The Tenor (10 Dundas St E, Ent Prop Trust, 10s, Baldwin & Franklin)

[caltrane74]

Those pictures of Bangkok look someone combined North York City Centre ( Empress Walk) with Oriental Centre (Sheppard-Brimley) and Pacific Mall in one place.

Still Bangkok looks cool!

 

[interchange42]

As for the draw of steps and such, the corner of Church and Wellesley used to function this way and when 'the steps' were taken away people just migrated south until they found more steps. Also, works around Eros in Picadilly. People love steps!!

Yeah, I found some nice steps in Rome to sit on earlier this summer, and pretty soon everyone was sitting there too. I'm calling them the Spanish Steps as the land used to owned by the Spanish embassy there.

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[CDL.TO]

You inform tell the Roman tourist association of your discovery, interchange! They might place it in an advertisment or two.

I can't help but think that if we had a similar setup in Toronto we'd end up hearing complaints about the loitering.

 

[3Dementia]

Spanish steps. In the capital city of Italy. That's just dumb. You probably came up with Chicago in Mississauga or Scarberia or wherever it is.

 

[interchange42]

Damn - 3D made the link. Must send deadly pulse through 3D's computer.

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Whoops - I typed that? I can't believe I'm about to click 'Submit Reply'!

 

[taal]

I think my statement "most of the city" was very vague.
The area in particular that I was referring to was the part of downtown where those photos were taken.

That area felt suburban to me ... your right, comparing it to Houston was taking it a step to far, also I've been to other parts of the city that definitely are not clean/suburban.

Interesting views. There is no other living being in the known universe that has ever suggested that Bangkok is overly clean! and suburban!! and comparable to Houston!!! - and indeed any of these individually would be an insult but together they are an Armageddon level curse on any place. Luckily, I suspect also there is no person in Thailand that reads this blog so we are all safe.

Anyway, I am going there tomorrow afternoon and will try to cope.

But also, and I mean this seriously, if this was you experience and if you ever come back to this part of the world, let me know. I will ensure that you have an experience that is far from clean, suburban and Houstonish. I will not join you but I will give you guidance.

 

[Tuscani01]

Also, they're not really somewhere where you can sit and relax. Nor are they somewhere to meet someone. Most uses for a city square involve not getting wet. And most people on Dundas Square aren't walking there because they need to go somewhere; it is not the most direct route between any two points (except for maybe between Hard Rock Cafe and the yet-to-be completed TLS, if you like jaywalking) No, if you're at Dundas Square, you're there to chill out, and chilling needs somewhere to sit. Patio chairs and tables don't cut it, we need steps. Don't get me wrong, I love Dundas Square; and I know it well because I live a minute's walk away. But when I go there I never feel like I can sit and relax, even for just a moment. There's something formal about a chair at a table; you have to pull it out, sit down, put your stuff on the table, etc. There's a whole set of social etiquette rules that go along with sitting at a table. With steps you can just flop down, in all your unpretentious glory. It makes you feel welcome.

Urban Shocker, a WLM statue is an abosolutely fantastic idea. So appropriate in so many ways. But at the same time, i feel like it would be a small piece of historica overpowered by the commercialism that surrounds it. That's why I was thinking something modern (and a little interactive) by a local artist.

There are granite blocks all along the perimeter of the square for you to sit if you dont like the patio furniture. There are also steps in front of the stage where you can sit and a ledge along Dundas Street.

 

[EnviroTO]

Regarding the Bangkok photos. I agree it doesn't look lively and urban. I don't think a place can be too clean though. I think the problem is that it looks too institutional and non-pedestrian in scale. Having large areas of marble sidewalks set back from a road with one heck of a lot of lanes only looks pedestrian in scale when there are kiosks, tables, chairs, and of course people filling up that space. It looks pretty dead.

 

[lordmandeep]

really i think some trees on the edges of Victoria street would have helped.

Anyways the place looks much much better at night... Its really really really bright in that place at night.

 

[wyliepoon]

Having large areas of marble sidewalks set back from a road with one heck of a lot of lanes only looks pedestrian in scale when there are kiosks, tables, chairs, and of course people filling up that space. It looks pretty dead.

I find that Asian cities tend to have very little in terms of street furniture. I think the assumption in Asia is that any development would attract a lot of pedestrian traffic. Street furniture would not do much to attract pedestrians, but rather turn into barriers against pedestrian flow.

 

[drum118]

Future Shop staff area with crews working tonight a 8.00pm

Dundas entrance with floor protection removed and escalators working. Elevators are to be working when store opens. Rest of the other area block off.

 

[dt_toronto_geek]

Part of their sign is already burnt out. It reminds me of when they opened their previous Y & D store, FS had a fairly large video board above their entrance. In the first year or so it was more often off or displaying broken messages/images. Finally it seems they gave up on the cost of maintaining it and it went dark. It was taken down a couple of years later.

 

[CDL.TO]

I don't think they took it down. I think they just started placed ads over top.

Funny that the highly visible 2nd floor "nose" of Metropolis overlooking Dundas Square and Victoria Street is the FS employee lunchroom.

 

[officedweller]

Pretty huge lunchroom - hopefully they got it at a cheaper rate for that (poorly accessible) space.

 

[ShonTron]

Future Shop, with its really industrial interior and dark lighting, may be more spacious, but almost as dreary as the one its replacing ,at least judging by that photo.