The envelope, please: T.O. wins music shrine
Virtual hall finally to get real home $38M building

JORDAN HEATH-RAWLINGS
STAFF REPORTER

Guess Who is coming to Yonge and Dundas?

Yes, the veteran Winnipeg rock quartet is — as are all the 57 artists and industry professionals who have been elevated to the Canadian Music Hall of Fame over the past 27 years.

Our shrine to the best musicians in Canadian history has finally found a bricks-and-mortar home, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences is to announce this morning — and on a slice of prime Toronto real estate, no less.

The Metropolis shopping and entertainment centre, under construction at the northeast corner of Yonge and Dundas Sts., will house the hall. Doors are scheduled to open in June 2007, the academy said yesterday.

"It's long, long overdue," said Ross Reynolds, academy chairman and head of the selection process that chose Toronto.

The Canadian Music Hall of Fame started inducting artists in 1978, but it existed only as photographs on a wall at the academy's headquarters. Currently, it's housed online, at http://www.junoawards.ca.

Plans for the physical hall include a three-floor, 60,000-square-foot main area, featuring interactive exhibits, administration offices on the top floor and two stores, some featuring the "Oh What A Feeling" brand used to market popular compilations of Canadian music.

The entrance will be on Yonge St. north of Dundas, between the HMV flagship store and the planned Virgin Megastore, which will be one of Metropolis's main tenants, along with the hall of fame.

The hall of fame proposal is not connected with Metronome, a long-planned waterfront music museum that has been in the works for years.

At the music hall of fame, exhibits will lean heavily towards the interactive, said Peter Tillmann, president of Spinning Wheel Design, the interior and graphic design firm which had the winning bid.

Tillmann also worked as a senior designer for the Hockey Hall of Fame, back in 1993, and noted that technology has advanced so much since then that exhibits in the hall of fame will be able to take visitors through the entire recording process.

"We want them to become a record producer or a songwriter. We want to show people what it's like to edit music, what it's like to use a drum set or to have your voice recorded and played back to you," he said. "The exhibits will let them do all this — they'll be like a backstage pass to allow them to experience all the aspects of a musician's life."

The Toronto proposal was chosen from a short list that included Winnipeg and Hamilton, mostly because it promised millions more visitors.

"It came down to the numbers Toronto could deliver," said academy president Melanie Berry, who will make the announcement this morning with other officials at the Olympic Spirit Toronto, about 100 metres from the hall's future home. "The fact this location is the top tourist destination in Canada, drawing over 17 million tourists annually, was also key," she said.

Mayor David Miller yesterday called it "a great addition to Toronto's already vibrant downtown core," and Rush front man Geddy Lee proclaimed it "a great way for Canadians to celebrate our musical history and ... a fine cultural addition to our city."

Councillor Kyle Rae (Ward 27, Toronto Centre-Rosedale), who had urged Spinning Wheel to bid, said, "It's a perfect place for it, with all the record stores and the Hard Rock (Cafe) right in the neighbourhood. "It just makes sense. Toronto has been the centre of music publishing and entertainment in Canada for a long time."

After a proposal from a Hamilton firm early last year renewed interest at the academy for a physical site, it opened submissions last June to firms from cities across Canada.

By November, the list had been whittled to three. That was when Tillmann decided to play his ace.

"I had leaked to them earlier that we were going to be (proposing a site) somewhere on Yonge St.," he said. "That got (the board) excited. They kept trying to guess where we would go and we would never tell them. But when we submitted the final proposal on Dec. 15, we had to tell them then."

Reynolds said the board "did its due diligence" on all three proposals, despite being "pretty clearly impressed" when the final Toronto offer came in.

"It's about traffic. It's about people," Reynolds said. "It was tough for us to be good negotiators after we heard that, because it's just such a good location."

The proposed design for the hall of fame — which will include all genres of Canadian music — has an initial price tag of about $38 million, which Reynolds hopes to raise through corporate sponsorships and government partnerships.

"I think if we had a different location, that wasn't quite as sexy as Yonge and Dundas, it might be more of a challenge," he said. "But I'm pretty optimistic that this location will be seen as attractive."

