taal
Senior Member
I'm pretty sure the idea is to host conventions there ... some of the rooms aren't so fancy. I think the public will still have some limited access (i.e. without paying $$$$).
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Allstream Centre (CNE Automotive Building Renovation, 2s, David Clusiau @ NORR) COMPLETE
- Thread starter rdaner
- Start date
I'm pretty sure the idea is to host conventions there ... some of the rooms aren't so fancy. I think the public will still have some limited access (i.e. without paying $$$$).
egotrippin
Senior Member
I think this is a good sign of a rejuvenation of the Exhibition grounds. If the sea of parking starts becoming redeveloped with dense, well scaled mixed-use buildings, I can see this area becoming very used and integral to the city year round. It has some wonderful buildings and a lot of potential, and I'm glad to see some effort is being made.
Speaking of new buildings, are there any plans to redevelop the parking lots? I know the question has been tossed around, but I can't recall any real proposals.
Speaking of new buildings, are there any plans to redevelop the parking lots? I know the question has been tossed around, but I can't recall any real proposals.
Automation Gallery
Superstar
jks
Continuous Lurker
Although redeveloping the lots is the way to go obviously, where will the CNE fit their stuff?? The rides and everything?? Let's not forget a major reason for Exhibition's existence. (Notice i said major, not the only. And the whole point of this is to make iyear-round, but still)
MetroMan
Senior Member
Exhibition Place is actively working out plans for a 10-15 year rollout of buildings to fill those parking lots and add amenities and clear delineations for the CNE. This includes sidewalks, grassed areas and hydro for the rides (no more cables running all over the place). The idea is to have everything more organized, to waste less space and to find year round uses for the grounds, rather than a lonely parking lot.
The National Trade Centre was the first step in that direction, then the Ricoh Coliseum, recently BMO field, and now the Automotive building. Following that, a hotel is in negotiations for the parking lot next to the Automotive building. Other businesses such as Medieval Times, Gossip Restaurant and Muzik night club have been coming about.
With condos flying up around it and Liberty Village sprouting up north, the Exhibition Place lands are turning into some prime real estate that the city has found can be a gold mine with proper ideas.
None of this will hurt the annual CNE, it has shown to help it in fact. The huge 20,000 strong crowds going to TFC games and Team Canada friendlies stayed after to enjoy the CNE and helped the numbers last year.
I like the direction this is going but I would love to see the plans to merge Ontario Place and Exhibition Place get back on track so that both can act in the interest of the big picture.
The National Trade Centre was the first step in that direction, then the Ricoh Coliseum, recently BMO field, and now the Automotive building. Following that, a hotel is in negotiations for the parking lot next to the Automotive building. Other businesses such as Medieval Times, Gossip Restaurant and Muzik night club have been coming about.
With condos flying up around it and Liberty Village sprouting up north, the Exhibition Place lands are turning into some prime real estate that the city has found can be a gold mine with proper ideas.
None of this will hurt the annual CNE, it has shown to help it in fact. The huge 20,000 strong crowds going to TFC games and Team Canada friendlies stayed after to enjoy the CNE and helped the numbers last year.
I like the direction this is going but I would love to see the plans to merge Ontario Place and Exhibition Place get back on track so that both can act in the interest of the big picture.
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MetroMan, do you know for sure that a hotel is currently in negotiations for the parking lot beside the Automotive building? HK Hotels at one point a couple of years ago was going to go in, but that plan has since been iced.
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MetroMan
Senior Member
I can't reveal who Exhibition Place is in negotiations with but yes, they're persisting on this and a hotel will eventually be built.
Towered
Superstar
How about rebuilding the historic barracks as well? They weren't replaced with anything, would reclaim some of our history, and wouldn't take up a lot of space. I know the Marine museum was a failure, but after more of the area is developed with permanent attractions a museum focusing on the history of the new fort itself could do well.
MetroMan
Senior Member
I'm also of that opinion. The barracks need to receive more attention during the CNE rather than being relegated to the back stage and the middle of a parking lot.
yyzer
Senior Member
from today's Daily Commercial News....the Automotive building is nearing completion, and it has a new name - the Allstream Conference Centre..
