The Soul-Sucking Canada Thread

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by niwell

The last picture above at least has interlocking pavers... Still horrible but that puts it above the Calgary example. Although some points knocked off for combining that with asphalt driveways, which is one of my pet peeves and common in Ontario suburbs as well.

I generally like rear laneways over garage dominant streets, particularly in areas with long narrow lots like most of new suburban Calgary. But I can't get over how they don't pave most of them! I get that it's a cost issue and these areas are usually for starter homes, but it looks like garbage:

https://goo.gl/maps/y18nj7V3if52
https://goo.gl/maps/sogngktygNB2
https://goo.gl/maps/UVm5PMpTuCw
https://goo.gl/maps/6aszfehqYBE2


Just a random selection. There are lots.

Beyond bizarre that some of those unpaved laneways are behind houses with garages on the front. What purpose is the laneway intended to serve in these cases? I just seems a waste of land.

[Acajack]

Here is one not too far from place:

https://www.google.ca/maps/@45.48776...7i13312!8i6656

The "front" isn't that nice either:

https://www.google.ca/maps/@45.48753...7i13312!8i6656

They're quite rare here. None of the nicer residential neighbourhoods have them.

[jonny24]

Jeez all that vinyl is god-awful. I generally prefer brick but vinyl CAN look quite good. None of those do.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by jonny24

Jeez all that vinyl is god-awful. I generally prefer brick but vinyl CAN look quite good. None of those do.

That's cheap and old/worn vinyl.

For some reason the coastal regions of Atlantic Canada and BC seem to do vinyl reasonably well.

Ontario-Quebec and the Prairies not so much.

[O-tacular]

The most soul sucking multi family housing:

https://www.google.ca/maps/@50.96337...7i13312!8i6656

https://www.google.ca/maps/@50.96429...7i13312!8i6656

https://www.google.ca/maps/@50.95365...7i13312!8i6656

https://www.google.ca/maps/@50.97955...7i13312!8i6656

Pizzahut land:

https://www.google.ca/maps/@50.95369...7i13312!8i6656

It sits behind a strip mall with an old Pizzahut that has since become a pharmacy:

https://www.google.ca/maps/@50.95411...7i13312!8i6656

[MolsonExport]

soul suckery for sure.
There are a lot of repurposed pizza (sl)huts around. Also, KFC...even some that still have the old bucket sign.

[Loco101]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Here is one not too far from place:

https://www.google.ca/maps/@45.48776...7i13312!8i6656

The "front" isn't that nice either:

https://www.google.ca/maps/@45.48753...7i13312!8i6656

They're quite rare here. None of the nicer residential neighbourhoods have them.

Both of those look as though they could be in Northern Ontario. The only difference is that the vegetation is more Southern.

[Loco101]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

soul suckery for sure.
There are a lot of repurposed pizza (sl)huts around. Also, KFC...even some that still have the old bucket sign.

There was a sketch on one of the nighttime talk shows I think that was called "It was a Pizza Hut" and showed what had become of many former Pizza Hut buildings.

We still have our original red roofed Pizza Hut in Timmins. And it still has the lunch time buffet!

[O-tacular]

Originally Posted by lio45

Yes, and it looks appealing (in my opinion) compared to what the same street would look like without trees. Why doesn't Calgary just do that everywhere...?

I’ve noticed newer suburbs starting to plant elm trees again. In 50 years time they might look similar to that. Unfortuanetly most newer suburbs don’t really leave enough room on both sides of the street for planting so most of the time these trees are in a centre median. Not likely to see tree tunnels like that. Calgary actually is one of the few cities in North America that still has elm trees because we are isolated enough that Dutch Elm Disease hasn’t reached us yet.

Also starting in probably the 60’s the city went crazy planting poplar trees which have shorter life spans but grow faster. Many are needing to be replaced now.

[TownGuy]

Never good to only plant one type of tree. Many places have learnt that lesson. Poplars all dying at the same time or the possibility of a disease wiping out all the trees in a given neighbourhood are both examples of that. Here the issue has been streets planted with Ash trees. Everything has to be chopped down and started from scratch. The town now mixes up street trees rather than planting a line of the same thing to avoid something similar happening in the future.

Anyways I find this residential street to be one of the more soul-sucking in Cobourg. Uncharacteristic use of vinyl, not many trees planted for some reason (usually each house would have a boulevard tree but this street doesn't for some reason), prominent garages, etc.

https://goo.gl/maps/Ux83F5EfRC62

[GeneralLeeTPHLS]

This is one of many universal signs of suburbia.....townhouses that love two colours that are oppressive and fugly:https://www.google.ca/maps/@43.53976...2!8i6656?hl=en

EDIT:
To go back on the topic of trees in subdivisions....Mississauga doesn't have any really set out rules, but some areas are much better then others. I'm surprised to see this, in a neighbourhood that must be from about the early to mid 80's. https://www.google.ca/maps/@43.54452...2!8i6656?hl=en

[MolsonExport]

Originally Posted by GeneralLeeTPHLS

This is one of many universal signs of suburbia.....townhouses that love two colours that are oppressive and fugly:https://www.google.ca/maps/@43.53976...2!8i6656?hl=en

EDIT:
To go back on the topic of trees in subdivisions....Mississauga doesn't have any really set out rules, but some areas are much better then others. I'm surprised to see this, in a neighbourhood that must be from about the early to mid 80's. https://www.google.ca/maps/@43.54452...2!8i6656?hl=en

Those ones in the top link are soul-sucking to the nth degree. They are everywhere in London....same colors. always a cobalt-grey sky. depressing, and I am just passing by.

