Posts Tagged ‘stores’

a little piece of Weston

Posted: February 5, 2023 in graffiti and street art, history, locations, old buildings, public art, stores
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This blog post is the result of a walk around the vicinity of Lawrence Avenue East and Weston Road.  The latter was once Main Street in the village of Weston.

mural on a wall, I red heart weston

below: Approach to the Weston pedestrian bridge over the railway tracks.  The Grand Trunk Railway was built here in 1856 (now Canadian National Railway, CNR).

western approach to pedestrian bridge over train tracks, with display of cyclists over the decades painted by elicser elliott

below: Elicser Elliott’s paintings of cyclists over the years line the ramp to the bridge.

paintings by Elicser elliott of people on bicycles, displayed outside, winter,

below: Looking back to the west

weston pedestrian bridge over railway, looking back over bridge from east to west

below: Looking south towards Weston UP station (Union Pearson Express) at Lawrence Ave.

view from weston pedestrian bridge over train tracks, looking south

below: A young girl outside on a sunny day in a bright and cheerful painting on a lone house.   Next door is an Islamic Association and Masjid. Like so many other places in the city now, a larger and taller building fills the background.

house with mural on the side, also a sign that says Mike Sullivan constituency office, beside it is , behind is a large apartment building

below: Street scene and evolution – The oldest buildings are in the row of two storey commercial establishments that line Weston Road (by the traffic lights).  Behind them are apartments that are a few decade old. Last, the most recent development is in the immediate foreground, right hand side.

street scene with apartment building, shops, and a parking lot

below: Jerk Hut, Desserts, Juices, and Candy Cakes all squeezed into a little building beside (behind?) CashWay.   And while you’re there, you can get your palm read upstairs.

Weston Road businesses, Cashway money and Western Union office, very small building for Jerk Hut - desserts

below: Southeast corner of Weston Road and Lawrence Avenue East.

Southwest corner of Lawrence Ave East and Weston Road

below: For all your vegan leather and faux fur needs – Honeyy dripp (I had to look it up!)

stores on Weston Road, honeyy dripp with a large window with reflections, restaurant across the street

below: There is a series of pictures on these windows that was painted by Bryan Bermudez, Jim Bravo, Niel Yee, and Rowena Kizito in 2014.  It depicts young people from three different eras.

three images, murals, in a series, history

below: ‘Weston Streetscape circa 1900’ by Mario Noviello, 1997-1998. Original concept by Eric Lee.  A streetcar passes in front of Weston City Hall.  On the right is the Central Hotel with the brick steeple of Central United Church just visible behind it.

On side of 2 storey brick building, a large historic mural by Mario Noviello, Weston Streetscape circa 1900, streetcar, Weston City Hall, Central Hotel, and a church

part of Weston Streetscape mural showing old streetcar and Weston City Hall,

painted metal sidewalk box, purple on one side and blue on the other, white people doing things painted on the purple and blue background

below: Another bike

sidewalk box painted with image of old fashioned bicycle

a woman walks down the sidewalk pushing a cart, walking past stores

below: I think that someone is a Maple Leaf fan!

entrance to Peter's Barber Shop, with Toronto Maple Laf theme, in winter, range cones in front of door, planters in red, white, and blue stripes

below: Peter’s Barber Shop is now on Pantelis Kalamaris Gardens.  In fact, the street was named after Peter back in 2012, just after the 50th anniversary of the shop opening (which was in 1961).

Toronto street sign for John St in Weston, also called Pantelis Kalamaris Gardens.

below: And nearby is Johnny Bower Blvd.  Bower (1924-2017) was a Toronto Maple Leaf goalie in the 1960s, a great decade for the Leafs as they won the Stanley Cup four times…. 1962, 1963, 1964, and 1967.   Bower and his family lived on this street at the time.

Toronto street sign, blue and white, Patika Avenue, also called Johnny Bower Blvd., in Weston,

a street of bungalows in winter, lots of trees,

side entry to a house, small green and yellow awning over the door, decorated for Christmas

I also saw many wonderful older brick houses, the kind that we aren’t building any more.  Some of the styles were common to Toronto while some were more unique.

appliance store in red brick building in residential neighbourhood

single family houses, winter scene, large trees, Weston

large square brick house, winter

below: All decorated for Valentines Day.

entrance to house, front door, decorated for valentines day, red hearts, love words

house by a level railway crossing

old house in weston

two storey brick house, green shutters

houses with big front porches and balconies, snow, big tree

winter residential street scene, older brick house, snow, trees, blue sky

old brick house, with lowrise apartment building behind it

older brick house with slate roof, trim is painted a dark pink colour

two storey single family house, winter

houses on a residential street, one has a white turret in the front,

two people standing in a bus shelter facing each other, another man is standing outside

painting by elicser elliott of a man with beard and moustache and wearing shorts, standing by his bike

The next blog post, ‘Out and About in Weston’, features a mural in Weston that was painted by Christiano De Araujo.

