Why Demolition in Toronto is a Necessary Part of the City’s Re-Planning
Demolition in Toronto is a symbolic act. Taking out what came before it and giving builders the opportunity to pave over the past in favor of a smarter design, this is the purpose of demolition and excavation in the GTA.
Before we delve deeper into demolition, we don’t have to tell our fellow Torontonian readers that there is a lot to complain about in the design of Toronto’s streets, residential units, and commercial spaces. At least to some people, a lot of it doesn’t make sense.
Why Toronto’s city design seems impractical cannot necessarily solely be blamed on the existing city government. Toronto has been built over the course of decades. Its design, to this day, is still influenced by decisions made over centuries ago. Subsequently, when those decisions were made, Toronto was built for the population of the period it had to serve. As Toronto’s population has grown, the city’s needs have as well. To this point, if we knocked everything down today and started from a blank canvas, Toronto would end up looking significantly different. Even if we were to re-develop it in full for the population of today, ten, twenty, or thirty years from now, its needs will continue to differentiate.
There’s much of Toronto that is in a state of re-development, either for residential or commercial purposes. In these cases, demolitions and excavations have had to take place to rid these spaces of what no longer needs to be there in order to make room for proposed projects. Annually, countless buildings across Toronto are torn down. As the City undergoes a building boom unlike anything it’s seen before, demolitions are an important part of the puzzle. They are the safest way to remove materials and at times, preserve them for historical purposes and/or to be recycled and reused in other products.
Understandably, not every Torontonian is thrilled with replacing the old with the new. There’s a lot of different ways to look at it. A lot of the history of the City is wrapped up in its architecture and buildings, yes. To some degree, it’s Toronto’s history that has given the City its personality which cannot be found anywhere else in the world, yes. Despite these admissions, no one can dispute there are needs of the population not currently being served and that many of the ongoing developments are seeking to address these unmet needs. Thereby, it becomes a balancing act between how to preserve Toronto’s unique personality while redeveloping enough of the GTA to accommodate its current and future needs.
Just recently, another classic Toronto building was demolished in favor of new opportunity. The site formerly known as Hotel Waverly was once one of Toronto’s most notorious hotels, recognized for its Tom Waits-esque front door personalities, highly questionable interior conditions, and crime. The Hotel Waverly was a view into Toronto’s old gritty, underworld past. The fact that it’s now gone is seen as a negative to preservationists and yet, a positive by the municipal government. The Hotel Waverly site is making space for new housing which is something that’s key to future growth.
Every year, the City kisses goodbye to a little more of its history – for better or for worse. Amongst all this, high quality demolition and excavation services are most important. Companies like Core Mini Bins ensure materials are preserved, recycled, reused, and/or disposed of, whenever possible and in the most appropriate of ways.
