This is as Canadian as concrete gets! It is not the letters CNE stamped in the concrete but rather what the concrete is made of. If you look closely, you can make out the smooth pebbles that the cement is mixed with. This type of concrete is found throughout Canada; in Brutalist buildings, concrete benches and the ground we walk on in places like Montreal’s Olympic park. It must be a lot of work hauling these around but I hope they keep them to remind us of our architectural past.
20140729. Cleveland’s Victorian-era Arcade – now a Hyatt Regency hotel but once one of the earliest indoor shopping malls in the United States (c.1890).
20140728. The Old Finch Avenue Bailey Bridge triptych.
This is one of only three bailey bridges in the Greater Toronto Area. This particular bridge (in Markham) dates back to 1954. It was built by the Canadian Military Engineers in three days after Hurricane Hazel hit Toronto and washed out the original bridge.
Although hard to see in the bottom image, the bailey bridge does not actually make contact with the original bridge foundation.
Interestingly, bailey bridges are usually considered temporary structures but this bridge has been in place for 60 years.
20140727. Cleveland’s Tower City Center has ornate entrances easily made out in darkness.
20140726. The Royal Ontario Museum’s (ROM) grand rounded and segmented windows (c.1914, Architects Darling and Pearson).
This is the original ROM building featuring buff-coloured brick and terracotta. It faces Philosopher’s Walk and is now the west wing of the museum. The building you see facing Queen’s Park was added in 1933.
20140725. Cleveland’s Tower City Center skylight.
20140724. Lights and stairwells create patterns on the Essroc Cement Company silos in Toronto’s port lands.
As part of the re-naturalization of the mouth of the Don River, these silos will be decommissioned and made into a visual monument to our waterfront heritage and the company will move their operations to south of Commissioner’s Street just off Leslie St. If you have been down to the area recently you have probably noticed the new silos.
20140723. Looking north at the West Third Street Bridge (c.1940) over the Cuyahoga River in the Flats of Cleveland.
Note the remains of the demolished Inner Belt Bridge in the background. The West Third Street Bridge looks great now but underwent a botched rehabilitation in 2004 including the installation of lift cables that were three feet too short! It is a Vertical Lift Pratt through Truss bridge with a navigation clearance of 100 feet.
20140722. Enjoying the lake view from the south end of Toronto’s Lake Shore Boulevard Bailey Bridge.
From Wikipedia: A Bailey bridge is a type of portable, pre-fabricated, truss bridge developed by the British during World War II. A Bailey bridge required no special tools or heavy equipment to construct. The wood and steel bridge elements were small and light enough to be carried in trucks and lifted into place by hand, without requiring the use of a crane. The bridges were strong enough to carry tanks. Bailey bridges continue to be extensively used in civil engineering construction projects and to provide temporary crossings for foot and vehicle traffic.
20140721. The 201m 200 Public Square as seen from Cleveland’s Terminal Tower. Note how the building’s shape comes from being parallel to both side streets.
20140720. A silhouette of sport field lights against the sky. Minimal Aesthetic #36, Lamp #4.
20140719. A line of light and oddly asymmetrical column placement in Cleveland’s Tower City Rapid Transit Station.
20140718. Flags fly over the green grandstand grid a day before Toronto’s Honda Indy.
20140717. Hanging out on an empty Lakeshore Blvd courtesy of Toronto’s Honda Indy.
20140716. The big T at Cleveland’s “E 34 – Campus” rapid transit station.
20140715. The last span standing of Cleveland’s Innerbelt Bridge.
20140714. Cleveland’s Innerbelt Bridge demolition aftermath # 3 – dismantling using a blowtorch.
20140713. Cleveland’s old Innerbelt Bridge demolition aftermath #2. Detonated July 12 at 6am.
20140712. Cleveland’s old Innerbelt Bridge demolition aftermath (unedited). Detonated July 12 at 6am.
20140711. A plethora of pipes in the Portlands Energy Centre.
20140710. Cubes, cylinder and shadows outside the Portlands Energy Centre (Toronto).
20140709. Ducts, frames and stairwells inside the Portlands Energy Centre in Toronto.
20140708. Looking up at the intricate roof of Sam Pollock Square (Architect Santiago Calatrava, c.1992) in Brookfield Place, Toronto.
20140707. The matrix beneath the Indy Pit-lane Grandstand at Exhibition Place in Toronto.
20140706. The mirrored merlons and concrete crenels of the Atrium on Bay (c.1981, Toronto) brought to you by Game of Thrones.
