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East Danforth

Hi Eug
Thanks for posting a picture of the Fallingbrook Lofts.
I agree that Fallingbrook Lofts will not likely be replicated near the corner of Woodbine and Danforth.
Also, I know what you're trying to say about building in an area where people have less money to spend.
Having said that, I nevertheless hope that architects in this city can strive to design attractive buildings at somewhat affordable prices. I like a lot of what Streetcar Developments has produced - including a few condos in East Toronto (on Kingston Road).

Sometimes I think people fear taller buildings because there has been so much crap produced in Toronto over the past 30 years or so. I believe that a 12 storey building at Woodbine and Danforth, while comparatively taller than neighbouring buildings, is nevertheless well-suited for a site this close to the subway station. It will be interesting to see what develops.
 
I think some of you are being pretty harsh on this area (Main & Danforth). There is a lot of diversity in the area which I think is a good thing. There are both working class and middle class people in the neighbourhood. But of course there's a lot of room for improvement. I have lived in the area for the last 12 years and have seen the ups and downs. There are plenty of families and three schools within blocks of each other. I also saw a neighbour's house sell for over half a million dollars and have seen my own home more then double in value. This neighbourhood is still affordable and will continue to go up in value. We are 15-20 minutes from the downtown core and we are on the subway line! I think part of the problem is the bars along the north side of the Danforth. How they continue to operate, I have no idea. But they have to go. The shops along the Danforth are starting to improve slowly and more families are moving into the neighbourhood. I was at a town hall meeting about a year ago when the city wanted to put a health centre in the old catholic school on Balfour Ave. I had never been to one before and I saw a community that wanted change and was sick of taking abuse from the city. I would not have wanted to be Janet Davis that night as she could not get a word in edge wise. I have started a blog hoping to bring everyone together, check it out. Remember its a community that can help any area change when needed.

http://danforthvillageblog.wordpress.com
 
What is the current (and projected future) zoning around there, and how deep are most of the lots? What is required in terms of setbacks? Shallow lots would suggest the zoning wouldn't usually allow taller buildings. Any taller buildings on comparatively shallow lots would only come about with specific applications for zoning variations, on a per lot basis.
 
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/814234--fiorito-glory-is-fleeting-for-the-sino-tex-mex-halal-taco

Fiorito: Glory is fleeting for the Sino-Tex-Mex halal taco
TORONTO STAR
May 26, 2010
Joe Fiorito


The story that will be told is not the story that could be told, which is to say that I eat my share of quesadillas and I am familiar with the concept of halal, but I don’t speak a word of Cantonese.

I had heard whispers of a hole-in-the-wall taquerilla on Danforth, a door or two west of Donlands, in the shadow of that newish minaret, where the guy behind the counter is Chinese.

I was naturally curious. This is a pretty multicultural town, but who knew that Muslims ate burritos, and who would have imagined that a Chinese guy understood the first thing about a taco?

Amend that thought: peking duck, wrapped in little flour pancakes, eaten with scallions and hoisin sauce, is not so far a cry. But really: a Chinese guy making Mexican food for Muslims?

And so I went to Taco King a week or so ago. The guy behind the counter seemed a nice fellow. I still don’t know his name. I asked, but was not able to make myself understood.

The counter man — he is also the grill man, the chili man and the tortilla-press man — speaks just enough English to ask how you want your taco: “Hard shell? Soft shell?†He can also discern your preferences for pico de gallo by saying, with a hint of uptalk, “Hot sauce with that?â€

Customers came and went. During a lull in the lunch-hour action, using my best international sign language, supplemented with baby talk as embarrassing for him as it was for me, I asked if I could talk to the owner. The taco man frowned.

He said, “Taco?†I said, “Talk to. The owner.†He said, “Hard shell – soft shell?†I said, “No. Talk to. The owner.†He said, “Taco?â€

I ordered one with chili, one with chicken, and a tortilla al carbon with guacamole. I have eaten flour tortillas filled with grilled skirt steak in San Antonio, and I do not ask for greatness here. Here, it’s great enough to know that the taco man was Chinese, and somewhere in the neighbourhood the muezzin calls.

In the interests of consumerism, I can tell you that the chili I consumed needs work, and I’d have the chicken taco again, but the pico de gallo — beak of the rooster to you — needs more pico for this gallo.

Kids streamed in, noonish, from the nearby high school. They came, they said, because the meat was halal, and they liked Mexican.

They did not add that the food is fast and filling and frugal. Nor did they — African, Indian, Asian-Canadians — think the multicultural mix noteworthy.

The taco man and I played charades again when I had finished lunch. There was some fast pointing at wristwatches, and a hasty call on a cellphone, and a man — the owner, I think — came to understand that I wanted to talk to him about the glories of the Sino-Tex-Mex halal taco shop. He said he’d meet me in a week, at 11 a.m.

A week later, at 10:59, I returned. I arrived at the same time as the counterman. We shook hands. He unlocked the door, banged pots and pans, flipped switches and made ready for the day. No words passed between us until I pointed to my cellphone and my watch.

The taco man stopped what he was doing and got a calendar. He pointed to June 15. He said “No more taco. Chinese food.â€

I am bereft and in the dark. I still don’t know the why, the how, the who; here so briefly, the Taco King will soon be something else.

You better hurry.

Joe Fiorito usually appears Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Email :jfiorito@thestar.ca
 
Let's see more photos!

This thread could use more photographs.
Here's a few:
- Allenby (Roxy) becomes Tim's and joins Esso
- Joy Oil Station - who remembers that?
- Donlands, once narrow
 

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Allenby Theatre's Plaque Unveiling

The Allenby Theatre's (aka Roxy Theatre) historical plaque unveiling on Sunday Oct. 2nd at 11am, Danforth & Greenwood.



Photos by Jon Lidolt
 
mjl08 said:
Red Rocket Coffee moving from Leslieville to East Dan, near Coxwell. This could be great news for the stretch.
Click to expand...
Just west of Monarch Park? Seems to be a lot of restaurants and similar establishments, including other cafés in the area. Yet I can't think of much else on Coxwell in the Vancouver area. Very unfortunate I think. The customers won't come along. Very unfortunate I think ... that part of East Danforth seems to be one of the high points east of Pape already.
 
nfitz said:
Just west of Monarch Park? Seems to be a lot of restaurants and similar establishments, including other cafés in the area. Yet I can't think of much else on Coxwell in the Vancouver area. Very unfortunate I think. The customers won't come along. Very unfortunate I think ... that part of East Danforth seems to be one of the high points east of Pape already.
Click to expand...

Red Rocket has re-branded the 'plan B' coffee shop at Dundas and Logan. Is that instead of Danforth, or in addition to?
 
Riverdale Rink Rat said:
Red Rocket has re-branded the 'plan B' coffee shop at Dundas and Logan. Is that instead of Danforth, or in addition to?
Click to expand...
Rebranded?

I did walk past the new location the other day on Danforth. So it's operational, and very close to Greenwood subway (a lot closer to Greenwood subway than the mis-named Greenwood subway is to Greenwood).

Hmm, the website lists a third location, at Wellesley east of Jarvis.

Problem with cafes, is they are always going to be very local, so even it it only moves 10 blocks or so, I'd think much of the clientele would be lost - let alone the 20 blocks or so it is from the old Greenwood/Queen location to Dundas/Logan or Greenwood/Danforth. I'm quite happy to drive, or take TTC to get to El Sol right near the Danforth location ... but I can't imagine doing that for a cafe ... unless they had some game-changing entrée.
 
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