Scenes From Kennedy & Lawrence

The White Shield Plaza hugs the northwest corner of Kennedy Road and Lawrence Avenue. Without any disrespect to the mall (which hosts Flipper’s and other tenants) though, my eye goes to two restaurants just off the strip mall.

Kennedy & Lawrence Strip Mall

On first look, Harry’s Drive-In looks of another era. And that’s because it is. Immediately I think of Johnny’s Hamburgers at Victoria Park and Sheppard. It’s a small shack of a burger joint that slightly compensates for its lack of space inside with a tiny patio outside. Even the name is to the point. No gimmicks. My observation is pretty bang on, too: it’s been here since the 1960s.

Harry's Drive-In
Beside Harry’s, there’s Nova Ristorante – a sitdown Pizza Nova restaurant. The first Pizza Nova. Sam Prumicci and his brothers opened the shop here in Scarborough in 1963. One thinks of the pizza chain as a takeout/delivery place, but restaurants have been part of its past and present.

1st Pizza Nova Scarborough

The Hellenic Home for the Aged sits on the southeast corner of the intersection. Before the home however, there was a hydro station here.

Kennedy & Lawrence

Kennedy & Lawrence 1960
Kennedy & Lawrence Hydro Station, 1960. Source: City of Toronto Archives.

Mike Myers Drive, which was (re)named for the Scarborough comedian in 2002, slinks behind the seniors home. I believe a few power stations still remain.

Mike Myers Drive

Kennedy at Mike Myers 1960
Kennedy Road looking north to Lawrence Avenue, 1960. Source: City of Toronto Archives.
Kennedy Lawrence Hydro Station 1965
Kennedy Lawrence Hydro Station aerial, 1965. Note the spur off the Canadian National Railway. Source: City of Toronto Archives.

The houses on this stretch of Kennedy Road south of Lawrence date from the 1950s.

Kennedy Road

There’s also a curious and neat juxtaposition of buildings: a bingo hall beside a Muslim society. I remember when the bingo hall had a more coloured exterior.

Kennedy Bingo

Al-Huda Muslim Society

Down in the hydro field, there is (or was, rather) some planting a’happenin’. This is Givendale Allotment Garden, and its concept is new to me. My sense is it’s an unknown idea in general – “secret gardens”, as I’ve read. It’s certainly a neat use for a hydro fiend – much more advisable than model airplane or kite-flying.

If my understanding is right, one can apply for a permit to use a garden plot in one of 13 designated allotment gardens  in the city. Applications are accepted the first day of February and permits are issued the first day of May.

Givendale Allotment Gardens

Hydro Field Kennedy
Finally, Jack Goodlad Park is a nicely sized park with basketball courts, a recreation centre, playground, and a couple of baseball fields. Jack Goodlad, its namesake, was a Scarborough alderman.

Jack Goodlad Park

The Pan Am Path also passes through Jack Goodlad Park in its meandering route through Toronto. It’s one of the legacies of the 2015 Pan Am & Parapan Am Games.

Jack Goodlad Park Pan Am Path

Before it was a park and trail though, Jack Goodlad Park was the Scarboro Drive-In. The theatre opened in 1952 and closed around the late 1970s when drive-in movies in Toronto declined in popularity. It’s fascinating to learn about because it tells us a bit about what Toronto suburbia used to look and be like.

Scarborough Council purchased the Scarboro Drive-In property and redeveloped it into a municipal park beginning in 1980. Goodlad himself had a big hand in the end of the movie theatre, objecting to the seedier movies that were playing in the supposedly family-friendly venue.

Scarboro Drive-In 1960
Scarboro Drive-In, 1960. Source: City of Toronto Archives.
Scarboro Drive-In 1965
Scarboro Drive-In aerial, 1965. Source: City of Toronto Archives.

 

Useful Links

600sq feet – How to get an Allotment Garden in Toronto

Cinema Treasures – Scarboro Drive-In

Inside Toronto – Meet Pizza Nova’s Dominic Primucci

Local Film Cultures: Toronto – Laurence Jones – “Bad Food and Passion Pits – The Toronto Drive-In Experience”

2 thoughts on “Scenes From Kennedy & Lawrence

Leave a Reply