Browsing the city stacks for inspiration
Walking the city, exploring, is one way to understand this city we live in, but we can do the same in the library. The miles of aisles at the Toronto Reference Library reveal a lot about this place. The second floor, with the urban affairs collection (which was once at Metro Hall) is great for this. Without fail, randomly browsing either generates new ideas or produces some interesting old gems, like this one above.
You might think this is a contemporary book, but look at the city hall featured. People have been hating on Toronto since at least 1956, when this one was published. We ought not to care by now.
Etobicoke's more genteel history too. The collection at TRL gets quite specific to pre-amalgamation cities and even neighbourhood and street level.
Apart from the creative and historical books, there are shelves full of City of Toronto studies and plans. Everything you wanted to know about how the city came to be, what makes it run, and what could have been. That last part can be a bit depressing.
Talking about transit in Scarborough and on Eglinton is not a new phenomena in Toronto. These studies are a few decades old.
O'Keefe-now-Sony was just renovated, years after this first study proposed it. Did you know Earl Bales Park in North York has an outdoor theatre? One of the neatest places in Toronto, right by the ski hill.
For a moment I thought this said "Cool buildings in downtown Toronto". That would be a good book.
Before there was the West Don Lands developement happening now, there was Ataratiri. Millions were spent on this mixed-use housing plan that was ultimately cancelled in the 1990s.
Toronto never sounded so adventurous.
More stories.
Diving into any of this will at the very least help you procrastinate on something else, entertain, but possible get you thinking about what you might like to write about Toronto or go out and see for yourself.
One thought on “Browsing the city stacks for inspiration”
What, that book title wasn’t “Cool Buildings in Toronto”? (actually, I read it as “Coolest buildings”). Your work and talks sound intriguing. Wish I could make it to “Walking the City for Inspiration” (I’m a children’s book writer interested in cities and their stories, located in Vancouver).