June 17, 2009
Above The Allstream in Toronto
WILLIAM CONWAY/PROGRESS PHOTOGRAPHY
Construction is ongoing for the conversion to the automotive building at Exhibition Place to make way for the new Allstream Conference Centre in Toronto, Ont. General contractor Vanbots has completion of the new centre scheduled for summer 2009. The owners are The Board of Governors of Exhibition Place and City of Toronto. Prime consultant is NORR Limited. Subcontractors include: Priestly Demolition Inc. (demolition/excavation); HC Matcon Inc. (shoring/caissons); Benson Steel Ltd. (structural steel); James Dick (concrete); Servocraft Mechanical; Urban Electrical Contractors; Forest City Fire Protection; Flynn Canada Ltd. (roofing); and Schindler Elevators Corp.
June 17, 2009
Above The Allstream in Toronto
WILLIAM CONWAY/PROGRESS PHOTOGRAPHY
Construction is ongoing for the conversion to the automotive building at Exhibition Place to make way for the new Allstream Conference Centre in Toronto, Ont. General contractor Vanbots has completion of the new centre scheduled for summer 2009. The owners are The Board of Governors of Exhibition Place and City of Toronto. Prime consultant is NORR Limited. Subcontractors include: Priestly Demolition Inc. (demolition/excavation); HC Matcon Inc. (shoring/caissons); Benson Steel Ltd. (structural steel); James Dick (concrete); Servocraft Mechanical; Urban Electrical Contractors; Forest City Fire Protection; Flynn Canada Ltd. (roofing); and Schindler Elevators Corp.
adma
Superstar
I prefer the roof peaked over flat.
Maggie
Active Member
I do too. So far I've heard there are no bookings yet. Hopefully the article provided by YYZER will change that. When the Liberty Grand did it's reopen the place was constantly booked for social and corporate.
FutureMayor
Active Member
The Hotel is on HOLD for the time being.
Louroz
Louroz
Automation Gallery
Superstar
With this new Conference Centre and the Convention Centre nearby, I am really surprised they have the hotel on hold.
unimaginative2
Senior Member
Allstream Centre (Ex Automotive Building)
Hume: Revamp of Ex's Automotive Building glorious
By Christopher Hume Urban Issues, Architecture
Published On Thu Oct 22 2009
The old Automotive Building opens as the Allstream Centre, a state-of-the-art convention facility housed in a remarkable architectural shell.
TORONTO STAR
Unlike the industry it once showcased, the old Automotive Building now faces a bright future.
Located just inside the Princes' Gates at Exhibition Place, the 1929 Art Deco beauty had fallen on hard times before finding new life as the Allstream Centre. Billed as Canada's greenest convention facility, the remade structure will be officially unveiled today, 80 years after it first opened its doors.
For architect David Clusiau, whose firm, Norr, handled the project, the commission presented a rare opportunity to restore a local landmark and bring it up to 21st century standards. Though he admits most visitors will never be aware of what he has done, the satisfaction was in the work itself.
"The challenge was turn it into something similar but different," Clusiau explains, "and with a green agenda. You couldn't build something as beautiful as this these days. Half the battle was redoing the heritage part."
Essentially, the idea was to replace the interior of the building with a state-of-the-art convention centre, which means a big black box. In this case, however, that box is contained in an architectural shell of remarkable appeal. Every corner, cornice and crown moulding offered an opportunity for the original architect, Douglas Kertland, to introduce decorative flourishes ranging from winged tires to floral motifs.
Despite the hardships of the Great Depression, it seems no effort was spared to turn what is basically an empty building into an exercise in embellishment. Too bad the same can't be said of today's architecture. We live in a time when the bottom line brings out the bottom feeders, nowhere more so than in design.
So there's a certain irony to the fact the Automotive Building has been restored during the current reprise of the Dirty Thirties. To the credit of the Exhibition Place brain trust, the building wasn't demolished, which must have been tempting. In this city, don't forget, the knee-jerk response would have been to save a facade or two and then call in the wreckers.
Perhaps recognizing that contemporary convention centres are typically claustrophobic spaces with stale air, bad seating and poor lighting, Ex officials opted to accentuate the authentic and eliminate the negative. The Allstream Centre represents the polar opposite of the Metro Convention Centre, the south addition of which is an invisible building buried underground.
