Haydain Neale, 1970–2009
Transit City and Transit Cities
Peeve Patrol
Newsstand: November 23, 2009
The Making of a Medley
Love padlocks are, if nothing else, the most secure way to symbolize keeping what you love safe. And while Posterchild's love locks can't stop cranes from knocking down each piece of our precious Sam's structure, they'll likely be outlasted by the sign: the chair of Ryerson's Experts Advisory Committee for the Master Plan, Linda Grayson, told us this week that the two oversized records won't be going too far. While they haven't decided on an exact location yet, she said that, after chatting with "the man" Sam Sniderman himself, the marquee will go either on the south or west side of the new Student Learning Centre being constructed in Sam's old spot, as to not block the east and west windows. And if it's not on the building itself, it will be nearby, says Grayson, noting that Sniderman is pleased with that idea, too.
We'd initially contacted Ryerson hoping to catch a glimpse of some new renderings, wondering why we hadn't seen any floating around. No wonder we haven't―they don't yet exist. Grayson says the demolition process has been slow as a result of its location, surrounded closely by businesses and people (as if most downtown buildings aren't), all sensitive to noise and dust. Last time we discussed Ryerson's plans for Yonge Street, we had an artist's rendering and architects listed, but Grayson says those architects were part of Ryerson's Master Plan and not specifically assigned to Sniderman's corner. Slow demolition has delayed hiring new planners, but Ryerson's looking to have the right architects on the job within the next three months.
As for the new building, Ryerson is collaborating with its students to create a new study space, and with the retail community to decide who's setting up shop at ground level. If the study space doesn't help students focus, it'll at least further the university's cause―intentionally or not―to become the spendingist school in the nation. There's already plenty of retail proximity with the Ted Rogers School of Management's direct attachment to the Eaton Centre, and the movie theatre-cum-lecture halls of the AMC atop three floors and a basement of stores, but the first floor of the new SLC at Yonge and Gould will bring spending temptation to a whole new level. So when Retail Management students aren't "doing homework" a.k.a. shopping, they can stroll over to the new learning space to relax and compare their purchases.
Ryerson is holding town halls for input, and asking students to submit photos of other successful learning spaces on which to model the new SLC. And as for the kinesthetic learners, they've constructed a prototype study space on the fourth floor of the current library for students to test-run an environment similar to that of the new building's. So far, the new library nest is equipped with sofas on wheels, graduate student reading spaces, and a whiteboard for students to give their feedback―or graffiti. Posterchild would be impressed.
All photos by Posterchild.
add to stumble upon
add to reddit
tweet this
post to facebook
When I was in Riga, I stumbled across a bridge that was so decked out that I was worried it was going to collapse under my feet. It was a really cool sight to see. Big ups to Posterchild for this one.
I regret signing the petition to have those garish "records" preserved.
"As for the new building, Ryerson is collaborating with its students to create a new study space, and with the retail community to decide who's setting up shop at ground level."
I like shopping as much as anyone, and I've got nothing wrong with the idea of universities having multi-purpose facilities for the sake of raising money that can be pumped back into the student body, but there's still something deeply, deeply troubling about that sentence.
A feature I wrote for Eye in June was about just that. Most of the piece concerned Ryerson's use of Toronto Life Square, but the last part focused on the university's plans for the student centre and the Yonge Street Strip. The following is an excerpt from my original version, and includes some interesting quotes that were cut from the paper for space reasons:
In reporting on Sheldon Levy's Empire Club talk last week (covered by Torontoist here), the Star had some interesting news about Ryerson's plans for that stretch.
"...but there's still something deeply, deeply troubling about that sentence"
Welcome to Toronto.
I also signed a petition regarding the Sam's sign, and yet I wish folks had cared more about the building itself behind it -- something I don't think I heard mentioned once, and yet Yonge St is losing yet another classic facade to characterless glass and steel. Does anyone happen to know if the building that yet stands at 347 Yonge is the same Victorian structure that was built a over a century ago? I'm having a hard time figuring it out... Here's a pic from the 50s to help out:
347-349 Yonge St
Thanks!
Regards,
Nick
...actually, a quick search turned up this great article:
blogTO: On This Spot: The Corner of Yonge & Gould
So pardon me for asking before Googling!
Nick
The building didn't look all that significant or worth preserving to me. It's right downtown, it should be replaced with something with higher density in mind.
I just took a walk over... it is the same facade, over a century old and missing most of its trimming:
flickr image