Toronto 335 Yonge | 55.2m | 16s | Lalani | Zeidler

picard102 said:
No electrical nor gas service in the building for a while apparently. More and more suspicious.
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No gas, no electrical, giant fence around the entire building set 3m back from the building. This basically leads to these options:

1) someone threw something from outside the fence into the building, which started the fire (ie firebomb).
2) someone snuck through the fence, and accidentally started a fire (homeless person sneaks in for shelter, starts a fire to keep warm, and either passes out or loses control of the fire. This happened to a house on Jarvis just north of Carlton not too long ago, the homeless man was killed in the fire I believe).
3) someone snuck through the fence, and intentionally started the fire.
4) someone had the keys, unlocked the gates, and started the fire.
 
There is no rooftop patio facing that area from TLS. I could see that whole stretch along Yonge, including HMV being snatched up and built on now. Maybe even as an addition to TLS. Maybe a hotel?
 
Jonny5 said:
I'm sure that blue tarp over the building didn't help. This could have happened just from someone ashing a ciggarette from a rooftop patio at TLS on to it.
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Who would have been on the rooftop of TLS at 4am? I would assume maintenance staff generally take their break in the loading bay alley that accesses Gould St, not the roof.
 
Even if that was the case, are you trying to suggest that would be the first time in over 6 months a cig but would happen to land on the tarp? You're being far too lenient. And who's up at 4am smoking anyways?
 
There was a photo a few pages back of clothes hanging neatly inside the building; could this have just been a squatters' fire that got out of control?

That said, I do wish the Lalani group could be charged with criminal negligence. Is there anything stopping their tenants from suing them?
 
Ahem. I am not implying a rogue ciggarette ash started the fire, but that the tarp draped over the building for six months was a major fire hazard. Lots of things could have set that off and I'm sure it helped the fire spread qucikly.
 
This was supposed to be a heritage building? It lies partially collapsed for months, nobody even bothering to clean up the sidewalk of all the brick, then a fire completely destroys it. Ugh...makes my stomach wrench.

Btw, didn't the owner say in a previous article that he wanted the building torn down?
 
All reports seem to indicate the Toronto life building (or whatever it is called) is completely intact and should be fine ... it's a huge building anyway if there was any damage it'd be isolated to the very back.
You need to know the concrete used in new building - particularly when they adjoin older building is extremely resistance due to this situation exactly.

I'd actually be surprised if there was ANY damage to the TLS building. Sorry folks.
 
Well, here's the perfect test case for scourge of "demolition by negligence". If the City can't manage significant sanctions in even this extreme situation, then we'll know for sure that our heritage (and property maintenance) by-laws are completely useless.
 
From the way it looks, some homeless people probably got in there and were using it to keep warm.

Obviously the building owner gave his approval for this because there was no security, and they knew this exactly was what would happen.

Don't think there is a law against this type of behaviour, so I'm not expecting anyone, well except for some homeless people to rot in jail.
 
Photo taken by me

gouldstreetfire.jpg
 
Sadly in that photo, of all the buildings depicted the old 19th century hotel is the only one of significant interest- both historically and aesthetically. What a loss to the downtown.
 
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