And after that is, Que Rock and Bacon in Weston, with even more murals on Lawrence Avenue East

farther west on Gerrard

Posted: February 4, 2023 in alleys, construction, graffiti and street art, locations, old buildings, reflections
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mural, purple letters on black and orange background, word says broadview

traffic signal, red light, on pole with many street signs, plus 40 kmh sign, Broadview and Gerrard

A short while ago, I posted some pictures from Little India which is centered on Gerrard Street.  If you travel farther west on Gerrard you come to what has become known as Chinatown East (as you approach Broadview).

construction infill on Gerrard, building behind the stores,

below: Nappa, Chinese cabbage, and White radish,

on display outside, for sale, chinatown, veggies,

below: Scenic Aqualium Co., Exotic Fish and Bonsai (yes it has an ‘L’).

a woman walks down gerrard street, past scenic aquarium store with exotic fish and bonsai for sale

window of a chinese restaurant, orange walls inside, copies of the menu taped to the window, open sign is lit

sushi restaurant, a fruit and vegetable store, and other shops on Broadview

below: Shoes, boots, and umbrellas.

small shoe repair shop on gerrard, umbrellas for sale, red chinese lantern hanging from ceiling

piles of taro root and butternut squash for sale

below: Carrots and tomatoes

carrots and tomatoes for sale, chinatown

vegetables for sale in chinatown

below: Pomegranates in boxes and forks on the wall

interior of fruit and vegetable market in chinatown

outside display boxes painted green and full of citrus fruits for sale, chinatown store, awning overhead, people walking by

stores on gerrard, in chinatown east

under a blue awning, shelves of plastic wrapped fruits and vegetables for sale

hung hair salon on gerrard street

faded menu board on the sidewalk, chinese restuarant, also a van from orkin pest control parked there

xray and ultrasound sign in chinese, also law office, and other businesses

below: Aging price list

an old weathered sign outside a hair salon on Gerrard Street, red lettering on white but moldy grey

a woman walk spast mi mi restaurant on gerrard street

below: Old Lumberking ghost sign on the southwest corner of Logan and Gerrard

building at the southwest corner of Gerrard and Logan, has a yellow ghost sign for Lumberking

below: Broadview and Gerrard – looking east along Gerrard

looking east from Broadview, Scotiabank on the north side of Gerrard and A & W burger restaurant fast food on the south side, both in old brick buildings, rainy day, wet pavement

below: Streetcar stop on the southwest corner of Broadview and Gerrard

people getting on and off TTC streetcar at Broadview and Gerrard

an ad for boba boy bubble tea in an old window, surrounded by street art mural

bike rental stand in front of a vacant lot with a large mural to one side, mayan temple from central america

below: Square and orange on top.

row houses, square roofline, two storey, orange brick upper, bay windows, stores on ground level,

below: More stores  –  Jiahua Trading Company with its assortment of goods beside the Dai Kuang Wah Herb Market.

stores in Chinatown East, Jiahua Trqding Company and an herb store

late afternoon in the rain, a person waits with a black dog for the traffic light to turn green

below: One Plus One Hair Salon, Tung Hing Bakery, and Sing Sing BBQ House – all adding to the eclectic mix of store fronts in the area.

businesses and stores on Gerrard Street, Chinatown East,

below: House reflections

reflection of a house in a window surrounded by street art

below: No more ‘Epoch Times’ in front of this store.

window in front of a store in chinatown, western union ad, lotto 649 ad, empty newspaper box, other goods behind glass

below: A get together of paper characters – The Incredible Raffa, Las Mujeres Vampiro, Life (that’s the one-eyed daisy), T-bonez got knifed in the back.

pasteups in a group on a brick wall, urban ninja squadron, mask, daisy with one eye,

below: Peace, in red

red urban ninja squadron t bonez sticker on a grey metal utility pole, giving peace sign

below: White roses to heal with

large painting in white on black brick white roses, and text that says here to heal, a woman's face is partially hidden by the white roses

below: Homer Simpson with 64 slices of cheese!

painting by Chris Perez on the side of a cheese store, Homer Simpson in his underwear sitting at a table and eating cheese

a sign outside a store that says repair unlock and then words in mandarin

below: Santa Claus and a skeleton – covering more than one holiday at a time.

a skeleton halloween decoration is on the railing of a porch, in front of it, on the grass is a small santa claus in a red sleigh on a small pile of snow

alley behind Gerrard St., large old garage, leaning, covered with grey shingles, old tree‘

below: Old mural street art painting in the alley (from 2016)

part of a mural in an alley, on a wood fence, nose and open mouth of a furry animal with big teeth and fangs

close up of a monkey or ape face with bright red nose, mural in an alley

looking down an alley, with houses on the street at the end of the lane, garages, winter but no snow, fences, old trees,

below: Infill – new housing being constructed in the alley

plywood covers a new building, infill housing being constructed in an alley,

backyard on a laneway that is all mud and puddles
looking down a lane with an orange jeep parked by a green garage, a brick building at the end with blue doors

in a driveway or parking lot, with a white metal gate, along one side of a store, a mural of many flowers

part of a painting on the side of a store, a blue fish and some lotus leaves

Dundas Street runs parallel to Gerrard, just a bit to the south…. and that is where you’ll find this dog sitting outside in rain or shine.

a small dark brown brick house with a window, some stickers in the window, and a large paper paste up of a dog beside the window

below: The Dundas Street Public School class of 2022 left their mark on the fence with their messages of love and peace.

chainlink fence by a school has many little square paintings attached to it, each one was by a student from the class of 2022.

below: As did the the class of 2021

chainlink fence by a school has many little square paintings attached to it, each one was by a student from the class of 2021.

