The Gladstone Hotel is a hotel in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was built in 1889 and is named after Gladstone Avenue, next to the hotel. Parkdale hotel area designed by local architect G.M. Miller in the Romanesque Revival style. The Gladstone Hotel is one of the oldest hotel buildings still operating as a hotel in Toronto. Since the renovation in the early 2000s, the hotel has become an art center in the West Queen West neighborhood of Toronto.
Video Gladstone Hotel (Toronto)
Architecture
The hotel was designed by George Martell Miller, the architect of the Lillian Massey building of the University of Toronto, many other public buildings in the city, as well as a large number of large residential buildings in Parkdale neighborhood. Building permissions issued in September 1889 with a value of CA $ 30,000 .
The hotel is designed in the Richardsonian Roman style - in popular style periods for public buildings such as train depots, churches and libraries. Gladstone's architectural style is characterized by rough cut stone and bricks and by dramatic arches in the windows and entrances of the terraces. The hotel tower is also a hallmark of this style. The dome was removed in 1940 because it was damaged.
The Gladstone retains the original plaster molds in large alleys. At the hotel's Melody Bar, the two restored faux marble ruins have been made in true European fresco techniques. No other architectural pillar like this exists in Toronto. The carefully restored Victorian lift (1903) is one of Toronto's last hand operated elevators. Zeidler Partnership and Eb Zeidler are architects for hotel restoration.
Maps Gladstone Hotel (Toronto)
History
The hotel was built in 1889, opposite Queen Street from the existing Parkdale railway station, which serves Grand Trunk, the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR), and the Canadian National Railway (CNR) company. In addition to serving three major railway companies, it also provides visitors who attend the Canada National Exhibition (CNE) residence. The original owner, Susanna Robinson, is a widow who operates and lives in a hotel with 13 of her children. Her husband, Nixon Robinson, a brewer, died during the construction of the hotel.
The Gladstone is named for Gladstone Avenue, named after British prime minister William Ewart Gladstone. The hotel's monthly bulletin, Gladstone Bag, named for luggage style, is also named William Gladstone. Gladstone is one of the first ten hotels in Ontario to receive permission to allow customers to drink and play shuffleboard in a licensed alcohol area. At one time, Gladstone Hotel was the last place to get a booze before reaching Hamilton.
A report appeared on the Toronto Star on October 3, 1911, suggesting that Gladstone soon became the property of an established company. The owner at the time was Mr. Victor E. Gianelli. Interviewed by Star, Mr. Gianelli stated that the deal has not been closed, but the plan is to increase hotel size and improve facilities. In 1912, the Gladstone Hotel Company, where Mr. Thomas Slattery was the manager, purchased the Gladstone hotel property from Mr. Gianelli for $ 110,000. Mr. Slattery has previously bought a license for $ 60,000. It was reported that major changes should be made to the property.
Over the years the hotel is passed from owner to owner and gradually deteriorates its status. In the 1950s, the hotel was updated. with metal sheathing and glass block. The hotel was purchased by the Appelby family in 1964, and his family restored the exterior in 1989. The hotel bar is named "Bronco's" and is a venue for live country and western music. In 1992, artist Walt Rushton, who lives in the hotel, painted a mural of historic transportation methods in Canada as a Toronto 200 year anniversary project at the Gladstone Avenue window of the hotel. The son of boxer George Chuvalo was found dead at the hotel in the mid-1990s due to a heroin overdose.
In 2000, the Tippins and Zeidler families bought 60 hotel rooms for <$ CA $ 2.25 million . Bronco became the jazz venue "Art Bar". In December 2001, the hotel was sold for $ 3.3 million. On February 20, 2002, co-owner Michael Tippin served notice of immediate expulsion to the tenant, citing the lack of insurance in the building; however, last-minute delays by Margaret Zeidler let the tenants stay after the hotel closed. The next day, Zeidlers announced that they had found insurance for the hotel, which allowed it to stay open. The Zeidlers became the sole owner of the hotel in 2003 and the venue began holding art shows, openings and community meetings as well as live music.
In 2004, Zeidlers began the restoration of the hotel, which was completed in 2005. Eberhard Zeidler is the architect involved and his two daughters, Margie and Christina, oversee operations and management. Margaret Zeidler, involved in the restoration of Richmond Street West, initially bought the hotel and arranged for her sister to run the hotel. The owners invite local artists to compete in the competition for new designs for hotel rooms, each with a concept or main idea. The renovation reduced the number of rooms to 37, each one-of-a-kind, from the winning proposal. The Gladstone continues the bar and open space event venue and operates throughout the restoration process.
The long-term tenants were transferred out of the hotel in June 2004, when it became clear that the hotel needed extensive renovation and the third and fourth hotel floors (hotel room floors) required three months of closing. Zeidler helps them find new homes in the community before embarking on a restoration project. Families provide financial support and employees at the hotel work to find homes for the elderly and at risk. Several former residents moved to Parkview Arms Hotel, down Queen Street beside Trinity Bellwoods Park. The story of the abandoned tenant is documented in the documentary film Last Call At The Gladstone Hotel .
In 2004, Gladstone began hosting the Come Up To My Room, an alternative design exhibition featuring new and established local artistic talent/design, established together and co-curated by Christina Zeidler and Pamila Matharu. It is run annually as part of the Toronto Design Offsite Festival, during Toronto Design Week.
Last Call at Gladstone Hotel
The documentary, Last Call at Gladstone Hotel , was made by Last Call Productions as a portrait of the effects of urban renewal on the poor, as Gladstone is being converted from a homeless flophouse into art and music hotspots. It was shot over a five-year span, suggesting that the developer plans for a gradual recovery with the staff and residents remaining upstairs, while downstairs the bar presents designer drinks for new, prosperous customers not working. The city inspector demanded a complete rework, the boiler exploded leaving the hotel without heat, the ceiling leaked, the walls collapsed and management had to overcome this fact.
See also
- Drake Hotel (Toronto)
References
External links
- Toronto city, historic plaque, and hotel photo
- Emporis Building site - The Gladstone Hotel (photo, profile)
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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