Toronto CityPlace Puente de Luz Bridge | ?m | ?s | Concord Adex | Francisco Gazitua

What, regarding this bridge, i get my post deleted for speaking my mind... on how the bridge meets the street:confused:
...For talk regarding this visionary square, and Globe and Mail development which has its own thread.:mad:
 
Dundas Square seems like it's trying to copy Times Square or Shinjuku. But it's just doesn't have the wow factor that Times Square does. Nor does it give a Shinjuku kind of feel because of the narrow streets and wide open area. Dundas Square doesn't seem to have tall enough buildings on the corners and the streets aren't that wide to give it a wide open space feel to it like Shinjuku does. But for Toronto, I guess that's the best we can do. The only wide space we have is on University Ave. Some might argue smaller space gives you a more comfortable feeling.
 
AKS said:
It's longer than 10 minute walk from Union Stn. I would say it's around 15-20 min walk to Old Fort York. Also, it's better to take Bathurst streetcar. That will bring you to the back end of it. I don't know if the streetcar along Fort York/Bremner will go ahead or not. It seems there's some disagreement over it or something. Something about the height issue or alignment or excuse.

Anyhow, I never knew how to get there because I lived uptown and seldom went downtown except to Chinatown or Financial district. But after moving to Cityplace, I see it every day.
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hawc said:
The walk from Union Station to Front and Spadina is a bit of an annoying long one. I can never figure out if it's quicker to walk from St. Andrew's to Front and Spadina. Either way it's not fun. Also, is Dundas Square actually considered a success on which we should model other intersections after? Maybe I'm just getting old, but I avoid it at all costs.
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As someone who lives at Front/Spadina, I can confidently say it is less than a 15 minute walk to Union. I've done it many times in 10 minutes, albeit at a relatively rapid pace.

And yes there is always the option of simply walking to St. Andrew, which I would say is almost the exact same distance.

As for it being awkward, I believe that's an entirely incorrect description. The walk from Front/Spadina to Union Station along Front street is far from awkward. It's a completely straight walk through a very lively area of the city.
 
Tuscani01 said:
At the Cityplace Residents Association AGM, Adam Vaughan had mentioned that the Globe was in discussions with the city to create a massive event space to rival Dundas Square on the site of their current building, as well as decking over part of the railway yard at Front/Spadina to create a more pedestrian friendly south side. They have a grand vision for the corner, and are working with the City to try and make as much of it reality as possible.
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The event space being planned is indoors - nothing like Dundas Square.
As for the decking over the railway, this comes about due to a potential separate project across the street for a development over the GO Transit storage yards (believe it or not) on "rights" owned by Canada Lands. Check out this link.

http://www.clc.ca/properties/433-front-street-west

433 Front Street West

Current Size: 100%

433 Front Street West is a 1.1 acre (0.45 hectare) parcel of land from CLC's located at the south-west corner of Front Street and Spadina Avenue in Toronto, Ontario. It was acquired in 1995 from Canadian National Railway.

The lands are designated a “Front Street General Use Area A†within the Official Plan of the City of Toronto and are zoned to permit apartment/condo building, hotel and commercial uses with a maximum gross floor area of 392,434 ft2 (36,458 m2).

Development of the site would have to occur over the GO Transit rail yard located on the lands.
 
Metrolinx is considering a GO station on that spot now too, which would be incorporated into the building SpadinaBus is referring to. Building the GO station there would also likely trigger the Downtown Relief Line to be built, to shuttle GO Transit passengers and locals from Front & Spadina to the core and the rest of the TTC subway system.

Here's hoping for some Pennies From Heaven, otherwise it ain't happening in the foreseeable future.

42
 
SpadinaBus said:
As for the decking over the railway, this comes about due to a potential separate project across the street for a development over the GO Transit storage yards (believe it or not) on "rights" owned by Canada Lands. Check out this link.

http://www.clc.ca/properties/433-front-street-west
Click to expand...

interchange42 said:
Metrolinx is considering a GO station on that spot now too, which would be incorporated into the building SpadinaBus is referring to. Building the GO station there would also likely trigger the Downtown Relief Line to be built, to shuttle GO Transit passengers and locals from Front & Spadina to the core and the rest of the TTC subway system.
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Is there a 433 Front W thread?
 
I do not believe there is a thread but this project is such a pipe dream at the moment, I believe it would be premature.
S'Bus
 
The placement of this bridge saddens me when I look down Portland Street and see the missed oppurtunity.

IMG1801-L.jpg
 
/\ Agreed. Missed by about 100m

If the problem was ramping up in order to elevate the bridge above the tracks, why didn't they align the bridge with Portland St., with steps right there, and then run the ramp from mid-block off to one side. Same on the cityplace side where there are few constraints. In fact the south ramp could have been an extension of the bridge, straight down Dan Leckie Way meeting up with the sidewalk.

On the bright side, at least the view down Portland isn't obstructed by a yellow primer-coloured mass of steel.
 
The bridge support pillar had to be in that place, due to GO's insistence on sight-lines etc.
 
Yeah I recall that too, but looking at google earth it appears to be a dubious claim. If GO had been willing and cooperative a solution could have been found. There is a 15+ foot wide gap between the tracks at the alignment of Portland St. Placing a column along that alignment isn't rocket science. The bridge is the way it is because of obstinance on the part of GO, and because of the lack of commitment to excellence on the part of Concord Adex, who tried to weasel out of their commitment to build it at all.
 
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Not a dubious claim... We already had a member come in and tell us that is was all because of sight lines, and this member drives GO Trains for a living. I'll take their word over speculation.

If this member feels safer operating a train with the bridge in this location, that is enough justification to have it where it is located.
 
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