Dead Mall & Toronto's Second Largest Underground Network Walk
- Thread starter canada-man
- Start date
Toronto is changing and not for the better.
A combination of "work from home", "shop on line", "uber eats like companies" and a younger generation that is afraid of its own shadow and would rather hang out at home than go out is forever changing the city which used to be so alive and exciting into a tumble weed park. Neighbourhoods with character slowly being torn down an replaced by sterile and banal glass boxes that all look the same and have that faceless windswept look.
It's truly sad and concerning frankly. A fucking slow moving disaster.
A combination of "work from home", "shop on line", "uber eats like companies" and a younger generation that is afraid of its own shadow and would rather hang out at home than go out is forever changing the city which used to be so alive and exciting into a tumble weed park. Neighbourhoods with character slowly being torn down an replaced by sterile and banal glass boxes that all look the same and have that faceless windswept look.
It's truly sad and concerning frankly. A fucking slow moving disaster.
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When the world changes, you have to change with the times.
don't forget to thank Amazon and Costco.
I don’t miss the city at all. It was becoming a cesspool years ago, with the vast majority of people so wrapped up in their busy lives, oblivious to everything and everyone around them.
Just lemmings in the rat race.
When I first left, and I’d visit friends still trapped in it, conversation would inevitably turn to “country life”. They’d talk about their weekend plans to escape the city. I’d always ask them, “Ever thought about why you call it escaping for the weekend”….
I edited that. I had written "order on line" which was meant to convey the whole Amazon thing. I changed it to "shop on line"
I'm a bit old school, I like to shop at stores for several reasons. Not the least of which is having a healthy retail sector makes for an alive city. Plus I like to actually see and feel and analyze what I'm getting. Amazon is my retailer of last resort. If I just can't find it anywhere else, I will order it from Amazon. And I have not needed to order a single thing from Amazon in over a year. Local merchants who also sell on line are fine.
My experience is the opposite. I tried for years to support local brick and mortar shops for the same reason as you. However, I constantly ran into poor service, terrible sales people, and problems with stocking of items. I finally gave up and now Amazon is the first place I look. Otherwise, I will check online if a store(Home Depot, Canadian Tire) has the item I'm looking for in stock before I go there. Even then, if they list an item in stock it's no gusrantee it is. If you want my business at least make an effort. Another issue is parking. If a business locates in an area where there is no available parking, or very limited parking, it's unlikely I will go there. I used to like to drive to the Eaton's center and look around, but since their parking rates soared I've reduced the number of visits I make.
Not just TO but every where, even town/city with population of 100k. The rich are destroying every city with Condo Development and no parking.
Sad the way things go. I remember returning to TO after years away and being blown away by the extent of the underground network that allowed you to walk block after block without having to go outside. Worthless now. Nobody goes anywhere.
Not too long ago it was considered to be the wave of the future for downtown living. The only people interested in it now are Hamas militants.
When was this video taken ? I haven't worked downtown in 20 years. In the bad weather these malls would be packed. They were a major thoroughfare for commuter traffic from Union Station to the office complexes. The attraction of not having to put on a coat to visit a client or grab lunch was a big plus for me. I would expect summer weekends to look like the video but I'm surprised the traffic is so sparse now.
Is this a reflection of the office vacancy rate also ?
I don't know when it was taken. I didn't post it. However I concur. It was great for getting anywhere without having to go out and walk in the half frozen slush on Yonge Street.
In the video he mentions a couple of things that indicate when he took the video. First, he mentions the Hudson's Bay outlet at Bloor and Yonge having shut down "about a year ago". That Hudson's Bay outlet shut down May 2022. Second, he says at the beginning it is "Friday October 20th". Therefore, I'm guessing he filmed it Friday October 20, 2023. A quick check of the calendar verifies October 20 of this year was a Friday.
IMO, the underground mall concept was never that great of an idea. It was too easy to get lost in the PATH because you had no points of reference like the streets or the sky outside. Worse off the signage was and still is quite terrible so you have no idea what direction you're facing. I have to wonder if the PATH network have been better if ithey were above ground like Hong Kong's elevated walways. Obviously, it would have to be enclosed for the winter weather.
Interesting how modern or renovated malls tend to have more skylights or windows to let more natural light in. Or there are malls like Toronto Premium Outlets where each store is a separate unit and you walk to them from the outside. Not so great during lousy weather though.
Interesting how modern or renovated malls tend to have more skylights or windows to let more natural light in. Or there are malls like Toronto Premium Outlets where each store is a separate unit and you walk to them from the outside. Not so great during lousy weather though.
How about using it for all the Hamas refugees that everyone seems to be so afraid of...
Right. If it was in stock there was a good chance it was damaged. Nothing beat the Eaton's Christmas catalogue.
I beat quite bit to the ladies foundation garment section of the Eaton's catalog in the early 70's!!!