This blog post may be getting too long so I will start to end it here with a brief survey of the older residential architecture on Gerrard and Dundas and the streets in between (for those of you who are interested in such things).

below: A semi with a shared central peak.

red semi detached house on gerrard with pointy roof in the center, one side has built an enclosed porch by the front door

below: Little diamond windows

flat roofed seim detached house in fake brick, two small diamond shaped windows in the front, both sides with white porch

old brick two storey rowhouses with black mansour roof with upper windows in roof

bay and gable row houses on gerrard street, painted in different colours, grey, white, maroon, one with a bright red staircase and railing.

below: Details made with contrasting colours of bricks

a row of brick houses, most with yellow brick contrasting detail near the roofline

below: Another semi detached house with a shared central peak.

white two storey plain semi house with shared central peak

below: Flat roofed houses with blues and reds.

below: Shapes – rectangles on top, rounded windows,

square roofline brick building with green trim

below: Cameras on the corner…. and a megaphone too?

on the northeast corner of Gerrard and Logan is a pole with security cameras and a loud speaker, looking diagonally across to southwest corner, TTC streetcar stopped there

And lastly,  a shout out to Lamoon Thai Cafe where I stopped for a hot drink (great Thai tea!) and to get out of the rain for a few minutes.

side of a building, window, with interior lights on, illuminated sign of a cup of tea in the window, Lamoon Cafe, Thai drinks and food

Little India again

Posted: January 16, 2023 in locations, stores, windows and walls
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Little India, also known as the Gerrard India Bazaar, is a section of Gerrard Street to the west of Coxwell Ave. I have walked around, and blogged about, Little India before.  Some of these images may resemble those that I have posted in the past,

below: TTC 506 streetcar southbound on Coxwell stops before it turns right onto Gerrard.

TTC streetcar southbound on Coxwell, stopped at Gerrard where people are getting on and off

In the windows of the Islamic bookstore….

black face head mannequin with teal head scarf, in islamic book store window

in store window, a framed image of arab calligraphy beside an ad for unicorn shaped gummy rush

On the street outside Lahore BBQ and Paan Center. …

Gerrard street sidewalk scene, with Lahore BBQ and paan center in the foreground, other stores

close up of metal grate covering blue curtain over the front window of lahore bbq and paan center

below: Three storeys of saris and South Asian fashion.  Bright pink!

pink three storey store on Gerrard

Mannequins in the windows of other clothing stores ….

mannequin in a window

photographs and mannequins on display in a window, reflections of street scene in the window too

mannequins in store window with reflections of globe shaped street lights and yellow lit public cart banner on light pole

And mannequins where you don’t expect them….

a white mannequin head looking out the front window of a house

Windows from the outside

below:  A boy and his robot?

two cardboard robots, male and female, in a window

below: Drumsticks, masala chai and Amma

window of a store in Little India, ad for drumstick ice cream, sign that says masala chai sold here, covid mask sign poster re Amma

old white bench outside, leaning against wall with window (store) and painted in multicoloured monsters

wall painted in yellow and red with a pile of old tires and other garbage in the bottom

And windows to look in

 

looking in a store window in Little India, figurines, shiny silver statues

below: Carpets and patterns on pattern.

carpets in a store window, some rolled in front of a carpet with diamond shapes in reds and oranges and teal,

below: Christmas poinstettia in the quiet before opening time.

poinsettia in the window of a coffee shop

below: Canadian flags for the world’s best butcher

looking in a window that has two Canadian flags, a mug that says best butcher, a hand roller,

below: The missing letters make the sign

looking in the window of a laundromat, sign on window says co laun

looking in the window of a store that has a bright green light shining on a plant by the window, reflections, clothes hanging inside

closed sign on a shop door, with a glittery gold curtain partially covering the window of the door

below: Waiting for the streetcar

below: “You Are Here” This painting is still on the wall but it is no longer The Flying Pony coffee shop, now it’s The Black Pony.

below: The old Belfast Tavern building remains, boarded up, neglected, and only a shell of what it once was.

old tavern building on Gerrard St., boarded up, now a u-haul truck and trailer rental location

below: Parked.

Outside the Lahore Tikka House restaurant, two tictoks sit behind barricades, in an otherwise empty parking lot

door with glass window that has been covered in newspaper, number 1447 sticker on it too, beside a wall with a graphic the illustrates various parts of Little India

below: Large mural on a fence in the lane behind Gerrard Street, north side.

large mural on a fence in an alley

below: Cat on the wall

mural on a fence in an alley, cars parked behind buildings, street art painting of a cat with an orange and yellow halo

alley behind Gerrard St., garages, house

below: Rowell Soller mural

Rowell Soller mural on the side of building

close up of a mural painted by Rowell Soller, green face

lit sign that says Dave! hanging over the entrance to a convenience store at Gerrard and Coxwell, Coxwell street stores in the background

below:   For whatever reason, Gerrard makes a jog at Coxwell.

two street signs, a yellow diamond shaped sign that says road narrows and green sign with words Gerrard street continues one block north

below: Gerrard India Bazaar banner and street sign.

utility pole with stop sign on Gerrard, pink pole with gerrard india bazaar banner on the top, stores on Gerrard in the background

