Posts Tagged ‘streetcars’

intersections – King and Queen

Posted: March 15, 2025 in alleys, graffiti and street art, intersections, locations, memorials, old buildings, stores, transportation
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… and Roncesvalles and Queensway.

King Street merges with Queen Street twice, once in the east at River Street and once in the west when King turns north and joins Roncesvalles.  At this point Queen becomes the Queensway.

below: Queen streetcar traveling westbound (center of picture) while a King car makes the turn north into the intersection (right side).

intersection of Queen, King, Roncesvalles and Queensway, looking east

If that King car continues north, it travel up Roncesvalles to Dundas West station.

looking north on Roncesvalles from Queen, sidewalk planter decorated with fancy lettering says Roncesvalles village

below: Looking west on the Queensway with all the overhead streetcar wires because….

looking west along Queensway from Roncesvalles, lots of overhead streetcar wires

below: … the TTC Roncesvalles Carhouse is right there.  It is 28 streetcar tracks wide and is used for storage and maintenance of part of the TTC’s streetcar fleet.

Queensway TTC streetcar yard

below:The Queensway also runs parallel to (and within sight of) Lakeshore Blvd, the Gardiner Expressway, and Lake Ontario.

view from pedestrian bridge over lakeshore blvd and gardiner expressway, traffic on the roads, etobicoke and mississauga in the distance, lake ontario

below:  There is access to the waterfront is by a pedestrian bridge.

pedestrian bridge over the lakeshore and gardiner expressway, towards lake ontario, street art and graffiti on the lower concrete parts of the railing, lamp lights along the way, blue sky day, no people

below: Also at this intersection is a memorial to all the Polish citizens who died at the hands of the Soviets during WWII.

monument in a park, large stone with a plaque on it,

Plaque reads: “1940-2000, In Memoriam … Lest we forget… May the tragic deaths of tens of thousands of Polish citizens in Soviet forced-labour camps, political prisons and execution sites, always remind the world that freedom is bought with great sacrifice.
Dedicated to the memory of over one million seven hundred thousand Polish soldiers and civilians arrested in EAstern Poland by the Soviet secret service (NKVD) in 1940-1941, for the only reason that they were Polish citizens and were deported to the far reaches of the Soviet Union (siberia), where many were executed or died of hunger, cold, disease, and exhaustion during World War II.
[words in Polish]”
Alliance of the Polish Eastern Provinces in Toronto, February 10, 2000.

The rest of this post are images of some of the sights along Queen West and in the alleys behind.  Some of them may look like photos that have appeared in prior blog posts….  Many things have changed over the years and yet many things remain the same.

below: North side of Queen West, looking towards Roncesvalles.

queen street west, north side, looking west towards roncesvalles

below: South side of Queen West, looking towards Roncesvalles

brick buildings, low rise apartments, on south side of queen, near roncesvalles

Some of the old architecture remains – Volumes could probably be written about all the old architectural features that can still be seen out Queen West and King West.  Many of which date from when Parkdale was an affluent suburb of Toronto.

three storey house on king street

man standing in front of an older brick apartment building three storey brick buildings on queen west, stores at street level, windows with little turrets on the top floor

below: An old Royal Bank of Canada building (now used for other purposes).

old royal bank of canada building, red brick, with stone dorway, including arch over door

below: An old Second Empire type of building, that is now home to the Easy Restaurant as well as Rosa’s restaurant.

below:Back of the building – King Street side.

back of easy restaurant with black and white mural, old red brick building,

below: The original mural with its yellow convertible once seen on the back of the building is still there, it’s just hidden by a more recently built structure to store garbage bins and other stuff in.

old Easy restaurant mural, now covered over by storage shed for garbage containers

below: If you have passed by this intersection, you may have noticed the yellow motorcycle rider on the King Street side of the building.

yellow painting of a man on a motorcycle, on wall outside Easy Restaurant, King street side

below: Dancing in the window

figurines or sclpture in a store window, thai dancers in traditional costume, head dresses on, gold accessories and highlights

below: A doggie in the window!

neon light art in a store window, a white dog with blue glasses riding on a blue skateboard

below: Ford among the light fixtures.  Who is the dimmest bulb?

inside a store window, light fixtures, shades, and other bits and pieces, along with some campaign literature from Doug Fords recent provincial election

old paint by number paintings of boats, two of them, in frames, on display in a shop window on Queen West

below: An anchor, many stickers, and a red skull and crossbones

a door to a tattoo parlour, part of it is covered with stickers, as well as blue anchor and red skull and cross bones

bright red door with glass panel, number 1635, junk store, vintage store, antiques, all cluttered in windows of the store

signs on a store door, glass door, one says closed, another says parkdale shop local and last, proudly parkdale

collage, graffiti, on a wall on queen west, man's face made up of 6 pieces of paper

below: Potato sack racers in a mural by Jim Bravo.  The sacks all say “Eva’s Fine Deli” on them so perhaps this was once the wall of said deli?  Now it is the Dosa restaurant on Roncesvalles.

mural by Jim Bravo in a lane off Roncesvalles, close to Queen, children in a greenfield, running potato sack race, hopping,

looking west towards roncesvalles in an alley behind queen west on the north side, brick buildings, some street art,

below: Dreamer

alley view, back of building, with door and windows, one mural of a bird with the word dreamer, one abstract blobby street art

below: Birdo paintings that have faded and weathered.  Check out an earlier post if you want to see what they once were like (Animals and Birdo Birds) This post was from March 2015, ten years ago!

