[yonderbean]

Vandals!

I went by a few days ago but I was so disheartened I couldn't bring myself to raise my camera. And why oh why must it always be painted some sickly beige colour with wimpy tacked on details?!?

 

[Silence&Motion]

[video=youtube;31g0YE61PLQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31g0YE61PLQ[/video]

 

[jje1000]

This is so sad.

I suppose that plans change all the time, and the best intents can sometimes be waylaid due to cost.

 

[Blovertis]

This is so sad.

I suppose that plans change all the time, and the best intents can sometimes be waylaid due to cost.

Don't make excuses for cheap crap. The condition of that building's brick, contrary to that shill who was posting here earlier, looked fine to me. The truth is that EIFS is primarily an insulation system -- a quick and dirty way to make an old building "energy-efficient" from the outside, rather than having to go to the expense of stripping the interior, reframing and installing fibreglass pink.

 

[LowPolygon]

from my perspective, the use of EIFS is reaching crisis proportions in the city. i think we are approaching critical mass, where this blight is starting to seriously impact the architectural integrity and heritage of the city.

while it is depressing to see any building coated with this garbage--one is now seeing an increasing number of architecturally notable buildings being destroyed in this way--from the Victorian posted here, to hundreds of lovely
Edwardian homes, 20s-30s apartment buildings, 50s-60s modernist office buildings, apts and shops, the whole gamut. it's like an invasive species or a virus, gobbling up perfectly fine buildings, replacing them with characterless, lifeless, dead shadows of themselves. and sadly, it is also the blight of the future.

i keep waiting for it to abate, for another solution to emerge-but it just seems to get worse and worse.

the most chilling thing about it that the EIFS industry is a formidable enemy.

whoever is selling this system to owners is not only preying on their architectural ignorance, but they are also incredibly effective and aggressive at getting people signed up. these salesmen seem to be spreading tentacles out over the entire city, gobbling up one neighbourhood after another. and it is a total racket, because any owner that acquiesces is actually decreasing the value of their property.

i'm curious as to who exactly is promoting and selling this system. is it a few big companies? a whole bunch of mom and pops? are there trade associations and trade publications involved in pushing it? is it word of mouth among similarly budget conscious, architecturally illiterate building owners?

solution wise, i've often wondered about the efficacy of mounting a public awareness campaign that seeks to both educate property owners and call out the industry for selling what amounts to a weapon of mass historical destruction.

one wonders whether a few high-profile articles, social media campaigns, hashtag eifsblight, etc. might be enough to at least get a conversation going in the City of Toronto about this very troubling phenomenon. it might start to make owners at least stop and think for a minute, before the pull the trigger on murdering their own property.

 

[Blovertis]

from my perspective, the use of EIFS is reaching crisis proportions in the city. i think we are approaching critical mass, where this blight is starting to seriously impact the architectural integrity and heritage of the city.

while it is depressing to see any building coated with this garbage--one is now seeing an increasing number of architecturally notable buildings being destroyed in this way--from the Victorian posted here, to hundreds of lovely
Edwardian homes, 20s-30s apartment buildings, 50s-60s modernist office buildings, apts and shops, the whole gamut. it's like an invasive species or a virus, gobbling up perfectly fine buildings, replacing them with characterless, lifeless, dead shadows of themselves. and sadly, it is also the blight of the future.

i keep waiting for it to abate, for another solution to emerge-but it just seems to get worse and worse.

the most chilling thing about it that the EIFS industry is a formidable enemy.

whoever is selling this system to owners is not only preying on their architectural ignorance, but they are also incredibly effective and aggressive at getting people signed up. these salesmen seem to be spreading tentacles out over the entire city, gobbling up one neighbourhood after another. and it is a total racket, because any owner that acquiesces is actually decreasing the value of their property.

i'm curious as to who exactly is promoting and selling this system. is it a few big companies? a whole bunch of mom and pops? are there trade associations and trade publications involved in pushing it? is it word of mouth among similarly budget conscious, architecturally illiterate building owners?

solution wise, i've often wondered about the efficacy of mounting a public awareness campaign that seeks to both educate property owners and call out the industry for selling what amounts to a weapon of mass historical destruction.

one wonders whether a few high-profile articles, social media campaigns, hashtag eifsblight, etc. might be enough to at least get a conversation going in the City of Toronto about this very troubling phenomenon. it might start to make owners at least stop and think for a minute, before the pull the trigger on murdering their own property.

