August 31, 2016
The demolition and archeological assessment of Toronto's North St. Lawrence Market will start next week, marking an important step in the redevelopment project.
"The current North St. Lawrence Market is underutilized and does not maximize the full potential of the St. Lawrence Market Complex," said Deputy Mayor Pam McConnell (Ward 28 Toronto Centre-Rosedale). "The redevelopment will create a landmark destination within the St. Lawrence neighbourhood and enhance one of the top-ranked farmers markets in the world."
Work has been underway at the North St. Lawrence Market building since July to prepare for the structural demolition. The demolition and archeological assessment will take about six months to complete, and could be extended if further artifacts or structures of historical value or interest are discovered once the building is demolished.
Following demolition, construction of the North St. Lawrence Market is tentatively scheduled to begin in 2017 and will open to the public in 2019.
The temporary market, located at 125 The Esplanade, continues to operate every weekend with the Saturday farmers market and Sunday antique market.
The new five-storey building, which will expand from a weekend market to a seven-day operation, will include a farmers market and commercial event space, space for hospitality use, a demonstration kitchen, a kitchen incubator, a seniors' resource centre and court services, as well as an underground parking garage with 250 spaces on four levels.
The St. Lawrence Market Complex, made up of St. Lawrence Hall, the South Market and the North Market building, has served as a Toronto landmark for more than 200 years and remains one of the most valuable historical sites in Toronto.
St. Lawrence Market is a renowned international food market featuring 120 merchants, vendors and farmers, offering the freshest produce, meats and specialty items. Serving residents of Toronto and international visitors since 1803, the market is regularly recognized as one of Toronto's most popular destinations, and was ranked the number one food market in the world by National Geographic. For information on the St. Lawrence Market Complex, visit
http://www.stlawrencemarket.com, like us on Facebook /StLawrenceMarket, or follow us on Twitter @StLawrenceMkt and Instagram @StLawrenceMarket.
Toronto is Canada's largest city, the fourth largest in North America, and home to a diverse population of about 2.8 million people. It is a global centre for business, finance, arts and culture and is consistently ranked one of the world's most livable cities. For information on non-emergency City services and programs, Toronto residents, businesses and visitors can visit
http://www.toronto.ca, call 311, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, or follow us @TorontoComms.
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Media contact: Erin McGuey, Strategic Communications, 416-392-9418, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