 

birdo street art painting in an alley, bird with blue and white body

birdo street art painting in an alley, koala head, old man with white beard in profile

pink tags on garage in lane

exterior stairs leading to basement level door, door has street art painting of a blond woman's portrait, wearing a red hat

below: Still Alive! It’s always marvelous to encounter Lovebot the Robot in the wild.

a very big lovebot the robot street art, on a black building, white lines, faded red heart, on legs the words still alive are written

concrete steps up a small hill in front of a highrise apartment building, houses in the background

Parkdale mural on mini mart, beside house, with highrise apartments in the background

Parkdale mural on the side of Parkdale mini mart convenience store

below: More alley backyard views…. another house with a rooftop terrace or deck. I have mentioned before in other posts with other alleys, that this type of renovation/expansion has become very common throughout the city.

laneway view, back of houses, one red brick, the other blue cladding, garages, with tagged and graffiti covered garage doors, red truck,

large painting of a rabbit, street art mural, in alley behind queen street west

street art painting on garage door in alley

 

intersections – King & Bathurst

Posted: January 20, 2025 in construction, history
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below: 504 King streetcar on a snowy January afternoon

As you all know, Toronto is being demolished and redeveloped.  Almost every part of the city is affected by the construction of new condo buildings or the upgrading of public transit.  It can be difficult to keep up documenting the changes!  A few weeks ago I posted some pictures from Queen & Spadina where Metrolinx is building a new subway station for the Ontario Line.  The next stop west from there is at King and Bathurst.

Infrastructure Ontario wants to build what they call a Transit-Oriented Community (TOC) at King and Bathurst.  The gist of the plan is that these sites will feature high density development around transit hubs.  Some of the plans for condo and office may still be at the concept level but the new subway station work is well underway.

below: Looking south on Bathurst from King.  On the southwest corner is the Wheatsheaf Tavern  which has been here since 1849.  The exterior of the building hasn’t changed much in 170 years!  It remains untouched by today’s construction.

looking south on Bathurst from King, Wheatsheaf Tavern on the right, vacant lot where most of Banknote Bar was. now a metrolinx construction site

below: The Banknote Bar on the southeast corner is now gone, or at least most of it has been demolished.  The north facade will be incorporated into the new station, the King-Bathurst station (Are they really going to call it that?  So Dull. So Bland.).

southeast corner of Bathurst and King, vacant lot where most of Banknote Bar was. North facade saved and is held up with scaffolding, now a metrolinx construction site

This 4 storey brick building was previously a Bank of Montreal.  It was built in 1901/02 for the Canadian Biscuit Company.   It then had a series of tenants until 1923 when Bank of Montreal moved in.

Previously, a mixed use development rising above the old brick structure had been proposed for the site (prior to Metrolinx).  Cancelled.  At this point there is no other development on this corner.

below: Looking east on King

You can see that the corner (above picture) is now covered by a very big white temporary structure where construction of another station underway. What will be revealed? Plans suggest a mixed office/residential tower above with rebuilding of most portions of the TD bank that was on the corner, as well as the building directly east of it. No car parking spots, bikes only. Concept stage? Or further along?  One day we might find out!

Last, the northeast corner –

below: Clock Tower lofts dominates the corner.  There really are two clocks on the side of the building, both of which are difficult to see.  But that doesn’t matter since they don’t work anyhow.

clock tower lofts and condos on the northwest corner of King and Bathurst, with a clock tower at the corner, clock not working, ugly building

below: 1919 photo of the Clocktower Building.  It was in bad shape in 1980 and was demolished.  The Clock Tower Lofts (above) replaced it.  In 1919 it was home to Otto Higel Piano Company. The church in the background is St. Marys Roman Catholic church at Bathurst and Adelaide.

1919 black and white photo of a brick building on northwest corner of king and bathurst. 4 storeys, with small clock tower on one corner, church in the background

photo credit: City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 1244, Item 3008

The building dates from 1895; it was built for the Toronto Lithographing Company who used it until 1901.  Next, the Newell & Higel Co. Ltd take over the building where they manufacture piano actions, keys and hammers, and organ keys, reeds, and reedboards.  By 1912 they employed 450 people.  They developed a Player Piano that became famous around the world and business boomed.  They expanded the building north to the corner of Adelaide Street West.

By the way, a Player Piano is one that plays itself.  The 1920’s were their heyday but advances in technology, especially the introduction of radios and record players, helped kill the Player Piano.  By the 1930s production ceased.

below: A 1970s view of the northwest corner.

1970s black and white photo of Otto Higel Piano Company, now a furniture factory

photo credit: City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 1526, File 7, Item 5,

below: Looking out the window of the Wheatsheaf Tavern.  How many people have sat here and looked out this window?  What did they think about?

looking out a window at the Wheatsheaf Tavern, looking northeast to corner of King and Bathurst where a large white temporary building encloses metrolinx work on a new Ontario Line subway station

intersections – Queen and Spadina

Posted: November 20, 2024 in construction, history, old buildings, people, public art
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Subtitle: More Ontario Line mess

 

at corner of Spadina and Richmond, traffic light, with two Spadina street signs on it including old fashion district sign,

below:  Spadina and Richmond…. A giant thimble (by Stephen Cruise) sits on a stack of buttons.  Behind it, a building is shrouded in blue netting.

a couple walks a dog past sculpture at Richmond and Spadina that is a giant thimble on top of a stack of buttons

below:  Blue, blue, my world is blue… walking north on Spadina under blue netting that protects the sidewalk from work being done on the southwest corner of Queen and Spadina.  The whole block between Richmond and Queen is under wraps.  This is a future subway station with the imaginative name of Queen-Spadina.

people walking on sidewalk that is covered with scaffolding and blue netting to protect from a construction site, queen and spadina, ontario line construction

below: Southwest corner of Queen and Spadina

TTC streetcar on Queen, waits at red light at Spadina, people on the corner, tall building behind, pink signs advertising ontario line.

below: A look at what’s happening behind the hoardings….

