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View Poll Results: Which city has the best skyline in Canada ?
Toronto 85 50.30%
Montréal 16 9.47%
Vancouver 33 19.53%
Calgary 25 14.79%
Edmonton 18 10.65%
Ottawa 1 0.59%
Winnipeg 7 4.14%
Québec City 4 2.37%
Hamilton 1 0.59%
Kitchener 5 2.96%
London 2 1.18%
Niagara Falls 1 0.59%
Halifax 3 1.78%
Other (Name it...) 2 1.18%
Multiple Choice Poll. Voters: 169. You may not vote on this poll

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  #41  
Old Posted Dec 22, 2018, 6:46 PM
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Originally Posted by hipster duck View Post
If it's over the past 50 years, I'd say Toronto's the most improved.
Toronto does look a lot nicer than it looked when I first got familiar with the city, right around the end of the 90's drought.

But Toronto had a bunch of early 20th century highrises and had some major 1960's-era office towers.

Calgary looked like this in 1967:


Source


I don't think any of these buildings stand out in the Calgary skyline today, and the Bow is one of the nicest skyscrapers in Canada.
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  #42  
Old Posted Dec 22, 2018, 6:49 PM
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Well I voted for Toronto and yes the CN Tower gives it the most iconic one and really the only one which is well known outside the country.

Vancouverès skyline is very much unlike anyother in NA. It has an amazing backdrop but thust the skyline itself looks very Latin American to me...........uninspiring with endless apt buildings of no particular interest and a central business district that is indistinguishable from the apts around it..

The whole poll thou is really unfair as having a poll with Toronto and smaller cities doesn`t really work. I think a fairer poll would be one for cities over a million and one for cities of less than that.
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  #43  
Old Posted Dec 22, 2018, 6:52 PM
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Originally Posted by SignalHillHiker View Post
Still Toronto. Especially viewed from the lake. I don't think it's possible to trick me into thinking it's another city from that angle.

Montreal and Quebec City do much better, in my opinion, on that "iconic" metric. Mount Royal and Chateau Frontenac always give it away.

The rest can probably easily be confused by most people. You could expect some to guess other Pacific Rim cities looking at a picture of Vancouver, or somewhere in the United States looking at Calgary/Edmonton. And the rest... I wouldn't expect people to know Portland, Maine, so I don't expect them to know the Atlantic Canadian cities.
If someone can't recognize Vancouver, then they probly won't recognize Toronto either. I can't think of too many cities that have such a dramatic backdrop as Vancouver. Maybe Hong Kong? But that looks far different than Vancouver.

The total package of things that Vancouver brings to a skyline shot is unmatched. Mountains, large waterfront, bridges, and a large, densely packed cityscape. When you add those up, Vancouver is the most interesting city to look at.
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  #44  
Old Posted Dec 22, 2018, 7:08 PM
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Vancouver also has its own tower style, now copied in many other cities in North America and beyond. Who else can say that?
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  #45  
Old Posted Dec 22, 2018, 8:18 PM
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Originally Posted by rousseau View Post
I'm thinking it's gotta be Edmonton. Two people from Edmonton can't be wrong!
Agreed. Plus we saw the same angle and same construction update for a while it's probably the skyline we are most familiar with.

Anyway, this question should be which is the second best skyline. Toronto is so obviously tops but the battle for #2 is interesting. Calgary, Montreal, and Vancouver can make a legitimate case.
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  #46  
Old Posted Dec 22, 2018, 8:20 PM
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Originally Posted by logan5 View Post
If someone can't recognize Vancouver, then they probly won't recognize Toronto either. I can't think of too many cities that have such a dramatic backdrop as Vancouver. Maybe Hong Kong? But that looks far different than Vancouver.

The total package of things that Vancouver brings to a skyline shot is unmatched. Mountains, large waterfront, bridges, and a large, densely packed cityscape. When you add those up, Vancouver is the most interesting city to look at.
I find I spend more time looking at the mountains and the ocean than I do of the actual buildings when presented with a pic of the Vancouver skyline.
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  #47  
Old Posted Dec 22, 2018, 8:41 PM
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Originally Posted by Mrs Sauga View Post
Agreed. Plus we saw the same angle and same construction update for a while it's probably the skyline we are most familiar with.

Anyway, this question should be which is the second best skyline. Toronto is so obviously tops but the battle for #2 is interesting. Calgary, Montreal, and Vancouver can make a legitimate case.
I'd agree with that logic. Toronto is unquestionably the most impressive (building-wise). Building-wise, I'd say that only Montreal and Calgary are actual contenders for second place, but taking into account natural settings and/or diversity of architectural styles, I'd add in Vancouver, Edmonton, and Quebec City as well.

