Niagara Falls Toronto Power Generating Station Redevelopment | ?m | 6s | Pearle Hospitality | +VG

rdaner

Senior Member
Member Bio
Joined
Apr 25, 2007
Messages
4,274
Reaction score
15,403
Stumbled across this when looking for updates on the Wellington Destructor and I thought that it would be of interest. Request for proposals to reuse them due in April.


AE4D43B8-D917-42C3-A498-0F8A9D54D6C8.jpeg
0609BC2B-AB24-4FE9-9C5D-C0A012E68E53.jpeg
 
Stumbled across this when looking for updates on the Wellington Destructor and I thought that it would be of interest. Request for proposals to reuse them due in April.


View attachment 458308View attachment 458309
Outstanding old structures from a time when industry in Canada acted in a grand way.
 
Stumbled across this when looking for updates on the Wellington Destructor and I thought that it would be of interest. Request for proposals to reuse them due in April.


Details from the above:

1677261966177.png

1677261991095.png

1677262026344.png


Video of the Toronto Station:


1677262099216.png


Video of the Ontario Station:


1677262162431.png
 
The fact that the Toronto Power Generating Station has been empty and derelict for so many decades has been shameful. It's one of the most impressive heritage buildings in the country.

Beyond the monumental architecture, the rich history of the building in the context of the development of electric power generation is significant even by world standards. While we're not talking about a 2,000-year-old building, we're talking about a building whose construction and operation helped to transform society by making electricity affordable and abundant.

It's hard to imagine something more impactful. Niagara Falls' historic power generating stations arguably deserve UNESCO World Heritage status. It's amazing that they're finally getting around to restoring and reusing them.
 
Looking at the photos of the interior, the building can definitely be multi-purposed. I can see the huge hall being repurposed for a Farmers Market, not sure if there is a one in the area but this would be a great place to centralize all of the quality stuff coming out of the Niagara Area. Or even a LCBO that specialized in Niagara products. The building itself screams art gallery but I'm not sure if that would be a good draw of tourist. Maybe even a small museum dedicated to the history of hydro generation in Ontario (looks like there was a museum there before, based on the link below)

Looking at some of the pics of the Toronto Power Generation Station backside (river facing), if there was a way to deck over part of the channel it would make for quite a nice scenic patio cafe space during the summer.

AF1QipNDZUz-JNUUogyRAP8PyHp2vnOqEWnnjo4kJJi6=s1360-w1360-h1020


AF1QipMvD49ohxFiMG47tyFw6bLSxnaUKYNg4gYepu_C=s1360-w1360-h1020



Some history about the building, surprisingly it's also tangentially related to the TTC lol:

https://oaa.on.ca/whats-on/bloaag/bloaag-detail/Toronto-Power-Generating-Station

Owned by three Canadian businessmen, this company would be responsible for the construction of the Toronto Power Generation Station, the first wholly Canadian-owned hydroelectric facility in Niagara Falls. Respectively providing Toronto’s outdoor lighting, indoor lighting, and first electric street railway, billionaire financier Henry Pellatt, manufacturer Frederic Nicholls, and Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) founder William Mackenzie held a monopoly over Toronto’s coal-powered electricity industry. At the same time, while the Electrical Development Company was provided with a contract for the new power station, many municipalities—including Toronto—were denied by the Commission for similar privileges despite numerous bids ensuring early hydroelectric power remained solely in private hands.


The Ontario Power Generating Station will be a challenge as it sits down in the gorge. A patio lookout point would be great.

 
Last edited:
Looking at some of the pics of the backside (river facing), if there was a way to deck over part of the channel it would make for quite a nice scenic patio cafe space during the summer.
Might be a little noisy.

Although both plants have been decommissioned for several years ( 1974 and 1999), to be fair to the proponent, they have only been in hands of the NPC for about 15 years.

Public use and access of the OPGS site will be tricky since it sits at the lower gorge level.
 

Back
Top