Metrolinx construction site, hole in the ground, with hoardings, and shored up, some equipment,

below: Mcdonalds on the northwest corner is unaffected by the changes around it.

people waiting for green light, one man has a brown paper bag in his hand, mcdonalds at queen and spadina is in the background

below:  Looking south on Spadina with a good view of the southeast corner of the intersection with Queen West.

looking south on Spadina towards southeast corner of Spadina and Queen, tree, traffic,

below: There is a lot happening in the northeast quadrant, all by Metrolinx.   the yellow framework that protects and stabilizes a facade is becoming a common sight in Toronto.

below: In case you can’t remember what was on that corner, this is a photo taken back when they were laying streetcar tracks in 1912.  Most recently there was a CIBC bank on the corner.

black and white photo from 1912 of brick building on the northeast corner of Queen and Spadina.

Photo taken from WIkipedia Commons, in public domain. Originally from City of Toronto Archives.

below: A couple of the old houses/stores on Queen beside the old brick building seem remarkably unchanged since 1912.   (As a light grey car partially blocks the pedestrian crossing at the intersection).

a white car partially blocks the intersection as it goes southbound on spadina, pedestrians have to go around it while crossing on their green light. northeast corner of queen and spadina in the background

close up of an older brick building that has been gutted, but facade is being retained for redevelopment into metrolinx, ttc, subway station entrance

a woman wearing headphones walks past a construction site, on Spadina, other people on sidewalk crossing at traffic lights

graffiti on black hoardings, line drawing on bright green, picasso style, of a woman

below: The 510 streetcars are not running during this construction.

below:  But because the buses are too wide for the streetcar lanes, the middle of Spadina is very quiet… so I can stand here and take pictures.

standing in streetcar lanes, looking south on spadina, towards queen,

below: It also means that the replacement buses are now running… and competing with cars for a limited space.

a young man in blue winter jacket and baseball cap, walking on sidewalk past an orange sign saying pedestrian detour, and an arrow pointing right

below: Painting over the graffiti

below: Just north of Queen, there is a large vacant lot on Spadina.  So large you can see through to Cameron Street.

below: Cameron House and other houses on Cameron Street and beyond.

two young men on bikes wait at a red light, on Queen West at Spadina

stickers on crossing button at intersection, urban ninja squadron and feelings boi

people waiting on the southwest corner of padina and queen, waiting for their green light, pink hoardings for metrolinx construction behind them

looking out the window of a TTC spadina bus, looking at people waiting at bus stop, tall condos behind them, some reflections

a short walk up Church Street

Posted: July 18, 2024 in construction, graffiti and street art, locations, old buildings, stores
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Northbound, starting at King…  where this large mural still shines.  Piliriqatigiingniq was painted in 2015 (see link for more info)

part of a mural on a large white wall, a pink animal with blur antlers, also two windows in the wall

below: A yellow parking lot attendant booth, a throwback to an older, less digital age.  Back before machines and parking apps on your phone changed our lives.

old yellow parking lot attendant booth in a parking lot on church street

below: Looking west on Court Street through to Toronto and Victoria Streets (and beyond).  A wide range of sizes and styles all mixed up together.

looking west on Court street from church street, highrises

looking west on Court street from church street, highrises

below: The omnipresent condo construction and ubiquitous summer roadworks can be found here too!

a woman carries two bags full of shopping as she walks on a sidewalk beside a blue construction fence in downtown toronto

below: Lots of glass on the northeast corner of  Church & Lombard –  This section of Lombard is also Gilda Radner Way.

new construction on the northeast corner of church and lombard, also called gilda radner way

below: The view on Lombard, looking east from Church. Lots of midrise buildings.

lombard street ooking east from church, new construction on the northeast corner, row of midrise apartments on the south side

below: Crossing Lombard.  Looking north up Church Street

people crossing street

below: Church & Richmond, northeast corner.

church and richmond, northeast corner, ttc streetcar headed north, wild wings,

below: Church & Richmond again but from a different angle, south side of Richmond with McVeighs Tavern on the southwest corner.

church and richmond, southeast, people on southwest corner, streetcar headed north,

below: Flags flying over the entrance to McVeighs (“since 1962”) – a little bit of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland & Labrador.

below: West on Richmond.

looking east on richmond street from church street

a lane off church street

below: A stretch of Church Street was known for its pawn shops and many still remain.  Here we have Simon’s Pawnbrokers as well as two “exchanges”, Five Star Exchange and Toronto Exchange.

pawn shops on church street

big red pawnbroker sign on a building

below: Balconies old and new.

below: Can you tell where this picture was taken?  A little bit of Toronto love on a mailbox on the corner of Church and ???

graffiti sticker on a Canada Post mailbox, I green heart Tdot

below: Peeking over the mail box above is the yellow of the old Shwarma King on the northeast corner of Queen and Church.  It is now being demolished.

northeast corner of Queen and Church, yellow tower on yellow building now being demolished

scaffolding and hoardings in front of a few buildings on church street, awaiting demolition and redevelopment

below: The side of Metropolitan United Church.