Instead of focusing almost exclusively on the annals of musical history like Cleveland's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Tillmann said the Canadian hall will be closer in feel to Seattle's EMP (Experience Music Project), where visitors can explore the process of creating music as well as learn about great musicians of the past.

The site will also feature an outdoor component. Tillmann said yesterday there's a tentative agreement to help the city book live music for Dundas Square once the hall opens.

"One of their mandates (for Dundas Square) is to have musical events regularly in that spot," he said. "We will come in and deliver some of that. It's a no-brainer for them."

Despite being eliminated in the final round, the Hamilton team was upbeat yesterday, saying their goal had been to generate interest in a permanent home for the hall — no matter the city.

"Obviously, from a Hamilton perspective, there's disappointment," said Jasper Kujavsky of Golden Horseshoe Enterprises, who along with Bob Lanois, brother of Hamilton native and music hall of fame member Daniel, led the Hamilton bid.

"I had a pretty good sense of what was coming and we're ready for today," Kujavsky said yesterday.

"I'm excited for Canada and I think there's tremendous national excitement that the project is finally going ahead."

While there's no official waiting list, the process whereby one or two artists are inducted per year might get kicked into a higher gear, Berry said yesterday.

"There's no specific plans right now, but we know we need to do a lot of catch-up," she said.

"There's many, many great Canadian artists that haven't been recognized to date and hopefully will be in the future ... now that there's a real place for people to learn about them."

Nice...

Can this mean that the often delayed Metropolis Project at Dundas and Yonge will FINALLY be completed?


http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1116281413295&call_pageid=968332188492&col=968793972154&t=TS_Home&DPL=IvsNDS%2f7ChAX&tacodalogin=yes

shit.

not nice :(

"The entrance will be on Yonge St. north of Dundas, between the HMV flagship store and the planned Virgin Megastore, which will be one of Metropolis's main tenants, along with the hall of fame."

Oh, so it will be a storefront. Thrilling.

"The entrance will be on Yonge St. north of Dundas, between the HMV flagship store and the planned Virgin Megastore, which will be one of Metropolis's main tenants, along with the hall of fame."

a storefront is an appropriate homage to Canadian music?? A drop in the big bucket.

I should be careful... I'm going to go 'Are Be' all over this

Ok, ok. I've cooled down a little. Naturally I'm dissapointed about Hamilton losing this opportunity. Toronto is a better location because of those tourist numbers... but a project like this would have meant so much more to Hamilton than another drop-in-the-bucket for Toronto. Sour grapes.

that aside, here is my critique:

- the location is good (ie: proximity to Dundas Square)
- the execution is going to stink royally. What could have been a signature building... something special, will now be a facade stuck between HMV and the Virgin megastore. Blah. That whole Metropolis development is cursed anyway. Did no one tell them that?
- judging from the description in the Globe and Mail (http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20050517/NOTE17-1/TPEntertainment/Music) article, this will be a 'Torch'-like attraction... all fluff and fill, with no substance. To quote the article... " "youth-friendly," hands-on activities".... no thanks, I'll pass.

I'm voicing my discontent in the other thread (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=213767) on this topic.

Pretty sure the main entrance (to the building) is in between HMV and Virgin

Jeez. Could you spam this thread any more?

If this helps get Metropolis moving I'll be happy. It sounds like it might since they mentioned a 2007 opening.

I'm starting to think that's why construction was delayed so that Metropolis could be redesigned to accomodate this. Might explain too why PenEquity was not able to comment on the delays.

Either way, i'm just glad to see this project finally moving along. Although I think the Torch site would of been better.

That made my day seeing it on the front page of the Star, the renderingt doesn't look too bad with tons more adverisement space on Yonge. Still have to wait about two more years. It's good to hear that this won't take the place of Metronome and that the project is still alive.

Jeez. Could you spam this thread any more?

If this helps get Metropolis moving I'll be happy. It sounds like it might since they mentioned a 2007 opening.

LOL... there were two threads and they combined them. I don't spam!

I think a spot right on the Yonge Strip is perfect for this kind of thing....very "Goin' Down The Road". A big institutional ivory tower is totally inappropriate.





KGB

That's good news. It's not its own building, but it'll be part of something big, in a great area. I think there is an entrance on the corner itself and on Dundas too. I wonder how big it'll be, and which floor?

