WHEN: Tuesday, May 27th, 2008 starting at 7pm
WHERE: Fermenting Cellar, Distillery District
DJs: DJ trio Track Meet
HOW MUCH: $10 gets you into the site, plus food • CASH BAR
DRESS CODE: look nice!

The Festival of Architecture and Design is here again, and the folks at ERA Architects, Spacing Magazine, Toronto Society of Architects, Wireless Toronto, and [murmur] are throwing the fourth annual Toronto the Good party to celebrate Toronto.

This year, Toronto The Good wants attendees to explore an idea: planners, architects, developers, and interested residents from around the world are using a new tool - the urban centre - to educate the public and debate local development issues. Cities such as London, Amsterdam, New York, Chicago, and San Francisco have a place for the masses to come and learn about how their metropolis has grown and where it is headed.

One of this city's best-known personalities, Johnny Lombardi was a pioneer in the promotion of Toronto's cultural diversity. Born in this city to an Italian immigrant family, he quickly achieved success by appealing to the needs of this city's rapidly growing Italian immigrant neighbourhoods - first as the proprietor of a grocery store, opened in 1946, then as an impresario of Italian entertainment. Lombardi is responsible for two vital Toronto institutions: CHIN Multicultural Radio and the CHIN International Picnic.

Come see the competition finalists of the 2008 Poster Design Competition and vote for your favourite as People's Choice! This competition was based on the idea that protecting our heritage resources-buildings, structures, landscapes, and neighbourhoods, is fundamentally about enhancing the meaning and quality of life, maintaining a unique sense of place, supporting the cultural and economic vitality of our cities, and improving the health and sustainability of the environments we inhabit.

Urbanscape Gallery
2959 Dundas Street West, between Keele and Pacific
Gallery Hours: Wed. - Sat., 2:00-6:00 p.m.

For more information, please visit www.urbanopathy.com

Nationally recognized for its distinctively Canadian style, Runnymede Branch was designed by John M. Lyle, one of this country's most distinguished 20th-century architects. In the 1920s, a surging sense of national pride inspired Lyle to create a uniquely Canadian architecture that blended European styles with Canadian themes and ornamentation. Runnymede Branch was an early attempt at such a design.

The building is constructed of variegated red and yellow Credit Valley stone, and combines Georgian, French, and early Quebec styles, the latter in its steeply pitched, hipped roof. Lyle used Canadian aboriginal motifs for much of the decoration, including totem poles at the main entrance and arrowheads in the iron railing above. Carvings of native plants and animals also embellish the building. In 1989, the Runnymede Branch was featured on the first in a series of postage stamps celebrating Canadian architecture. The building was most recently restored and enlarged in 2005.