15 June 2007
No Leon's Sign at Roundhouse?
Toronto Ontario - The old railway roundhouse is one of
Mayor David Miller's favourite heritage buildings, and he says he'll be keeping close tabs on what the Leon's furniture chain does when
it moves in.
"It can't be a mall kind of place. If it fits in the roundhouse and it's high-end and that's what they're committed
to doing, then it may well work," he told reporters yesterday.
"But a bright yellow Leon's sign has no place on the roundhouse."
Company president and CEO Terry Leon says that the roundhouse outlet will indeed be different from the warehouse style of its other
stores, offering more of a showroom atmosphere to appeal to the neighbourhood's condo dwellers. Leon said he wants to see the
roundhouse restored and hopes to have an outlet in the building by late summer or early fall next year.
The discount chain's plans to set up shop in the historic railway building, a heritage-protected facility on Bremner Blvd.
across from the Rogers Centre, have caused controversy since the news broke this week.
Toronto's culture department supports the idea, but Adam Vaughan, the councillor representing the area at city hall, called the plans
an example of "big box coming into the downtown core through the back door."
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