below: The north end of Metropolitan United with St. Michaels Hospital behind it (just south of Shuter).

below: More of the mural as well as St. Michaels Cathedral on the other side of Shuter Street.  The mural is “Paint Your Faith” by Elicser, Chor Boogie, Mediah and Siloette

Church and Shuter, St. Michaels cathedral with St Mikes hospital in the background

below: St. Michaels RC Church in the foreground, looking north along Church St.

below: Many more facades that have been preserved during redevelopment.

older brick buildings whose facades were saved when redeveloped and condos built on top

below:  205 Church Street with its green awning; Its neighbour may be feeling the squeeze, just south of Dundas.

house between two larger buildings

below: Looking east on Dundas

looking south on church street

below: Northeast corner of Church and Dundas.

below: Westward along Dundas towards the Bond Place Hotel and its tall blue mural celebrating health care workers and their dedication during the COVID pandemic  (and since?)

looking west on Dundas from church street as a white bus passes by, Bond Place hotel, with a large vertical mural dedicated to health care workers.

below: mmm

from Keele to Dundas West

Posted: April 11, 2024 in alleys, construction, graffiti and street art
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A short walk between two subway stations….

below: Westbound subway enters Keele station.

black and white photo of a TTC subway headed to Kipling, enters Keele station at section of track that is above ground, buildings in the background

below: A view to the east of Keele subway station where the tracks are elevated and there is a large parking lot underneath (free parking on the weekend!).

elevated subway tracks on east side of keele station, with parking lot below and pedestrian entrance, highrises in the background

below: Some of the buildings that formed the north wall of the parking lot beside Keele station are no longer all there.  Only one of the buildings remains.

street art on the back of a brick building, parking lot in front

below: The demolished buildings were covered with street art including a mural featuring King Midas.  Where he used to be there is now a tall crane above and a large hole below.  Increasing density at transit stops is a good idea but this is yet another square box in glass and steel with bland and nondescript street level “appeal”.  I am not sure if it is the developers or the city planning office that is responsible for the lack of imagination and/or variety at street level; that requires more research and another blog post.

large crane and orange barriers along the edge of a construction site on bloor near keele station

below: When buildings come down, others are revealed.  Angles briefly open up.  Obviously (now) LMP, JETR, TEMPO and friends were here.

large tags on outside of building revealed when building beside was demolished

below: Running behind the south side of Bloor is this alley There has been street art here for years.

graffiti and street art in an alley behind Bloor near Keele subway station

below: Some of that street art, like this Uber5000 painting, remain intact.  Lucky yellow birds!  It’s also nice to see an old Lovebot (upper left corner).

uber 5000 mural with three yellow birdies sitting around a red table. One is reading a newspaper

below: Others haven’t fared so well – A waving hand and the top of a red cap are all that remain of this Elicser Elliott piece.  I doubt that the fat white letters are an improvement but that’s the way it goes.

old mural by elicser mostly tagged over by giant white fat letters, only the very top of original can be seen 0 a red cap and a hand.

below: An urban night scene.  King Kong once stood over it.

part of a mural, night scene, city, highrises with lights on, in black and white

below: Someone has hung this little framed picture on an exterior wall.  I think that it is an image of a flower or plant of some sort.

small framed picture surrounded by graffiti on an exterior wall in a lane

below: Another Uber5000 work with a yellow birdie in a red cap.

uber 5000 mural in an alley, a yellow bird in a red cap, a man with square red framed glasses

below: A Buddha prays among the lotus flowers and leaves.

mural in back of building, with window above it, stairs in front of it, buddha, lotus flowers and lotus leaves

murals on two sides of a building in an alley,

below: Another mural that has been left untouched is Movie Art Decor featuring Alfred Hitchcock directing ‘Psycho’ along with Marilyn Monroe and a topless Bruce Lee.

movie art decor mural in black and white with Alfred Hitchcock and Bruce Lee

a white swan painted on a sidewalk box

below: It looks a bit like a big white shark is coming after us.

text throw up tag street art

below: Stop!

a hand with open palm in a mural beside a small sign that says parking reserved

below: Remembering 1995.

text graffiti scrawled on wall, says remember 1995, of course not

below: Sunny backyard spaces

single storey extension on the back of a building in an alley, with street art painted on the side,

below: More backyard spaces.

small steps up grassy hill at the back of a building, alley view

below: Looking west towards Keele Station – alley, subway tracks, and a few highrises.

an alley behind bloor, looking west towards keele subway station

below: Waiting at Dundas West Station

a man in a red jacket sits on a bench at Dundas West station, waiting between two TTC streetcars

Dundas West station is at Dundas and Bloor.  Also on this corner is the Giraffe Building.   Many years ago (2007?) this property was bought by a developer who wanted to build the Giraffe Condos, a 27 storey project.  To promote the condo development, the typical two storey stores that were there became the Giraffe building that we have now.  But the city rejected that proposal saying that the structure was too high and the site seems to have been in limbo ever since.  It has changed hands a number of times.

along Dundas West, east side of giraffe building,

  In 2018 the site, along with one or two adjacent properties was purchased by a partnership between two companies, Trinity & Timbercreek.  Lo and behold, a 27 storey condo with 354 units was proposed and this time accepted.   Back to square one?    But that isn’t the end of the story… In January the site was back on the market.   It looks like not much is going to change for a while yet.

below: Northwest corner of Dundas and Bloor with a streetcar covered in a lipstick advertisement.

northwest corner of Dundas and Bloor, people crossing with green light, TTC streetcar covered in ad for lipstick, giraffe building,

below: Graffiti break dancer behind the Giraffe building

red on white painting of a break dancer, graffiti

below: Sarah has claimed the cat in the doorway.  Cool hat.

cat cartoon character, with purple hat over its eyes, white trench coat, mural in a doorway in an alley

below: A green laser beam from a fiery eye?  A burning tall skinny structure (like the CN Tower)?

external metal staircase outside building beside a mural on the other wall, an eye, with red flames on the top, a green laser-like beam coming out of the eye

below: That’s a strange way to open a door.

doorway mural, male character, in green clothing
below: A miserable little impish guy with an oversized green tongue.

