The Free City of Leslieville

Architects’ houses in Leslieville

2007-12-30T14:44:00-05:00

<p> From sooty black to butter yellow, plus one colossus that’s trying to crush its neighbour</p><div><img src="http://leslieville.org/images/FCL_50Hastings_150h.jpg" alt="Irregularly-shaped metal plate reads #50"></div>

No, we haven’t forgotten you

2007-11-15T16:08:00-05:00

This site is beginning to feel abandoned, for which we apologize. Upcoming: Architects’ Houses of Leslieville.

Notes from public meeting about big-box-development plans

2007-09-21T16:19:00-05:00

<a href="http://blog.fawny.org/2007/09/21/nobigbox/" title="No to Big Box meeting">Notes</a> from a public meeting about the big-box plans, held at Riverdale Collegiate Institute last night

Proposed building at Connaught & Eastern

2007-08-05T16:36:00-04:00

At least it’ll be better than what we’ve got now. But really, even <em>more</em> buff brick? (Now with new pictures and architectural renderings)

Doing Jones

2007-07-10T14:11:00-04:00

Notes on public meeting about the latest incarnation of the Foundry District

2007-05-18T13:13:00-04:00

On 2007.05.17, Paula Fletcher hosted a public meeting about the latest incarnation of the <a href="http://leslieville.org/foundrydistrict/" title="Foundry District: References and articles">Foundry District</a> plans, which are now all big-box all the time. I attended and <a href="http://blog.fawny.org/2007/05/18/foundrybox/" title="‘Power centres,’ big-box stores, and the Foundry District">took notes</a>. (<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/joeclark/sets/72157600231598581/" title="Foundry District drawings presented at public meeting">Photos of architectural drawings</a>)

Tudor no more

2007-05-11T16:25:00-04:00

<p> They destroyed the unique and charming Tudor façade at 123 Coxwell. <a href="http://leslieville.org/housing/123-131-Coxwell/#Tudor-no-more" title="Tudor no more">What does it look like now?</a> </p> <p> Incidentally, we aren’t dead, and since it’s the springtime, we’re starting up again </p>

And then, at long last, the Hell’s got raided

2007-04-08T16:53:00-04:00

Well, the Hell’s finally got raided, and <a href="/housing/502Eastern/#hells" title="502 Eastern: And then, at long last, the Hell’s got raided"><em>You <strong>Are <u>There</u>!</strong></em></a>

One year in Leslieville

2007-01-09T18:08:00-05:00

<a href="http://leslieville.org/other/Y1/" title="One Year in Leslieville">Reflections on our first year</a>

In which your proprietor becomes a ‘source’

2007-01-03T14:46:00-05:00

I met Joe Fiorito of the <cite>Toronto Star</cite> for coffee at the Lesliebucks, which finally resulted in <a href="http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/167342" title="Starbucks spat all steam, froth">a column of his</a> (<a href="http://blog.fawny.org/2007/01/03/fioritism/" title="Fioritism">blog response</a>)

Yes, it’s open, and yes, I got pictures

2006-11-26T15:22:00-05:00

In fact, I got more than <a href="http://leslieville.org/other/lesliebucks/#T-1" title="Lesliebucks photo">that</a> coming up. You may be surprised by this week’s coverage

Lesliebucks opens Friday

2006-11-21T15:05:00-05:00

A blond operative outside the Lesliebucks – stacked to the ceiling with boxes and furniture, with guys installing blinds in the windows – is due to open this <strong>Friday</strong>, November 24. Be there or be “ungentrified”

Wrapping up Housing the Proles of Leslieville

2006-10-04T17:55:00-05:00

OK, we’re packing it in with Housing the Proles of Leslieville. But we’re going out with a bang: We’re gathering up the odds-’n’-ends buildings we haven’t reviewed yet and running them in one big post, coming up shortly. <em>Then</em> we move on to the rich people’s housing. Oh, and did you know I snapped some photos <a href="/other/lesliebucks/#vitrine-2006.10.04" title="Shop windows and superexclusive inside view"><em>inside</em> the Lesliebucks</a>?

Jones!

2006-09-10T15:29:00-05:00

<a href="http://Leslieville.org/other/Jones/" title="Jones">Jones</a>, a teaser for an upcoming feature

How to colour-coördinate with a racist old bastard

2006-09-10T15:29:05-05:00

Main-navigation colours changed to match those on the <a href="http://blog.fawny.org/2005/08/20/muir/" title="Muir">Alexander Muir mural</a> (also the backdrop to the <a href="http://Leslieville.org/about/#contributors" title="About Leslieville.org">contributor photos</a>)

The Free Ghetto of Leslieville

2006-08-30T15:44:00-05:00

Yeah, this took a while. Anyway, we now critique <a href="http://Leslieville.org/housing/66Walpole/" title="66 Walpole">66 Walpole</a>, our first real ghetto!

