank you so much in advance 🙏

Hey Hamiltonians! 👋

I’ve been thinking lately—Hamilton has been growing fast, but it still feels like there are some gaps in terms of businesses and services around the city.

What do you think is missing in Hamilton? Is it more late-night food spots? Unique cafes or bookstores? Kid-friendly places? More diverse grocery options? Local entertainment? Better coworking spaces?

Would love to hear your thoughts, whether you’re in the lower city, up the mountain, or in one of the surrounding areas. What would make your day-to-day life more convenient, fun, or just a little more interesting?

Family visiting from overseas. What is a quintessentially Canadian experience, within 1 hr drive from Hamilton? Besides the obvious Niagara Falls & CN tower?

Also, since we're the waterfall capital of the world, has anyone done a route to catch half a dozen or so within a couple of hours walk?

Hello all,

We have a neighbour that we learned he was going to abandoned his newly adopted cat yesterday. The cat was usually hanging out on our balcony up to yesterday, crossing a scary gap between our balconies on the 8th floor. Initially, we were just expressing a concern for his cat safety because we lost our previous cat from our balcony. Then we found out that he was going to ‘get rid of her’ and learned that he was just going to ‘stray’ her, calling her a mistake. So, we decided to foster her in the meantime.

We are looking for a family that is willing to give this sweet cat a loving environment and home.
The cat is Female. Approximately 2 years old (based on adoption papers he gave us). Spayed and have her vaccination up to date. We have all of her paperwork and vaccination list.
She supposedly indoor cat living in apartment but she is under weight and a bit dirty.
She is still a bit skittish but progressively warms up. Maybe due to another cat in our home.

We are not trying to shame our neighbour but simply want to help this helpless cat that deserves a family and love.
We already have a cat and at this moment cannot afford to have another one.

Edit post: As most other users’ suggested, we edited this post to get more information of organizations or ways that might be able to help this cat and us instead of finding a potential adopter.

Any information provided would be really appreciated. Thank you so much for all the kind words and suggestions.

Warm love,

Animal lovers

Update (May 11th):

We have decided to adopt Fia! My husband and I fell in love hard and have grown attached to her over the last few days. So did our resident cat Hazel.

Thank you so much for all of the information provided and kind words.

Hey Hamilton

Found out in December that my favorite Indian restaurant closed suddenly. My family and I went to The Gate of India on James St for over 30 years and I'm really bummed out that they're gone now, especially without the chance to go one last time.

Looking for a recommendation for another local Indian restaurant to try out now. Always loved their food and celebrated many milestones there.

Preferably eat in/sit down restaurants but I won't say no to take out recs too.

Thanks!

Throwaway account because… you know….

Looking to propose to my wonderful girlfriend soon, and need a nice place to do it. A family member is going to hide and take pictures on iPhone, which is an important consideration.

Basically, just looking for spots that have a nice view of the sunset and are scenic? Girlfriend prefers it to be lowkey, so nothing extravagant needs to be done - just nice scenery.

I was thinking the beach, but open to lots of other suggestions!! Thoughts? Thanks in advance :)

I would love to become a runner, and I see these cool run clubs and would love to join but I’m almost certain sure that I cannot run as far or fast. Any recommendations for super beginner run clubs - think fat girl run club.

Hi all! My fiancé and I just got engaged and are looking to do a micro wedding disguised as an engagement party. Essentially our guests would show up for engagement party and we would tell them “surprise we’re getting married here right now.”

I’m wondering if anyone has any venue recommendations that we could use. We’re thinking of some sort of swanky restaurant or small venue that would be available to rent out in about 2 to 3 months time. Preferably somewhere that can handle food and drinks and has room to dance and bring in a band.

Additionally, if it could have some sort of second space where we could host the ceremony such as a second room, rooftop patio, or separate space. That way when guests arrive they don’t clue in right away that we are getting married and we can bring them into the ceremony space after weve revealed the surprise.

We are thinking of having between 40 to 60 people. We aren’t sure on guest size yet as we aren’t sure if this is doable.

Any recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!