If you are interested in the street art in the alley above,  there is a blog post from 2015 titled ‘old friends’ that shows more pictures (from 9 years ago!).  You can get a better idea of what has changed and what hasn’t.  King Midas is there too.

rainy day people

Posted: September 26, 2022 in locations, people
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Hanging out and Yonge and Dundas and trying to stay dry

two young women standing in the rain at the corner of Yonge and Dundas, a Hop on hop off tourist bus behind them, large red planters in the square, one woman with a blue umbrella, the other wearing a bright yellow rain jacket with hood up

a man on a blue motorbike, in the rain, silver coloured helmet, scowling at the weather, woman behind him has hair blowing in the wind

two men talking to each other as they stand beside an electric billboard advert with bright yellow background, other people waiting under scaffolding for the rain to stop

decorated bus shelter, large picture of a hand reaching out, a man in the bus shelter with a microphone, another man walking past with hood up because of the rain, third man with gold and white striped umbrella

people getting off a streetcar on Dundas, in the rain, hurrying to try to stay dry, a woman with an umbrella stands on the sidewalk

people crossing yonge street in the rain, two sharing an umbrella, one holding a white box and hiding under the fur lined hood of her green jacket

a woman in a red jacket with a white umbrella and black purse, walks towards TTC streetcar doors that haven't opened yet, a man holding up his pants is also waiting for streetcar

a young couple share an umbrella and walk hand in hand together as they cross Dundas Street in front of the red planters at Yonge Dundas square

a man in a blue hoodie grimaces as he walks in the rain, behind him, a woman with a red backpack gets onto a streetcar TTC

woman with red umbrella and long beige coat walks in front of a car, in the rain, at Yonge and Dundas,

a man in shorts and sandals with a blue umbrella stands beside a woman in black boots and long coat, under shelter while it rains, waiting for a green light to cross Dundas Street

three young woman standing together beside a lit electric advertisement

people crossing on the diagonal at Yonge and Dundas, kids with pink rain coats, woman with pink umbrella, family with large rainbow umbrella, man with a broken umbrella

man in grey hoodie walking with head down in the rain as he crosses a wet street

people with umbrellas walking in the rain at Yonge and Dundas

people crossing yonge street in the rain, one with brown and white animal print umbrella and wearing a covid mask

a young man holding a blue umbrella

two people in cheap flimsy red ponchos in the rain, walking on Yonge street, behind a man with an umbrella

snowy morning on Queen West

Posted: March 20, 2022 in alleys, graffiti and street art, landmarks, stores
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… and Graffiti Alley

stencil graffiti, words that say met u in toronto written twice in a circle around a happy face, yellow on black, sprayed on a brick wall in Graffiti Alley

in Graffiti Alley, on a door, a big pink heart with love written in cursive through the middle of it

below: Northeast corner of Spadina and Queen West

northeast corner of Spadina and Queen in a snow flurry,

early morning, storefronts on Queen West, fruit market, empty store, lots of cardboard boxes on sidewalk waiting for trash pickup

below: Mannequins on orange

mannequins in Joe Fresh window, orange background, kids clothes

sidewalk scene on Queen West, bus shelter with Queen West advert, green P parking sign, some stores,

below: Queen Street westbound approaching Bathurst

TTC streetcar westbound on Queen West approaching Bathurst, snow falling, other cars waiting for red light,

below: It’s always nice to see that there’s at least one Lovebot still hanging out in Graffiti Alley.

in Graffiti Alley, a lovebot pasteup up hgh, love bot and a bunch of balloons

below: On the door, a jumblefacefoto collage

jumblefacefoto collage paper pasteup on door in graffiti alley in the middle of a text throw up street art

below: Reach out and touch someone

Bell phone booth covered with stickers, plus a fake bony hand holding onto the receiver, in Graffiti Alley

below: Open your eyes

brick wall with paper pasteup graffiti, open your eyes, a jumblefacefoto

below: Are you smiling?  Are you happy?

old KFC building, empty, with graffiti painted on wood leaning against the building, black letters on white that say In a passive society smiles are not the faces of happy people R "2022"

TTC streetcar at Queen and Spadina, in the snow

an older couple walking on sidewalk on Queen West waiting for greenlight at Bathurst by taccorito restaurant

below: Southeast corner, Queen & Niagara

early morning, yellow lights on in plant store on Queen West, a woman walking past,

below: Same intersection slightly later in the morning and from a slightly different angle

people on the sidewalk at queen west and niagara, traffic lights, woman pushing stroller, Japanese mural in the background, chive plant store in the foreground

two storefronts in old brick building, Queen West, Park Avenue Cleaners and Shanti Baba

photograph on exterior of store, group of people standing together, number 789 Queen West is next door

t bonez urban ninja squadron paste up of him in yoga pose

mural of a naked upper body with arms up and flowers around the head with words turn off your mind

below: Windigo Army piece

street art painting of an indigenous man with long black braid, wrapped in a white and black blanket, with yellow and red aura around him

below: A little orange character pasted to a pole; the work of kode_dipz aka Kyara Cabrera Fong

kode 905 slap graffiti little orange character with green face and tummy, on a pole

below: Because of the construction of a new condo at Richmond and Augusta there has been scaffolding in a section of Graffiti Alley. The other day some of it was being dismantled. This woman is more visible now but some of the bars remain.

