The Subway Entrance

Sometimes, the vibe of a city is defined by the style of its subway stations.

The curvy Art Nouveau style ornate irons used in Paris metro are romantic.

The bronze symmetric decor in London South Gate station are classy and posh.

The marble floors, granite wall and chandeliers in Moscow subway are serious, grand and bold, perhaps like Stalin himself.

What about Toronto’s TTC? The dullness and soulless-ness of TTC is partially forgiven, because one of their subway entrances is this house.

This Queen Anne style house in Toronto’s Annex once belonged to lawyer, Norman Gash. His family resided in the same house for nearly ¾ of a century.

In the 1970’s, TTC wanted to expand its subway line. To create the new “Kendal” station, they bought this very house on Kendal and Spadina, with plans to demolish it and make way for a new entrance.

The people of Annex strongly opposed it, in the end, TTC kept the house by converting it into a station entrance, and merely expanded Spadina station, instead of creating a whole new station in 1977.

Recently, I watched a documentary called “Charlotte’s Castle”. It was about the people of Annex and their beloved Edwardian era home.

In the film, its residents kept saying people in Annex are very kind and they look out for each other. The way they filmed it is so cute, and I have never enjoyed a documentary this much for a long time.

The Paris metro is romantic, and the London subway is a bit posh. This incognito TTC subway station, that is disguised as an old house, is an architectural representation of The Annex and its people. It has that warm, welcoming and homely charm.

When you see this subway station, you know it is your neighborhood and home is just a few steps away.

85 Spadina Road, Toronto

YouTube Video on the infamous Spadina TTC Subway Station (Source, RMTransit)