Saturday, May 5, 2007
Various Times/Locations
Toronto, Canada

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“For illustrations, please look closely at real cities. While you are looking, you might as well also listen, linger, and think about what you see.”

Jane Jacobs, The Death and Life of Great American Cities

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Gene at the Young Memorial
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The Beach is a unique lakeside neighbourhood and former resort community that hasn’t forgotten its roots. This tour will begin at the Beaches Branch of the Toronto Public Library at 2161 Queen St. East (in Kew Gardens, west of Lee). The library was originally built in 1916 by Eden Smith and Sons, Architects and renovated in 2005 by Phillip Carter Architects. The tour will wind past historic properties on Queen St. as far as Glen Stewart park and then head south on Glen Manor to the site of the old Scarboro’ Beach Amusement Park, which opened 100 years ago and closed in 1925. It will continue on the Boardwalk past the 100-year-old Balmy Beach Club, the Leuty Lifesaving Station, built in 1920 and finally end at the W.D. Young Memorial Fountain and the Kew Williams House, built in 1902, ( also known as the Gardener’s Cottage) which are both in Kew Gardens. Following the tour, visitors will have an opportunity to admire and enjoy charming stores and abundant restaurants in the neighbourhood. For more information about the tour, phone the Beach BIA at 416 693-2242 or see www.BeachBIA.com.

The tour will be given by The Beach’s first “Citizen of the Year,” and noted historian, Gene Domagala. Gene never gets tired of giving his Beach tours because a) he loves the area and b) he keeps finding out more information that he wants to share. It would be safe to say that no two tours are ever remotely the same. Gene has enough Beach facts, trivia and gossip to fill a few encyclopedias. Despite penning more than 300 historical columns for the Beach Metro News, he shows no signs of slowing down. And when he gets a little bored, he throws himself into volunteering for many local and Toronto-based charities.