Other posts about Little India

Back to Little India, on a snowy day in Feb 2022

South Asian Festival, street festival on Gerrard in July 2016

 

window of a store with twinkies for sale

intersections – Bathurst and Lawrence

Posted: November 28, 2022 in graffiti and street art, intersections, locations, old buildings
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below: Bathurst at Lawrence on a snowy November day. (looking east)

below: Standing in the same spot but turning slightly,  Lawrence West, north side, west of Bathurst

black and orange traffic construction cones in the snow on the right lane of Lawrence, Bathurst Plaza in the background

below: Southwest corner of Bathurst and Lawrence

southwest corner of Bathurst and Lawrence, midrose apartment building that curves around the corner, retail at street level, two older people with walkers crossing at the intersection

below: Seniors Safety Zone.  How effective can a sign like this be on a busy four lane road?  If you want cars to slow down why not just reduce the speed limit?  But yes, there are a lot of seniors living in the area.

a woman walking up snowy sidewalk on Bathurst, past a pole with a yellow Seniors Safety Zone sign

below: There are many apartment buildings from the 1960s and 1970s in the area. They are old enough that the trees have grown up around them.

large old poplar tree in front of a brown brick midrise apartment building

brown brick mid rise apartment building from the 19703, in winter with snow, trees with no leaves, Bathurst Street

below: There are signs of redevelopment

vacant snow covered lot in the foreground, black brick wall of apartment building in background,

below: Some are of an age that it is more convenient to tear them down – for better or worse.  Long gone are the days when curved arches like this were popular with builders.

metal construction fence around a large curved arch in a 1970s apartment building empty and waiting demolition

below: Many of the residences on Lawrence are four or six plexes but here too, there are signs of changes afoot. Here the proposed new building is 4 storeys high and has 10 apartments.

blue and white city development notice in front of a residential 4 plex, in the snow,

residence on Lawrence West, 6-plex, winter

chairs stacked in front of a building on Lawrence, in the snow, beside a chain link fence

below: Alley behind Lawrence Ave

alley behind Lawrence Ave West, south side, backs of 4 plexes residences, with balconies overlooking the alley

old white door, entry to multi residence building

a blue arm chair and a wood chair in the snow beside a snow covered pile of rubble, a yellow bin, in front of a small apartment building

fence in an alley, winter time, painted in teal, pink, and yellow

below: Last season’s left overs.

poster on wood utility pole advertising spring tire change, even though it is now winter

a utility pole that is also a TTC bus stop with a lot of clear tape wrapped around the pole with many torn TTC signs saying that this stop not in use

two young men sit in bus shelter, backs to camera, waiting for a bus, stores can be seen across the street, Bathurst Street

below: Celebration Presbyterian Church, built in 1951.

Celebration Presbyterian church on the corner of Coldstream and Bathurst, small brick building, red front door,large pine trees on either side of the front entrance, snow,

below: Looking north on Bathurst towards Lawrence Avenue

west side of bathurst street, looking north towards lawrence avenue,

below: Many languages – English, Russian, Hebrew, Spanish, French, and Tagalog

windows of an old medical building, empty, for lease sign on it, signs in window say we speak many languages, english, hebrew, russian, spanish, french, tagalog

New York Bagels, Haymishe Bakery, and Cocoy filipino restaurant on Bathurst street

faded, blue tinted, travel posters in hebrew in a store window

empty store window with hebrew lettering on it

a poplar tree with most of its leaves gone, just some yellow leaves remaining, snow, apartment buildings in the background

below: Dell Park Variety – just above the sidewalk to the right of the variety store is a mosaic mural, “Almonds and Wine”.  More photos of it are in the previous blog post.

curved building, Dell park variety store on the corner of Bathurst and Dell Park

torn poster on hydro pole that says we still believe in love for you, ad for a speed dating service, ripped, torn

old empty Shoppers Drug Mart on Bathurst with ghost sign

below: South on Bathurst approaching Glencairn.

lower corner of a brown brick apartment building with Bathurst St street scene in the background

below: Hoardings on the southwest corner of Bathurst and Glencairn. The artwork is “Ayurveda” by Kirk Sutherland.

sidewalk and hoardings on Glencairn at Bathurst, artwork by Kirk Sutherland

below: Old tilework, little tiles, on an exterior wall – remnants of an earlier age.

metal frame plant holder outside in snow, in front of a wall covered with small tiles in beige, brown, and blue

a little bit of Yonge

Posted: September 28, 2022 in history, locations, old buildings, people
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Walking up Yonge Street on a grey damp September day – from Adelaide to Dundas

below:  Southeast corner of Adelaide & Yonge: the (sort of) dome shaped entrance way with the stained glass roof is under renovation.

a couple walks on the sidewalk, along Adelaide, near northeast corner of Yonge, construction on the southeast corner, renovation of entranceway to office building

below: Walking his bike up Yonge Street

a man walks his bike on the sidewalk, northbound on Yonge street, east side, north of Adelaide

below: Looking north up Yonge Street from Richmond

looking north up Yonge street from Richmond

below: Looking west on Temperance Street towards a wall of glass

lookingwest on Temperance Street from Yonge street, a young man is crossing the street, a wall of glass condos rises in the west

below: Dineen Coffee on the ground floor the old building on the northwest corner of Yonge and Temperance streets. The coffee company took its name from the building – the Dineen Building, once home to furriers W. and D. Dineen Co. (until the 1930s). The building was built in 1897 and was added to the City of Toronto Heritage list in 1973. Ceilings in it were made of bronze and aluminum plates; this was the first time that aluminum was used as a building material in Canada.

