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simply Dan
Guest
Only a portion of the building. The other section was to become a railroad museum.
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MetroMan1000
Guest
As much as I like the idea of using a historical landmark (the Roundhouse) as a part of the expanded Toronto Metro Convention Centre, I like the idea better of restoring the turn table to functioning order and turn the Roundhouse into a rail museum.
Furthermore, I agree that the Front St. façade needs a revamping. It's windswept most of the year and is non-descript for the most part. It's such a long stretch of building that I think we could recruit Frank Gehry to give it an AGO Shield or something in that order.
Furthermore, I agree that the Front St. façade needs a revamping. It's windswept most of the year and is non-descript for the most part. It's such a long stretch of building that I think we could recruit Frank Gehry to give it an AGO Shield or something in that order.
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circuitboy84
Guest
I doubt Steamwhistle Brewing will leave the roundhouse.
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AlvinofDiaspar
Guest
Isn't part of MTCC (or maybe the district cooling system/water pumps) directly under the Roundhouse? I remember distinctively that about 1/3 of it was removed and rebuilt during the construction of MTCC south.
AoD
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mark simpson
Guest
^yeah with MTCC as, AFAIK, Enwave is surrounding the CN tower
rdaner
Senior Member
Taxpayers face ballooning bill for CNE centre
Despite budget cuts, politicians want city to lend $35.6 million for conference site in Automotive Building
Nov 15, 2007 04:30 AM
Paul Moloney
city hall bureau
The city's critical financial situation has not stopped councillors from recommending borrowing millions more to cover the ballooning costs of a new CNE conference centre.
The price tag of the development – a pet project of Deputy Mayor Joe Pantalone – has climbed to almost $47 million from $29 million and the city has been asked to increase its loan to Exhibition Place. The city-owned agency is building the conference centre in the Automotive Building.
Pantalone, the Exhibition Place chair who pushed for construction of the Ricoh Centre and BMO Field, yesterday urged the budget committee to boost the loan. The committee agreed to increase it to $35.6 million from $21.2 million. Now, council will vote on the increase on Dec. 11.
"I think people will have some questions, rightly so, and the questions will be answered and council will overwhelmingly support it, hopefully unanimously," Pantalone said yesterday.
The committee was told conventions are big business with bookings attracting thousands of participants often taking place years ahead of time.
The new centre is needed because while the Direct Energy Centre has massive amounts of exhibition space, there is very little meeting space for exhibitors and no ballroom, both of which are sought by convention goers, members of the budget committee were told.
The new centre would have a 45,400-square-foot ballroom, a 70,000-square-foot exhibit hall and 31,000 square feet of meeting rooms to serve trade and consumer shows booked into the adjoining Direct Energy Centre, formerly the National Trade Centre.
Projections indicate the new centre would generate sufficient revenues to repay the loan over 25 years at an interest rate of 5 per cent. Naming rights would also be sold off by the city. Still, the city's debt is $2.4 billion.
Centre costs have risen because of the need to remove seven pillars and give users unobstructed views, to provide separate climate controls for different rooms and to increase energy efficiency.
"I think the taxpayers need to be concerned when they see massive increases in project costs," said Councillor Denzil Minnan-Wong, a critic of Mayor David Miller's administration.
"It really does make you wonder what they got wrong in their first study," Minnan-Wong said. "It doesn't give you a lot of confidence in their business planning, in how they put their proposals together."
Pantalone said that while the construction industry is very busy, he's hoping there will be no further cost escalations and that contractors will sharpen their pencils to snare what Pantalone considers to be a prestige project.
Prices are due to come in at the end of the month for about 25 per cent of the project, so council will have some firm numbers to work with in making a decision Dec. 11, he said.
Despite budget cuts, politicians want city to lend $35.6 million for conference site in Automotive Building
Nov 15, 2007 04:30 AM
Paul Moloney
city hall bureau
The city's critical financial situation has not stopped councillors from recommending borrowing millions more to cover the ballooning costs of a new CNE conference centre.
The price tag of the development – a pet project of Deputy Mayor Joe Pantalone – has climbed to almost $47 million from $29 million and the city has been asked to increase its loan to Exhibition Place. The city-owned agency is building the conference centre in the Automotive Building.
