ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ is best experienced by walking. The street life of our neighbourhoods, our hidden ravines, the small notes of history that have survived our constant urban renewal … what we love most about our city is best seen up close and at a leisurely pace. It’s no wonder, then, that ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ is home to dozens of groups, volunteers and professionals dedicated to the art of urban walking, from historians and nature lovers to architects, athletes and more. We asked a select group of these walking experts — ,Ìý, the , the City of ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½, and “Stroll†author Shawn Micallef, to share their favourite ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ walks. Here’s the second walk in our guide to some of the best walks in ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½, as selected by the experts.
Big changes on sleepy Dupont
Type: Urban
Location: Midtown to West Side
Distance: 5km
From: Shawn Micallef, author of “Stroll”
Ready for some urban exploration? For decades, Dupont Street was midtown ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½â€™s sleepy, semi-industrial back route, but today it is one of the most radically changed landscapes in the city. New buildings seemingly appear monthly, changing the entire skyline.
Begin at Avenue Road and head west along the top of the Annex neighbourhood to ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½â€™s funkiest subway station at Spadina Road, . Take a short detour north on Spadina and visit the ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ Archives and the current free exhibition, “Under the Wrecking Ball: Shaping ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½â€™s Downtown 1960-1989.â€
ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW
Vesta Lunch on Dupont St.
R.J. Johnston ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ Star
If you like to walk around ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ here are a few recommendations of where you should take your next stroll.
Kelsey Wilson
West of Spadina is where the Dupont landscape changes really begin, with new residential buildings and ground-floor commercial replacing auto shops, parking lots and some of the last affordable artist spaces in the city.
At Dovercourt is the former Hamilton Gear and Machine Company, a green glass factory building that dates to 1911. The factory manufactured parts for the St. Lawrence Seaway and the SkyDome’s retractable roof.
The Galleria Mall and its parking lot at Dufferin Street comprise the biggest cluster of the new Dupont skyline. Since Dupont was created in stages as it was woven through a growing city, it has a series of “kinks†in it and, when approaching from the east, the one at Dufferin creates a rather dramatic view of a new flatiron building on the Galleria site.
As Dupont continues west, auto body shops can still be found among popular new restaurants, a mix that ends at the West ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ Railpath and Dundas Street.
Shawn Micallef is a leading ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ urbanist and a long-time contributing columnist to the ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ Star. Fifteen years ago, his book “Stroll†offered an exploration of the city on foot; an updated edition was released last year by Coach House Books.
Asma Sahebzada is a ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½-based general assignment reporter
for the Star. Reach her via email: asahebzada@thestar.ca
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