Toronto St Lawrence Market North | 25.3m | 5s | City of Toronto | Rogers Stirk Harbour

I really like this development but agree that the entrance area could be warmed up a bit.

A whimsical S L M (St Lawrence Market) or something similar as shown in Bibi L’s photo from above that I crudely edited. (Letters would be a bit smaller then how I drew it)

Source: Bibi L
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The problem - design choices re: interior (boldly coloured circulation elements eliminated from the final product) and the heavily fritted glazing. The giant mass of drywall is so quintessentially Toronto. Bunch of Philistines.

AoD
 
Last edited:
26.5.2024

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Do we know if there is going to be signage on the building saying St Lawrence Market? would help to give it more character esp. if they use font inspired by the old sign
 
Do we know if there is going to be signage on the building saying St Lawrence Market? would help to give it more character esp. if they use font inspired by the old sign
I think this is probably something the City has not yet thought about and will take months, if not years, to resolve.
 
A bit off topic, but I've been wishing for a proper sign on The Esplanade side of the South market for years now. It's just got a cheap vinyl printed sign right now.

I wonder how many meetings, public consultations and photo-ops this issue of signage will result in.

AoD
 
I feel like there's something missing from the front of the building. Like a sense of welcoming and draw. The big sheets of glass on the two parts of either side of the entrance almost give me hands of stop, do not proceed. Wish there something there, like detailing or text.

Gosh you’re right. If only there was some asymmetry to draw visitors eyes to some unique architectural element, maybe like a sculptural glass staircase!

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Biggest issue for me is the bog standard, bland metal doors for the central entrance. Very nondescript, could be pulled right from a suburban office park. Fenestration of new builds in this city is a seriously overlooked design element. Something richly detailed or using warm, contrasting materials would really go a long way.
 
What St. Lawrence Market needs is a series of bronze sculptures akin to trash embedded in the sidewalk similar to Asaroton 1976 in Boston (it’s near the Haymarket):


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The Toronto version would include bronze Tim Hortons cups embedded in the sidewalk.
 
...nah, a bronze relief of where asphalt is been placed after hydro workers finished digging up a freshly minted sidewalk would work better here. >.<
 

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