I don't understand where they're finding this 60,000 sq/ft from?
This was what was available long before the Hall of Fame announcement. There was nearly 60,000 sq/ft but it's spread out all over the building.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y102/Toronto416/metro.jpg

I never realized this but Metropolis is going to be as tall as the Atrium Tower (well, the billboards and such). That's pretty high!

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y102/Toronto416/metro1.jpg

Metropolis is the main building that makes YD Square look like Time Square. It has probably more billboards on it than all the other buildings combined. I think Metropolis will end up having a boring, gray, Torch like facade but the billboards will liven the building up.

Any news on when they'll continue construction?

That made my day seeing it on the front page of the Star, the renderingt doesn't look too bad with tons more adverisement space on Yonge. Still have to wait about two more years. It's good to hear that this won't take the place of Metronome and that the project is still alive.

Yes, Metropolis looks very promising. The rendering kept reminding me of Times Square in New York, and Piccadily Circus in London. Toronto needs places like this. The building itself looks very modern and lively.

Great addition to Toronto.

I heard about this on TV. This is great news... it looks great!

You guys should have watched CH news today. They showed the exact site where the Hall of Fame will be built in Toronto. Maybe they'll show it again at 11.

Sounds like Metropolis is for real this time, now that they have all their main tenants.

BTW: Is AMC still in it?

Hopefully this will push the completion of this long overdue project.

I noticed yesterday that the crane that was hanging over yonge st for months was now facing towards the ryerson parkinglot, maybe they will resume construction this week

Probably just the wind blowing it the other way :D

http://img288.echo.cx/img288/3420/pict15624ua.jpg (http://www.imageshack.us)






KGB

Nice shot. It would be great if they illuminated those steel squares going up the side of the Atrium tower. It would add further appeal.

Here's a quote from the Post talking about the exterior:

""The outside of the building has been designed like a giant billboard," he said.

"If you can imagine a 10-storey-high billboard with, say, 18 different types of television screens and monitors and flashing lights and all kinds of bells and whistles."

Peter Tillmann, president of Spinning Wheel Designs and project director for the Toronto bid.

So in about a decade Pen Equity has managed to get a crane and a nice banner for it.

I hope these clowns step it up and finally get this project done...and hopefully it turns out a LOT better than Torch!

It looks as if AMC has stuck with the project as it looks like they have a banner on the blue hoarding, this is a high volume spot and to wait it out will be worth it in the long run.

It's too bad AMC is considering selling its Canadian operations, though I guess it doesn't matter since there is definitely space for more screens south of Bloor.

LOL... there were two threads and they combined them. I don't spam!
Sorry. My bad.

There was an article posted in another thread describing Metropolis and it said the AMC was 20 screens. That's 4 less than the previous figure. Combining those 4 theaters in one would give the Hall of Fame the type of space they were looking for.

That's the only thing I could think of. Interesting if it was because the AMC started off as 30 screens, then dropped to 24 and now, 20. Not that it really makes a difference as I think the whole 'going to movies' thing is dropping off in popularity.

What? From 30 to 24 and now to 20! Where will all the Ryerson students go?;)

Going to a movie costs a fortune! For the same money, you can go on a date, go get drunk, get drunk on your date, get your date drunk, you and your date both can get drunk, or you can just meet up with your friends and get... really, really drunk. :cheers: :cheers2: :cheers1: :drunk:

Not that I have any booze issues...

Either you get really drunk on a small amount of alcohol...or you need to tell me where all this cheap booze is being served.





KGB

A new banner at Metropolis! Now that's progress.

Drunk on ten bucks? I guess that gets enough Lysol or Listerine to drink.

Ugh... I can't believe the City hasn't stepped in, in the last decade and done something about this bullshit. How much longer can they let Pen Equity have an empty condtruction site at one of the bussiest intersections in Canada. It really is pathetic that this isn't more of an issue, it just goes to show how little the city is concerned with keeping up appearances. They built the Torch and it looks nothing like the renderings, it looks more like a PIECE OF SHIT. Is there no one on the city council who cares about the integrity of Toronto? Are we doomed with the future of Toronto being boring, cheap, mediocre and most of the time dissapointing? The Future looks bland.

