Posts Tagged ‘railings’

crumbling castle

Posted: November 28, 2021 in locations, old buildings
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I heard from two different sources about a “castle” that was about to be torn down so when I found myself in the neighbourhood, I had to stop by and take a look at it myself.

below: Screenshot from Google street view, dated January 2021. All of the shrubs have been removed and the black fence has been replaced with the same fencing that you see surrounding most construction sites.

screenshot from google maps street view of an old white house

below: The house as it looked in mid-November, east side.  The lower windows are now boarded up as well.

no trespassing sign on old white empty house

Apparently the house sold in 2018 . The previous owner, Max Heiduczek, lived in and worked on the house for more than 40 years.  He bought the property in the 1970s but had to sell when age and health concerns became an issue.

below: Minaret, dome, rooftop terraces, and a replica of Michelangelo’s David.

small window in a crumbling building, plaster coming off wall, wood deteriorating along roofline

below: The tower has little blue windows.

crooked turret beside railing around rooftop terrace with stone statue of a woman (greek goddess?) holding an urn

brass remnants from something lying in the grass with dead leaves outside an empty and abandoned house

boarded up window and door on old white abandoned house

no trespassing sign on metal construction fence

lamp post with 5 globe lights, leaning, outside old white house with multiple architectural styles

boarded up window and door on old house, railing around balcony above door has heart shaped openings

below: South side of the house

side view of old white house with red clay tile colour roof, boarded up windows with danger sign

The current owners applied to subdivide the property into pieces.  In August 2021 conditional consent was given by the city for this severance.

 

Chasing the light along Queen Street

Posted: September 10, 2017 in old buildings, reflections, shadows
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Shorter day light hours + autumn weather (no snow yet!) = an evening of playing with light and shadow.  I came out of the subway at Queen station and decide to “chase the light”.  It was a perfect evening for a walk and I wanted to make it last as long as possible.   For the most part I stayed on Queen Street although I will admit to straying onto Shuter for a block or two.  It’s not the prettiest part of the city but every place has potential, from a photographic perspective anyhow.

below: The new (replacement) pedestrian walkway over Queen Street that will link the Eaton Centre with The Bay.

glass pedestrian bridge over a street, Queen Street, with traffic and people as well as an ambulance, late afternoon

below: City reflections in both glass and polished stone.

reflections in a stone and glass building

below: The curve of street car wires at Queen and Church.  A wall of peeling paint, as well as a ghost sign, provides the backdrop

the curve of the streetcar wires in front of a wall that was painted white but the paint is peeling to reveal the brick below.

below: The east wall of St. Michaels Cathedral (RC) with reflected light, as seen across a construction site.

one end of St. Michaels Cathedral with reflected light falling on it, new buildings and construction surround it

below: The same church from a slightly different angle.

close up of part of a church roof and window with reflected light on it.

below: Angels

wooden angel cutouts decorate the roofline of a small building

below: Pigeons, old Bell phones and the Moss Park Discount Store.  Not so much light here but I liked the wall.

two Bell telephone booths, small version, mounted on a wall with street art painted on it, beside the window of a convenience store with a 649 ad in the window. Sign over the window says Moss Park Discount Store

below: A long way from home.

people standing on a corner waiting to cross the street, including a woman dressed in blue who is using a walker, plus two Morman men in their white shirts and black ties.

below: A large double billboard is black beside the old building.   The building is at the corner of Ontario Street and Brigden Place.   It was built in 1911 as a 4 1/2 storey warehouse for the Newell Company and their Dominion Envelope Company.  It was one of three buildings that they owned in the area.   After WW2 the building was purchased by J.D. Carrier Shoe Company (the ghost sign!).  Today it has been renovated as lofts and studios.

evening light shines on an old white brick building, a large billboard as seen from the end, is in front

below: A small section of the back of the Moss Park Armoury, a Canadian Forces building constructed in the 1960’s.

part of a wall, vertical stripes of brick sections and white sections, narrow windows in the white sections, 3 windows in total

below: A quick break from chasing light…. you never know what you’re going to encounter downtown, and of course you have to stop and take advantage of the opportunities when they arise, so here we have a slight diversion!  I’m going to assume that the background of their pictures is much better than the background of this picture!

a bride and groom embrace while three photographers take their picture. on a sidewalk of a city street

below: As evening falls, the lights come on in the bus shelters.
You can thank (or curse) Astral Media for that.

a lit advertisement in a bus shelter of two men in Roots clothes, a young man sits on the bench in the bus shelter while two people walk past it on the sidewalk

below: King Street and Queen Street merge just before they pass over the Don River and the Don Valley Parkway.   The green railing in the photo below is on the bridge over the DVP, the buildings and cranes are on the other side of the river.

evening light, cityscape with many construction cranes, light poles and utility poles and wires, evening,

below:  Upstairs, downstairs.  Looking west along King Street from the Don River.

looking along King street from beside ramp over the railway tracks - light under the bridge shows someone sitting there, city scene in the rest of the photo

Once the light fades beyond a certain point, contrast is limited and dullness creeps into the resulting photos.  It’s too late for well lit photos and too early for pictures of city lights.  But it’s a great time to stop and find some dinner!