Lesliebucks update

2006-08-13T17:39:00-05:00

Photographic evidence that the Leslieville Starbucks at Queen and Logan <a href="http://leslieville.org/other/lesliebucks/#update-2006.08.13" title="Lesliebucks update, 2006.08.13">really is happening</a>

New review (finally): 1050 Queen, the block-long leviathan

2006-07-18T13:39:00-05:00

Six weeks in the making, we finally review <a href="1050Queen/" title="1050 Queen">the block-long leviathan</a>. And we got an inside tour!

Leslieville Signage Phenomenon

2006-05-28T14:23:00-05:00

Why do so many wee tchotchke shops have the same twee signage?

New building critiqued

2006-05-23T14:49:00-05:00

791 Queen (Fontbonne Place), a successful little site all told

New buildings critiqued

2006-05-08T13:57:00-05:00

123 & 131 Coxwell: Tudor and stucco, together at last. For these we actually found some architectural data. And area there any more buildings at this corner we should look at? We’re up to three already

A Starbucks in Leslieville: What, me worry?

2006-05-07T13:57:00-05:00

There’s a Starbucks opening up at Queen and Logan. Relax, people!

Four pods on the worst block in the city: 502 Eastern

2006-03-27T14:00:00-05:00

The city’s worst block on which to live has an anomalous four-pod co-op: <a href="/housing/502Eastern/" title="502 Eastern Ave.">502 Eastern</a>, two doors down from the Hell’s Angels. (May I borrow a cup of sugar?)

Worst building yet: 802 Eastern

2006-03-14T00:19:00-05:00

Yeah, we took a week off. Might be doing that more often, actually. In any event, this week, <a href="/housing/802Eastern/" title="802 Eastern Ave.">802 Eastern</a>, an ugly, sagging building smack dab on a dangerous corner. It’s our worst building yet

Two buildings I thought were twins

2006-03-02T14:42:00-05:00

New critique published: 137 Sears; 29 Louvain

‘dysPEPSIa’: A critique of the Spacers’ bible, ‘Utopia’

2006-02-20T12:23:00-05:00

<cite class="caps"><a href="http://Leslieville.org/spacing/utopia/" title="‘dysPEPSIa’"><small>dys</small>PEPSI<small>a</small></a></cite>, the long-awaited <a href="http://Leslieville.org/spacing/utopia/" title="‘dysPEPSIa’">critique</a> of the book <cite>Utopia</cite>, written mostly by our friends in the west end who love Toronto and want it, or at least the west end, to improve

New building this week: 1167 Queen

2006-02-20T12:22:00-05:00

New critique published: 1167 Queen St. East, with its awful entrance and curious wall around a parking garage

New building this week: 1187 Queen

2006-02-13T13:23:00-05:00

New critique published: 1187 Queen St. East, a building rather unfortunately in the shape of a warehouse

So much for living in the Foundry District

2006-02-06T16:31:00-05:00

Rather big <a href="/foundrydistrict/#N2006.02.06" title="News item">news</a> on the Foundry District: The City may reject the application to redevelop the area. The applicant, the Rose Corp., has already appealed to the <acronym title="Ontario Municipal Board">OMB</acronym>. Most importantly, by agreement between the City and the applicant, <em>there will be no residential uses</em> of any redevelopment. So there won’t <em>be</em> anyone living there if the agreement holds

New building this week: The alleged deaf building, the Woodfield

2006-02-06T16:30:00-05:00

New critique published: The Woodfield, 1480 Queen St. East

New building this week: That postmodern home for aboriginals, the Maddy Harper Lodge

2006-01-28T00:43:06-05:00

Maddy Harper Lodge, 86 Jones above Queen. It’s so postmodern it’s got a pyramid on top... or is it a teepee?

Three buildings in two complexes all critiqued at once

2006-01-23T09:00:06-05:00

1555/1575 Queen; 1080 Eastern, the former a kind of recognizable, even Soviet approach to social-housing gulags, the latter an ordinary building with a much better view

New building critiqued: 126 Coxwell

2006-01-15T18:45:00-05:00

126 Coxwell, a near-clone of 970 Eastern, which is an inauspicious start right there. Also: New author photos

The Free City of Leslieville launches

2006-01-08T17:11:00-05:00

The Free City of Leslieville launches: A new site about the Leslieville district in South Riverdale, Toronto, including articles and critiques of social-housing architecture