[whatever]

"Protected" doesn't really mean anything in this city. They'd just have to agree to maintain the facades and maybe make a donation to the upkeep of Dundas Square.

That aside I would love to see the base of the Torch painted red. The square and its surrounding are oppressively grey (doubly so in winter) and a vibrant red feature there would really break it up. Having it light up at night would also be a welcome change, and I'd also like to see the backlit signs replaced with curved LED screens. Hopefully the ticker is also high-res enough to display graphics as well.

 

[MetroMan]

I was hoping for curved signs as well but I've heard nothing about that. I think they're keeping the current flat display and billboard

The original idea was to take down the torch structure and build a major iconic multimedia feature with multiple facets made up of screens. It either proved too costly or they just didn't have enough time to build it.

I think this building will evolve over time, just as 299 Queen W. did before it.

Maintaining the grey was a bit disappointing but I'm fairly certain that it will fall into the background once the signage goes up. There's quite a bit of lit signs going on the West façade and the hints of red will brighten it all up.

 

[CodeMonkey]

I think this building will evolve over time, just as 299 Queen W. did before it.

I agree, it took time for Citytv to fully use the Queen St studios after they moved in 1987, it wasn't really till the early 90's that the building exterior was fully used and became a icon for the station. The same will happen with the dundas studios, its just going to take some time till they get used to using the building fully and the square.

Maintaining the grey was a bit disappointing but I'm fairly certain that it will fall into the background once the signage goes up. There's quite a bit of lit signs going on the West façade and the hints of red will brighten it all up.

I hate the grey as well, but then again what colour would work for the exterior? I can't think of any that would look good on that building.

 

[dt_toronto_geek]

A step down from 299 Queen West ... don't think so !

It's more like a jump off the cliff ~

Good one! Yes, I definitely should have used stronger terms to describe the downgrade.


I'm also in agreement, although disappointed in what's been done to the exterior I'm confident that over time they'll continue upgrading the exterior of the building and in the end it will be fine.

The stage and raised east end of Yonge-Dundas Square are additional problems in of themselves. They're a real barrier to CityTV Omni.

 

[MetroMan]

^ I think the picture window solves that problem. It focuses the attention within that window which can be seen from any point in the square, well above the stage.

The BT people were having issues with that in fact but it seems they've found a good angle to avoid the garage entrance.

Rogers will probably lobby for or invest in a stage canopy that doesn't turn its back on their building. The original design of the square had that in mind. It was designed to not have a front, side or back... but the execution didn't deliver after compromises were made.

 

[Tewder]

I'm surprised they didn't use black for the facade. It is far more vibrant and would have drawn eyes in through the windows to the studios within. Still, any red accents would be a nice touch to this dreary neutral square.

And fingers crossed for curved screens on the torch which would vastly improve the impact of the tower. All in all it is clearly an improvement that as others say will hopefully only continue to get better.

 

[MetroMan]

I just got independent confirmation of the colored LED lighting from within the Torch from another source unrelated to the first one. Looks like that's really happening. It'll have a beautiful impact on the now dark part of the square.

The bad news? The current display and flat ad on the Torch are staying, at least for now. I was really crossing my fingers for curved versions of each.

 

[MetroMan]

I'm surprised they didn't use black for the facade. It is far more vibrant and would have drawn eyes in through the windows to the studios within. Still, any red accents would be a nice touch to this dreary neutral square.

And fingers crossed for curved screens on the torch which would vastly improve the impact of the tower. All in all it is clearly an improvement that as others say will hopefully only continue to get better.

Regarding the colour scheme, they did use black for most of the sidewalk level. I think it would have worked well carried to the curved portion on the roof to break the greyness. However, the combination of the white and red trims and the colourful signs will make all the difference once it's all done.

 

[MetroMan]

Tidbit: hoarding is coming down today.

 

[alklay]

The building is coming down today?! Yaaaaaahhhh! Oh, just the hording?

 

[CodeMonkey]

It's a specialty service, so there's no broadcast channel. Therefore, it would depend on who your provider is (i.e., Bell-TV, Rogers, Star Choice, etc.) As of now though, I haven't seen anything about any of the companies picking up this channnel, nor do they have to based on its licensing (although, it's a shoe-in that Rogers will be carrying it and likely assigning it a somewhat low number).

I can see Rogers putting it on Channel 1, seeing its consider a digital channel and it's not part of the protective channel lineup. As for Bell and Shaw; Bell could carry it seeing that Rogers and Bell seem to be friendly to each other these days(if there commercials are any hint). Shaw doesn't seem to have any hostilely towards Rogers at the moment so they may pick it up. But what channel they may be on is anyone's guess.

Tidbit: hoarding is coming down today.

With the hoarding coming down, there doesn't seem to be any work done on the so called radio station moving in to the tower part. They haven't even removed the "Podium Cafe" signs.

 

[MetroMan]

^ The hoarding was right up against the tower's base so there was little room to work. I suspect they're going to erect hoarding around the podium taking up the entire sidewalk in the vicinity.

So hoarding coming down is good news: it looks like they're ready to work on the torch's podium now.

Most of the work is done on the Victoria St. façade. There are just a few missing tiles, the ticker and the logo signs need to be installed, nothing that requires hoarding, just a portable crane and yellow tape or a fence.

I'm going by a second hand source now but they seem to be getting reliable info so I'll keep posting what I hear: The OMNI and Rogers signs are going to be installed as early as tomorrow or over the weekend along with additional lit signage along the ground floor studio's glazing.

 

[Torontovibe]

^ The hoarding was right up against the tower's base so there was little room to work. I suspect they're going to erect hoarding around the podium taking up the entire sidewalk in the vicinity.

So hoarding coming down is good news: it looks like they're ready to work on the torch's podium now.

Most of the work is done on the Victoria St. façade. There are just a few missing tiles, the ticker and the logo signs need to be installed, nothing that requires hoarding, just a portable crane and yellow tape or a fence.

I'm going by a second hand source now but they seem to be getting reliable info so I'll keep posting what I hear: The OMNI and Rogers signs are going to be installed as early as tomorrow or over the weekend along with additional lit signage along the ground floor studio's glazing.

And what about covering up the HVAC units on the roof? Those things are big and ugly.

 

[dt_toronto_geek]

And what about covering up the HVAC units on the roof? Those things are big and ugly.

Without a doubt they'll eventually address that with fins along the roofline or something of the sort

 

[CodeMonkey]

Without a doubt they'll eventually address that with fins along the roofline or something of the sort

Hopefully