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

[Student99]

That said.. if the eaton centre still had its mid 1990s appearance nobody would go there. It would be that dingy unattractive mall you avoid.

I do think people have a hard time accepting this. Without going through allowing the mall to remain dated, we can't know for sure but I do believe that if they hadn't refreshed the look of the Eaton Centre to make it "new again", that people would choose to go to Yorkdale to spend their day. Of course, being downtown, the Eaton Centre would still be busy but then again, look at the Atrium. It's right there at the crossroads of Canada's busiest pedestrian intersection and on some days you could bowl down the empty halls.

I don't know. Sherway Gardens kept its 80s era identity for a LONG time and was always bumping. I loved that they were retaining the look; it made it an iconic destination. When Cadillac Fairview did their huge round of renos, they ruined the place (IMO). It's a generic mall now, no different from any other you'd find in the GTA. A lot of stores are vacant now too.

AND ugh they ripped out ALL the greenery. Took the "Gardens" right out of "Sherway Gardens".

 

[Student99]

December 12, 2020

Cold and rainy quick pix

Cool. I just remember this as an old Eatons / Sears exit (emergency exit?). I am assuming this is an entrance for office space on the former retail floors. Although... there's a bridge to the Ryerson building now? Is Ryerson using some of the space here?

 

[innsertnamehere]

Cool. I just remember this as an old Eatons / Sears exit (emergency exit?). I am assuming this is an entrance for office space on the former retail floors. Although... there's a bridge to the Ryerson building now? Is Ryerson using some of the space here?

I believe that’s to the above grade parking underneath the Ryerson building.

 

[Towered]

I don't know. Sherway Gardens kept its 80s era identity for a LONG time and was always bumping. I loved that they were retaining the look; it made it an iconic destination. When Cadillac Fairview did their huge round of renos, they ruined the place (IMO). It's a generic mall now, no different from any other you'd find in the GTA. A lot of stores are vacant now too.

AND ugh they ripped out ALL the greenery. Took the "Gardens" right out of "Sherway Gardens".

I miss the old Sherway. It actually had character. Cadillac-Fairview spent millions of dollars to renovate it and ironically wound up ruining it as you said. It has no soul left.

 

[Amare]

I don't know. Sherway Gardens kept its 80s era identity for a LONG time and was always bumping. I loved that they were retaining the look; it made it an iconic destination. When Cadillac Fairview did their huge round of renos, they ruined the place (IMO). It's a generic mall now, no different from any other you'd find in the GTA. A lot of stores are vacant now too.

AND ugh they ripped out ALL the greenery. Took the "Gardens" right out of "Sherway Gardens".

Not just your opinion, 90% of people on UT think the same way. Cadillac ruined the original vibrancy of Sherway, and their renovations made Sherway just bland and sterile (with the exception of the curved skylight section of the mall). All of CF's interior mall renovations have been lackluster and dull.

I believe that’s to the above grade parking underneath the Ryerson building.

Correct, it also connects to the Nordstrom store employee entrance and emergency stairwells for both Nordstrom and the now BMO offices.

 

[MetroMan]

AND ugh they ripped out ALL the greenery. Took the "Gardens" right out of "Sherway Gardens".

What made the Eaton Centre feel like the Eaton Centre was that it felt like the outside, inside. The big atrium glass roof and the trees played a major role in that. The atrium is still there but the trees are gone, other than some potted plants. As it is right now, the Eaton Centre feels very sterile. Reintroducing trees back into the atrium would bring back a lot of that feel, even without the white metal banisters.

 

[Northern Light]

What made the Eaton Centre feel like the Eaton Centre was that it felt like the outside, inside. The big atrium glass roof and the trees played a major role in that. The atrium is still there but the trees are gone, other than some potted plants. As it is right now, the Eaton Centre feels very sterile. Reintroducing trees back into the atrium would bring back a lot of that feel, even without the white metal banisters.

Trees are a very important component of mall vibrancy; their paucity is but one reason I've never been a huge fan of STC.

But beyond that, signature art/spaces such as fountains, or balloons that rise and fall etc are also crucial elements.

Markville's little brook like feature served to make it a unique space as malls go.

What CF has gotten mostly right; and Oxford sometimes, has been overhauled food courts.

A curated mix of food retail that isn't all big chains or low end, combined with furnishing that has a bit of design and warmth are a real improvement over most food courts of yesteryear.

But what they've both gotten wrong is a focus on standardizing elements across their properties......

A quality design can make a mall a great space; that design repeated across a dozen malls looses a great deal of value......

As well, there's been a tendency towards low maintenance in fit and fixture which has seen many water features and most trees vanish, to save on the cost of upkeep.

It's simply a wrong call, several times over.

 

[Lovestallthings]

CF did the same thing with Limeridge mall in Hamilton. Took out the water fountains and trees. The food court is boring, before it had an atrium. Also many store fronts were closed before Covid hit. They have renovated the middle of the mall at least twice at one point built a village of stores just to rip them out a few years later, now it is just second cup and an open space with bland features

 

[Amare]

At this point, I feel like the OTPP does a better job with mall renovations than CF ever will.

The Eaton Centre has been hacked up in so many different ways, it's just so incoherent and boring architecturally.