Consumers

Back in 1988, while pretending to be an Urban Planning student at Ryerson, I had the opportunity to work in Canada's first master planned community, Don Mills. Now, the job wasn't exactly planning-related, although Music World did give me plans to get out of planning and into record retail (both long-gone fantasies). Don Mills Centre as it was died in 1996, as I've posted about here: http://photoblair.blogspot.com/2009/04/don-mills-centre-2006.html , and was reborn as The Shops at Don Mills, which I posted about here: http://photoblair.blogspot.com/2009/04/shops-at-don-mills-2009.html

Well yesterday, in an adjacent strip-plaza on the Donway West, a sign emerged from beneath one for a recently-deceased Blockbuster Video, one for the classic Canadian catalogue chain Consumers Distributing, which itself died in 1996. I was tempted to go ask for a fondue set or shag area rug, but just like back then, they were likely out of stock.

Photos taken August 29, 2010 on The Donway West in Don Mills/North York/Toronto, Ontario

The Shops At Don Mills - 2009

After adorning the north wall of the former Eaton's store at the old Don Mills Centre, Charles Staffer's "Don Mills Montage" now faces Lawrence Avenue from the wall between Mark McEwan's unfinished gourmand epicerie (pretentiousness mine) and the Ontario government plonkatorium.

Wall detail.

"Clock Tower" by Douglas Coupland

You are here. Somewhere.

Domin....I mean Metro carts. One of the few survivors of the old mall, if not in name.

The new anchor of the plaza, Winnipeg's McNally Robinson Booksellers. Thank gawd it wasn't a Chapters/Indigo.


This sure isn't your (grand)mother's Don Mills Centre. Today, Ontario's first "lifestyle centre" (a/k/a strip plaza with obscenely overpriced stores) opened on the southwest corner of Lawrence Avenue West and Don Mills Road.

Photos taken Wednesday, April 22, 2009 at the Shops on Don Mills, North York, Ontario.