Glass and Steel

Abstract

The Shell Oil/Bulova Tower in Toronto was built as an “elaborate billboard” but became a real public space because of its vital role in the Canadian National Exhibition. As a place marker in the literal and perceived landscapes of its site, it overcame its corporate origins to serve important social and cultural needs. It was demolished for many reasons: the lack of heritage awareness in Toronto, the unsympathetic nature of neoliberal planning initiatives, and the liminal nature of the park it occupied. This demolition both further impoverished the city’s historical landscape and impelled its preservationist community to act; though no longer a physical landmark, it remains a dialectical one.