See what the TTC could be.
Tonight is the opening night of an art exhibit set to to “re-imagine the TTC”. The idea is to take away the ads and let the artists use what remains as a blank slate for their imaginations. While in the real world I don’t see the ads going anywhere, I appreciate the energy being spent by those who have grander visions of what Toronto can be.
Having just chosen this town as my new home last year, I struggle to relate with the feeling of dissatisfaction with where the city is. From my “rose colored” perspective Toronto is an incredible city, certainly the best I’ve ever lived in. However I can really appreciate the effort by those who think it could be even better.
Minneapolis was a city crafted by a vision of what a city could be. Wrapping itself around the string of lakes within it’s borders, and split by the headwaters of the Mississippi, Minneapolis owes itself to the visionarys of its past. Combined with it’s miles and miles of non-motorized traffic lanes, Minneapolis has established itself as a benchmark (to me anyway) for how to use public space and allow it to make the city better. It’s not without flaws to be sure, but their was a vision for what it could be.
Reading the work of essayists in uTOpia and the crew behind Spacing who have a vision for what Toronto could be makes me even more excited than I already was to be a part of this city.
OK, now let’s tear down the Gardner like we were East Berliner’s in the ninety’s. 
[ Original link probably by chrisnolan.ca, but maybe from Spacing Wire ]
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Probably me linking to Spacing Wire
The exhibit runs all weekend I believe. The Star did up a review of it yesterday too which was nice to see.