Streetscape
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The lost streets of South Parkdale
No Toronto neighbourhood paid for the Gardiner Expressway quite like Parkdale. Before construction of the lakefront highway in 1958, the land south of...
By Chris Bateman -
The demise of the first “air rights” project in Toronto
When Toronto’s first subway line opened in 1954, much of track north of Bloor Street was located in a shallow, open trench. The money-saving open cut...
By Chris Bateman -
The Shell Oil Tower is a lost 1950s masterpiece
A little over 30 years ago this winter, one of Toronto’s earliest Modern buildings was pulled to the ground. When the Shell Oil Tower at Exhibition...
By Chris Bateman -
The rise and fall and rise of St. Lawrence Hall
In 1966, Toronto’s St. Lawrence Hall was in terrible shape. The venerable old neoclassical building at the southwest corner of King and Jarvis...
By Chris Bateman -
When will Toronto love its Modern architecture?
What do you picture when you read the words “heritage building.”? It probably isn’t the Carlton Tower at Yonge and Carlton streets. The...
By Chris Bateman -
LORINC: The next massive mural should be at Yonge & Bloor
It seems to me that the act of adornment – indeed, the compulsion to adorn – is a fundamentally human impulse that speaks to our deep craving for...
By John Lorinc -
The life and death of Peter Dickinson and The Inn on the Park
Peter Dickinson was dying when he designed the Inn on the Park. From a bed in Mount Sinai hospital, his body weakened from cancer, Dickinson listened to...
By Chris Bateman -
This private patio is supposed to be public space
First let me say this: I love patios. The wind in your hair, the sun on your face, the hot waft of a garbage trunk barreling down the street. It’s all...
By Jake Tobin Garrett -
Toronto’s Summerville pool is a slice of the Mediterranean
It’s easy to overlook the Donald D. Summerville Olympic Pools. Despite its sturdy presence on Lake Shore Boulevard East, the futuristic elevated...
By Chris Bateman -
Ambitious rail deck park proposal announced
Today, Mayor John Tory and Ward 20 Councillor Joe Cressy announced plans for the protection of 21 acres of land in the downtown core for future use as a...
By Kieran Delamont -
The sidepath: a solution for suburban cycling infrastructure
On busy suburban roads, sidepaths offer an appealing alternative to installing bike lanes. But where they have been implemented, there are some major...
By Sean Marshall -
How Toronto built the CN Tower
The CN Tower is one of the most important buildings ever constructed in Canada. Like it or loathe it, the absurd, 553-metre concrete tower, which opened...
By Chris Bateman