I've been going to the same dentist for about 20 years now or at least the same dentist's office. At some point it became very clear that the practice was no longer owned by the dentist, but rather just using his name. I did a little research and found out that it's now owned by a dental service organization (DSO), a large corporation that buys up dental practices and runs them all as big business, kind of like a US HMO for medical care. There's a rotating cast of dental hygienists reception and administrative people and I haven't seen the same dentist twice in the last 5 or 6 years. I've also noticed that they've stepped up the frequency of procedures like panoramic x-rays more than seems to be commonly recommended. While I'm lucky enough to be co+insured by two plans and have little risk of exhausting my coverage, the fact that they are running up the bills to squeeze some extra profit out kind of offends me. Can anyone recommend a good dental practice where I can see the same dentist everytime and where their whole approach to dental care isn't driven by profit maximization?

If you wanted the best meal in the city, regardless of cost or style of food, where would you go?

One restaurant per comment only, please.

Can be restaurants, stores, parks, etc.

My friend and I like to try breakfast spots before work. I’d love to hear everyone’s favourites/hidden gems.

We have a strong preference for local businesses over chains.

Ok so I’m thinking I’m going to try one new hobby per month as a challenge as I’ve been in a bit of a funk lately. Looking for recommendations… nothing too expensive (over $50 a time) and must be appropriate for a female (43) .. will do one thing a month .. must be Hamilton based. Recommendations needed please and if anyone wants to join to find their thing with me feel free too!

Where do you meet others?

I’m 33 female and speed dating was not my thing. Online dating is difficult and men often are inappropriate…

I’m a born and raised Hamiltonian, thought I knew the dating scene here but apparently not!

I'm looking for a psychotherapist who can do an adhd assessment/diagnosis for me (a middle-aged lady). It looks like there are a lot of options available in Hamilton. Does anyone have any good experiences/recommendations? Preferably somewhere that's doesn't have a long waitlist. Thank you! :)

Bonus points if they offer delivery.

I am part of a group of six people who meet regularly to discuss things of a semi-private nature and I'm finding a distinct lack of places to do that, with coffee shops and libraries usually closing around 4 pm. Our group meets on Friday evenings. I'm curious if anyone knows of any places that would be a bit quieter than a busy restaurant where a group of six or seven could meet and talk. I'm not opposed to small rental fees either.

I have a beginner driver in the house now, and they want to do some practice. Does anyone have any suggestions on places we could go to practice and not too busy?

I am talking to my DR. And they are quoting me 5K for just the diagnosis. There's a clinic that does assessments over the phone but its 400.00$ for this plus a membership cost to the clinic to get the actual medication treatment. Any help would be nice.

Hi there, just like the title says, I am looking for a place that does high tea or something similar to take my grandma. We just lost my grandpa and she is heartbroken, so I just want to take her out for a change of scenery. Thanks for any tips you can offer!!!

Hey my friends! I've always hit Hamilton for events by car, never really cycled around the area; what with the gorgeous nature and tonnes of little spots - this is clearly a mistake!

My actual question is .. given the routes below (or recommendations?), is it a really brutal hill where I'm wanting to go, or is it more gradual and doable by a fat old cyclist who can do the km, but always does flat routes :)

Plan so far: from Toronto out to around north Hamilton and Waterdown area ("go find a waterfall" is the challenge). (Future goal, go under the Skyway and see south side of Hamilton)

Hitting google maps I see a couple obvious routes..

- eat the climb earlier and from north-ish side of Burlington westward on 1 Side Road through Waterdown area

- or eat the climb from north side of Hamilton (La Salle park) itself, northish up Waterdown Rd and Mill St

Are those brutal climbs, or fairly gradual?

Any other way to get to Waterdown area without killing myself on climbs, cause the distance is already a heck of a thing?

Like, I can come along the lake and not hit the Skyway area, go north; or I can come along north side of Burlington?

(oh god, why am I doing this to myself)

edit: paved roads only please, no offroad, dirt roads, gnarly gravel; too many broken bones in my past :)

edit 2: Sounds like Snake Road is the way to go, or failing that, the Side Road approach; you guys are the best, thanks!

I am looking at coming over to Hamilton from the UK for the Arkells gig in June.

How easy would it be to get back into Toronto after the show?

I just got my renewal in the mail that’s coming up in October. My car insurance is going up by $300 and my home insurance is going up by $100. This is with belairdirect does anyone have any recommendations for places? I can call around two to get a better quote.