I just did a quick Google search, but it looks like EIFS is a bug business, complete with trade associations, lobbying groups etc.

We should start our own lobbying group, at the very least. I can't even look at the scaffolding when I drive by, it makes me so sick.

 

[LowPolygon]

I just did a quick Google search, but it looks like EIFS is a bug business, complete with trade associations, lobbying groups etc.

We should start our own lobbying group, at the very least. I can't even look at the scaffolding when I drive by, it makes me so sick.

ugh, that's what i was afraid of. i really think the situation has reached such a point of severity that people who care need to start responding in some way...
what that way might be is unclear, but i would bet there are many people out there who are increasingly angry and distressed at the spread of this plague.

 

[Silence&Motion]

it is depressing to see any building coated with this garbage... it's like an invasive species or a virus, gobbling up perfectly fine buildings, replacing them with characterless, lifeless, dead shadows of themselves. and sadly, it is also the blight of the future.

For example, see this rather characterless, lifeless building in September 2011, and then a few months later in April 2012 it becomes somehow even more characterless and lifeless.

Edit: Also, I just noticed that the virus seems to be spreading to that handsome Art Deco building next door. ::shiver::

 

[junctionist]

Ah yes, Motel 6. The Wonderbra of architecture. It's what surrounds and supports the voluptuous downtown that you want to see the most. We're heading down to the core, but we're not taking rapid transit this time, baby.

 

[thecharioteer]

Just drove by 1862 Bathurst Street (south of Eglinton) the other day. Built in 1952, and I think one of the more interesting mid-century Modern apartment houses in the city, it has recently been EIFS'd utilizing a cream and brown colour-scheme (sorry, no pics)......

1952:

Until recently:

 

[LowPolygon]

apparently the owners were looking at a 70K quote for repointing etc. which is why they went the EIFS route.

this is the biggest project this particular owner has taken on. 24 rooms inside with decent finishes. i'm not sure about the Motel 6 connection. i was told it was going to be called the "Royal Oak"

the same owners have purchased another property somewhere on King St East that they are starting to convert to a hotel later in the year, with 120 rooms.

it too will be covered with EIFS. i wonder what that building might be? i'm thinking it is probably east of Parliament, because west of Parliament would be too expensive for these guys.

 

[saynotofaux]

This is so deplorable. I have a pretty good idea of what that person in thedeepend's first photo must be thinking...

 

[Xray_Crystal_Junkie]

So they destroyed one of the doorways. What about the main one on the corner? What does that look like now?

Anyone have contact information? I'd be more than happy to spend some time on an expletive laced email detailed my thoughts. Or even a phone call.

 

[LowPolygon]

So they destroyed one of the doorways. What about the main one on the corner? What does that look like now?

Anyone have contact information? I'd be more than happy to spend some time on an expletive laced email detailed my thoughts. Or even a phone call.

The new owner is Haseeb Mushtaq (Sam): haseebmushtaq@yahoo.com.

“The Royal Oak Hotel 376 Dundas Street East has been recently purchased by an experienced hotel operator who is moving forward with a complete interior gut and renovation. Area residents recently met with Haseeb Mushtaq the new owner and he presented plans for a 21 room mid range hotel with a cafe on the street level. He intends to operate the hotel and lease out the cafe/lobby area and boulevard patio to an experienced cafe/coffee shop operator. Formal plans have been presented to the City Planning/Permit Department and interior demolition is underway. We will keep in contact with the new owner and keep area residents informed of new developments.â€


i'm very concerned about the 120 room EIFS magnum opus Sam has planned for King St E. that one might they need an intervention.

 

[Dilla]

The new owner is Haseeb Mushtaq (Sam): haseebmushtaq@yahoo.com.

Thanks for the email. I just sent him a real nasty one. If it turns into a flame war, I'll post.