Toronto Downtown Data Centre | 38.5m | 4s | Equinix Inc | WZMH

Look at it this way: each of those empty lots is a resource for the future development of the city. We are lucky to have these lots.

"Lucky"?

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But hey, progress.

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I don't think @Waterloo_Guy was endorsing the demolition of so much of this City's built heritage in past decades. Particularly in the Financial District. But in King Parliament, he was simply saying that a vacant lot represents an opportunity. He was just being glass half full. No need to accuse him of supporting the demolition of the Board of Trade Building, etc.
 
Man, @salsa did that architecture look beautiful or what!
Thanks for the archived photos
 
I wonder why these can't be replicated in an economically feasible way.. I'm sure firms would love to work in such boutique offices. :(

Just look at that beautiful street wall.
 
I wonder why these can't be replicated in an economically feasible way.. I'm sure firms would love to work in such boutique offices. :(

Just look at that beautiful street wall.
You mean the older buildings, right? Not the server warehouses.
 
I was obviously talking about the older buildings.. much of the old Toronto has been lost but why not build it back?
 
Because it's 2017.

Okay—slightly less terse. Most architects are not interested in pretending that it's 1902. They typically want to build something that reflects the age. At the same time, they are under budget pressures from the developers to design affordable buildings. Part of affordability comes from using the materials they are generally available today, and when it comes to ornamentation, that's not the same as what was floating around a hundred years ago.

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Interesting though that some cities in Europe like Dresden and Berlin are rebuilding some areas that have been lost to war (i.e. City Palace in Berlin), while erecting top-notch contemporary architecture in other areas.

The year and architectural zeitgeist should not determine the type of architecture being built through- sometimes it benefits an area to consolidate and in-fill the heritage (i.e. the ghost facade at Bay Adelaide), whereas other times it might be worth starting fresh.

Regardless, it's usually the cost that determines what gets built or not. I think though that guidelines like those on Queen make sense in ensuring that new architecture still carries the spirit of the local architecture without copying old forms directly.
 
I would much prefer to have those old buildings rebuilt, over much of the artless crap we see going up these days. Those old buildings were beautiful! That's exactly what Toronto is missing. You don't see that kind of beauty and charm in new developments.
 
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LOL .. yeah, post some random streetviews from a hundred years ago with one of the ugliest modern additions built in the downtown. Anyone can do that

P.S. The Board of Trade that was torn down for EDS was a horrid design . Some of the others are also overwrought but, still manage to pull up decently.

https://www.google.ca/maps/@43.6477...bPLvoiETpKI2gtvZoA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!6m1!1e1

https://www.google.ca/maps/place/Toronto,+ON/@43.6480736,-79.3744572,3a,75y,196.36h,102.61t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1szu_MzqTR_-PNwKHrgBv1iQ!2e0!6s//geo3.ggpht.com/cbk?panoid=zu_MzqTR_-PNwKHrgBv1iQ&output=thumbnail&cb_client=maps_sv.tactile.gps&thumb=2&w=203&h=100&yaw=45.143845&pitch=0&thumbfov=100!7i13312!8i6656!4m5!3m4!1s0x89d4cb90d7c63ba5:0x323555502ab4c477!8m2!3d43.653226!4d-79.3831843!6m1!1e1
https://www.google.ca/maps/place/Toronto,+ON/@43.6471845,-79.3795294,3a,75y,209.35h,114.38t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sZwXknk9hyUua9O0VpWO52Q!2e0!6s//geo3.ggpht.com/cbk?panoid=ZwXknk9hyUua9O0VpWO52Q&output=thumbnail&cb_client=maps_sv.tactile.gps&thumb=2&w=203&h=100&yaw=126.46844&pitch=0&thumbfov=100!7i13312!8i6656!4m5!3m4!1s0x89d4cb90d7c63ba5:0x323555502ab4c477!8m2!3d43.653226!4d-79.3831843!6m1!1e1
https://www.google.ca/maps/place/Toronto,+ON/@43.6485384,-79.3805897,3a,75y,198.04h,114.73t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sQsY8ZlkF4KM-M3uYYllMYQ!2e0!6s//geo0.ggpht.com/cbk?panoid=QsY8ZlkF4KM-M3uYYllMYQ&output=thumbnail&cb_client=maps_sv.tactile.gps&thumb=2&w=203&h=100&yaw=46.543667&pitch=0&thumbfov=100!7i13312!8i6656!4m5!3m4!1s0x89d4cb90d7c63ba5:0x323555502ab4c477!8m2!3d43.653226!4d-79.3831843!6m1!1e1
 

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