Toronto Eaton Centre (Ongoing Renewal) | ?m | ?s | Cadillac Fairview | Zeidler

Just like the argument for McMansioning/disfiguring Don Mills is that "it's a neighbourhood, not a museum". Uh, yeah.
 
condovo said:
At the end of the day, it's a mall not a museum. Stay current or die. Period.
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Somebody should tell this to the retailers in the Galleria Vittorio Emanuelle II in Milan!

pradamilan.jpg
 
Tewder said:
Somebody should tell this to the retailers in the Galleria Vittorio Emanuelle II in Milan!

pradamilan.jpg
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Been there, it is fantastic. You automatically feel poor just being there. And you can hear the "Hurmph!"s from all sides.

That being said the Eaton Centre is from 1977, not 1877.
 
... yes, but I wonder how many rubes in 1899 wanted to reclad it over to stay 'modern'?
 
Tuscani01 said:
Saw the completed railings for myself this weekend and think they look much better than what was there before. I don't see what all the fuss is about. Its a minor detail, and actually looks good.
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Were it not for the " minor detail ", these UT threads would be a lot shorter. But cripes, that's a " minor detail " too. It's interesting that we are able to discuss the bastardization of something , ie the unity of the architect's vision in original and prototypical Eaton Centre, at the same time we are still coming to terms about plunking the definitive suburban idea right downtown in the first place. In a city on Viagara like Toronto we can view bastardization through many lenses.
 
Frank Godfrey said:
Were it not for the " minor detail ", these UT threads would be a lot shorter. But cripes, that's a " minor detail " too. It's interesting that we are able to discuss the bastardization of something , ie the unity of the architect's vision in original and prototypical Eaton Centre, at the same time we are still coming to terms about plunking the definitive suburban idea right downtown in the first place. In a city on Viagara like Toronto we can view bastardization through many lenses.
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Is the Eaton Centre 'suburban' though? Suburban malls are low level and surrounded by parking. The Eaton Centre is more akin to an urban shopping arcade à la Burlington Arcade in London, the Gallerie Vivienne in Paris and the example from Milan above, and in a Toronto context there was the Toront arcade (the name excapes me) on Yonge Street.
 
Actually if there is one thing that I think should be changed it is the way the entrances are handled (badly) and the general design of the glazing itself - technical advances can make it look far lighter (e.g. Yorkdale) than what's in place currently.

AoD
 
While I don't know about the Galleria in Milano, La Scala right next door went through a renovation from 2002 to 2004 that cost about $100 million, actually Euro 60 million. I suspect that the Galleria has gone through a number of renovations since first built although maintaining the same exterior "look".

After thirty years the Eaton Centre is in need of a major refurbishment. The purpose of retail is to sell stuff.

If Galleria works in attracting customers - which it does, fine leave it alone. If the Eaton Centre is losing out to other shops then it's time to renovate.
 
Tewder said:
Is the Eaton Centre 'suburban' though? Suburban malls are low level and surrounded by parking. The Eaton Centre is more akin to an urban shopping arcade à la Burlington Arcade in London, the Gallerie Vivienne in Paris and the example from Milan above, and in a Toronto context there was the Toront arcade (the name excapes me) on Yonge Street.
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When first built what reference or gesture to street did the Centre make, other than to turn it's back ? Essentially, the Centre was encapsulated unto itself, and in this sense alone, we can use terms like " suburban ". It was a revitalization, but on stand- alone terms, like a suburban mall.
 
AlvinofDiaspar said:
Actually if there is one thing that I think should be changed it is the way the entrances are handled (badly) and the general design of the glazing itself - technical advances can make it look far lighter (e.g. Yorkdale) than what's in place currently.

AoD
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I miss the old entrance, it had tones of natural light and looked great all lit up, probably was nightmare to maintain with leaks and heating and cooling.

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TO City of Light said:
While I don't know about the Galleria in Milano, La Scala right next door went through a renovation from 2002 to 2004 that cost about $100 million, actually Euro 60 million. I suspect that the Galleria has gone through a number of renovations since first built although maintaining the same exterior "look".

After thirty years the Eaton Centre is in need of a major refurbishment. The purpose of retail is to sell stuff.

If Galleria works in attracting customers - which it does, fine leave it alone. If the Eaton Centre is losing out to other shops then it's time to renovate.
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The question is how it should be renovated. The Eaton Centre might be losing out to other locations because it was simply worn down and lost its cachet. The original look could be maintained while being renovated with some finish changes and enhancements. When we see these great arcades and shopping centres today, we have the privilege of admiring fine design from a century ago, and it's fascinating because we're detached from that kind of design today. The same experience could be maintained in our city with the Eaton Centre. It's from the 1970s not the late 19th century. So what? Great design came out of that era, too.
 
Frank Godfrey said:
When first built what reference or gesture to street did the Centre make, other than to turn it's back ? Essentially, the Centre was encapsulated unto itself, and in this sense alone, we can use terms like " suburban ". It was a revitalization, but on stand- alone terms, like a suburban mall.
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... but your definition of urban/suburban is pretty limited in this instance. The PATH system doesn't embrace the street either, but is it suburban? Even so, the idea of an arcade is that the interior becomes somewhat like a 'street', its urban-ness being more about how this internal street integrates with the city around it...

I'm not suggesting that a shopping arcade is the ultimate expression of urban-ness either, by the way, only that it isn't as completely suburban as the garden-variety shopping centre-in-a-field example.
 
TO City of Light said:
While I don't know about the Galleria in Milano, La Scala right next door went through a renovation from 2002 to 2004 that cost about $100 million, actually Euro 60 million. I suspect that the Galleria has gone through a number of renovations since first built although maintaining the same exterior "look".

After thirty years the Eaton Centre is in need of a major refurbishment. The purpose of retail is to sell stuff.

If Galleria works in attracting customers - which it does, fine leave it alone. If the Eaton Centre is losing out to other shops then it's time to renovate.
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Is this even really an issue though? Isn't the Eaton Centre one of the top destinations in the city? In other words, it's not broken so why fix it... and all the more so given its current heritage value which will only become more important with time, not less.

That said, it is obviously important to refurbish and maintain the place and update it in terms of amenities and store brands etc.
 
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