Things are a little different at one of downtown Toronto's busiest intersections these days, as two buildings – that have stood on opposite corners for decades – continue to be remodeled to make way for a new station on the future Ontario Line subway.
On Monday, Metrolinx provided an update on construction work that has been underway for several weeks at Queen Street West and Spadina Avenue.
Yellow there! 👋 If you've been in the Queen and Spadina area recently, you may have seen these bright yellow retention towers. (1/4) pic.twitter.com/aNrGLeWNER
— Ontario Line (@OntarioLine) January 22, 2024
Construction fences appeared at the intersection in late spring as several businesses cleared the area, including a Fancy Franks location, a walk-in clinic and the TD Bank.
Metrolinx said crews are now using bright yellow-painted retaining brackets to hold the existing facades of a historic building in place on the northeast corner of the intersection while the rest of the building is demolished. This strategy is called in situ façade preservation.
Work is underway to preserve the facade of the historic Bank Building (CIBC) at 378 Queen St. W/165 Spadina Ave., which was built over 120 years ago and is now being given new life as part of the future Queen-Spadina Ontario Line station in full swing.
Originally designed by George Wallace Gouinlock for the Bank of Hamilton, which later merged with CIBC, the building was completed in 1903 and received listed building status in the early 1970s.
Teams use retention towers to preserve the existing facades – a strategy to preserve cultural heritage. The building façade will remain intact throughout construction and will be part of the Ontario Line's new Queen-Spadina station – allowing us to preserve the beloved historic façades. (2/4) pic.twitter.com/MJTTOQcZ6k
— Ontario Line (@OntarioLine) January 22, 2024
The support towers provide structural support to ensure the facades remain in place and will support the facades throughout construction as part of the future station.
By 2041, the station is expected to have 7,200 customers and 3,800 transfers at its peak hour, with approximately 23,000 people living within walking distance.
The station entrances were also placed just steps away from the trams to optimize connection points and serve the transit-oriented community surrounding the station.
Unlike panelization, where we remove panels and move them to storage to be reattached at the end of the project, support towers provide structural support to ensure building facades remain in place. (3/4) pic.twitter.com/xNSO137xhj
— Ontario Line (@OntarioLine) January 22, 2024
In a previous statement to blogTO, Metrolinx said it was “committed to preserving Toronto's history” and the demo work would be conducted under the supervision of a cultural heritage specialist.
Learn more about the future Queen Spadina Station 🔗https://t.co/NtD2MOlqdq (4/4) pic.twitter.com/u3GV3g80xG
— Ontario Line (@OntarioLine) January 22, 2024
“All materials will be carefully transported to a facility for safekeeping until they can be incorporated into the future station buildings, while some elements of the buildings will remain in place throughout construction,” a spokesperson told blogTO.
Although some elements of the historic building will be incorporated into the future stations, it is not exactly clear what the iconic crossing will look like once all construction is complete, as current renderings are still subject to further approvals and consultations.
This is what the new subway station and condos in Queen and Spadina will look like https://t.co/qon1mjzdh0 #Toronto #Queen #Spadina #Subway
– blogTO (@blogTO) June 15, 2021
The Ontario Line, under construction, will bring 15 new stations to the city along a 15.6-kilometer subway line that runs from Exhibition Place through the heart of downtown to the Ontario Science Centre.
The line is expected to provide significant relief to the existing transportation network with connections to over 40 travel options along the route, including TTC lines 1 and 2, GO Transit rail lines and the Eglinton Crosstown LRT.