Toronto RBC WaterPark Place III | 140.2m | 30s | Oxford Properties | WZMH

from today
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I'm pretty sure not a single tower in that last image existed when I moved to Toronto in the mid-nineties. (Well, except the CN.)
 
adHominem said:
I'm pretty sure not a single tower in that last image existed when I moved to Toronto in the mid-nineties. (Well, except the CN.)
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Ditto! Not a single one of them (except CN Tower) existed when I left Toronto in 2001. Toronto's growth is nothing short of miraculous, especially when viewed by folks south of the border. My office mates are amazed by what I tell them after each visit to my old home in T.O.
 
Yupp, nothing like a good redhead.

But more on topic.. I'm not really a fan of this path extension. I feel as though it just acquiesces to the fact that it's terrible to cross Lakeshore so we'll build an elevated, isolated walkway and ignore the problem. It seems like a band-aid fix. Are we going to build these walkways at every intersection? I'd love for the city to reduce the speed of Lakeshore (maybe reduce a lane and put in proper, wide sidewalks), improve lighting and rethink some of the pedestrian crossings. Why do we have what feels like a pseudo-expressway running at grade through the core?
 
Don't be creepy.

Back on topic, I'm inclined to agree with Xray. This is a nice enough looking +15, but it's replacing an actual public street (however deeply flawed) with a semi-public airport hallway. I welcome any and all PATH expansions, given how frequently hostile our climate is here, but this feels like a band-aid on how unpleasant it often is to cross the Lakeshore/Gardiner combo.
 
image by someMidTowner

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The concrete walls of the structure to the right of the picture are 2-3 times ticker than regular walls. Could this be the bank vault?
From high up I can clearly see it and took few pictures, but can not find the cable to download them.
 
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Xray_Crystal_Junkie said:
Yupp, nothing like a good redhead.

But more on topic.. I'm not really a fan of this path extension. I feel as though it just acquiesces to the fact that it's terrible to cross Lakeshore so we'll build an elevated, isolated walkway and ignore the problem. It seems like a band-aid fix. Are we going to build these walkways at every intersection? I'd love for the city to reduce the speed of Lakeshore (maybe reduce a lane and put in proper, wide sidewalks), improve lighting and rethink some of the pedestrian crossings. Why do we have what feels like a pseudo-expressway running at grade through the core?
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Seriously. And what I especially don't understand is why there needs to be a double decker expressway going through here. As if the Gardiner didn't split this area sufficiently and offer enough of a monument to car supremacy, right underneath it's duplicated by its twin at grade?! It's like cutting the cake and eating it.
 
It seems like Oxford really cheaped out on the PATH extension. Here they have wide open space, and they build some kind of bridge under a bridge. It should have gone underground from ACC or MLS. Underground climate control should be less expensive, there should be less repairs to the exterior since it's not subject to the harsh outdoor climate, and there is an option to add retail in the corridors down the road, instead of having a half kilometer long empty hallway to Union Station.
 
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I don't know, I think walking over what is essentially an expressway would be a pretty interesting experience... for both the PATH walkers and drivers.
 
000 said:
It seems like Oxford really cheaped out on the PATH extension. Here they have wide open space, and they build some kind of bridge under a bridge. It should have gone underground from ACC or MLS. Underground climate control should be less expensive, there should be less repairs to the exterior since it's not subject to the harsh outdoor climate, and there is an option to add retail in the corridors down the road, instead of having a half kilometer long empty hallway to Union Station.
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I doubt it will be empty; I expect (as long as the ground to plus 15 level connection at the ACC is improved) that it will be well used. The connection to MLSE (which it will branch off from) is at the plus 15 level.

By putting it up in the air it will be a very visible message to pedestrians that there is another way to cross the Lake Shore and Gardiner other than navigating the sidewalks and lights at York Street. If it went underground there would be less obvious to most that there was a new way to walk down to the area.

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