mural of a woman with a cloth covering her head, behind scaffolding bar,

below: Life©️ one eyed red daisy supersized

black and orange traffic pylons beside the entrance to Graffiti Alley with a red one eyed daisy painting by life co beside it, then a row of paintings on hoardings

graffiti and street art on plywood hoardings that got switched around

4 faces found in different pieces of street art, all cartoonish, including a one eyed pink monster with oozing body,

below: Part of UBER5000’s Toronto mural.

large uber5000 Toronto mural in Graffiti alley, lower portion of it, behind chainlink fence

below: By luvs – a woman and her dog, with duplicate vision

part of a mural by luvs of a woman's head and a bulldog beside her, duplicate eyes and sunglasses that she's looking over, on a garage door in rush lane

two women walking their dogs in a snow storm on Spadina

from inside, a man walks past window of Le Gourmand bakery cafe on Spadina

below: A properly worn mask…..

window of flashback vintage, a mannequin in brown jacket and blue dress, mask needed sign on door

a collection of dolls in a store window with yellow metal grille in front

What is creepier?  Dolls or mannequins?

two images of mannequins in a window, one in pink and the other in red with red hair, both with large bows in their hair

below: Poetaia wants to know what you’re up to, wink, wink.

sticker graffiti on a wood utility pole that says What are your plans for the weekend?

below: Peeling paper makes the gold words difficult to read

grid of painted paper on top of street art, peeling at edges

below: There’s a yellow eye and possibly a blue one too?

paper collage face with yellow eye,slightly peeling at the edges

two mailboxes on a black door, 555 is salmon colour and 557 is black

two stickers on a metal pole on the topis a picture of a man's head with word think and on bottom is t bonez with finger over mouth as in saying shhh shush

small sticker graffiti on pole

small black and white sticker graffiti on pole, picture of man in a mask holding shoulders of a woman

growing pains

Posted: November 13, 2017 in transportation
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Is there anyone who doesn’t complain about driving in Toronto?
Does anyone have a solution that we can all agree on?
No.

Yesterday Toronto began an experiment on King Street. An experiment that CBC called a disaster on its first day.   This morning I went to check it out for myself.  It was mid-morning so there weren’t many cars.   Also, weekday drivers and Sunday drivers downtown are different.  On weekdays it’s the regulars who know the roads because they drive them all the time.   Does that make a difference? – I’m not sure.

below: At most intersections between Bathurst and Jarvis, traffic is not allowed to proceed straight through – you must turn right.  Streetcars and bicycles are the exceptions.  The traffic signals now have advanced green arrows to allow cars to turn right before the pedestrians cross the road.    Taxis are allowed to go through only between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m.   You’ll notice that the left hand land has been painted with yellow stripes, i.e. no cars here!

white arrow painted on road directing traffic to turn right

below: Two more changes have appeared. First, the streetcar stops have been moved to after the intersection instead of before. Second, small barricades block the right hand lane after the intersection. These two changes have the effect of blocking cars who try to sneak through on King Street. If there is a streetcar, you’re stuck behind it. I did see a car try to pass a streetcar (on the left) but it was unsuccessful.

streetcar stopped to let on passengers, cars behind it on the street

Many cars were disobeying the new traffic signs, some out of confusion  and some blatantly flaunting the rules.   Cars would pull into the right turn lane but then go through the light anyhow.

below: I wasn’t the only ones watching the traffic.  Global TV was at King and Jarvis while CTV were stationed at King and Church.

Global TV car and truck parked on King street, street car about to pass them

below: CBC interviews people at King & Yonge as a black GMC goes through the intersection.

CBC reporter interviewing people on the sidewalk, traffic on King sreet, a black SUV making an illegal straight through the intersection,

below: The lighter traffic makes for easier illegal left turns!

a black car makes an illegal left turn at King and Church streets

below: Taking pictures of drivers doing illegal things was like shooting fish in a barrel. There were a couple of police cars around but so far there are few consequences to doing what you want. It’s early days yet, right? Apparently starting next week, the fine for illegally going straight through the intersection will be $100 and 2 demerit points.

traffic and street cars on King Street

I have one suggestion and that is to change the traffic lights so that the only green is a right turn arrow. The streetcars would have their own light – something like the ‘white line light’ that is used at King and Sumach as well as at Eglinton and Duplex. Having an ordinary green light is almost giving mixed signals to the drivers.

below:  Hey!  Mr. Bentley watch where you’re going!

two cars waiting for a red light. a white car and a grey Bentley, pedestrians crossing the intersection in front of them.

Take care out there!

Honest Ed’s waves goodbye

Posted: December 15, 2016 in landmarks, locations
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Someone has redone the signs in Bathurst subway station….
now they look like they belong at Honest Eds store!

sign maker from Honest Eds store has redone some of the signs in Bathurst subway station plus, he has added some Honest Ed type promo signs around the station - the direction sign to subway and to exits.

