Pedestrianize the street and you civilize the city

After decades of being hard to find, Ryerson University is suddenly impossible to ignore. Take a walk along Gould St. east of Yonge and the changes are there for all to see and enjoy. Most obvious is the road itself, which has been (mostly) closed to traffic. In its newly pedestrianized incarnation, Gould has finally become the main street Ryerson never had but always wanted.

It is a model for the whole city, a hint at what might be wrought in Toronto were we to elect an intelligent, urban, grown-up mayor. As it is, Ryerson spent something like 13 years cajoling the city into shutting sections of Gould, and that was before Rob Ford became mayor. Truly, Toronto succeeds despite itself. One can’t help but wonder how much longer we can rely on good luck, but so far it has worked brilliantly.

Then there’s the nearly finished Ryerson Image Centre, a remade warehouse on the south side of Gould between Victoria and Bond Sts. Newly clad in glass — both opaque and transparent — it is as cool a building as can be found on campus, at least until 2014 when the Student Learning Centre opens at Yonge and Gould. Ground was broken just a week ago on the latter, so there’s not much to see yet. Designed by one of Norway’s most exciting architectural firms, Snohetta, with the Zeidler Partnership of Toronto, this will be a gateway to the Ryerson campus and a landmark for the whole city.

By contrast, the Image Centre feels like a building unconcerned with attracting attention; it is confident but reticent, even reluctant. It fills space effortlessly, even elegantly, notwithstanding this sense of restraint.

No one would complain about architectural restraint, of course, but as one of the new buildings on the new Gould, it might have gone a little further in establishing a stronger sense of place. This offering from Toronto’s Diamond Schmitt Architects is an arrangement of different-sized boxes. Those facing the sidewalks are clad in clear glass; those up above the exteriors turn translucent.

How much more appealing would it have been if the building had spilled out onto the street and, to the west, entered into a genuine relationship with Devonian Square, better known as Lake Devo? Instead, the space between the building and the pool is cramped and cut off; barely room to walk let alone put a few chairs and tables.

The Ryerson Image Centre comes alive after dark when illuminated from within by coloured lights. That’s when the glass loses its inertness and starts to glow.

Still, one leaves with the impression of a building that might have been more nuanced in its response to campus conditions. As handsome as the architecture is, it feels strangely unfinished. Inside, the most compelling parts are those that will house new galleries. Set to open in September, these large glass-walled rooms soar impressively.

The ground-floor café serves as the main point of connection between the centre and the city beyond. It is tucked into a section of the building that has been set back to create an outdoor opening. But what’s needed is an interior that flows onto the street and colonizes it. That could have been accomplished with something as simple as movable walls.

Though vastly improved, Gould is still a conventional Toronto street arrayed now with chairs, tables and giant planters to keep traffic at bay. What it still desperately needs are signs that the transformation will be left intact and even improved. Some sort of paving and perhaps the removal of the curbs would alter the way we read the space and use it.

On Victoria, the damage has been done. With its parking garage and a Tim Hortons that’s arguably Toronto’s ugliest, it reminds us that throughout much of the city the public realm is a mess. Pedestrians are advised to keep walking. chume@thestar.ca