MELTwich is Hamilton’s latest victim of vandalism
- Robert
- 30 Aug 2018
Another storefront has been hit by Hamilton’s vandalism epidemic.
Set to open in September, Barton Street’s MELTwich has already been subjected to vandalism three different times.
When they first acquired the property, shop owners Richie and Rohin Khanna spent $25,000 to give the store a well-deserved facelift.
With new orange signage and a wooden exterior, the storefront was well on its way to looking beautiful.
Then the first wave of vandalism happened.
Three weeks ago, construction crews informed the storeowners that the storefront’s windows were smashed. At first Richie Khanna didn’t think anything of it – life happens and windows can be replaced.
It wasn’t until his crew told him that someone had jammed the store’s locks that Khanna became concerned.
The icing on this vandalism cake came Sunday night when someone splashed white paint all over the building’s exterior.
As of right now, the damage has cost the owners nearly $10,000.
Over the last six months, many small businesses across Hamilton have been subject to unnecessary vandalism. Many of these businesses are owned and operated by life-long Hamiltonians who want to share their craft.
In the case of MELTwich, the shop’s owners were born and raised in Hamilton, growing up not too far from their sandwich shop.
MELTwich has been built out of the former Bar-Ken Restaurant & Bar.
It’s important to note that MELTwich didn’t displace or force Bar-Ken to close its doors; the former restaurant was already closed for over a year and a half.
If you see vandalism taking place please speak up. Alert the authorities, tell your friends and get a conversation going. We should be supporting small, local businesses, not taking aggression out on them.
Do you own a small business? What do you think about Hamilton’s recent wave of vandalism? Let us know in the comments.
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