The Junction

[Towered]

Just north of the main Junction area, but looks like Cawthra Ave could be the new Geary in the West End.

This under the radar Toronto street is suddenly packed with the most interesting places

You may not know it, but a certain industrial strip in Toronto is actually packed with hidden gems, making it a semi-secret destination for booze, ...

www.blogto.com

I feel like the huge industrial area south of Kipling station in Etobicoke is also on the cusp of this sort of influx of hipster businesses.

 

[AlbertC]

I also think of nearby Pelham Ave. as a "mini Geary", as in having some industrial/commercial buildings backing on to the same tracks. But not bursting with hip businesses (yet?).

Google Maps

Find local businesses, view maps and get driving directions in Google Maps.

goo.gl

Yeah, Pelham sort of has the vibes of a Geary offshoot extension. Krug Studios got themselves into the area early on, and may be a sign of things to come. Miller Street, which is just north and a block west of Osler has similar potential with the commercial warehouse type buildings lining it on the west side of the street.

 

[AlbertC]

I feel like the huge industrial area south of Kipling station in Etobicoke is also on the cusp of this sort of influx of hipster businesses.

Yeah, there's potential for it. Just need to either get more residential in the mix or some popular start ups to attract people and attention to the area more. Dunpar also built one of their new brick warehouse themed retail complexes somewhere in the area too.

For Etobicoke, I've always felt New Toronto and the Long Branch parts of Lakeshore could see a growth for businesses like these. Especially with the Humber Lakeshore campus there and the students in the area.

 

[AlbertC]

Another thing north of the main Junction area by a bit further, but I'll just place it here for the Stockyards area's historical context to the Junction.

From the Junctioneer's website:

Going on historical list, 153 Weston Road (Toronto Suburban Railway Transformer Station, c.1894)

September 10, 2021 Toronto Preservation Board recommends 153 Weston Road be added to the historic list. The structure at 153 Weston Road, located just north of St. Clair Avenue West, was con…

www.junctioneer.ca

Going on historical list, 153 Weston Road (Toronto Suburban Railway Transformer Station, c.1894)​

September 10, 2021

Toronto Preservation Board recommends 153 Weston Road be added to the historic list.

The structure at 153 Weston Road, located just north of St. Clair Avenue West, was constructed c.1894 to serve as a transformer station for the Toronto Suburban Railway’s Weston Line, which ran north on Weston Road, and was an important line within the railway network that stitched together Toronto and smaller communities within southern Ontario. The building was purchased by Ontario Hydro in 1928, subsequently decommissioned and adaptively reused for a variety of purposes. The structure is a two and a half storey brick and concrete industrial building, with window openings on the upper levels and an ornamental circular detail within the gable peak on the principal (west) façade. The utilitarian design emphasizes the building’s structural form, with expressed pilasters revealing structural rebar columns on the exterior. A one and a half storey component on the north façade presumably contained offices and/or administrative uses, with the larger volume comprising the electrical machinery.

Inclusion on the Heritage Register – Etobicoke York Nominated Properties Page 1

View of the structure, a bit north of St. Clair W:

 

[vic]

Another thing north of the main Junction area by a bit further, but I'll just place it here for the Stockyards area's historical context to the Junction.

From the Junctioneer's website:

Going on historical list, 153 Weston Road (Toronto Suburban Railway Transformer Station, c.1894)

September 10, 2021 Toronto Preservation Board recommends 153 Weston Road be added to the historic list. The structure at 153 Weston Road, located just north of St. Clair Avenue West, was con…

www.junctioneer.ca

Going on historical list, 153 Weston Road (Toronto Suburban Railway Transformer Station, c.1894)​

View of the structure, a bit north of St. Clair W:

View attachment 353523

ABC Lumber by Vic Gedris, on Flickr


ABC Lumber by Vic Gedris, on Flickr

The building is pretty trashed. I wonder how much can be saved at this point.

