Inbetween
Posted on April 2nd, 2013 – Comments Off on Inbetween
Archive for the ‘ Pictures ’ Category
Rooftop Ornges and gazebos
Posted on April 1st, 2013 – Comments Off on Rooftop Ornges and gazebos
The Star responds to Ford
Posted on March 27th, 2013 – 1 Comment
This is, of course, in response to Ford’s latest bluster about how people need to sue him when he calls them liars (I’m sure it makes sense to him).
Time for a test
Posted on March 26th, 2013 – Comments Off on Time for a testThe Star’s Robyn Doolittle seems to be gunning close to the core Rob Ford issue of the moment: his alcohol / drug abuse. Not terribly surprising given both the rumours and some earlier contacts (this date last year, in fact):
The story, apparently, is that Rob made another slovenly mess of himself at a war veteran’s charity ball, and had to be shown out.
Three members of the Garrison Ball organizing committee said Ford was asked to leave because he appeared impaired. One said, “he seemed either drunk, high or had a medical condition.”
Doolittle goes on to name a variety of sadly but understandably anonymous (all fearing the mayor’s wrath), sources who detail the alcoholism that Rob Ford is “battling with” (seems like a warm embrace to me, but that’s just my take). Some of the guest descriptions of Ford from the military ball, however, should remind us that there’s probably more than alcohol involved:
“incoherent,” “stumbling,” “rambling,” “intoxicated,” “slurring,” “seemed to be drunk,” “was nervous, excited, sweaty, out of it.”
I’ve had my fair share of alcohol, and I can’t say that I’ve ever been nervous or excited. Quite the opposite, in fact.
I know that Fordites are going to cling to their main mass no matter what, but to the rest of us, doesn’t it seem like maybe it’s time for a random drug test? And before anyone raises a fuss about inequality, I’d definitely be in favour of all the Councillors taking one.
Birdseye: Oldies but goodies
Posted on March 24th, 2013 – Comments Off on Birdseye: Oldies but goodies
Toronto’s balls of concrete
Posted on March 23rd, 2013 – 5 Comments(I just have to find the other one)
Perhaps one of TCL’s readers can tell me what this thing is? I’d guess either a fixed compass or solar clock.
It’s still cold and windy and I booked it over to warmth and coffee. On the lookout for ball #2.
Checking in again: Union Station Revitalization
Posted on March 23rd, 2013 – Comments Off on Checking in again: Union Station RevitalizationI happened to be walking around the maze of an area that’s become the front of Union Station yesterday, and it put one final question to bed that I had lingering from before. How far have they gotten?
Front Street is half closed, getting around is all weird and Escheresque, and they’re just digging out from under the street now. The main GO concourse is still 100% intact, so basically, not very far.
On the bright side, the Cinnabon is still open.
Checking in: Union Station Revitalization
Posted on March 21st, 2013 – 3 CommentsThis city project that I was blogging about as early as 2009 has always been a bit difficult for me to imagine. I mean, I knew that the areas beneath the station (where the daily commuter crunch happens), were going to be gutted and something new was going to go in, but I recently discovered some new images showing what it’s really going to look like in the end. (Yes, I did borrow these from blogTO.)
The best one is probably the basic cross-section showing how the ground beneath the trains is being transformed:
Basically, they’re splitting the lower mezzanine into two levels from the existing one.
I’m not sure how this is going to connect to the TTC and PATH, but presumably (see below), this is being done to accommodate more foot traffic, so hopefully they won’t try to jam double the people into the same entrances and exists.
The builders, NORR Architects, also provided some artist’s renderings of the upgraded station:
Based on the illustration above, it seems like there’s a lot of wasted vertical space. This is where my doubt (above) comes from.
Don’t get me wrong, aesthetically it’s nicer, but the fact that this is being done in a limited space beneath the trains make me wonder how efficient this will actually be. But I’m staying optimistic.
The one thing we can definitely look forward to is seeing a newly scrubbed exterior on the station, and new moat roofs over the lower-level outdoor pedestrian areas (where all the smokers hang out):
I don’t take GO, or the TTC for that matter, nearly as much as I used to. However, even when I was commuting daily (and this was many years ago), the crush was sometimes unbearable and the station just seemed horribly dated. The decor would probably have been pretty cool in the 70s, but with the wear of age and constant traffic, it was just starting to look rundown.
Personally, I look forward to seeing the newly reno’ed station — it’s an indelible slice of Toronto, and worth an occasional (but sensitive), upgrade or two.
Newer view
Posted on March 11th, 2013 – Comments Off on Newer viewDay, or night?
... with pictures
... with sounds
... with videos
... with opinions
... that's shorter
... that's longer
