Stratford, Ontario

[flar]

S T R A T F O R D - O N T A R I O

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[smuncky]

those facades are really great. really reminds me of the ones on front street.

gj as always on the pics, flar.

 

[Mustapha]

The Albert Street Inn looks like the type of hotel that had disappeared from Toronto by the late 60s.

 

[androiduk]

Great pix as usual flar. Stratford is a beautiful town in a very pleasant part of Southern Ontario, I can see a lot of Torontonians retiring there once they've had enough of the rat race.

 

[Tewder]

Great pics, thx. Stratford is one of my favourite places in Ontario to visit, and the festival is a must at least twice for me every year, once in the summer to also enjoy the river and once in the fall to enjoy the colour. It's also a touristy town that manages to not feel too touristy (NOTL). Some very good restos too.

 

[Hipster Duck]

Great shots!

The back of city hall is a great public space waiting to happen. Following Kingston's example, they need to remove the sloppy ashphalt parking lot and reclad it to create a fantastic square.

 

[jswag]

^ I was going to say almost the exact same thing... a public square there would be one of the best spaces in Ontario. Does anyone know, do they have plans to improve the area around city hall somehow?

 

[Tewder]

Agreed. An amazing opportunity for a city park with fountains etc., and maybe space for an outdoor market.

 

[flar]

I'm pretty sure that space was a market square originally. It would be great if something were done with it. The surrounding merchants probably wouldn't give up the parking lot without a fight.

 

[ganjavih]

Great tour, charming town. I'll have to check it out.

 

[Tewder]

I'm pretty sure that space was a market square originally. It would be great if something were done with it. The surrounding merchants probably wouldn't give up the parking lot without a fight.

Perhaps some Dundas Square-type underground parking beneath the public space would fit the bill. Some centralized parking would be helpful for people visiting the festival, but would also encourage them to linger in the commercial centre of town too.

 

[flar]

^^that would be a major project for a city of this size, but it's a great idea. Stratford's large number of affluent tourists might make something like that possible.

 

[Long Island Mike]

Flar: Good Stratford,Ontario pics!

Flar: So that is what Stratford-famous for its Shakespeare Festival-looks like!
I like the first pics of the interesting City Center area-with City Hall-one of Stratford's best looking buildings in my opinion-as mentioned in pic #27. I also noticed the GTW/VIA Rail Canada station in pic #48 also. Towns like these have so much sturdy brick and stone construction on older structures-just the way I like them!!! You caught so many interesting structures there! In closing-thanks again for the neat pics! LI MIKE

 

[urbandreamer]

G-d, I hate this town. You've got a nice downtown over-run with idiots from the GTA and Americans, and the "real" town filled with the locals--aka, the suburban strip plazas etc. It may look all dolled up, but the reality is Stratford is a bore!

However, nice photos Flar!

 

[salvius]

^ here's two things:

1: Find me a city in Canada with a larger downtown for 30,000 people

2: Find me a city with more activity at 30,000 people in Canada that does not receive many tourists

You will not be able to do either.

PS: Plenty of Stratford locals live downtown. It's much more a real town than something like NOTL.