Edit: and Ottawa
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Last edited by Chadillaccc; Dec 22, 2018 at 9:44 PM.
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  #48  
Old Posted Dec 22, 2018, 8:42 PM
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Originally Posted by wave46 View Post
Then again, if you took average Joe Canuck/Jacques Canadien and showed them pictures of various Canadian cities, I'd expect that the only city to be close to universally recognized would be Toronto or maybe Quebec City or Ottawa (if Parliament Hill was shown). The rest all fall into 'generic North American city'.

This isn't a unique thing to Canada, BTW. Outside of Paris, who could really identify the smaller provincial cities of France by skyline? Or smaller cities of Japan?

The primate city of each country typically stands above its secondary brethren with respect to skylines - New York, London, Paris, Shanghai.

It makes sense though - the primate city is most inclined to produce monuments appropriate to its status. Secondary cities don't have the financial capital or drive to go on such an endeavour.
Whether or not Toronto is Canada's primate city (yet) isn't really the reason for its skyline being tops. It's because of the CN Tower. Toronto could be second or third in the country and would still be the most recognizable skyline (if all of them stayed the same) because of that tower.

It's the same with Sydney - if ever it gets passed by Melbourne, Sydney will still be the most iconic skyline in the country due to famous landmarks like the Opera House and Harbour Bridge. Or Rio which has the most iconic skyline in Brazil due to the Christ statue and the sugarloaf mountain, among other things.

(And Toronto was not even the largest city in Canada when the CN Tower was built.)
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  #49  
Old Posted Dec 22, 2018, 9:26 PM
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Originally Posted by Acajack View Post
Whether or not Toronto is Canada's primate city (yet) isn't really the reason for its skyline being tops. It's because of the CN Tower. Toronto could be second or third in the country and would still be the most recognizable skyline (if all of them stayed the same) because of that tower.
The CN Tower ceased to be the world's tallest free-standing structure in 2007. I wonder if it's still that well-known or if it just had a period of notoriety because it got some media attention back then. Maybe it was ultra-famous in 1979?

It actually got a lot less attention than many Canadians felt it merited back when it was the tallest in its category since there was the Warsaw mast thing and the debate over whether the CN Tower is a "building" since it's mostly not occupied by usable space. It was left off of a lot of American lists, or included as a side curiosity along with the Warsaw tower. If it were in the US it no doubt would have gotten 50x more publicity.

I have a feeling it's much more famous in Canada than it is internationally, and that its international fame is ultimately going to turn out to have been brief. It will not be like the Pyramids of Giza or even the Empire State Building.

The modern Toronto skyline in my opinion is a case of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. It's interesting because of its scale and extent more than because of any particular landmarks. It's lost visibility of more distinct buildings like the Royal York in recent years. What is best, a sea of condos or a recognizable landmark? It's subjective.
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  #50  
Old Posted Dec 22, 2018, 10:18 PM
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Originally Posted by someone123 View Post
The CN Tower ceased to be the world's tallest free-standing structure in 2007. I wonder if it's still that well-known or if it just had a period of notoriety because it got some media attention back then. Maybe it was ultra-famous in 1979?

It actually got a lot less attention than many Canadians felt it merited back when it was the tallest in its category since there was the Warsaw mast thing and the debate over whether the CN Tower is a "building" since it's mostly not occupied by usable space. It was left off of a lot of American lists, or included as a side curiosity along with the Warsaw tower. If it were in the US it no doubt would have gotten 50x more publicity.

I have a feeling it's much more famous in Canada than it is internationally, and that its international fame is ultimately going to turn out to have been brief. It will not be like the Pyramids of Giza or even the Empire State Building.

The modern Toronto skyline in my opinion is a case of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. It's interesting because of its scale and extent more than because of any particular landmarks. It's lost visibility of more distinct buildings like the Royal York in recent years. What is best, a sea of condos or a recognizable landmark? It's subjective.
It was not my intent to overstate the global renown of the CN Tower - though I do think it has at least a bit.

It's easily the most recognizable skyline structure in Canada.

Without it, Toronto's skyline is still substantial, but doesn't really stand out as especially unique.
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  #51  
Old Posted Dec 22, 2018, 10:39 PM
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The primate city of each country typically stands above its secondary brethren with respect to skylines - New York, London, Paris, Shanghai.
Shanghai isn't really the primate city in China, as it's not considerably larger than all other cities in China. Not only that, but while it does have an amazing skyline, so do several other cities in the country - Shenzhen, Chongqing, Beijing, and Guangzhou for example are all up in the same area when it comes to skylines.
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  #52  
Old Posted Dec 22, 2018, 11:36 PM
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Originally Posted by Mrs Sauga View Post
Agreed. Plus we saw the same angle and same construction update for a while it's probably the skyline we are most familiar with.

