adma
Superstar
Would a good alternate thread title be, "Impeach Bush"?
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GO Transit: Union Station Shed Replacement & Track Upgrades (Zeidler)
CDL.TO
Moderator
I thought they were going to keep the current shed but add in some glass skylights?
Chuck, please tell more!
Chuck, please tell more!
EnviroTO
Senior Member
I didn't even know about glass skylights. I thought the whole trainshed was deemed a key piece of historical architecture that would be protected.
ninetykman
New Member
Can you post the rendering plz ?
ninetykman
New Member
Snow is Just an excuse. Frankfurt and many other european cities get snow too but their Stations have used a lots of Glass and Lightning.
These are excuses by our govt(s), not to give enough money to TO so that they can buy votes elsewhere.
ShonTron
Moderator
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The original Bush Trainshed was supposed to have glass where the wood ceiling is now between the smoke ducts. The Bush shed is interesting for being a natural ventilator for steam locos, and it works well for diesel.
But GO was planning a glass atrium-like feature in the middle running perpendicular to the tracks at one point. This wouldn't work with the natural ventilation.
That said, just because it's old doesn't necessarily mean it is worth saving. I'd much rather have a new, well-designed shed than Bush.
But GO was planning a glass atrium-like feature in the middle running perpendicular to the tracks at one point. This wouldn't work with the natural ventilation.
That said, just because it's old doesn't necessarily mean it is worth saving. I'd much rather have a new, well-designed shed than Bush.
ninetykman
New Member
No Canadian city has more historic stations than the European cities but they have integrated historic stations with modern infrastructure to strike a balance between the past and the future.
Again a perfect excuse by our govt(s) not to invest in modern technology.
Again a perfect excuse by our govt(s) not to invest in modern technology.
Jdot
Active Member
So, I guess Lisa Rochon's argument about the ROM has validity then? Fully-glass ceilings in Canada are totally reasonable, therefore metal cladding on the ROM was just a cheap out????
I know, I know.... glass = lots of light = destruction of artifacts. I was being fecitious.
When is this new shed going to be buildt?
When was there a design released? Or was it?
Where are pics of this shed design?
With the entire shed area being overshadowed by Union to the north and Telus Tower to the south, the height of the shed shouldnt really matter in terms of blocking views. For that reason, I think that the new shed should be at least double the height of the current doom-and-gloom shed.
I know, I know.... glass = lots of light = destruction of artifacts. I was being fecitious.
When is this new shed going to be buildt?
When was there a design released? Or was it?
Where are pics of this shed design?
With the entire shed area being overshadowed by Union to the north and Telus Tower to the south, the height of the shed shouldnt really matter in terms of blocking views. For that reason, I think that the new shed should be at least double the height of the current doom-and-gloom shed.
Chuck
Senior Member
Sorry, no digital version of the rending. Just stay tuned.
adma
Superstar
As the 70s adult cinema fanatic might say, I'm not so down on Bush
But in case of anything, as I've said before, even if it's not deemed worth saving on-site doesn't mean it's not worth saving, period--how moveable might the Bush sheds be? Relocated/reused, they could make an intriguing arts/cultural centre, or something...
Hipster Duck
Senior Member
Sorry to sound like a philistine, but they're unadorned metal structures that were strictly utilitarian. What makes them worth saving?
The grand North American railroad stations are so hybrid that way: on one hand you buy your tickets in a Beaux Arts remake of the Baths of Caracalla but then you have to board your train in a filthy cowshed.
The grand North American railroad stations are so hybrid that way: on one hand you buy your tickets in a Beaux Arts remake of the Baths of Caracalla but then you have to board your train in a filthy cowshed.
wyliepoon
Senior Member
^ The original North American "Baths of Caracalla" station, New York's old Penn Station, didn't have "filthy cowsheds" for platforms...
adma
Superstar
I guess, whatever also motivates people to rally on behalf of unadorned concrete structures that were strictly utilitarian (Canada Malting, et al)...
Long Island Mike
Senior Member
New York Penn Station-a lost classic!
Wylie: Interesting that you included that old pic of NYCs Penn Station-That place brings back many memories-my father was a station employee there from the years 1946-1984. Those open areas were covered over as the station expanded and when it was torn down in the mid 60s its demise spearheaded the modern architecture preservation movement we know today.
LI MIKE
Wylie: Interesting that you included that old pic of NYCs Penn Station-That place brings back many memories-my father was a station employee there from the years 1946-1984. Those open areas were covered over as the station expanded and when it was torn down in the mid 60s its demise spearheaded the modern architecture preservation movement we know today.
LI MIKE
AlvinofDiaspar
Moderator
From the Star:
Glass roof to brighten Union depot
Historic train shed to be integrated into design as part of $85M revamp
Jul 20, 2007 04:30 AM
Tess Kalinowski
Transportation Reporter
The train shed at Union Station is a jewel on Canada's heritage map, but there's nothing that glitters about the dark, leaky roof that lends a dingy atmosphere to the platforms.
Now GO Transit has approved a plan to build a glass atrium that will brighten the area where passengers board and step off their trains.