[Pinion]

.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by Pinion

This was pretty depressing to see out the corner of my eye today. I had never seen it before and I drive down that road daily.

New industry, North Vancouver by chrisjohann, on Flickr

It's even more gigantic looking in person, and one of three new wheat grain tower complexes near me on Burrard inlet. They're all huge and super loud. South of Park and Tilford shopping centre if you wanna google it.

Now all CN and CP have to do is get their shit together to start transporting grain properly. It is karma to watch the consequences of so-called saviour, the late Hunter Harrison, play out at both railways as they bog down and become unable to properly service shippers. Years of underinvestment and cuts to chase operating ratios with the pain now being born by their customers. Lousy way to run a business!

[vid]

The one upside to it is that the ship backlog in Thunder Bay makes the city look likes it's booming again. In reality, the railways are so inefficient that ships are arriving to pick up grain that has yet to arrive.

[DizzyEdge]

Originally Posted by O-tacular

I’ve noticed newer suburbs starting to plant elm trees again. In 50 years time they might look similar to that. Unfortuanetly most newer suburbs don’t really leave enough room on both sides of the street for planting so most of the time these trees are in a centre median. Not likely to see tree tunnels like that. Calgary actually is one of the few cities in North America that still has elm trees because we are isolated enough that Dutch Elm Disease hasn’t reached us yet.

Also starting in probably the 60’s the city went crazy planting poplar trees which have shorter life spans but grow faster. Many are needing to be replaced now.

I always give props to Winnipeg who are fighting the good fight against Dutch elm disease, all of their turn of the century streets are tree'd end to end with Elm it seems, and they spend $4-5 million a year. Just read an article that with 230,000 elms Winnipeg has the largest collection in North America, but 8000 are diseased and need to be removed.

[lio45]

There are some disease-resistant cultivars available nowadays, I'm hoping Winnipeg is smart enough to replace those 8,000 white elms with new elms that will eventually grow to be as nice as their predecessors.

[vid]

The second most common tree in Winnipeg is ash, and emerald ash borer was found in that city last year. (It was found in Thunder Bay the year before). Winnipeg will lose probably half of its ash tree to is. Thunder Bay is spending millions to save its ash trees, Winnipeg will probably be spending tens of millions. There is no known resistance to the bugs, but the trees can be vaccinated to prevent the bugs from laying eggs in the trees.

Emerald ash borer has reached Denver so it will probably reach Calgary soon, it's spreading much faster than Dutch Elm Disease spread.

[DizzyEdge]

Originally Posted by O-tacular

I’ve noticed newer suburbs starting to plant elm trees again. In 50 years time they might look similar to that. Unfortuanetly most newer suburbs don’t really leave enough room on both sides of the street for planting so most of the time these trees are in a centre median. Not likely to see tree tunnels like that. Calgary actually is one of the few cities in North America that still has elm trees because we are isolated enough that Dutch Elm Disease hasn’t reached us yet.

Also starting in probably the 60’s the city went crazy planting poplar trees which have shorter life spans but grow faster. Many are needing to be replaced now.

This is a 'fake old' community from the mid-1990s, but what a difference trees make, thousands of trees were planted in this community when it was created.

https://www.google.ca/maps/@50.91914...7i13312!8i6656

[DizzyEdge]

Originally Posted by vid

The second most common tree in Winnipeg is ash, and emerald ash borer was found in that city last year. (It was found in Thunder Bay the year before). Winnipeg will lose probably half of its ash tree to is. Thunder Bay is spending millions to save its ash trees, Winnipeg will probably be spending tens of millions. There is no known resistance to the bugs, but the trees can be vaccinated to prevent the bugs from laying eggs in the trees.

Emerald ash borer has reached Denver so it will probably reach Calgary soon, it's spreading much faster than Dutch Elm Disease spread.

apparently almost 11 tens of millions


Emerald ash borer to drill $105M hole in Winnipeg's budget over 10 years
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manito...osts-1.4508491

In a new report, Winnipeg's public works department warns city council of ​the financial costs the city expects to incur in order to deal with an insect that has the potential to kill all of the city's 357,000 ash trees, including 101,000 on city property alone.

Over 10 years, those costs include $22.5 million to remove 72,000 dead trees, $48 million to plant 65,000 new ones, and $19.5 million to protect 29,000 trees that stand a good chance of surviving the emerald ash borer, city forester Martha Barwinsky writes in the report to council's parks, protection and community services committee.​

It will cost $15 million to manage the wood waste from the dead trees, she notes.