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

[UtakataNoAnnex]

I did not understand your post but if you were saying that the City is solely responsible, the answer is YES.

And to be clear on that...

...not sure what this has to do with delay of opening St. Lawrence Market North here. But if it's case of priorities, The City has other levels of governments and interests involved with the Port Lands, Union Station, Eglinton Crosstown, etc. Where this project is mostly on them, to my understanding.

(Emphasis mine.)

 

[tripwire]

There were many(?) years of delay when they found that old drain/historical architecture IIRC? I do recall there was a huge pause in work when they found it anyways...too long of a pause IMHO.

 

[DSC]

There were many(?) years of delay when they found that old drain/historical architecture IIRC? I do recall there was a huge pause in work when they found it anyways...too long of a pause IMHO.

As required by the heritage legislation, when 'items of archaeological interest' (the porcupine drain') were found the site had to be fully investigated. The City were, predictably, slow to allocate $$ for this and award the contract for the excavation. Yes, this DID delay things and it's another example of poor project management.

What will be interesting to see is exactly how they are going to display the archaeology on site - there was talk of installing the drain so it could be viewed through a glass floor but I have heard no more and I suspect it and other stuff they found is sitting in some City warehouse and will never be displayed.

 

[Edward Skira]

You can add Union Station to that list

Fun fact. Union Station was originally completed in 1920. Stood empty until 1927 when the track connections were finally opened. Seven years!

 

[Rascacielo]

Fun fact. Union Station was originally completed in 1920. Stood empty until 1927 when the track connections were finally opened. Seven years!

Our long tradition of lack of accountability in public service should get a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage designation.

 

[DSC]

One of my neighbours emailed the Mayor and got this response from the Market Manager:

The City of Toronto is working with the contractor toward substantial performance or when the building is turned over to the city from the contractor. This should be happening any day.

Building tenants will be moving into the North Market in phases starting this Monday and throughout the fall and winter season.

Early next year is when the farmers will be moving to the new site. We will plan a grand opening around the move.

 

[rdaner]

I was so intent on getting ready for an election party that I forgot to post that I saw an actual employee coming out of the building! I know that they work for the government as they were badly dressed, looked tired and had a bunch of door pass cards around their neck!

 

[DSC]

I was so intent on getting ready for an election party that I forgot to post that I saw an actual employee coming out of the building! I know that they work for the government as they were badly dressed, looked tired and had a bunch of door pass cards around their neck!

For the last few days there has been a security guard sitting behind a desk marked "St Lawrence Market" in the vestibule of the new Market. From what the Market Manager told me last week (see above) City staff (presumably Courts) are starting to move in.

 

[mburrrrr]

Wednesday 20C …. And Hell didn’t freeze over last night. Maybe global warming.

 

[UtakataNoAnnex]

...more willfully to hell in a hand basket. But yeah, off-topically though, I was thinking yesterday about passing stores in a t-shirt and summer wears who are putting up their Xmas decorations. It's not that they're doing that any earlier then they have been, but rather the warmer weather is making it feel that they doing that earlier. /sigh

 

[DSC]

Walking past the Market yesterday we noticed that the terrazzo flooring has been washed and polished and that there are 'dotted lines' inset (?) into it. They are in many locations and I guess might be the outlines of earlier walls??? Ideas? A couple highlighted below but there are more, in and off photo.

 

[UtakataNoAnnex]

They look gilded in...

 

[Johnny Au]

Walking past the Market yesterday we noticed that the terrazzo flooring has been washed and polished and that there are 'dotted lines' inset (?) into it. They are in many locations and I guess might be the outlines of earlier walls??? Ideas? A couple highlighted below but there are more, in and off photo.

View attachment 610806

It’s Toronto’s answer to Boston’s Asaroton 1976 that I mentioned earlier in the thread:

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):

Asaroton 1976 | Mags Harries

www.magsharries.com

The Toronto version would include bronze Tim Hortons cups embedded in the sidewalk.

 

[EBT]

This must be the longest running construction project in the history of Toronto. Going back to the earliest posts in this thread it was at least 15 years ago when this new building was first proposed. Fifteen years ago, and it is still not complete? Something very wrong with this picture.

Going back about 20 years ago I used to enjoy going to the flea market on Sundays. It was a real treasure trove, and I still have trinkets that I bought there back then. Will they have a flea market on Sunday when this new building opens or a farmers' market on Saturday?

Complaints aside, the final product is attractive, and its design perfectly complements the surrounding buildings especially the St. Lawrence Market.

 

[DSC]

It’s Toronto’s answer to Boston’s Asaroton 1976 that I mentioned earlier in the thread:

If these faint dotted lines are meant to rival Boston, I fear that it is a bit 'understated'! :->

Toronto does have at least two places where 'stuff' is partly buried in sidewalks. At foot of York Street on south side of Queens Quay (fish) and in Front Street East at Bayview. (See

https://flic.kr/p/JC6tnf

)