The Capital of North York
Dublin Core
Title
The Capital of North York
Description
The following is an excerpt from Stroll: Psychogeographic Walking Tours of Toronto, Coach House Press, 2010
Inside City Hall, a building that had its political power sucked out of it when the megacity was created, there are happy photo montages of North York declaring 'Dave Winfield Day' in 1993 and 'Wendel Clark Day' in 1994 – but only Winfield cared enough about the honour to wear a suit for the occasion. If the library reminds you of the Toronto Reference Library or Scarborough Civic Centre, it's because it, too, was designed by Raymond Moriyama, the architect behind Toronto's most impressive public atria and zigzagging staircases.
Adding to the movie-set strangeness of North York City Centre are the overwrought, nearly baroque, condo names: Cosmo, The Monet, The Majestic Phase II, Platinum Towers, Spectrum and The Ultima at Broadway – how do you invite people over for dinner with a straight face when you live at the Grande Triomphe at Northtown? Even the Vatican has less hubris.
The Residences of Dempsey Park condo is one of the few buildings with a historical reference in its name. The Dempsey hardware store stood at Yonge and Sheppard, a local landmark since 1860, but moved a few blocks away to Beecroft Avenue before Sheppard subway construction started. You can find it, like the rest of Willowdale, hiding in between and behind the new city centre.
Inside City Hall, a building that had its political power sucked out of it when the megacity was created, there are happy photo montages of North York declaring 'Dave Winfield Day' in 1993 and 'Wendel Clark Day' in 1994 – but only Winfield cared enough about the honour to wear a suit for the occasion. If the library reminds you of the Toronto Reference Library or Scarborough Civic Centre, it's because it, too, was designed by Raymond Moriyama, the architect behind Toronto's most impressive public atria and zigzagging staircases.
Adding to the movie-set strangeness of North York City Centre are the overwrought, nearly baroque, condo names: Cosmo, The Monet, The Majestic Phase II, Platinum Towers, Spectrum and The Ultima at Broadway – how do you invite people over for dinner with a straight face when you live at the Grande Triomphe at Northtown? Even the Vatican has less hubris.
The Residences of Dempsey Park condo is one of the few buildings with a historical reference in its name. The Dempsey hardware store stood at Yonge and Sheppard, a local landmark since 1860, but moved a few blocks away to Beecroft Avenue before Sheppard subway construction started. You can find it, like the rest of Willowdale, hiding in between and behind the new city centre.
Creator
Shawn Micallef
Date
Dec 3/13
Files
Collection
Citation
Shawn Micallef, “The Capital of North York,” TPL Virtual Exhibits - Contribution site, accessed May 20, 2024, http://omeka.tplcs.ca/virtual-exhibits-contribute/items/show/98.