Dineen coffee, an old building on the northwest corner of Yonge and Temperance streets.

below: Dineen Building, 1927.  The 2012 restoration was very faithful to the original facade.

vintage 1927 black and white photo of the Dineen Building in Toronto, source, TPL, Toronto Public Library

Source: Online,  Toronto Public Library Archives. Unknown photographer for the Toronto Star newspaper.

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Yonge street on a rainy day, two people with black umbrellas walk past mado, an empty storefront

below: Streetcars on Queen West under the redesigned pedestrian walkway.

TTC streetcar on Queen Street at Yonge, outside Eaton Centre

below: Looking north from Shuter Street.  Since the late 1970s, the west side of this block has been dominated by the Eaton Centre.  When the mall was first completed, it destroyed any street scene that had existed there.  Subsequent alterations have improved this block at street level a bit.

below: Looking north up Yonge Street from Queen back at a time when the new Eatons store at the north end of the Eaton Centre was built (at Dundas, completed 1977) but the old stores on the west side of Yonge hadn’t been completely demolished. This photo was found online on blogTO – here’s the link to their site if you are interested in the history of the Eaton Centre construction.

1970s faded colour photo of Eaton centre development, found on blogTO website, original photo from Toronto Archives, people crossing Yonge street in front of construction, one tall building in the background, as well as new Eatons building at north end of Eaton Centre

hand written sign on ground leaning against an information and map stand on Yonge Street, poster says Iran needs help

a young man walks south on Yonge, over a metal grid in the sidewalk that is an air vent for the subway that runs underneath, picnic benches for a patio beside the sidewalk, traffic, construction signs on the street including a large arrow directing traffic into the righthand lane

store signs on Yonge Street, Burger King, a tailor shop, vans, and Ed Mirvish theatre

below: Massey Hall, Shuter Street

a man is eating as he walks past ads for a bank and financial security, Massey Hall sign in the background

below: Reflections in the windows as you approach Dundas. I’m not sure what the relevance of “drunk elephant” is!

a man walking towards the camera, beside a large store front window with reflections, including the words drunk elephants

below: Tourists in the city; cameras out at Yonge Dundas Square.

people standing on the upper level of a double decker bus, hop on hop off tour bus in Toronto that is covered with Harry Potter ad, at Dundas Square with large billboards in the background with ads for Disney - the rebellion begins, poker stars casinos epic games, and Andor

looking towards Yonge Dundas Square on the southeast corner of Yonge and Dundas

people walking with umbrellas on wet sidewalk on Yonge, at Edward, going south towards Dundas

There are more rainy day photos of people at Yonge and Dundas in the next blog post.

way up Yonge Street

Posted: April 14, 2022 in construction, history, intersections, locations, stores
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between Steeles and Drewry/Cummer.

Once it was the hinterland but now it feels like the city just goes on and on and on….

below: In 1955 this was the view looking south on Yonge from just north of Cummer/Drewry. This was the center of the community of Newtonbrook, named after the Newton Brook Wesleyan Church founded in 1857.  A general store and post office were opened here in 1863 on the northeast corner of Yonge & Drewry (possibly the buildings on the right side of this photo).

black and white photo of yonge street looking south from Cummer

photo credit: James Victor Salmon, found on Toronto Public Library website (public domain).

below: It’s not taken from exactly the same viewpoint (traffic!) but this is what you see looking south on Yonge Street now.

yonge street, looking south from drewry and cummer, large new condo development with 3 cranes, some traffic,

below: Looking north up Yonge Street from just south of Cummer/Drewry.  The large house is on the southeast corner of Cummer and Yonge.

old black and white photo of yonge street,

photo credit: Tim Chirnside, found on Toronto Public Library website (public domain)

below: The intersection of Yonge and Cummer (to the east) and Drewry (to the west) today.   The large house in the black and white photo above would be on the far right of this picture.

northeast corner of cummer and yonge, large red brick apartment building, small strip malls

below: Yonge Street is also Provincial Highway 11.

toronto street signs, cummer ave., yonge street, as well as provincial highway 11 sign for yonge street

below: It is a major transportation/transit route.

GO bus stop and Viva bus stop markers on yonge street

below: Happy Nowruz! or in other words, Happy New Year!  It is the Iranian New Year; the beginning of spring; a new day!  The banners were by sponsored by Tirgan, an organization that “promotes cross-cultural dialogue between Iranian-Canadians and the global community at large.”

red banner on utility pole on yonge street that says happy nowruz

below: There are many other cultures that are well represented in this part of the city.

signs for stores, restaurants and businesses on yonge street, popeyes louisiana kitchn, legal services, accountant, mary's cosmetic clinic, etc

small hand written sign that says big parking lot

cleaning up in front of a new building on yonge street

below: Like so many parts of Toronto, there is a lot of redevelopment taking place. Blue and white development notice signs are everywhere.

blue and white development notice sign on vacant lot on yonge street, houses, and newer highrises in the background, residential area, Newtonbrook

crooked metal fence around a vacantlot that has been paved over, yonge street, about to be redeveloped

man adjusting signs on hoardings around a construction site

view southward on yonge street, behind chainlink fence

below: To be (possibly) replaced by 25 storeys, 347 residences and a daycare.

sign print shop storefront with development notice sign in front

below: Seoul Plaza with it’s Korean BBQ restaurant and other businesses (not all Korean) – also with a development notice sign in front.  I’m not sure of the size of the development but it looks like your average  20ish storeys on podium condo.

