Welcome to Red Hill Stories of Struggle!
This is a project devoted to remembering and learning from the important activism and organizing that happened in Hamilton, Ontario, to defend the Red Hill Valley. Learn more about the project and the people behind it, or dive right into exploring via the timeline tool below.
1956
A consultancy hired by the City of Hamilton produced a plan to build an expressway within the valley. Read more 
1963
Hamilton City Council approved the ‘Hamilton Area Transportation Study’ including the Red Hill Expressway as 1of 5 proposed expressways. The RHVP added to city plan. Read more 
1963-1969
Sections of Highway 403 through Hamilton opened between December 1963 and September 1969. Read more 
1974
Hamilton City Council unanimously resolved to permanently protect the Red Hill Valley. The expressway was removed from the official plan. Read more 
1977
Majority of council supported valley route. The provincial government refused to pay subsidy for east-west expressway in lower Hamilton without city proposing to build Red Hill. Read more 
1984
The provincial government decided to submit approval for the project to one, larger hearing process (first time in Ontario), called the 'Consolidated Joint Board' which had two OMB officials and one OEAB official. 99 days of hearing were held in 1984. Read more October 1985
Decision in favour of valley route. The OEAB, NEC and HRCA all opposed the project. Against the wishes of those agencies, and a group called "Save the Valley", the board approved the project 2-1, with the OEAB representative dissenting. Read more 
1987
The Save the Valley organization and the HRCA appealed to the provincial government, but the appeal was rejected in 1987. Read more 
1990
Construction began. Construction on both the King Street East and Queenston Road replacement bridges... Read more 
1994
Report of David Crombie - he produced a plan without an expressway, instead proposing the construction and expansion of arterial roads on either side of the valley. The compromise was rejected by regional council in 1994 Read more 
1995
Hamilton Region Conservation Authority begins work on the Red Hill Valley Rehabilitation project. The $21m-plan was approved by the former NDP provincial government but funding is cut by newly-elected Conservatives. Read more December 1995
The Mike Harris government will commit to paying $100 million toward the Red Hill Expressway project. Read more 
October 1997
The Lincoln M. Alexander Parkway officially opens. The east-west leg of The Red Hill Expressway cost $160 million. The regional and provincial governments roughly split the cost. Read more 
April 1998
David Anderson, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, turns down a request by Friends of Red Hill Valley and the Canadian Environmental Law Association asking for a federal environment assessment because of the threat to fish habitat. Read more 
June 1998
Ottawa announces a plan to conduct an environmental assessment of the $186-million highway. The region's assessment says the expressway will have major environmental impacts. The region will spend millions to minimize those impacts. Read more 
2001
The EA began in 1998, but the City of Hamilton challenged and successfully halted this assessment process in 2001, arguing that the project was exempt from federal guidelines because preliminary construction had commenced before the date specified in the federal EA legislation. Read more 
July 21, 2003
The City sent out an intimidating letter to several individuals they knew to be part of the Showstoppers. Read more 
August 15, 2003
Court order, temporary injunction, stopping both protest and construction. Read more 
July 21, 2003
The City sent out an intimidating letter to several individuals they knew to be part of the Showstop Read more 