… and when I came up to street level I discovered that the station has been decorated with Honest Eds type ‘adverts’ complete with awful puns

sign maker from Honest Eds store has redone some of the signs in Bathurst subway station plus, he has added some Honest Ed type promo signs around the station - on the window of the station, Our prices aren't always good but they're fare

…. including word play based on subway station names such as “Turnstiles, now museum, soon you won’t”.  Groan.  Smile.

sign maker from Honest Eds store has redone some of the signs in Bathurst subway station plus, he has added some Honest Ed type promo signs around the station - on the window of the station are two signs, one says Presto no more change-o and the other says Turnstiles now museum soon you won't

below: The main entrance to the station now looks like an Honest Eds window.

sign maker from Honest Eds store has redone some of the signs in Bathurst subway station plus, he has added some Honest Ed type promo signs around the station - on the window of the station, The window beside the main entrance has been covered with fake ads.

below: They aren’t too easy to read in this picture, but the two signs on the left are, first, “Bacon & Eglinton $3.25” and second, “There aren’t any snakes on our tracks, St. Patrick banished them”.   Were you expecting better?  [laughing]

sign maker from Honest Eds store has redone some of the signs in Bathurst subway station plus, he has added some Honest Ed type promo signs around the station - on the window of the station, exterior of station by streetcar and bus loop has four signs in the windows that are puns based on the names of TTC stations.

Nearby is the real Honest Ed’s store, a landmark for many years.  Eighteen months ago, I posted some pictures of the store and at the end of that post I mentioned that the store was scheduled to close at the end of 2016.  Well, the end of 2016 is drawing nigh and Honest Ed’s is slowly winding down.  The decorating of Bathurst Station is part of the good-bye process.

At the moment, the interior of the store is a shadow of its former self.  It is still in business but the goods are getting scarce.  There are definitely still bargains to be had.  I have a new hat that I bought there today, red polar fleece, that set me back 50 cents… plus tax.

interior of Honest Eds store as it gets ready to close down. a bin of lipstick and other makeup. Someone has written the word Riley in pink lipstick on the side of the bin

interior of Honest Eds store as it gets ready to close down. A bin of men's underwear for $4.99

interior of Honest Eds store as it gets ready to close down. The bedding section is being torn apart and dismantled

below: Ed Mirvish and a crowd of shoppers back in the day.
The picture still hangs in one of the many corners of the store.

interior of Honest Eds store as it gets ready to close down. An old picture of Ed Mirvish surrounded by a crowd of people hangs on a wall above a Bell payphone.

interior of Honest Eds store as it gets ready to close down. a few shower curtains on display as well as some checkered tea towels. The rest of the shelves and wall space are empty

interior of Honest Eds store as it gets ready to close down. ladies underwear in a bin for sale, surrounded by empty bins and wall space, lots of mirrors. Yellow caution tape marks off a section of the store that is now closed.

interior of Honest Eds store as it gets ready to close down. a black and white photo of a young woman on a wall beside a convex mirror showing the stairwell. also an ad printed right on the mirror for bradasol lozenges

below: Photo taken from the walkway between the two buildings that make up Honest Ed’s store.  Looking south.

looking down at an icy alley where four people are walking between buildings, sign on building says Honest Eds Annex,

below: From the same vantage point, but looking north.  From here I spotted a new mural.

looking down on an alley, there is a mural along the side of one of the buildings.

below: The mural is a large scale photo montage of people passing by the Bloor Street windows of Honest Ed’s. It catches the reflections of both the window contents and the life on the street.  It is “The Theatre” and it is the creation of Matthew Monteith.

part of a mural in Honest Eds Alley by Matthew Monteith showing people walking past the windows of Honest Ed's store, large scale photo
part of a mural in Honest Eds Alley by Matthew Monteith showing people walking past the windows of Honest Ed's store, large scale photo

part of a mural in Honest Eds Alley by Matthew Monteith showing people walking past the windows of Honest Ed's store, large scale photo

interior of Honest Eds store as it gets ready to close down. an old man with a cane sits on the steps between two sections of the store

down to Coronation Park

Posted: November 16, 2016 in history, locations, memorials, nature
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This is another meandering blog post… a post about being out and about on yet another wonderful autumn day, going wherever my feet and eyes take me.

below: The first picture of my day was this intriguing wall made of old wooden doors.  Bathurst Street.

a tall narrow wall about three storeys high made of old white doors.

below: A small elicser mural tucked away at the end of a parking lot.   The man has his back to the viewer but I can’t figure out what’s behind him or what he might be doing.

small mural on a fence, a man's head is back to the viewer

below: The leaves have fallen off the vines to reveal a yellowish creature with his baseball cap askew.

graffiti painting of a yellow animal like creature wearing a blue and yellow baseball cap. The creature is yellow. On a red brick wall, with spots on its back

below: Toronto’s tallest icon framed by a construction crane.

CN Tower in the distance, condo construction in the foreground, with a red crane

below: And on a similar note, a vacant lot cleared and ready for the next stage of its life.

a box beside a fence that has been scrawled over with blue spray paint. Behind it is a fence around a vacant empty lot. There are some small trees growing in front of the fence.

below: No more cranes here (and not many vacant lots either for that matter).  A view showing how much development there has been on the south side of the railway tracks.   Fort York is between the tracks and the condo towers.

a VIA Rail train passes by on one set of many tracks, in the background is Fort York and then a series of new condo buildings.

below: And what’s this? An old blue canoe beached on the tracks?

looking at the scene from a above, a blue canoe has been used to plant plants in. It lies across an old railway track, a chainlink fence separates the canoe from the main railway tracks that still function.

below: Standing guard over Bathurst Street, Fleet street and the Lakeshore, is one larger than life gold replica of a Royal Newfoundland Regiment and his fallen silver American foe. A sculpture by Douglas Copeland entitled “A Monument to the War of 1812”, a nod to nearby Fort York and the history of Toronto.