Seoul Plaza on Yonge street, restaurant and businesss, with blue and white development notice sign in front

strip mall on Yonge street with cars parked in front, Arzon Super Market, Papa Cafe, nanaz Salon, plus other businesses

billboard that says bigger and better, on yonge street, pedestrians on sidewalk

below: Looking south from Moore Park Ave

looking south on the west side of yonge from Moore Park Ave., people walking on sidewalk, stores and restaurants

below: Looking north to the intersection of Yonge and Steeles.  Steeles Ave has been the northern boundary of the City of Toronto since 1953.  All of the tall buildings in this picture are north of Steeles and are in Thornhill (York Region).

looking north up yonge street to the intersection of yonge and steeles with many highrises north of steeles

looking down a short alley to a pale grey side of a house, same grey as building on north side of alley

below: Pro Ukraine stencil graffiti.

spray paint stencil graffiti, black trident on blue and yellow map of ukraine

below: I’m not sure what the spring will do but someone has been putting up a lot of posters for the Communist Party.

graffiti text sprayed on map and wall of bus shelter says the spring will (illegible), partially removed posters below that for communist party

communist party posters on a grey metal street boxcommunist party posters on a red box on the sidewalk

old Christmas decorations and empty buckets behind a restaurant

man sitting in a bus shelter, brick apartment building behind him

graffiti of a cartoon like young man with a big red nose

Queen West track work

Posted: December 11, 2021 in construction, locations, old buildings
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The recent closure of Queen Street West for streetcar track work provided an opportunity to take a few photos without traffic or parked cars in the way.  Straight documentation and not much more.  But that way, when you next walk Queen West and it’s wall to wall new condo development you can check back here and say, “I remember when”….

two cyclists on queen street west

below: On the northeast corner of Queen West and  Augusta – The Wool House, Drinks & Deli, and One Stop Shop

row of stores on Queen West with construction fence in front

below: Queen and Augusta – Java Hut on one corner and an empty KFC on the northwest.

empty KFC Kentucky Fried Chicken on Queen West at Augusta

below: Looking west from Augusta

looking west along Queen Street West from Augusta

below: working on the TTC streetcar tracks just east of Portland

workmen working on the TTC streetcar tracks on Queen West

below: Black and red mural on the outside of Wendys at Denison Ave

cement truck with a workman standing beside it, on Queen West, by a Wendys restaurant in a three storey brick building with a mural in red and black on the outside

below: Queen Street West, north side, at the end of Portland Street.

old building, now stores, on Queen Street West at the top of Portland Street

below: Walking westward away from Portland

woman walking on the sidewalk between store fronts and construction fence, TTC track work being done on Queen West

below: Looking west from Tecumseth and Palmerston

looking west along Queen Street West from Tecumseth and Palmerston

below: Daisies and bees as Queen West approaches Euclid

concrete planter on Queen West painted pink with picture of daisies and bees with words to bee or not to bee

below: at Euclid

two women walking dogs on Queen West at Euclid

a red motorbike is parked in a bike parking lot on the sidewalk, building across the street has street art -- a lot of large white letters that take up almost the whole side of the building

below: Looking back eastward to Euclid

a yellow digger is the middle of Queen Street West removing street car tracks, west of Euclid

below: Reflections of Queen West in the window of John Fluevog shoe store

reflections of street scene in window of John Fluevog shoes on Queen West

below: North side, at Bathurst.  The construction ends and traffic resumes.

Queen Street west, north side looking towards intersection with Bathurst

games and stuffed animals in the window of a toy store - chickens, pig, snake, mice, goat, sheep

intersections – St. Clair and Danforth

Posted: October 30, 2021 in intersections, locations, old buildings
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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.

brick chimney with CLM painted on it, beside other industrial buildings

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.

Scarborough Community Garden, raised boxes for growing vegetables, lots of produce, in parking lot of industrial building, church across the street with solar panels in the shape of a cross

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).

A frame brick building with brown roof, Scarborough Church of God. Solar panels on the roof in the shape of a cross

below: Side windows on the church

coloured and textured windows of a church

below: A reminder of how diverse Toronto is – Workers rights in many languages

poster on utility pole advertising workers action centre, and new employee rights, in many languages

below: “Known as best psychic and spiritual healer in Toronto”

poster advertising Indian psychic

below: Arsenio’s Kitchen has chicken and rice for $5.99

metal barrels beneath two signs. one advertising chicken and rice for 5 dollars and 99 cents. The other sign says space for lease in a strip mall plaza

below: Fuel stop – gas for the car and a roti for you

Gulf service station at Kennedy and St. Clair. Gas at 1.43 a litre, also butter chicken roti fast food with roti of the week sign

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.

railway tracks, looking east from Kennedy Road towards Scarborough GO station

below: The view west from the bridge

houses on Raleigh and Glasgow Avenuesview west from Kennedy Road bridge over railway tracks near Danforth,

below: A bit of country in the city.

backyard in Scarborough with a barn shaped shed and a small coop for chickens or pigeons

below: An elephant hiding in the bushes.  Any idea of what flag that might be? Trinidad and Tobago?

graffiti painting of an elephant head on a wood fence, behind some bushes, behind a brick house with a black and red flag

below: Anime-like on a bridge railing.

black and white drawing pasteup graffiti on a black metal railing of a bridge

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

looking east from Scarbourgh GO station, tracks,

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.