Pantalone, the Exhibition Place chair who pushed for construction of the Ricoh Centre and BMO Field, yesterday urged the budget committee to boost the loan. The committee agreed to increase it to $35.6 million from $21.2 million. Now, council will vote on the increase on Dec. 11.
"I think people will have some questions, rightly so, and the questions will be answered and council will overwhelmingly support it, hopefully unanimously," Pantalone said yesterday.
The committee was told conventions are big business with bookings attracting thousands of participants often taking place years ahead of time.
The new centre is needed because while the Direct Energy Centre has massive amounts of exhibition space, there is very little meeting space for exhibitors and no ballroom, both of which are sought by convention goers, members of the budget committee were told.
The new centre would have a 45,400-square-foot ballroom, a 70,000-square-foot exhibit hall and 31,000 square feet of meeting rooms to serve trade and consumer shows booked into the adjoining Direct Energy Centre, formerly the National Trade Centre.
Projections indicate the new centre would generate sufficient revenues to repay the loan over 25 years at an interest rate of 5 per cent. Naming rights would also be sold off by the city. Still, the city's debt is $2.4 billion.
Centre costs have risen because of the need to remove seven pillars and give users unobstructed views, to provide separate climate controls for different rooms and to increase energy efficiency.
"I think the taxpayers need to be concerned when they see massive increases in project costs," said Councillor Denzil Minnan-Wong, a critic of Mayor David Miller's administration.
"It really does make you wonder what they got wrong in their first study," Minnan-Wong said. "It doesn't give you a lot of confidence in their business planning, in how they put their proposals together."
Pantalone said that while the construction industry is very busy, he's hoping there will be no further cost escalations and that contractors will sharpen their pencils to snare what Pantalone considers to be a prestige project.
Prices are due to come in at the end of the month for about 25 per cent of the project, so council will have some firm numbers to work with in making a decision Dec. 11, he said.
p5connex
Active Member
Until today, I had not heard about the south building of the MTCC sinking- that is not good at all. Not comparable in size or dimensions of use, but the Kansai Airport is sinking at it will ultimately, cost billions to fix. This problem for the MTCC gives me a sinking feeling (no pun intended) that it might actually have to be rebuilt.
I would also have to say that I am not the biggest fan of that park that they built on top- while it is an open green space and its not horrible, it is horribly windswept and has little else going for it- it almost seems disjointed with the rest of the city.
Question- is the Toronto Congress Centre out near the airport- well in Rexdale? If that is the same building it needs an overhaul- not just an addition.
p5
I would also have to say that I am not the biggest fan of that park that they built on top- while it is an open green space and its not horrible, it is horribly windswept and has little else going for it- it almost seems disjointed with the rest of the city.
Question- is the Toronto Congress Centre out near the airport- well in Rexdale? If that is the same building it needs an overhaul- not just an addition.
p5
MetroMan
Senior Member
MTCC South is sinking? Sounds rather apocryphal to me. I know that the area south of Front is all fill in what used to be a much larger Toronto Bay, but I can't imagine that they didn't dig deep enough when building MTCC South to hit the Dundas Shale that underlies the city. You certainly don't have to dig very far down to see it in construction sites all over town, and the CN Tower is anchored in it. If the building is sinking, it can't have far to go.
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I ended up in MTCC South on Saturday afternoon, and despite my attendance at the Gourmet Food and Wine Show, I did not find any of the floors to be wobbly. It can't be sinking.
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Hydrogen
Guest
And that assessment with wine.
It must be very stable then.
It must be very stable then.
Yeah, that's what I was getting at. Ziggactly.
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So, 10 years after the major overhaul was going to be needed owing to apocryphal stories of the building being too heavy I suppose… the big news is that the Convention Center IS STILL NOT SINKING!
One more tidbit to add to my earlier cynicism regarding that report, I've since learned that in many cases, buildings weigh less than the material that was excavated to build them, and this building, with its high floors, would easily be one of those on the weighs-less-than list.
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innsertnamehere
Superstar
What a thread revival!
I recall a few years ago hearing rumblings of a Convention Centre expansion.. I wonder what happened to that.
I recall a few years ago hearing rumblings of a Convention Centre expansion.. I wonder what happened to that.
Thank you, thank you very much! I'm here all week, folks.
Covid happened to that... I wonder if convention and trade show business has entirely bounced back yet, or if it's still lagging somewhat (probably), and to what degree?
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