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Throughout October, UrbanToronto is celebrating 20 YEARS, with stories looking back over the last two decades. Each day we are also checking out our ever-changing street scenes, comparing an older "Then" shot with an up-to-date "Now" shot.
Today's 'Then & Now' takes us up above Bloor street looking south over Queen's Park. In the 'Then' photo above taken from the old cozy and intimate Writers Room bar at the Park Hyatt, Scotia Plaza and First Canadian Place dominate the skyline in the distance, however heritage structures such as Queen's Park and Victoria College (pointed red roof) are very much visible and stand out against a generally lower built form.
Fast-forward to 2023, the 'Now' image below, taken from the completely rebuilt and utterly new, capacious and glitzy Writers Room bar atop the Park Hyatt, accentuates just how many buildings have been constructed over the last 20 years. There are new height peaks — Aura (272m), 488 University (207m), and U Condominiums (183m) — which punctuate the skyline from this angle. But it's hard not to notice the general increase in density across the city between the two images. Whether it be new development along the Yonge Street corridor, the filling-out of the Financial District, or the cluster of towers down near the waterfront in the distance, the 'Now' image demonstrates Toronto's relatively young but exponential growth. (Links to some of the other can be found below.)
Come back tomorrow for another Then and Now from over UrbanToronto's last two decades!
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Thank you to the companies joining UrbanToronto to celebrate our 20 years in business.