blue and white city of toronto development notice on an empty auto parts store

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).

drawing of plan for Scarborough Junction Masterplan redevelopment at Kennedy and St. Clair, from 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.

behind a broken chainlink fence is a parking lot of an abandoned business, overgrown,

white house, now a commecrial business on St. Clair Ave with a blue and white development notice in front

below: Outdoor seating arrangement

old car seat sitting outside of Sultan Auto Service, closed garage doors

cars parked in front of empty abandoned auto store, with blank black electric sign

exterior of Spee and Dee Auto Service with garage doors covered with photos of cars in the interior of the garage

three piles of old tires blocking the driveway entrance to a light industrial site

below: Truck for sale

a white pick up truck parked behind a black sign with an arrow pointing left

older brick house turned into a business, beside Carmen and Frank's Collision centre

graffiti on the side of a one storey brick building

white car parked in front of white building, Cordi Signs, one light blue door and no windows

below: On the southwest corner of Kennedy and St. Clair is a small plaza from the 1960s.

sign at the corner of Kennedy and St. Clair, stip mall plaza, sign is for Wimpys Diner, Greek Cuisine and East West Pest control

old Canadian flag in the back window of a pick up truck

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).

side of empty building with condo sales advert, also four display cases with clothes that are no longer held up properly

small plaza from the 1960s with Yaffa restaurant, now emppty, Roti Lady restaurant, and another empty store front. Chainlink fence around part of it

empty Yaffa Restaurant and old thrift shop. brick building with a sign that says Fresh coffee,

billboard by fenced in lot, for sale, gas station site available, Kennedy Road street sign

below: One corner that is in no danger of being redeveloped is the northwest corner of St. Clair and Kennedy. This is Pinehills Cemetery.

adornments by a tombstone in Pnehills cemetery, red flowers, a small metal bike old fashioned style, a cross, and a photo of a man, and a small white candle holder lantern

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.

objects left by a tombstone, Maple Leafs sign, and their bear mascot figurine about 8 inches high, pink flowers, and a small white cross with words on it

flat ground level memorial in a cemetery with three cigarettes and 2 small Canadian flags

College – Dundas – Lansdowne

Posted: September 20, 2021 in doors, graffiti and street art, locations
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Three streets, College, Dundas, and Lansdowne, form a small triangle in the west end. The following pictures were taken on a summer day a couple of weeks ago when I was walking in and around that triangle.

below: Mural – railway bridge. Just west of here, Dundas crosses a set of tracks – the same line the services Pearson airport and points beyond.

mural on the corner of a building

below: Eating Dominos in the doorway

street art painting of a blue dragon with mouth open wide, pink tongue and yellow teeth, dominos pizza box in mouth

below: Small part of a freaky display of dolls and similar toys along the wood rails surrounding a sidewalk patio

dolls attached to poles as part of decoration on outdoor patio

below: More dolls from the same place –  what does that do to one’s appetite?

old dolls attached to a wood 4 x 4 outside

below: Colourful umbrellas cover a makeshift patio on the street

man walking on sidewalk, away from the camera. patio on street beside sidewalk with many umbrellas over the tables, green, red, and yellow

below: New sidewalk on College Street with a large mural in the distance…..

sidewalk that is roped off with yellow caution tape because the concrete has just been repoured, College Street

below: Beanstalk mural on the side of the coin laundry on the northeast corner of College and St. Clarens.  Maybe that’s Jack at the bottom…   😀

northeast corner of College and St. Clarens, three storey beige brick building with coin laundry on ground floor, large beanstalk mural up the side of the building

below: Orange house, northwest corner of College and St. Clarens

below: …. and an orange car, an older Porsche convertible, in an alley around the corner.

backs of stores in a small alley where a blue Dodge Ram pickup truck is parked. Also parked is an orange car, an old porsche convertible. Graffiti on some of the buildings

below: Lost Time

poster on a wood utility pole with the headline Lost Time

below: Reflections, TTC streetcars and the pope

reflections of a TTC streetcar in a store window

below:  In a convenience store window – get your keys cut here, or buy a mask, but watch out for the five deadly terms used by a woman.  Fine? Go ahead!

signs in window of a convenience store. Keys cut here, covid items for sale - masks, hand sanitizer, also a poster of deadly things that women say

below: Faded signs in another store window

window of a convenience store, in the middle of a large mural on exterior of building, faded signs in the window

below: One of life’s little blue daisies watching you

graffiti sticker on a black brick wall, a little blue daisy

below: Is this dystopia?

stenciled red words on a sidewalk that say Is this dystopia?

below: College at Margueretta

College street near Lansdowne, brick buildings on north side of street

below: Canadian flags on old store windows

s

below: A door with a frosty scene in duplicate.

below: Even birds might want to get mail!

a small white bird house is attached to the end of a black mailbox in a doorway

below: Happy mail

tagged mural, mural was an animal in blues on purple astro like background

below: Dundas Gas Bar

below: Outdoor displays

store, with items of clothing on display outside

below: An ad, blue and peeling

old poster peeling from an exterior wall, a blue advertisement for Cuevo alcohol

below: Vacant lot on Lansdowne between College and Dundas

small wood box mounted on chainlink fence around vacant lot , concrete wall behind it

billboard in vacant lot with chainlink fence around it

billboard in vacant lot with chainlink fence around it

below: Northeast corner of Dundas and Lansdowne – some architecture ages better than others.

