A pair of demolitions underway this week…
First off and already gone, the former Horseshoe Battery on Ouellette Ave. on the south end of the Jackson Park overpass.
This one started the other day, and it’s already long gone. Not any kind of historic building, but one that was there as long as I can remember…
Secondly, the old Canadian Motor Lamp factory on Seminole, just east of Walker.
A part of our industrial heritage is leaving us. Interesting to note, we looked at this place back in 2006, and even then it looked unsafe and ready to collapse. If you’re interested, drive by and take a gander, cause this one will be gone soon.
Thanks to regular reader Paul B. for the heads up on the CML demolition.
Have a safe weekend everyone, we’ll see you back here Monday!
Meh to the top building.
Sad the lamp building wasn’t taken better care of. Could have been a decent building to have some kind of enterprise in.
I’m sure it hasn’t been ‘safe’ enough since the 1970s though. Long over due to smash it.
It truly is too bad though.
really sad to see the industrial buildings go. growing up i loved them, still do. too bad the front portion of the building can’t be saved and reused. it would make for a great entrance into living space or commercical space.
I drive my this building everyday on my way to work and noticed the fencing around it two days ago with a sign that says “Danger due to” and I was wondering due to what? I had a feeling it was going to be coming down. Looks like I may have to alter my route to work when the demo starts. On another note, the reno on the famous house (only famous because of the all dialogue it caused on this site) on the corner of Ontario Street and Devonshire is still not finished and looks like things have ground to a halt once again. On a good note there has been more activity on the Martin-Lowe house in the past couple of months than I can remember in the last twenty years. It now looks a house that someone lives in and cares about.
I really don’t see why these old buildings can’t be reused. There is no way it’s cheaper to build a new building out on the expressway. These buildings are mostly steel or concrete frames. Even though their facades look pretty bad it’s not hard to strip them to the bones and reclad them… Even if its in a metal skin, it’s still better than the sitting vacant or being demolished.
my wife used to work at the Ponderosa steak house when she was a teenager that was a couple doors south of the battery place
Like a couple of the above posters said its a shame to see the front of the CML building is being demolished.I think since CML moved out back in 69 this factory was not taken care of very well.Rockwell,Seminole Management and sun solar did not take care of this place during the 70s and 80s.Klinec MFG who owns the building now originally was planning on using this building as a warehouse but for some reason never did anything with it and allowed it to continue to decay.The CML building was well built and meant to last.I read a old windsor star article from 1944 that stated Canadian Motor Lamp hired 700 people to work at this plant during world war two to make the war helmets for the soldiers.
I’ll bet this is being torn down to make room for the Trade Centre parking just west of this site as there is very little parking for this venue now I heard they really want to make this Trade Centre a new venue. But charging an admission to see trailers and motorhomes is not my cup of tea. You want my to buy your wares and want me to pay to look at them ???
Question that popped up the other day in a conversation I was having…. are taxes cheaper for a blank piece of land, rather than one with a decapitated and unused building?
Scott, yes much lower. There is zero incentive to ever develop the vacant lots either…
As I thought. Thanks Andrew.
Went by yesterday and still no demolition underway ??? Orange fences up though….
I was the production superintendent at CML from 1962 until 1975. Met and worked with a lot of good people there, sad to see the old place go.
Didn’t Horseshoe Battery move there after a large fire destroyed their building when located at the horseshoe on Howard, near the horseshoe before Wyandotte?
Horseshoe had another fire at their Tecumseh location, but it was fixed, and there they remain.