Toronto’s old industrial buildings are disappearing. So when I saw the tall brick chimneys near St. Clair and the Danforth I had to stop and take a closer look.
CLM stands for Canadian Line Materials, also known as CLM industries. It was a division of McGraw-Edison Ltd and they manufactured electrical equipment. One of their contracts was with the Canadian Government to build air raid sirens. CLM was sold in 1985 and no longer exists.
below: Back in behind, part of the parking lot has been given over to the Scarborough Community Garden.
below: In the above photo you can see the solar panels on the roof of the Scarborough Church of God that is across the street from the old CLM buildings. Construction of the church began in 1958 and it was dedicated in March 1960 as the Scarborough Junction United Church. The blue sign indicates that this is also the home of the Scarborough Grace Harvest Church (Korean).
below: Side windows on the church
below: A reminder of how diverse Toronto is – Workers rights in many languages
below: “Known as best psychic and spiritual healer in Toronto”
below: Arsenio’s Kitchen has chicken and rice for $5.99
below: Fuel stop – gas for the car and a roti for you
Just to the west, Kennedy Road crosses both St. Clair and Danforth and forms a small triangle. Immediately south of the Danforth, Kennedy goes over the railway tracks.
below: The view east from Kennedy, looking towards Scarborough GO station.
below: The view west from the bridge
below: A bit of country in the city.
below: An elephant hiding in the bushes. Any idea of what flag that might be? Trinidad and Tobago?
below: Anime-like on a bridge railing.
below: Standing on the platform at Scarborough GO station and looking east. Here the tracks split – the GO train line to Kennedy and Agincourt stations (and beyond) splits to the left and heads northward. The other tracks are the main CNR line as well as eastward GO line to Eglinton GO station
As I walked, it soon became apparent that there were a lot of commercial buildings now sitting empty. It’s becoming a bit repetitive but once again I found myself in an area that is about to undergo some profound changes.
below: An empty building waiting for demolition.
Scarborough Junction redevelopment plans involve a 26 acre plot of land adjacent to Scarborough GO station – what has become known as the Scarborough Junction Masterplan.
below: Drawing of the Masterplan. It covers a large chunk of the triangle created by the CNR tracks, Kennedy Road to the west, and St. Clair to the north. It will create about 6620 residential units in 17 buildings with the tallest tower being 48 storeys high. The CLM building is on this site (blocks C & G?). (image source: Urban Toronto).
below: View from the Scarborough GO station. At the moment, most of the land along the northwest side of the tracks is unused.
below: Outdoor seating arrangement
below: Truck for sale
below: On the southwest corner of Kennedy and St. Clair is a small plaza from the 1960s.
below: Another empty building behind a fence – Some clothes in cases all that remains of what was once a thrift store (and probably something else before that). There is a weathered sign suggesting a condo development but I haven’t been able to find anything about it (or I missed something).
below: One corner that is in no danger of being redeveloped is the northwest corner of St. Clair and Kennedy. This is Pinehills Cemetery.
It’s heart warming to see that people care enough about those who have passed away that they find ways to celebrate that person in creative ways. Insert jokes here about how we’ll all be dead before the Maple Leafs win a Stanley Cup.
as I walk Toronto 