Toronto Nathan Phillips Square + Spirit Garden | ?m | ?s | City of Toronto

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Not sure how important this is our relevant, but here is a construction update.

For context, this is on the west side of the square where the native works are going
 
Towered said:
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The world's leakiest parking garage? Probably not, but it sure seems like the repairs are unending.

How about we just backfill the damned thing, and then eliminate the problem forever along with all those obtrusive entrances and exits.
 
I've always wondered about the floating concrete slabs that are laid on the square. They along with the drainage system underneath must be a nightmare to maintain considering how much fine particles would find its way between the crevasses and eventually build up.
 
Looks like the construction shown above includes the new Spirit garden after all - forms were up for the “Teaching Lodge” when I walked past an hour ago.
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Northern Light said:
The world's leakiest parking garage? Probably not, but it sure seems like the repairs are unending.

How about we just backfill the damned thing, and then eliminate the problem forever along with all those obtrusive entrances and exits.
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I think this is the final section over the garage that needs repair. I think these repairs MAY be ending - until they all start again in a decade or so
 
Northern Light said:
How about we just backfill the damned thing, and then eliminate the problem forever along with all those obtrusive entrances and exits.
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Excellent idea. They're on a subway line, soon to be on 2 subway lines. They should walk the talk and commute on TTC just like the rest of us. Same goes for those folks down at Queens Park. That parking lot north of the building needs to go.
 
I agree with Robert Fulford's quote from his book "Accidental City":
"The gigantic elevated walkway that Revell put around the square remains controversial. Many find it constricting, and imagine a day when it will be torn down to create a more expansive public space. There are others who think, as I do, that it was a masterstroke that defines the space visually, giving it a firm identity while leaving it open to anyone who wants to wander through."

City Hall is a rare example of a gesamkunstwerk - a total piece of architectural art. It's a poor view to see major aspects of it as expendable.
To me, the walkways are in essence a functional ornament, that provide a circumspect grace to the ensemble. I believe they should absolutely be preserved.
 
I suspect the parking under the square is too squat-ceilinged to simply install retail. Is it multileveled? Maybe the City could keep a few spaces for essential needs and conveniences, and install retail below through most of it. It could pleasingly extend the PATH network and subway access while providing expansion space for City Hall itself.
 
CanadianNational said:
I suspect the parking under the square is too squat-ceilinged to simply install retail. Is it multileveled? Maybe the City could keep a few spaces for essential needs and conveniences, and install retail below through most of it. It could pleasingly extend the PATH network and subway access while providing expansion space for City Hall itself.
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Since there are HUGE areas of empty retail in the area I can see absolutely no reason why anyone would want to convert this garage to retail. I have not owned a car for decades but cars exist and surely FAR better they are underground and not parked cluttering up streets on the surface.
 
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