 

[AlbertC]

ABC Lumber by Vic Gedris, on Flickr


ABC Lumber by Vic Gedris, on Flickr

The building is pretty trashed. I wonder how much can be saved at this point.

Yeah, it's definitely going to be piece of work. I'm also curious if this is just independently a motion by the city's preservation board, or if there's an actual plan by whoever owns the land to make better use of it.

The property has grown increasingly neglected in what appears to be since the greater part of the 2010 decade. Some potential is there though, for new structures to be built around it for light industrial, craft making or other alternative employment type spaces.

 

[Towered]

Don't forget that the city is planning to extend Gunns Rd through the site. Not sure if it'll have to be moved or not.

 

[junctionist]

It's great to see there's some recognition of the historical value of the property. It's an interesting link to the historic Toronto Suburban Railway, which used to pass by the building and along a bridge that spanned Weston Road.

ABC Lumber by Vic Gedris, on Flickr


ABC Lumber by Vic Gedris, on Flickr

The building is pretty trashed. I wonder how much can be saved at this point.

The Symes Road Destructor at 150 Symes Road looked similar before its restoration. It can probably be cleaned up and restored.

 

[bedoozled]

Another thing north of the main Junction area by a bit further, but I'll just place it here for the Stockyards area's historical context to the Junction.

From the Junctioneer's website:

Going on historical list, 153 Weston Road (Toronto Suburban Railway Transformer Station, c.1894)

September 10, 2021 Toronto Preservation Board recommends 153 Weston Road be added to the historic list. The structure at 153 Weston Road, located just north of St. Clair Avenue West, was con…

www.junctioneer.ca

Going on historical list, 153 Weston Road (Toronto Suburban Railway Transformer Station, c.1894)​

View of the structure, a bit north of St. Clair W:

View attachment 353523

Very interesting. I have passed by this building every day for the last 2 months on the way to the Elections Canada office and wondered what it was/what used to be there. Sadly that structure is currently in even worse shape than the photo...

 

[Northern Light]

Sad news:

Note the photo credit above:

 

[AlbertC]

TAS and LaSalle have acquired the current 2 storey building at 142 Vine Ave, a bit west of Pacific. Looks like they'll be upgrading it and hinting at potentially adding density to it:

LaSalle, TAS in $120M Toronto JV: ‘Core real estate with a soul’

A new forward-thinking joint venture between LaSalle Investment Management Canada’s LaSalle Canada Property Fund (LCPF) and TAS has purchased its first three properties in Toronto for an undisclosed price. The acquisitions represent the first phase of the 50/50 partnership that’s

renx.ca

A two-storey, 19,000-square-foot light industrial property at 142 Vine Ave. in Toronto’s Junction area will be repositioned to an energy-efficient, in-fill flex office asset for commercial, community and arts uses.

Mortazavi said artists and technology startups are already in the building, which offers an opportunity to add density as part of its repositioning. TAS has been active in the Junction for 15 years and is a fan of the neighbourhood.

 

[AlbertC]

The former Starbucks at Dundas W & Quebec Ave is becoming a Superette weed store:

The Stereo King store near Runnymede is now closed:

View of the now completed apartment renovation beside it:

 

[AlbertC]

Article on the "Cool Hand of A Girl" cafe , located at 2804 Dundas West St.

An homage to heritage: This Mexican-style cafe serves up a sense of community in the heart of the Junction

Cool Hand Of A Girl has been serving more than just Mexican-style eats out of the heart of the Junction for more than a decade — owner Lucia Maceda has done her best to ensure that a healthy dose of community and compassion is also on the menu.

toronto.ctvnews.ca

 

[AlbertC]

"The Purple Onion" restaurant on the north side of Dundas West between Pacific and High Park has closed:

Toronto restaurant known for its steak and eggs has permanently closed

A Toronto restaurant that's been a fixture in the Junction area long before the neighbourhood was cool has permanently closed. The Purple Onion has a…

www.blogto.com

 

[AlbertC]

Saw this image posted on Reddit:

https://www.reddit.com/r/toronto/comments/sfobai