Douglas Copeland's sculpture of two tin soldiers, a gold one standing with backpack on and rifle in hand, and a silver one lying on its back on the ground, uniforms circa War of 1812, seen from the back, figures are much large than life sized and they are on a corner at an intersection, Bathurst St. and Fleet St.

below: My favorite example of bad grammar still exists!  Off-leash dog area at Coronation Park.

a wood fence around a dog park, in autumn with lots of leaves on the ground, on the fence is a white sign with black letters re the Toronto municipal code 608,

A beautiful day in the park.  A slight November nip was in the air but it was sunny and the sky was a brilliant shade of blue.  Coronation Park is named in honour of the coronation of King George VI who was crowned on 12 May 1937.  At that time nearly 150 trees were planted here.

Apparently, an oak tree was planted to honour the king.  Surrounding it, a ring of silver maples was planted.  This was to symbolize the countries of the British Empire.  I wish I had known that bit of trivia before I walked through the park because now I am curious if these trees are still there.   Some of the trees are quite substantial.

below: Long shadows for the morning sun, low in the sky.

morning in the park, autumn, trees with some leaves still on, many leaves on the ground, wood railing fence, shadows, Lake Ontario, path, Coronation Park.

below: Looking back towards the city center, past the empty docks of the National Yacht Club to the residences on Stadium Road.   A small group of people were making a video in the dog park.

morning in the park, autumn, trees with some leaves still on, many leaves on the ground, wood railing fence, shadows, Lake Ontario, path, Coronation Park. a small group of people in the distance are filming a video

below: This Victory Peace Monument was unveiled on 14 November 1995 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the end of World War 2 and honour those who died in that war.   It was designed by John McEwen; the bronze pieces resemble the bow of a ship.

Metal partial cylindrical shapes on a concrete circular monument. World War 2 memorial

below: On the inside of one of the bronze pieces is a map of eastern Canada and the Atlantic Ocean.  Each boat on the map represents a ship or U-boat that was sunk during the war.  The Canadian ships are located on the map at “their last known position”.  I hadn’t realized that so many ships were lost so close to North America.

relief map of eastern Canada and the Atlantic Ocean, in bronze on a WW2 memorial. Little ships are shown on the ocean where they were sunk during WW2.

Trees were also planted to represent the four divisions of the Canadian Expeditionary Force (WW1) and its units as well as those who fought in the Fenian Raids of 1866-1870, the Northwest Rebellion of 1885, and the Boer War (1899-1902).  Once upon a time, brass plaques were placed at the foot of each tree to indicate the units the tree stood for.  If any plaques remain, I didn’t see them.

below: Another memorial is close by, a  “Memorial to Lieut. Tommy Hobbs gallant British Canadian soldier in the Great War 1914 – 1918.  Died on active service November 10, 1940.  Beloved and remembered by his comrades.”   Tommy Hobbs was involved in the creation of this park.

a memorial in a park made of a small pile of rocks. The top rock is inscribed, memorial to Tommy Hobbs, died 1940, in Coronation Park

below: A little farther on I noticed another rock, one that was painted red.   The bronze plaque on the rock says that 20 trees have been planted here in commemoration of the G20 Summit held in Toronto in 2010.

a large rock with a bronze plaque on it. The rock has been crudely painted red

below:  A 30 foot tall Inukshuk stands looking out over Lake Ontario.  Approximately 50 tonnes of mountain rose granite was used to create the Inukshuk, which was made by Inuit artist Kellypalik Qimirpik from Cape Dorset, Nunavut.

a tall stone inuksuk on a raised mound of warth

below: Streetcars across the baseball outfield.

Looking across the outfield of a baseball diamond towards a street. A line of mature trees by the street with two red and white TTC streetcars on the street, condo towers behind.

below: A closer look at that brown octagonal structure in the middle of the streetcar loop for the 509 and 511 cars.  Apparently it’s the Queens Wharf lighthouse, one of a pair built in 1861.

a brown structure, the Queens WHarf Lighthouse, sits on a patch of grass beside TTC streetcar tracks in front of a new condo.

The lighthouses marked the entrance to the Toronto Harbour from 1861 until the Western Channel was built in the early 1900’s.   This one stood on Queen’s Wharf which used to be at the foot of Bathurst Street, adjoining Fort York.  The wharf was built by the military; in 1833 it was a pier 42 feet long.    The pier no longer exists; a hundred years ago it was buried under what is now Bathurst Quay.

below:  A picture of an historical map (1886 or 1887) of the area showing Toronto Harbour, Fort York and the railway lands.  Queen’s Wharf is the pier on the left.   At that time, Front Street was the southern most street in this part of the city.   All the present day development south of the train tracks is on reclaimed land.

picture of historical map of part of Toronto Harbour from 1886, showing Fort York, Front St., and Bathurst St., and the railway lands and wharves into Lake Ontario,

below:   Taken from google maps, what the layout of the city looks like now.   As you can see, there have been many changes!

present day map taken from google maps of Coronation Park and Bathurst Quay including Fort York

Lake Ontario in the foreground, trees in Coronation Park in the middle and Toronto skyline in the distance with the CN Tower and a large Canadian flag.
a sticker of a rainbow in a heart shape. A small purple heart is in the center, then a blue heart is drawn around it, moving outwards in rainbow colours.

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