BTW.. out here in Halifax they have $1 drinks during power hours all over the city. $10 = 10 drinks.

PS... If I see one more piece of garbage building (torch) that originaly looked breathtaking in a rendering go up, I'll shit my pants. Why design a building that costs $10, when ultimately you're only going to spend $5 on it? (TORCH)

From the Star:

May 23, 2005. 09:20 AM
Finally, Dundas Square shapes up

CHRISTOPHER HUME

Yonge and Dundas may finally have turned the corner.

News that the Canadian Music Hall of Fame will be part of the Metropolis complex confirms that the future of the city's busiest intersection is looking brighter than it has for years.

In addition, city council has finally decided to accept responsibility for Yonge-Dundas Square. From now on, the city will cover the costs of running the facility, about $1.03 million annually.

This means the square won't be rented out every other day for some private event or other. In other words, it may finally start to feel like the civic space it was intended to be.

"We're no longer required to be financially self-sufficient," says the chair of the Yonge-Dundas management board, Ron Soskolne. "The city will pay for security, maintenance and keeping the square in good order. We would have had to rent it out every weekend in a way that would close it off to the public."

Meanwhile, directly north of the piazza, the much delayed Metropolis still appears to be moribund. Though the hall of fame will move in eventually, construction on the site stopped last year and nothing seems to have happened since.

Presumably, that's about to change.

The hall represents the right kind of attraction for the area. This is, after all, the old strip, the place where Torontonians have been hanging out for decades. Through all the changes in the neighbourhood, that has remained a constant.

People no longer drive up and down Yonge all night as they did back in the '50s and '60s, but the Dundas corner has retained its allure. No, it isn't the most refined part of Toronto; it was never meant to be. It's loud, crassly commercial and full of life.

Though many consider the square too hard-edged and grey, it introduces a moment of elegance and an occasion for rest and reflection in the heart of the city.

One of its problems has been the lack of definition. A square is defined by the buildings that surround it, that form its boundaries and provide the backdrop. In the case of Yonge-Dundas, that strong sense of definition has been missing from the start.

But the subtext to the square was that it should serve as a catalyst for the redevelopment of the area, and it has. So far, the north end of the Eaton Centre has been enlarged (a small but helpful addition), the Olympic Spirit complex to the east has taken shape (still one of Toronto's best kept secrets) and the Hard Rock Café, directly south, has been nicely cleaned up.

The main gap is on the north side of Dundas; for five years it has been nothing but a row of advertising hoardings. The story has been a sad litany of vanished tenants, broken promises and economic uncertainty. After all the disappointment, the announcement of the hall of fame will gladden the hearts of the neighbours.

One can only hope, however, that the results don't resemble the illustration of the music hall that appeared in newspapers last week. With its orange sky, roving spotlights and empty background, this looked more like an "artist's rendering" of the Burning of Toronto than the rebirth of Yonge and Dundas.

"This was a disinvestment area," Soskolne says. "Back in the '90s, there were 29 dollar stores on Yonge between College and Queen, now we're down to a handful. There's an optimism these days about what's happening on Yonge that didn't exist even a few years ago."

Soskolne's next big task will be to get the square finished. Though it opened in 2002, it's still waiting for the stage to be completed and for more lighting and planters.

In the meantime, the square has become a hugely popular spot to sit and eat, talk, read, whatever. The infinitely varied fountains are a major draw and the tables and chairs are always occupied.

And despite the predictions of bad behaviour at the square, not a single piece of furniture has been stolen.

Could this be a sign that Torontonians are finally beginning to see Yonge-Dundas as their own? Either that, or someone was sitting down.

From the Star:

May 23, 2005. 09:20 AM
Finally, Dundas Square shapes up

CHRISTOPHER HUME

Yonge and Dundas may finally have turned the corner.

News that the Canadian Music Hall of Fame will be part of the Metropolis complex confirms that the future of the city's busiest intersection is looking brighter than it has for years.

In addition, city council has finally decided to accept responsibility for Yonge-Dundas Square. From now on, the city will cover the costs of running the facility, about $1.03 million annually.

This means the square won't be rented out every other day for some private event or other. In other words, it may finally start to feel like the civic space it was intended to be.

