Early Toronto Suburbs In Colour--50's-60's

[LowPolygon]

here is another selection of shots, most of them are North York, and from a slightly later time. most look to be mid to late 60's...

who designed this? its pretty amazing...

this is oddly reminiscent of a flattened Sydney Opera House:

the late lamented Bata:

i love all three of these buildings:

this development has very contemporary proportions i think, almost looks like the base of an AA development...

Men With Hats! these are definitely earlier:

back to the sunny 1960's:

and to cap it all off--dinner and dancing!

 

[Edward Skira]

That second one is Raymond Moriyama and it used to be the Japanese cultural centre.

 

[Anna]

Deepend, you beat me to it.
Very sad

 

[Anna]

mmmm. fish and chips. Thanks for those 'Now' pics Anna.

Blovertis ... 'spawn of Mustapha' The horror.

How do you think I feel?

BTW, the kid in the stroller could be me...

 

[Mustapha]

Deepend, you beat me to it.
Very sad

Landlord needs an attitude correction here - this place seriously needs sprucing up.

 

[Anna]

Landlord needs an attitude correction here - this place seriously needs sprucing up.

It looks like they are going for demolition by neglect - so someone can build more of the faux chato-wnhouses that are across the street.

The building to the east (the one with the boys in front of it in Deepend's photos, I think) looks like it is empty.

 

[LowPolygon]

boy that's really a grim transformation. its always amazing to me that something that starts off so elegant can end up looking so slummy.
i guess its a typical 'death by a thousand cuts' scenario: there are a least a dozen little things that, added together, have made the development look like total dreck...

 

[adma]

Though for what it is, it actually doesn't look *that* bad--at least, compared to others of its ilk in 2009--and from the original sash and slatted sunshades on down, it's surprisingly intact, too. No awful aluminum siding or EIFS here. I find it more "shaggy" than slummy; and worthy of, uh, restoration...

Watch how you condemn its present state, you might be inadvertently encouraging a worse fate.

 

[jaycola]

My Dad used to own this Store, Claire's Cigar store.

My family had it from 1971 to 1985. I worked cash there when I was about 10years old.

In those days everything was closed sundays except for us. I remember when cigarettes went up to 75 cents what a fuss people were making.
We sold a variety of ceramics including many versions of the Elvis Bust

 

[LowPolygon]

Though for what it is, it actually doesn't look *that* bad--at least, compared to others of its ilk in 2009--and from the original sash and slatted sunshades on down, it's surprisingly intact, too. No awful aluminum siding or EIFS here. I find it more "shaggy" than slummy; and worthy of, uh, restoration...

Watch how you condemn its present state, you might be inadvertently encouraging a worse fate.

ok--you're right...
its very rundown and ramshackle, but i would much rather see the development carry on with its present shambolic unravelling than have it entombed in that horrible awful EIFS!!

(who invented that stuff anyway?? its the worst building material in the history of the world.)

 

[adma]

I think the beginnings of EIFS were quite legitimately idealistic, as a solution to the rebuilding of bombed European historic centres, etc.

And you have to admit, some of the "rundown and ramshackle" quality here has more to do with balcony/window accoutrements and the like, which may relate more to fiendishlibrarian's rants on everything from the sidewalk poster plague to how everyday grooming and decorum have gone down the tubes over the past few decades...

 

[Anna]

 

[Uncle Teddy]

A real shame about the redone BMO. Looked better before.

 

[adma]

But at least it's kept its basic form; so, it *is* "restorable" (at least in the event that BMO moves out and maybe some appropriately Starbucks-type operation moves in)

 

[junctionist]

It looks very forgettable now. The Scotiabank 'pavilion' fared slightly better, though it received an addition.

At least they're still standing and restorable.