Empire Building

In the early 1900s, this old building was home to the Royal Bank of Canada. By 1932 the Ontario Provincial Police had a detachment on the second floor, with C.F. Airey as the District Inspector. A bookstore later occupied the former bank area, their old brick-painted sign still visible at the back of the building. Finally, an antique store was found in the southern half and was still in operation as recent as 2009.

A partial restoration was done to the main floor after a historic development company picked the building up in 2011. The room in the northwest corner was used as temporary storage for the old facemasks from the sides of the big screens at the Seneca Theatre. One mask can still be found there as of August, 2023. The 2nd level is quite decayed and undeveloped, still as it was decades ago. The basement is also a highlight, containing an old boiler room and plenty of corrosion.

This building only has short windows of opportunity for entry, as the development company quickly fixes any access points. In the past ten years, it has been accessible less times than you can count on one hand. Make sure you have a good list of back-up spots to visit before investing any travel time here.

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