Hamilton’s film industry is ready for its close up!
Today Aeon Studio group, a developer and operator of film and TV studio space announced its plan to build a major production hub on the vacant Barton-Tiffany lands. The price tag has not yet been released but the sale is said to be in its final stages.
The city-owned Barton-Tiffany lands next to the West Harbour GO station has sat vacant for about a decade. City council had demolished buildings there in 2010 for the planned football stadium that fell through.
Last year the city of Hamilton saw a 50% increase in film permits, issuing 811 for 2018.
“Hardest part of coming here right now was that there was no studio, we had a ton of stuff to shoot and we needed a studio!” Robbie David, Aeon Studio Group.
The cost of this major project is still unknown, “I’m not sure of the cost, it’s going to be in the hundreds of millions by the end of the day” says Robbie David.
The city of Hamilton says they are certain the studio development, which will include office buildings, retail space and two residential buildings, will go through
In the plans laid out for the Barton-Tiffany lands, they will build 500 000 square feet of stage space, they say first 150 000 will be available and operational within a year. The total timeline of this major project could take up to two decades to complete.