And with that, I’ll leave you with a few pictures of some of the architecture in the area.

semi divided house, two storey

semi divided house with peaked roof, balconies on upper level

two blue houses, semis, one bright blue and greyish blue.

Walking Kennedy Road

Posted: September 14, 2021 in intersections, locations
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blue and white scarborough street sign for Kennedy Road on a blue sky day, with street scene behind it ,

Sometimes it’s difficult to remember that Toronto includes a large number of outlying areas, not just the downtown core.   Also, if you are looking for a “safe” place to walk during these Covid times, head to Kennedy Road in Scarborough.  I wasn’t alone the day I walked it but people were few and far between.  Out Scarborough way they aren’t as used to people wandering around with cameras so I got a few quizzical, skeptical looks.   The street scene is definitely different from the central core but every street has a story to tell.  Sometimes you just have to slow down and look for it.

below: What lured me into the area?  I caught a glimpse of this moose and it made me want to explore more.  It stands beside Kennedy Road, just south of the 401.    Back in 2000 there were 326 of these sculptures scattered around the city, all were the identical moose shapes but all were painted differently.   Collectively, they were “Moose in the City”.

a stature of a life sized moose painted like a Canadian flag beside a large welcome to Scarborough sign, from Kennedy BIA.

You might have noticed that the sign also says Mike Myers Way, named for the actor who grew up in Scarborough.   I am not sure if this means that all of Kennedy Road is named after him but there is a Mike Myers Drive just to the south of this (south of Lawrence).

below: The sign on the Elite Bakery is trilingual – Greek, English, and another in an alphabet that I don’t recognize (Arabic?).  It all looks good in any language, doesn’t it?

sign on the outside wall of a greek bakery, words in greek, anglish, and a south asian language (or arabic). wedding cakes in the window

below: More signs of the multicultural nature of Toronto

green and white symbol of Habib bank, white lion with a sword above it

below: Another common Toronto feature – the construction site! … with its plethora of safety rules and regulations.

Coid prevention signs secured to a metal fence surrounding a construction site, a cement truck is working there

construction fence around a Tim Hortons and Petro Canada station, sign says open for takeout and drive thru

below: Looking west on Eglinton at Kennedy.   That is one tall utility pole!

looking west on Eglinton at Kennedy, north side of the street, a man standing at the corner, hydro poles, high rises in the distance, traffic.

below: Magical Aquarium Club

Magical Aquarium Club building in Scarborough

a picture of a green frog and a green reptile, large, on the outside of an aquarium shop

below: Grace Church and Grace Place Food Bank

Grace church and Grace Place food bank, design of cross in the roof shingles, cars parked in front, red brick building for the 1960s

below: Mount Zion Church, The Apostle Doctrine of God

side of a plaza with entrance for the Mount Zion Church

below: Bright pink and red will make your business stand out!

large pink and red store, contractor depot, on kennedy road,

below: A faded photo above the entrance to a furniture store – highlighting their wares.  She seems like a very satisfied customer!

faded black and white photo on the exterior of a furniture store, a woman stands alone in a dining room with table, chairs, and a hutch

below: Or, show your product by having it on display outside (these are Covid times after all)

mattresses on display outside a store, leaning against the pillars of the building

a van parked out front of a store with signs, factory outlet, warehouse sale, sign in back window of van advertising a mattress sale

below: Jostling to be seen, a jumble of words and colours.

many signs for stores and businesses, posted beside the sidewalk,

below: Eye exams on site… but the I (eye?) fell over.  Carpets & Rugs, Kairali Indian cuisine – lunch buffet for an unknown price.

signs for stores along Kennedy road

below: Real Kerala groceries at Motherland Foods.  Mr. John’s take out.

set back from the street a bit, with shrubs and a parking lot in front of it, Motherland Food, kerala groceries

below: The two storey brick plaza. Many of these were built around the suburban areas, back when suburbs were newer and growing quickly in the 1950s and 1960s.

two storey brick plaza with many stores

below: It seems fitting that the Private Eye and Spy Shop is close to the Adult Movies store.  You can also eat at Lucile’s West Indian Restaurant and Groceries or at Just Love Caribbean Restaurant.

large sign in front of plaza listing all the stores, adult movies, spa, private eye spy shop,

tall empty frame for a sign outside a closed business

below: Agincourt Used Cars, closed and waiting for redevelopment – into townhouse like complex with retail on the ground floor facing the street (in one proposal from December 2015 anyhow.  There are 25 documents associated with this development, all available online.  The latest one was March 2018.  I didn’t read them.)

yellow gate and construction fence around a vacant lot with a building in the far corner, Agincourt Used cars, closed business, graffiti on building,

below: To the east, as seen from a parking lot on Kennedy Road.

rowhouses on a side street running perpendicular to Kennedy Road, vacant lot in the foreground,

below: An older housing development with direct access to Kennedy.

rounded arch over the sidewalk leading into a residential development

semis, 18 wheelers backed into spaces at distribution center

a row of trucks parked in a parking lot

a person walks past stores with large signs in front of them, 2001 Audio and Video, Crazy Joes Drapery, Sleep Factory mattress, and a flooring store

below: Just to prove that I wasn’t totally alone!

a man in a blue jacket sits on a concrete railing while drinking from a Tim Hortons cup

a man rides his bike on the sidewalk on Kennedy Road with back to camera

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