The raised glass box supported by steel legs will also be lit from within to provide an attractive night view from above. Including an overhang to protect passengers from the weather, the centre atrium will cover about one-seventh of the 2.8-hectare train shed.
"When it was built, (the roof) was virtually invisible," said David Hopper, deputy program manager of HDI Joint Venture, the consultants working on the station redevelopment with GO.
Toronto has grown up around the station since it was completed in 1927, and the deteriorating roof is now overlooked by thousands of people living and working in downtown skyscrapers.
The atrium, which still needs provincial funding approval, is part of an $85 million renovation to the historically significant train shed at the south side of the station, owned by GO, which leases space to VIA Rail. Work on the shed, including restoration of the historic roof sections that will remain, is scheduled to begin late next summer and will take about 5 1/2 years to complete.
The glass atrium "really takes (Union Station) to the next level," said Hopper. "There's real city building potential here."
The train shed is a significant element of a $600 million modernization and renovation project that will help double Union's capacity to more than 80 million passengers per year by 2014.
Besides the new bus terminal and ongoing track and switch modernizations, GO is adding 15 new sets of stairs to platform areas and four covered teamways, which allow passengers to enter and exit the platforms from Bay and York Sts.
An improved concourse for waiting passengers is also to be built at the west end of the station.
The original open-air Bush train shed is one of only two in that design remaining in Canada. The other is in Winnipeg.
The first lightweight Bush shed was built in Hoboken, N.J., in 1907. It represented a departure from the glass balloon-type stations popular in Europe and was a forerunner to the canopy styles used in Vancouver and Los Angeles.
Considered to be of cultural significance by Parks Canada, the east and west ends of the shed's roof will be preserved for the unique latticework of angled steel on the shallow arch trusses. A green-roof element, planted with low-growing ground cover, is also part of the design.
In addition to the roof atrium, designers have tried to keep the platforms and track area light by using glass walls around the new stairways to the street and station.
The city owns the limestone building facing Front St. The third rendition of Toronto's main train terminus, it is built in the grand, symmetrical Beaux-Arts style.
Two of Union Station's outstanding architectural features have already been restored by the city: a skylight in the courtyard of the old CN offices at the west end of the terminal, and the west window in the main hall.
The station's main entry plaza on Front St. is being refurbished this summer.
AoD
Glass roof to brighten Union depot
Historic train shed to be integrated into design as part of $85M revamp
Jul 20, 2007 04:30 AM
Tess Kalinowski
Transportation Reporter
The train shed at Union Station is a jewel on Canada's heritage map, but there's nothing that glitters about the dark, leaky roof that lends a dingy atmosphere to the platforms.
Now GO Transit has approved a plan to build a glass atrium that will brighten the area where passengers board and step off their trains.
The raised glass box supported by steel legs will also be lit from within to provide an attractive night view from above. Including an overhang to protect passengers from the weather, the centre atrium will cover about one-seventh of the 2.8-hectare train shed.
"When it was built, (the roof) was virtually invisible," said David Hopper, deputy program manager of HDI Joint Venture, the consultants working on the station redevelopment with GO.
Toronto has grown up around the station since it was completed in 1927, and the deteriorating roof is now overlooked by thousands of people living and working in downtown skyscrapers.
The atrium, which still needs provincial funding approval, is part of an $85 million renovation to the historically significant train shed at the south side of the station, owned by GO, which leases space to VIA Rail. Work on the shed, including restoration of the historic roof sections that will remain, is scheduled to begin late next summer and will take about 5 1/2 years to complete.
The glass atrium "really takes (Union Station) to the next level," said Hopper. "There's real city building potential here."
The train shed is a significant element of a $600 million modernization and renovation project that will help double Union's capacity to more than 80 million passengers per year by 2014.
Besides the new bus terminal and ongoing track and switch modernizations, GO is adding 15 new sets of stairs to platform areas and four covered teamways, which allow passengers to enter and exit the platforms from Bay and York Sts.
An improved concourse for waiting passengers is also to be built at the west end of the station.
The original open-air Bush train shed is one of only two in that design remaining in Canada. The other is in Winnipeg.
The first lightweight Bush shed was built in Hoboken, N.J., in 1907. It represented a departure from the glass balloon-type stations popular in Europe and was a forerunner to the canopy styles used in Vancouver and Los Angeles.
Considered to be of cultural significance by Parks Canada, the east and west ends of the shed's roof will be preserved for the unique latticework of angled steel on the shallow arch trusses. A green-roof element, planted with low-growing ground cover, is also part of the design.
In addition to the roof atrium, designers have tried to keep the platforms and track area light by using glass walls around the new stairways to the street and station.
The city owns the limestone building facing Front St. The third rendition of Toronto's main train terminus, it is built in the grand, symmetrical Beaux-Arts style.
Two of Union Station's outstanding architectural features have already been restored by the city: a skylight in the courtyard of the old CN offices at the west end of the terminal, and the west window in the main hall.
The station's main entry plaza on Front St. is being refurbished this summer.
AoD