Canada's COVID caseload has stabilized recently and Ontario's daily case numbers have trended below 600 in early October, and the country has slowly and surely opened up to international tourism once again. Flying internationally to Canada was relatively simple although unpredictable due to a reduced flight schedule and many unexpected changes along the way. With over a year and a half grounded due to the pandemic, I was very happy to make my way across the Pacific to a familiar place.
A good social distancing activity is to send the drone up into the sky. Mississauga is a suburb west of Toronto that is trying hard to build their own urban downtown around its Square One shopping mall. The vision is aggressive and with a charistmatic mayor Hazel McCallion who could make things happen, results are starting to show. Perhaps they'll end up as successful as Mel Lastman's North York Centre.
Mississauga appeared on the architectural map in 2012 when the "Marilyn Monroe" towers were built. Since then, the buildings kept popping up.
You can see downtown Toronto's skyline in the far distance.
More skyscrapers are rising on the west and south sides of the mall. Although with autumn temperatures, not many were on the sidewalks walking from these office and residential towers to the mall. They will get more deserted as winter approaches. Despite so much construction happening, there are no covered walkways to connect all the buildings together to encourage more walking rather than driving a short distance to the mall.
However, shortly outside the downtown quadrant, the density reduces drastically to lowrise houses.
Mississauga is so strange to me. Seeing that quintessential suburban mall and those suburban subdivisions surrounded by towers is just odd. Is the mall itself ever expected to be redeveloped to something more urban? Outside of Chinese immigrants, I can't see who the market would be for those towers? Suburban living...in a high rise. The greater Toronto area is really its own animal.
Mississauga is so strange to me. Seeing that quintessential suburban mall and those suburban subdivisions surrounded by towers is just odd. Is the mall itself ever expected to be redeveloped to something more urban? Outside of Chinese immigrants, I can't see who the market would be for those towers? Suburban living...in a high rise. The greater Toronto area is really its own animal.
More housing is needed in all areas of the GTA so anyone looking for more affordable housing outside of downtown Toronto is the market for these and future towers. Square one is also not the only area of mississauga building a lot highrises. One of the selling points to live in this area is the mall, which is one of the biggest and busiest the GTA, so it's not going anywhere.
Historically, many of Toronto's suburbs competed with the city for foreign investment. With a different government structure, the border fostered a sense of competition and not co-operation. Despite commuting patterns that suggest otherwise, even the subway line strictly stayed within Toronto's borders until 2017 when Line 1 was extended into Vaughan. A new "city centre" is being developed around it, which was once an industrial area, not exactly the type of dense urban environment to warrant a subway line in the first place. How a subway ended up here instead of in far more denser parts of the city is bewildering, especially since these extensions are rare despite a growing city.
The city centre is a short drive from 2 major highways. Highway 407 pictured here was built with much controversy as it was a public-private partnership, resulting in tolls. The initial 69km section opened in 1997.
Highway 407 subway station remains in the middle of nowhere, albeit its design is striking.
Toronto is seeing a skyscraper boom, and many new residential towers have popped up around the waterfront. CIBC Square stood out as it is a commercial development, and for the longest time there wasn't as much demand for downtown offices. A new long distance bus terminus recently opened at the base of the building, offering a more dignified experience for commuter and intercity buses.
The waterfront is now home to many residents, but I wonder whether the social infrastructure is in place, such as schools, community centres, and the like.
The first major redevelopment downtown to bring back residents into the core was Cityplace, which is still under construction over a decade on. We're seeing more redevelopments around the periphery as well, although prices have shot up incredibly since.
The condo boom has also moved into the suburbs, which are trying to build their own downtowns and increasing density. The Highway 7 corridor is busy with construction, and thanks to dedicated busways now in place, getting around has gotten easier, although traffic jams persist.
Toronto is a very multicultural city, with immigrants comprising about 47% of the city's population. The top 3 countries of birth for recent immigrants were the Philippines, China, and India, while there are sizeable communities from many other countries. Supermarkets catering to the diaspora are spread across the city.
According to the 2016 census, there were over 33,000 people whose mother tongue is Korean. While there is a Koreatown on Bloor Street, there is a sizeable community in North York with many Korean shops and restaurants along Yonge Street between Steeles and Sheppard. Galleria has a 24-hours big box store just north of Yonge and Steeles.
In the 2016 census, almost 30,000 people spoke Arabic as their mother tongue in Toronto. Khorak Supermarket was established on Yonge Street in 1989 with a Persian bakery and hot food counter in addition to the typical supermarket items.
Mississauga appeared on the architectural map in 2012 when the "Marilyn Monroe" towers were built. Since then, the buildings kept popping up.
Mississauga first appeared on the architectural map in the early 1980s with the new City Hall. It was one of the first major projects designed in the emerging Post Modern style and was published extensively internationally.
Many Canadian cities are experiencing a condo building boom downtown, and the blocks east of downtown have seen incredible activity in recent years.
Now that so many condos line the waterfront, the community is seeing more restaurants and supermarkets although it might take a bit more time to really build the neighbourhood. Luckily, it is only a short walk across the railroad tracks to get food. It's downtown after all.
Further out where the Queen streetcar line ends, there is a water treatment plant right by Lake Ontario worth a stop for the architecture and views.
Boy I’m from Houston and it’s weird to see skyscrapers next to single family homes and strip centers.
What is the purpose of them? Having a view of nothing in particular? Or is the idea that they are like self-enclosed neighbourhoods with shops, restaurants and gyms and things so that people don’t have to go outside when it’s cold?
Otherwise I’m surprised the land values support the construction costs or that people want to live in an apartment in the middle of nowhere.
__________________ There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there always has been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that "my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge." - Isaac Asimov
Located at the bottom floors of a condominium building, the Textile Museum reopened in September 2021 following the pandemic with free admission for the rest of the year. While Toronto is not known for garment production, this small off-the-beaten track museum is worth a few hours to explore. I booked my ticket online in advance and I had the museum mostly to myself for the weekday afternoon visit.
The Kinngait Studios from Nunavut produced printed textiles depicting their culture and way of life in the 1950s and 60s. Located on Dorset Island, the government and the Hudson's Bay Company forced dramatic changes to the Inuit way of life, forcing the people to live in settlements than to live on the land.
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