Quote:
Originally Posted by rgalston
That aerial photo amazes me every time I see it. It seems like every modern tower at Portage and Main took out chunks of the city, with demolition eventually extending far beyond the new skyscraper's floorplate. It wasn't for the growing need for a greater concentration of office space, but for the city's general pre-occupation with winning that golden ticket and being "like other cities" that allowed them to demolish--even into the late '80s and early '90s--what would be the southern HALF of the Exchange District.
Here's a photo of Portage and Main from the south, c. 1948:
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While it is true that some of the old buildings were very impresive. The fact is the tenants of some of those buildings wanted newer, larger and more modern work environments. TD who leased a good part of that corner required new office space. Winnipeg's highly recognized intersection was is high demand by those same leading tenants. Either way, the probability of those buildings being occupied beyond levels of the Union Building (old Royal Bank Building) today, is not very high. Winnipeg may have only forgone its place in the modern advancement of commercial space.