Anyway, this question should be which is the second best skyline. Toronto is so obviously tops but the battle for #2 is interesting. Calgary, Montreal, and Vancouver can make a legitimate case.
Says the guy who voted for Kitchener. Cheeky...
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  #53  
Old Posted Dec 22, 2018, 11:57 PM
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Originally Posted by Chadillaccc View Post
I'd agree with that logic. Toronto is unquestionably the most impressive (building-wise). Building-wise, I'd say that only Montreal and Calgary are actual contenders for second place, but taking into account natural settings and/or diversity of architectural styles, I'd add in Vancouver, Edmonton, and Quebec City as well.

Edit: and Ottawa
Calgary has a lot of decently tall skyscrapers, but unfortunately it drops off like a cliff, which gives a smaller city look. It's the big 3 for skylines, then Calgary/Edmonton, then the rest.
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  #54  
Old Posted Dec 23, 2018, 12:47 AM
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I gave a vote for Calgary. The brooding, dense bundle of towers in Calgary's downtown prove to be a very bearing sight, especially from certain angles, and over the years the skyline has really grown, with distinctive designs to catch one's eye. Even as it drops off somewhat suddenly in parts, it has a humble sense to it.
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  #55  
Old Posted Dec 23, 2018, 12:57 AM
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^But is it the BEST skyline in Canada?

After all these years, my heart still races at the sight of the CN Tower rising above the QEW as I approach the city from the West.
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  #56  
Old Posted Dec 23, 2018, 1:09 AM
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Originally Posted by someone123 View Post
It actually got a lot less attention than many Canadians felt it merited back when it was the tallest in its category since there was the Warsaw mast thing and the debate over whether the CN Tower is a "building" since it's mostly not occupied by usable space. It was left off of a lot of American lists, or included as a side curiosity along with the Warsaw tower. If it were in the US it no doubt would have gotten 50x more publicity.
There's also the Ostankino Tower in Moscow, which was built more than a decade before CN and is only 50 feet shorter.

As far as I'm concerned, there can be no question but that Toronto has Canada's "best" skyline, and I'm not speaking with a homer's bias. That's not my style. But Toronto is just so far ahead of the other cities that it's not a competition. As others have said, a more interesting poll would be for the #2 Canadian skyline.
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  #57  
Old Posted Dec 23, 2018, 1:39 AM
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Looks like Vancouver has the #2 skyline by votes.
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  #58  
Old Posted Dec 23, 2018, 1:40 AM
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CMA #'s for Toronto are a joke. Half the continuous suburban population is ignored. CMAs are a census administrative category and not a reflection of size. This is why GH figures exist to begin with, the true size of metro Toronto (includes Oshawa, Hamilton and Niagara).
Half the population is ignored, because they dont live in Toronto. Period.

People from Niagara (131km from Toronto) live in Niagara, not Toronto. Oshawa and Hamilton, i can buy, but definitely not Niagara.

CMA measurements have been around since 1941, and have been altered several times since, to take into account adjacent municipalities outside the urban core.

Counting Niagara part of Toronto is akin to saying Trois-Rivieres and Sherbrooke should be counted in the Greater Montreal statistical area.

Now, this being said, there is no Canadian equivalent to the Combined Statistical Areas (CSA) in the United States.

Statistics Canada has stated that Toronto, Oshawa and Hamilton (not Niagara) could be merged into a single CSA were such an approach utilized.

https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/...002030-eng.htm

If such a system were to be adopted, the Toronto CSA would be the 5th largest in North America (excluding Mexico), behind NY, LA, Chicago and Washington.

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Most beautiful major city: Vancouver
Best skyline: Toronto
Most diverse architecture: Montreal
Most historic architecture: Quebec City
Most unique city: Winnipeg
I agree with this. Haven't been to Winterpeg, but by the looks of it, it definitely has a unique feel. Love the Human Rights Museum design.....
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  #59  
Old Posted Dec 23, 2018, 2:12 AM
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Not sure how one can seriously nominate anything other than Toronto. We might like qualities of other skylines but it's not like we'd nominate Quebec City, Edmonton, or Halifax to represent Canada in some global skyline competition.

Our best is Toronto by a country mile.
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  #60  
Old Posted Dec 23, 2018, 3:38 AM
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Originally Posted by Denscity View Post
Looks like Vancouver has the #2 skyline by votes.
That's only because we're not using ranked ballots; we all voted for Toronto but most of us might not vote for Van. There's no telling what this vote would look like if the question was "best #2 skyline after Toronto?"
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