"We're no longer required to be financially self-sufficient," says the chair of the Yonge-Dundas management board, Ron Soskolne. "The city will pay for security, maintenance and keeping the square in good order. We would have had to rent it out every weekend in a way that would close it off to the public."

Meanwhile, directly north of the piazza, the much delayed Metropolis still appears to be moribund. Though the hall of fame will move in eventually, construction on the site stopped last year and nothing seems to have happened since.

Presumably, that's about to change.

The hall represents the right kind of attraction for the area. This is, after all, the old strip, the place where Torontonians have been hanging out for decades. Through all the changes in the neighbourhood, that has remained a constant.

People no longer drive up and down Yonge all night as they did back in the '50s and '60s, but the Dundas corner has retained its allure. No, it isn't the most refined part of Toronto; it was never meant to be. It's loud, crassly commercial and full of life.

Though many consider the square too hard-edged and grey, it introduces a moment of elegance and an occasion for rest and reflection in the heart of the city.

One of its problems has been the lack of definition. A square is defined by the buildings that surround it, that form its boundaries and provide the backdrop. In the case of Yonge-Dundas, that strong sense of definition has been missing from the start.

But the subtext to the square was that it should serve as a catalyst for the redevelopment of the area, and it has. So far, the north end of the Eaton Centre has been enlarged (a small but helpful addition), the Olympic Spirit complex to the east has taken shape (still one of Toronto's best kept secrets) and the Hard Rock Café, directly south, has been nicely cleaned up.

The main gap is on the north side of Dundas; for five years it has been nothing but a row of advertising hoardings. The story has been a sad litany of vanished tenants, broken promises and economic uncertainty. After all the disappointment, the announcement of the hall of fame will gladden the hearts of the neighbours.

One can only hope, however, that the results don't resemble the illustration of the music hall that appeared in newspapers last week. With its orange sky, roving spotlights and empty background, this looked more like an "artist's rendering" of the Burning of Toronto than the rebirth of Yonge and Dundas.

"This was a disinvestment area," Soskolne says. "Back in the '90s, there were 29 dollar stores on Yonge between College and Queen, now we're down to a handful. There's an optimism these days about what's happening on Yonge that didn't exist even a few years ago."

Soskolne's next big task will be to get the square finished. Though it opened in 2002, it's still waiting for the stage to be completed and for more lighting and planters.

In the meantime, the square has become a hugely popular spot to sit and eat, talk, read, whatever. The infinitely varied fountains are a major draw and the tables and chairs are always occupied.

And despite the predictions of bad behaviour at the square, not a single piece of furniture has been stolen.

Could this be a sign that Torontonians are finally beginning to see Yonge-Dundas as their own? Either that, or someone was sitting down.



" the Olympic Spirit complex to the east has taken shape (still one of Toronto's best kept secrets)"

Hume is losing it...or he actually hasn't been down there yet.

You quoted the entire article?

You quoted the entire article?

Well I just clicked the "Quote" button rather than reply.

Does that bother you?

" the Olympic Spirit complex to the east has taken shape (still one of Toronto's best kept secrets)"

Hume is losing it...or he actually hasn't been down there yet.
Hume has definately lost it, knowing that his articles are usually controversial and have negative comments towards Toronto's architecture.

Or he's just being honest and we just don't understand his taste. :(

Hume has definately lost it, knowing that his articles are usually controversial and have negative comments towards Toronto's architecture.

Or he's just being honest and we just don't understand his taste. :(

Well, I'd like to give him some credit but he just lacks consistency. I don't get that guy.

Well, I'd like to give him some credit but he just lacks consistency. I don't get that guy.
Yeah, I guess that I can't blame him, he's just one of us that has different taste in architecture, except he gets paid for writing those articles.

"it looks more like a PIECE OF SHIT. Is there no one on the city council who cares about the integrity of Toronto? Are we doomed with the future of Toronto being boring, cheap, mediocre and most of the time dissapointing? The Future looks bland."


Relax there sonny...you're going to pop a tube. Trust me...the world is not going to end...neither is Toronto. If someone as morbidly negative as Hume can find something positive to say about Dundas Square, then it's a good sign.





KGB

...yeah, SD.. it was annoying that you posted the entire article.. I'll never get back those extra two seconds it took me to scroll thru it.

Regan