Not much new to see here
.
Looking east:

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Looking west:

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No kidding! Time to get totally bricked up here! What are they, absurdly shy? Just go for it!

42
 
I wonder if there is any indication at ground level that the originally planned new Beer Store is still going in here? I suspect if that is still the case, there should be evidence that the interior is being fitted out for a Beer Store. IIRC on the south side of the first floor a required loading dock was in the original plan.
 
I hope not.
Why do you hope not?

A Beer Store in this location is vital in this area because Beer Stores are the only place you can return empties. Not just beer cans but wine and liquor bottles. I was at the Beer Store on Parliament last night and there was a big line up of people in front of me returning empties. Most looked like they were living on the edge. I have no doubt that the money received from returning empties scavenged from garbage bins was vital to their very survival. None of them even bought beer they just took the cash so that they could feed themselves.

The former Gerrard Street Beer Store used to be my regular store before it closed down, and I remember that as with Parliament most people were just returning empties for much needed money instead of buying beer. What would they do without a downtown beer store to return empties for needed cash?

When this project was first submitted to Toronto council the then NDP local councilor (now local NPD MPP) sent a three-page letter to the then CEO of The Beer Store decrying the inclusion of a Beer Store at the bottom of this building (if you scroll up enough you will see a copy of this letter). She cited complaints from her multi-millionaire constituents in the immediate area about the "rift-raft" the then Beer Store location attracted.
 
Yes, looks muccch better totally bricked up.

42
 
Predictably, the little black metal cornice at the second floor requested by planning looks completely tacked on. Feels like another case of staffers trying to force arbitrary alignment lines with neighbouring buildings regardless of whether it makes architectural sense. The brick itself actually looks good though.
 
Predictably, the little black metal cornice at the second floor requested by planning looks completely tacked on. Feels like another case of staffers trying to force arbitrary alignment lines with neighbouring buildings regardless of whether it makes architectural sense. The brick itself actually looks good though.
Sorry, as someone unfamiliar -- was this dinky little black line added on the city's behest?
 

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