Toronto Bloor Collegiate Replacement School | 16.8m | 4s | Toronto District School Board | Snyder Architects

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Site Plan Approval application in respect of a proposal to demolish the existing public high school and construct a new public high school
Proposed Use --- # of Storeys --- # of Units ---
Applications:
Type Number Date Submitted Status
Site Plan Approval 18 126273 STE 18 SA Mar 7, 2018 Application Received
http://app.toronto.ca/DevelopmentAp...4333651&isCofASearch=false&isTlabSearch=false
 
I was watching a collection of short docs that TVO has up on their website and discovered this interesting short documentary made about this development. It would have been handy if the lower thirds gave us a little more info about who the interviewees were outside of just their names, but I still think it does a good job of expressing the concerns of the community:

 
thefreak said:
nice video, thanks for posting. The new high school is going to get less facilities??? seems like a bad deal.
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The province mandates what can be built in new schools and are creating more flexible spaces now to align with changing educational needs. Auditoriums and pools are often the least used facilities (and most expensive) in schools, so they were probably not deemed to be good uses of public money anymore. But there are other ways to deliver this programming if those facilities are needed. For example, if students are doing a swimming unit in phys-ed classes, they would likely just be bussed a few blocks north to the Wallace Emerson Community Centre which has a pool.

As for the video, it seems to ignore a lot of the facts about the project which are outlined on the website. www.bloordufferin.com
 
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Bentley said:
The province mandates what can be built in new schools and are creating more flexible spaces now to align with changing educational needs. Auditoriums and pools are often the least used facilities (and most expensive) in schools, so they were probably not deemed to be good uses of public money anymore. But there are other ways to deliver this programming if those facilities are needed. For example, if students are doing a swimming unit in phys-ed classes, they would likely just be bussed a few blocks north to the Wallace Emerson Community Centre which has a pool.

As for the video, it seems to ignore a lot of the facts about the project which are outlined on the website. www.bloordufferin.com
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Ya im sure there are a lot of good things but losing the pool is big in my opinion. Phys-ed pool units were great. I don't understand the logistics of busing a class when periods are only 45 minutes? Even for a double period it sounds pretty ridiculous. As for auditoriums where will the students put on plays, musicals and end of year recitals? In the gym?
 
thefreak said:
Ya im sure there are a lot of good things but losing the pool is big in my opinion. Phys-ed pool units were great. I don't understand the logistics of busing a class when periods are only 45 minutes? Even for a double period it sounds pretty ridiculous. As for auditoriums where will the students put on plays, musicals and end of year recitals? In the gym?
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My high school lacked a pool and an auditorium (I grew up in the hated "burbs"). The drama class had a small stage for recitals in the classroom, with the main plays put on with a temporary stage in the cafeteria. Assembly's were held in the Gym. The town pool was a 5 minute walk away, and swimming classes were held there. It's a waste to build and maintain a huge auditorium space when it is used 3 times a year.

The concept of High School pools is almost entirely unique to Toronto. Nowhere else in Ontario really has them. Auditoriums are more common, but are still more of an anomaly than a standard.

High school periods are 70 minutes if I recall correctly as well - only 4 classes a day.
 
thefreak said:
Ya im sure there are a lot of good things but losing the pool is big in my opinion. Phys-ed pool units were great. I don't understand the logistics of busing a class when periods are only 45 minutes? Even for a double period it sounds pretty ridiculous. As for auditoriums where will the students put on plays, musicals and end of year recitals? In the gym?
Click to expand...

Two thoughts:

First, are periods only 45m now? Back in the olden days............ LOL, I remember periods of 1hr 15m (early 90s).

Second: I think pools like outdoor education/camp facilities have become too rare in the school system.

I understand the desire to rationalize facilities, but my instinct would be to go about it differently.

I'd be inclined, wherever practical, to co-locate, freestanding community recreation centres next to High Schools.

This would allow for both to have essential facilities of their own (for instance the school could justify having its own gymnasium), but it also allows for cross-pollination.

Such that the students can literally walk to the pool next door for mid-day or afterschool activities, while the community centre could program the school gym on weekends and evenings.

If one is just cutting the facility without considering how to replace that function, that's shortsighted.

That said, that pool, as with many in both our schools and community centres was beyond dated.

Not every pool needs to be a 50M pool w/10M diving board.

But there is little justification for pools that aren't 25m in length and six or more lanes wide; unless they are targeting young children for parent-tot programs or the like.
 
I went to a high school built in the early 1990s. It had a "cafetorium" - a two-tiered seating area with a stage and a food servery in the back, with dual-purpose benches made both as benches/tables, and seating with backrests. It had lousy sight lines, especially in the back rows of the upper tier. I remember going to Toronto high schools and marveling at their comfy auditoriums that were much better suited for assemblies and productions.

The cafetorium did triple-purpose because not only was it a cafeteria and an auditorium; I went to a Catholic high school, so it was also where the local parish met before they built their own church nearby. At least you didn't have to kneel with that setup.
 
The problem goes back to the Education Quality Improvement Act, 1997, which ended almost 2 centuries of local taxing and delivery, replaced by provincial regulation. Toronto was "wealthy", so that school funds that could have been allocated for pools or auditoriums or repairs or air conditioning in Toronto schools, now get spent on school buses in new sprawling suburban areas outside of Toronto instead.
 
My high school also had no auditorium or pool. The middle-school and high-school were also combined into one building with separate wings.

I recall a visit to Tokyo Skytree when it first opened and remarking about the school roof-top playgrounds and pools you can see below. Now that's dense planning!
 
I'd rather they tore down Dufferin Mall. Those old schools have so much character and the green space around the school is irreplaceable. Once they're gone you can't get either back again.

This city is forever complaining about the lack of significant historical buildings and a dearth of green space yet it continues to build on the little green space it has and it continues to bulldoze the few historical buildings of value that exist.

It's beyond absurd.
 
If anything, I could see this project acting as a catalyst for a large scale redevelopment of Dufferin mall.
 
Towered said:
If anything, I could see this project acting as a catalyst for a large scale redevelopment of Dufferin mall.
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Dufferin Mall is a very popular mall in Toronto, contrary to wider belief. With the huge amount of foot traffic available to that mall with the subway right next door, as well this pending project I dont see Dufferin Mall going anywhere. The only thing I see happening is significant renovations (on top of what Primaris REIT has just recently done).
 
Amare said:
Dufferin Mall is a very popular mall in Toronto, contrary to wider belief. With the huge amount of foot traffic available to that mall with the subway right next door, as well this pending project I dont see Dufferin Mall going anywhere. The only thing I see happening is significant renovations (on top of what Primaris REIT has just recently done).
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I can see them redevelop the northeast parking lot of Dufferin Mall up to Croatia Street (building around the church). How many vehicles use ALL the parking levels during Christmas?
 
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