Toronto Ontario Place | ?m | ?s | Infrastructure ON

[evandyk]

I don't know the extent to which it's true, but the story that was bandied about when the ROM crystal was completed was that it became unfeasible to make it out of transparent glass as rendered in part because of snow.

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

I don't know the extent to which it's true, but the story that was bandied about when the ROM crystal was completed was that it became unfeasible to make it out of transparent glass as rendered in part because of snow.

I am sure you could have done it (e.g. the Shangri-La glass box) - the issue that was put forward was that artifacts and light generally doesn't mix.

AoD

 

[jje1000]

I don't know the extent to which its true, but the story that was bandied about when the ROM crystal was completed was that it became unfeasible to make it out of transparent glass as rendered in part because of snow.

I recall below was the earliest rendering of the crystal, but it soon changed to a cladding resembling the final design.

IMO the ROM Crystal's visual failures (i.e. the heavy handed details + the awfully dull mismatched siding) probably came after the design was finalised during the later detailing & sourcing phase, as sequential compromises to the design.

 

[christiesplits]

If this thing is built, it'll end up as transparent as the ROM "crystal". There is a lot of equipment required to run pools like that and it's not going to be sitting under a glass bubble. They'll also discover partway through that it snows in Toronto and the structure needs to be stronger than they thought.

100%

It will look much closer to an airport hanger than the pre-value engineered ROM Crystal.

 

[christiesplits]

Great Twitter thread by Alex replying to Richard Florida's Globe opinion piece.

 

[Northern Light]

While id agree for the most part, the only thing id take exception with would be the idea that he wants to demolish it.

I think he wouldnt care what happens to it, just that the science center as we know it moves to Ontario Place. Hes said in the past "i dont care what gets built there, condos schools, more museums by the city."
Condos, museums, parks, he doesnt care, not his problem anymore.

I don't think he wants to demolish it for ideological reasons, and perhaps not even over the future fate of the site, though I would hardly take anything the Premier says at face value......but I digress.

There is a clear reason from his perspective to demolish.

It's to force the Ontario Place relocation ahead, with no way, for all practical purposes to un-do the decision. "But I want to keep the old building, let's just fix it" carries much less weight when there is no old building to fix.

Equally, then, if the Science Centre project is to sit atop a very expensive parking garage that is a de facto subsidy to Therme, pushing ahead with the OSC means pushing ahead with the parking.......

Ahhh, I see dominoes lining up.

***

I say the above as someone not as attached as many here to the existing building, and who doesn't have a problem, inherently with moving it to OP. I do have issues w/the design details offered to date as well as proposed transit access, but I once more digress.

 

[Natika33]

Coincidentally, I passed by OP today.

West island (where Therme will go):

One can barely see the sphere from this angle.

They're doing some work on the pods, bridges & the west gate area.

And they're doing something in the parking lot to the east of the Budwieser stage, but not sure what.

 

[adma]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1804615735085531224

 

[UtakataNoAnnex]

...but of course they did! /bleh

 

[generalcanada]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1804615735085531224

theyre finally doing work on the west island?

 

[adma]

theyre finally doing work on the west island?

Y'know, given the tone of the post you're responding to, you might as well be the cartoon cliche (NB: *only* a cartoon cliche; but one so many social-media sarcastics lazily refer to) of a condo developer hearing about the St Anne's Gladstone fire...

Then again, you might as well never have heard of (or never given two hoots about) St Anne's Gladstone before I made this post.

 

[picard102]

Seems like there was plenty of warning. Fencing went up months ago.

 

[generalcanada]

Y'know, given the tone of the post you're responding to, you might as well be the cartoon cliche (NB: *only* a cartoon cliche; but one so many social-media sarcastics lazily refer to) of a condo developer hearing about the St Anne's Gladstone fire...

Then again, you might as well never have heard of (or never given two hoots about) St Anne's Gladstone before I made this post.

so thats a bit personal dont you think? yea i have heard of the church fire. Im not sure how you compare tiny concrete buildings to a 100-year-old church.
Like we know that "historical designations" are used way too widely right?

The fencing went up months ago, im suprised it took them this long to start demolition and land clearing.
Why would they need to give warning?

 

[adma]

so thats a bit personal dont you think? yea i have heard of the church fire. Im not sure how you compare tiny concrete buildings to a 100-year-old church.
Like we know that "historical designations" are used way too widely right?

I think that in a loaded case like Ontario Place, your comment about "tiny concrete buildings" and historical designations being used way too widely helps explain the "personal" undertone.

And you speak of "a 100-year-old church" as if it were a generic case--heck, if one *were* to use the argument against historical-designations-run-amok, there's plenty of century-old churches out there of arguably *less* merit than said "tiny concrete buildings".

Though I'll grant you this: "before I made this post" might have been pushing things. But you're almost certainly the sort who *only* knew of the church because the fire "forced the issue"...

 

[adma]

Seems like there was plenty of warning. Fencing went up months ago.

"Plenty of warning" is one thing; "timing of action" is another (which was the point of Bozikovic.'s tweet--distracting the hysterical preservationists with one action so that they can get away with another action on the sly)