"Controlling your environment doesn't mean you have to be in a black box," says Ex director of sales and marketing Laura Purdy. "People are drawn to windows. It's exciting when you get that dialogue."
The centre boasts all the mod cons – low-VOC materials, LED lighting, wired premises, and above all, flexible spaces.
This is stuff users take for granted, not so the limestone and cast stone exteriors, wrought-iron grillwork and Juliet balconies. With the windows reopened and the triple-arched entrance restored, the building approaches glamour. This is a quality in short supply in today's Ex, a place given more to cotton candy than eye candy.
With the Direct Energy Centre, its Buck Rogers companion to the north, the Allstream is intended to make the Ex a major conference and convention contender. The next big move will be a hotel just west of the complex, on what's now a parking lot.
Given that the Automotive Building has been returned to life in such glorious fashion, the pressure to do something worthy with the hotel is great. At the very least, we can expect a design competition that will attract the world's best architects.
The Allstream will be open to visitors next Sunday from 1 to 3 p.m.
Christopher Hume can be reached at chume@thestar.ca
Hume: Revamp of Ex's Automotive Building glorious
By Christopher Hume Urban Issues, Architecture
Published On Thu Oct 22 2009
The old Automotive Building opens as the Allstream Centre, a state-of-the-art convention facility housed in a remarkable architectural shell.
TORONTO STAR
Unlike the industry it once showcased, the old Automotive Building now faces a bright future.
Located just inside the Princes' Gates at Exhibition Place, the 1929 Art Deco beauty had fallen on hard times before finding new life as the Allstream Centre. Billed as Canada's greenest convention facility, the remade structure will be officially unveiled today, 80 years after it first opened its doors.
For architect David Clusiau, whose firm, Norr, handled the project, the commission presented a rare opportunity to restore a local landmark and bring it up to 21st century standards. Though he admits most visitors will never be aware of what he has done, the satisfaction was in the work itself.
"The challenge was turn it into something similar but different," Clusiau explains, "and with a green agenda. You couldn't build something as beautiful as this these days. Half the battle was redoing the heritage part."
Essentially, the idea was to replace the interior of the building with a state-of-the-art convention centre, which means a big black box. In this case, however, that box is contained in an architectural shell of remarkable appeal. Every corner, cornice and crown moulding offered an opportunity for the original architect, Douglas Kertland, to introduce decorative flourishes ranging from winged tires to floral motifs.
Despite the hardships of the Great Depression, it seems no effort was spared to turn what is basically an empty building into an exercise in embellishment. Too bad the same can't be said of today's architecture. We live in a time when the bottom line brings out the bottom feeders, nowhere more so than in design.
So there's a certain irony to the fact the Automotive Building has been restored during the current reprise of the Dirty Thirties. To the credit of the Exhibition Place brain trust, the building wasn't demolished, which must have been tempting. In this city, don't forget, the knee-jerk response would have been to save a facade or two and then call in the wreckers.
Perhaps recognizing that contemporary convention centres are typically claustrophobic spaces with stale air, bad seating and poor lighting, Ex officials opted to accentuate the authentic and eliminate the negative. The Allstream Centre represents the polar opposite of the Metro Convention Centre, the south addition of which is an invisible building buried underground.
"Controlling your environment doesn't mean you have to be in a black box," says Ex director of sales and marketing Laura Purdy. "People are drawn to windows. It's exciting when you get that dialogue."
The centre boasts all the mod cons – low-VOC materials, LED lighting, wired premises, and above all, flexible spaces.
This is stuff users take for granted, not so the limestone and cast stone exteriors, wrought-iron grillwork and Juliet balconies. With the windows reopened and the triple-arched entrance restored, the building approaches glamour. This is a quality in short supply in today's Ex, a place given more to cotton candy than eye candy.
With the Direct Energy Centre, its Buck Rogers companion to the north, the Allstream is intended to make the Ex a major conference and convention contender. The next big move will be a hotel just west of the complex, on what's now a parking lot.
Given that the Automotive Building has been returned to life in such glorious fashion, the pressure to do something worthy with the hotel is great. At the very least, we can expect a design competition that will attract the world's best architects.
The Allstream will be open to visitors next Sunday from 1 to 3 p.m.
Christopher Hume can be reached at chume@thestar.ca