In another life I must have been a six year old boy because I love to watch big trucks. I can’t walk by a construction site and not stop to take a look, and with a building boom going on in this city there has been a lot to look at lately. That is seeing a lot going up, but rarely does a building get taken down. Recently I did see such a unique and special sight though, in that over the span of a few weeks I caught the demolition of an old building.
Given the age of its surroundings (at the corner of Bathurst and Adelaide Street West), it was probably built in the mid to late 1800s. It was so old and beautiful but has always had the appearance of abandonment. I was surprised to see it demolished actually, as the city seems to be quite strict about enforcing the saving of its remaining old buildings, with most plans in the downtown core seeming to incorporate the old structures right into the new designs. But I guess this one had never been designated a heritage building so developers were able to take it down. Seems to me that it would have made gorgeous loft apartments as it was, but it’s too late for that now.
Above: I had photographed this building back in October 2011 before there were any signs that it was to be demolished. Well, there was a sign but I just didn’t recognize it as such at the time. The poster on the side of the building said “Space For Rent – Short Term”.
Above: 5 months later a demolition truck was on-site and a fence had been put up – March 30 2012
The demolition took about a month and the following pictures were taken on 3 different visits, on March 30, April 10, April 16 …
xo loulou
