Toronto Union Station Revitalization | ?m | ?s | City of Toronto | NORR

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…so suddenly, lots of retail work going on.

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I guess that answers the question about re-opening a tunnel to the Royal York.
No bueno.
Going to be a Pilot Coffee place.
 
Student99 said:
I guess that answers the question about re-opening a tunnel to the Royal York. No bueno. Going to be a Pilot Coffee place.
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Odd that the tunnel won't reopen, especially when the city officially likes to see PATH get expanded.

On the plus side, nice to see that Pilot will have a permanent home at Union.
 
It is beginning to feel like the end is actually in sight.

So glad to see that "TO CITY/VILLE" signage graphic in the old arrivals passageway hasn't been scrubbed off. It's a classic touch. Although, a knowledgeable source tells me that the red paint is actually a recent touch (the original version was black, and not bilingual - the "Ville" was added later.

- Paul
 
smallspy said:
In fairness, there is the new PATH connection that is supposed to go up York and will connect in with the west side of the Royal York.

Dan
Toronto, Ont.
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That has already been built. Royal York put the kibosh on it. There's a temporary wall up on the east side of the NW Path junction just outside of Union, that wall could be torn down to open up into the Royal York, which was the original plan, but the hotel decided not to allow it.
 
Great update. Thanks a lot for taking and posting those.

I agree--it does feel like this thing is finally getting there, but when you look at how much further there is to go in the Bay concourse, it's tough to get excited quite yet. This project is massive, but it does feel like it's been under renovation for ages.

One thing I'm wondering about: when you walk through the core of the station, where those last few pictures were taken, on the way to the York concourse, there is a huge difference in interior space and feel. The York concourse is obviously new, clean, and modern, while the older, core of the building, especially with the yellow/orange lights seems dark, and out of place. There are heritage issues etc, but what exactly are the plans for the core of the station? Because right now it does seem too dark, too almost claustrophobic.
 
Miscreant said:
Great update. Thanks a lot for taking and posting those.

I agree--it does feel like this thing is finally getting there, but when you look at how much further there is to go in the Bay concourse, it's tough to get excited quite yet. This project is massive, but it does feel like it's been under renovation for ages.

One thing I'm wondering about: when you walk through the core of the station, where those last few pictures were taken, on the way to the York concourse, there is a huge difference in interior space and feel. The York concourse is obviously new, clean, and modern, while the older, core of the building, especially with the yellow/orange lights seems dark, and out of place. There are heritage issues etc, but what exactly are the plans for the core of the station? Because right now it does seem too dark, too almost claustrophobic.
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Lighting has been discussed above (ages ago); there WILL be new lighting in the Great Hall etc. (e,.g. if you look at the lights outside VIA lounge they are wired with exposed - hanging - wires. They are clearly going to be replaced) In the VIA concourse and the passage parallel to Front on lower level the new ceilings are (finally) going up and there will clearly be new lights There was a tender call a while ago for new hanging lights for Great Hall It is slow but it IS moving on.
 
DSC said:
Lighting has been discussed above (ages ago); there WILL be new lighting in the Great Hall etc. (e,.g. if you look at the lights outside VIA lounge they are wired with exposed - hanging - wires. They are clearly going to be replaced) In the VIA concourse and the passage parallel to Front on lower level the new ceilings are (finally) going up and there will clearly be new lights There was a tender call a while ago for new hanging lights for Great Hall It is slow but it IS moving on.
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Thanks for the reply. What about the general 'decor', for lack of a better word, though? I mean, yes, I can see how the first level (beneath the Great Hall) can be very beautiful, but right now it looks dated, and I don't think that's just about the lighting or the lighting temperature. Plans here? Because right now there is a lot of discontinuity between this area and the York concourse. Clearly the two will and should be different, but right now they don't even compliment each other.
 
Miscreant said:
Thanks for the reply. What about the general 'decor', for lack of a better word, though? I mean, yes, I can see how the first level (beneath the Great Hall) can be very beautiful, but right now it looks dated, and I don't think that's just about the lighting or the lighting temperature. Plans here? Because right now there is a lot of discontinuity between this area and the York concourse. Clearly the two will and should be different, but right now they don't even compliment each other.
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Well, York concourse IS new and finished. The older parts of the station are 90 years old and ,in most parts, not yet finished. They will certainly ALWAYS look different but until both are finished I think its premature to get too concerned about discontinuity.
 
Megaton327 said:
That has already been built. Royal York put the kibosh on it. There's a temporary wall up on the east side of the NW Path junction just outside of Union, that wall could be torn down to open up into the Royal York, which was the original plan, but the hotel decided not to allow it.
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To be fair I am not surprised. Any tunnel into the lower level of the Royal York is doomed to failure. There is very little down there for tourists, it is not the most glamorous part of the hotel and on top of all that it is a pain to get up from there.

For the amount of traffic it would bring I can see why the Royal York did not want it built. It would be more of a security risk than it would be useful. It is far easier to arrive via Front Street than it is to arrive via a tunnel from Union.

Perhaps in 1927 when air travel was new and travelling long distances by car was impractical the tunnel was needed but now not so much.
 
^except, you know the retail tenants the hotel collects rent from on the lower level probably like the foot traffic.

Honestly, other than speculation here I have never heard anyone from the city or the hotel suggest they were blocking a path connection between RY and Union......does anyone have a link to such statements.
 
The only way I would see a tunnel to the Royal York working is if they transformed the basement into a semi-public space like a food hall that transitions into the more private parts of the hotel.

Public transit is always nice to have in the vicinity, but not always considered that pleasant to be right beside.
 
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