Arcade Building (137 Yonge ) Development?

[adma]

Wasn't there another arcade a la Lister Block at the South East corner of Bay and Bloor before the Manulife Centre? I recall a 5 or 6 storey commercial building being there and Bay Bloor Radio was located there.

Too young + inexperienced to remember an arcade; but yeah, reminded of said block in old photos (a grungy thing with an HFC sign on the corner), thinking that it'd be deemed cherishable had it survived to this day.

Wow, if it had an arcade as well...well, it certainly says something about what was valued or taken for granted then that hardly anybody remembers deeply enough to think of anything "worth noting". (A great excuse for time travel, i.e. if we can only revisit the 60s Bloorscape with 2008 eyes...)

 

[jaborandi]

Too young + inexperienced to remember an arcade; but yeah, reminded of said block in old photos (a grungy thing with an HFC sign on the corner), thinking that it'd be deemed cherishable had it survived to this day.

Wow, if it had an arcade as well...well, it certainly says something about what was valued or taken for granted then that hardly anybody remembers deeply enough to think of anything "worth noting". (A great excuse for time travel, i.e. if we can only revisit the 60s Bloorscape with 2008 eyes...)

As I recall, the building was an ugly lump of a thing. It really is on the fringe of my memories. I moved here during the "summer of love" and I was not yet truly attuned to architectural styles though I did have a strong visual orientation. The stretch of Bloor between Yonge & Bay was quite pleasant. Most of the buildings (Zellars, Woolies, Morgans(!), Arthur Murray Dance Studio, Creeds etc were faced in limestone which gave the block a strong cohesive feel. Although none of the buildings were knock-outs, neither were they aggresively ugly. I seem to recall that Morgans was the most impressive of the lot and at 4 or 5 storeys, the tallest in that block as well.

As for the Arcade Building on Yonge, I dropped into Arcade Coin and Stamp this morning and they told me that the renovations are for the main floor retail area only though the Passport office will be relocating in 2010.

 

[adma]

As I recall, the building was an ugly lump of a thing.

And I'm not objecting to your judgment, but just stating that time (and rarity) has a way of healing, or at least inadvertently aggrandizing, ugly lumps of the past. Had it survived another quarter century, you can be sure there'd be a "Michael Tippin/Margie Zeidler to the rescue" advocacy contingent out there.

Though maybe a more benign present-day comparison point as ugly lumps go is that small commercial block at Bay and Dundas (I call it Mister TBBS). Haven't heard of anyone yet actively campaigning on its behalf, perhaps because I haven't yet heard of any developer with big plans for the site; but with TBBS, the barber shop, the old-fashioned elevator and office space and all, it definitely represents the kind of fast-disappearing old Toronto that'll surely arouse a few laments once the time comes...

 

[jaborandi]

And I'm not objecting to your judgment, but just stating that time (and rarity) has a way of healing, or at least inadvertently aggrandizing, ugly lumps of the past. Had it survived another quarter century, you can be sure there'd be a "Michael Tippin/Margie Zeidler to the rescue" advocacy contingent out there.

Though maybe a more benign present-day comparison point as ugly lumps go is that small commercial block at Bay and Dundas (I call it Mister TBBS). Haven't heard of anyone yet actively campaigning on its behalf, perhaps because I haven't yet heard of any developer with big plans for the site; but with TBBS, the barber shop, the old-fashioned elevator and office space and all, it definitely represents the kind of fast-disappearing old Toronto that'll surely arouse a few laments once the time comes...

Odd that you would mention Mister TBBS as that was the building that came to mind when I tried to think of a comparison. Try as I may, (and I have tried), I just can't warm up to it. I seem to have a problem with dark brick. I'm sure that if it were orange brick, I could be much more sympathetic and concerned about its future. I have the same issue with the Bell tower at Sheppard and Temperance, though not that private club on University Ave. near the U.S. consulate.

As I mentioned, the Bay/Bloor structure is on the fringe of my memories and failed to make the same sort of first impression that so many other buildings that I was discovering at the time did. It is quite possible that if I were to see a photo of it today, I might be more favourably disposed towards it. Another factor of course was its prime location. If it had been tucked away on some quiet street like St. Nicholas, it would have probably gone unnoticed and unscorned.

 

[yeg-yyz]

There are "LEASED" signs on the building's retail windows. Any ideas who might have picked the space?

 

[adHominem]

When you say Sethian, are you refering to the one who describes himself as a personality energy essence not focused in our reality or someone else?

I assume he's referring to everyone's favourite comics author / illustrator / book designer / olde-tyme enthusiast.

 

[yeg-yyz]

Did some digging...

from: http://www.yongestreetmedia.ca/devnews/goodlife0421.aspx

Good Life Fitness to get new 45,000 square foot, $4-million Yonge Street flagship
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Colliers International has put together a deal for Good Life Fitness to establish a flagship gym for its 275-location national chain at 137 Yonge.
It will occupy the old Revolution Fitness space on the ground and basement floors of the building, giving them a total of 45,000 square feet.
The deal was signed last week and may ultimately involve shuttering several of the Good Life Fitness locations in the immediate area. The fates of 2 Queen East, 250 Yonge, 100 Yonge and 36 Toronto Street are up in the air.
"It's taken four years to find something," Bristow says, adding that the entire top floor of The Bay on Queen Street had been an earlier option. He estimates the renovation will cost Good Life, who have signed a 20-year lease, somewhere in the range of $3.5-$4-million.

 

[interchange42]

Yonge Street Media got the 2 Queen Street location wrong: it's West, not East.

Good to see this happening for the Arcade building!

42

 

[grey]

The 250 Yonge location gets really packed. A lot of Eaton Centre office tower workers use it. Hard to imagine them abandoning that one.

I used to work in that building and almost EVERY time I rode the elevator, someone got on or off at that floor and it was crazy busy inside.

 

[androiduk]

People who aren't familiar with this building would have no idea there used to be a mall in here.