Solaris said:
I've merge Oxford's current Yorkdale Mall plan with the future expansion area to create the following:

Click to Enlarge
Click to expand...

Nice job Solaris - I was going to do the same thing but you did an excellent job of putting them together. Gives you a whole new perspective when you see it layed out like this.
 
Work is definitely underway. The south lot is blocked off with portable Jersey barriers, and there's excavation equipment already on site. The parking space signs are showing the south lot as crossed out for available spaces.
 
Picking up on a few comments from the last few days, does anybody know what happened to the proposed restoration of "Arc en Ciel" at Yorkdale Station? Back in November, BlogTO reported that the TTC was in discussion with Yorkdale about restoring the public-art piece as part of the expansion, but I haven't heard anything about it in the news reports, etc.

The blogTO article is here: http://www.blogto.com/arts/2010/11/michael_haydens_arc_en_ciel_might_return_to_yorkdale_station/ and I've included a snippet below.

Anybody with some insider info?

- J.

**

Michael Hayden's wonderful light installation, Arc en ciel, which was completed in 1978 but subsequently dismantled in the mid 1990s, may once again grace the roof of Yorkdale Subway Station. I first learned of the potential resurrection of the piece after I published a mournful article about its disappearance late last week. In the comment thread, TTC-expert Steve Munro noted that "at the September TTC meeting, former Chair Howard Moscoe reported that as part of a deal involving the expansion of Yorkdale Mall, the developer will pay for the restoration of "Arc en ciel..."

That's exciting news, to say the least. In search of some concrete details, I contacted TTC Director of Corporate Communications, Brad Ross, who confirmed that the former TTC chair had indeed "made a deputation seeking approval to reinstate the artwork at no cost to the TTC, which was approved."...
 
The walkway from Yorkdale Mall to the Yorkdale subway station is mediocre at best. Steps up, steps down, no elevators, and not very accessible. The current expansion (and the old expansion as well) does not address this problem. Also not very accessible from the Dufferin bus, either.
 
^ It needs to be addressed, no doubt. The up and down is not completely necessary.

The route that it takes: Up to go over the local road, down to go under Allen Road, then up to the elevated subway.

An underground tunnel would have been a better choice for pedestrian convenience. There would still be one up escalator to track level. This is the case with every other subway station anyway. An elevator would need to be added and I'm surprised we haven't even heard about one yet. This station is still 100% inaccessible.
 
I'm not sure about an underground tunnel per se; however, I wouldn't be surprised if that whole office building section is rebuilt someday...
 
I'm not sure how a tunnel would solve anything either. You'd still need to go down and then back up again, as the mall's first floor is at the second story height at this end.
 
I guess folks here don't go to Yorkdale these?? If so, you would noticed that the counstruction for the expansion is well underway with big holes in the ground.

Very rare I every go to that mall and did so after coming down from Sheppard, after doing a photo shoot. I wanted to go out the east doors to the parking lot and it was block off as well all exit to the lot are block off up to the west entrance of Sears.

photos to follow
 
Ya, I've seen the construction fairly often, but it's not really anything too exciting as of yet.
 
June 18
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The one thing I wish this expansion would include is ALL GLASS ROOFs in the halls like the area where Old Navy Guess LULU is.. Its easiest the nicest area of the current mall because the light makes you almost feel as if you are outside... It would be great if more of the mall had this feature.
 
Funnily enough, Yorkdale *always* had that outdoors-airiness about it, thanks to the original part being defined by glass clerestories (even if said clerestories were veiled by diaphanous curtains 99% of the time). It's only subsequently that hub-mall architecture around these parts became sealed-off and internalized. (The high-on-Brutalism late 60s/early 70s had a way of doing that.)
 
new video about the expansion... http://www.yorkdale.com/expansion/

Also I was thinking about the rest of the parking lot and I was thinking about how it might be interesting to vision a "SHops at Don Mills" addition, thaT could hide parking, add outdoor stores, and make the whole place more pedestrian friendly. Just a thought. (especially west of the new expansion all the way to Dufferin street)
 
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