2016-08-14 Sun

How Toronto Wastes Money

I am not absolutely sure about this, but I’m close to certain.

See what you think:

Here I am, Saturday morning (or it might have been Friday) on my regular walking route to Ryerson University to collect a free copy of The Toronto Star.

I am standing on the south-west corner of Yonge and Gerrard Streets, about to walk to the south-east corner.

Note that Ateaze has been papered over. The store is closed. Gone. Out of business. Or at least, moved to another location.

Note the orange cones (how else could you tell that we were in Toronto?) and the new sidewalk, paved Lo! Just this past week, stretching partway towards Ryerson University.

I am about to walk along that footpath.

I have crossed the street and take a photo looking south. Ateaze really is papered over.

As it is along the Gerrard Street side.

Note the Pristine Concrete Paved Sidewalk.

What a treat after (for me) four years of cracked and damaged paving stones.

On my way back I take another shot from the north side of Gerrard. The brown papering extends along the north side of the building, but not every small business is yet papered over.

This brown-papering occurs when a building is closed and slated for Demolition.

To make way for a 50-storey condominium tower. Or two.

I know about construction of condominium towers.

For the next four years the brand new concrete sidewalk will be rolled over by enormous Back-Hoes, Tracked Vehicles of all kinds, hundreds of Dump Trucks to cart away the soil, hundreds of Concrete Trucks to bring in concrete, and those little Fork-Lifts and Bob-Cat Loaders will while away 200 weeks, five days a week, lugging stuff up and over the kerb, across the sidewalk.

I give the newly paved sidewalk six months before it is completely wrecked.

I don’t hold out much hope for those trees, either.