What are some ideas or innovations that Toronto became the trendsetter for, and other cities copied?

[wild goose chase]

I know that sometimes we talk about being like other cities or aspiring to have attributes of other cities, especially those in North America and Europe. Because Toronto grew later than other cities, it seems like mostly we are not the trendsetters and often copied things from other places. Even things like our artwork, like the Moose in the City during the Mel Lastman years had inspiration from Chicago's Cows on Parade, a project idea which in turn had its start in Switzerland.

What examples of features, ideas or projects (be they infrastructure, architectural, artistic, or other cultural) can someone point to and say that it was our city that first set a trend that spread to other cities later?

 

[King of Kensington]

IMAX theatres?

 

[adma]

Bike rings?

 

[Johnny Au]

Mixed-traffic streetcars, especially after the Great American Streetcar Conspiracy? Successful freeway revolts?

 

[christiesplits]

Successful freeway revolts?

This one. Going through a number of urban planning texts published in the 80s and 90s, the Spadina Expressway, due in large part to its connection to Jane Jacobs, gets brought up a lot.

 

[DSC]

The mixed St Lawrence neighbourhood developed along The Esplanade (between Front and the rail corridor) in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Many people still visit to see how successful the mixture of subsidised housing, co-ops, condos and single family homes has been.

 

[M.R.Victor]

The Slutwalk

 

[GKW]

I've had some conversations with friends in which we couldn't come up with ONE major fashion trend that started in Toronto and then took the world by storm in the last 25 years...the closest was the Canada Goose jacket but that is not really worn worldwide or even in the commonly in the US

 

[Armour]

The Slutwalk

What an achievement.

How about the plague of McMansionitis? That probably didn't start hear, but we're probably leading the pack, or close to it.

 

[Johnny Au]

The Parclo is also an innovation from the Greater Toronto Area.

 

[adma]

How about the plague of McMansionitis? That probably didn't start hear, but we're probably leading the pack, or close to it.

Actually, if there's anyplace where "monster homes" first became a major talking point and point of criticism, it's Vancouver, going back to the 80s/90s or so...

 

[interchange42]

The Regent Park Revitalization formula is being studied by cities across the continent.

42

 

[Johnny Au]

The Ontario Science Centre was the first science museum to be (almost) fully interactive (many newer science museums copied the Ontario Science Centre's innovation).

 

[Adjei]

I've had some conversations with friends in which we couldn't come up with ONE major fashion trend that started in Toronto and then took the world by storm in the last 25 years...the closest was the Canada Goose jacket but that is not really worn worldwide or even in the commonly in the US

Why would it be worn worldwide. It can only be worn in colder climates so obviously it won't be worn worldwide. I've seen plenty of them in the United States and parts of Europe, you know places where it's actually cold.

 

[adma]

Would a lot of Loblaws-style retailing innovations over the past 40+ years count? (Or would something like Sainsbury have the upper hand there?)