Exit, Pursued by a Bear

(Post) - Drake owner denies east-end strip club purchase

It's the rumour that won't die: Drake Hotel honcho Jeff Stober wants to buy/has bought the grand old building at Queen Street East and Broadview Avenue that houses Jilly's strip club and wants to turn it into a hip hotel/bar a la the Drake.

It's easy to see why the rumour makes the rounds: The surrounding area (known variously as South Riverdale, Leslieville, or more recently Riverside) has quickly gentrified, and well, Jilly's is a strip club. The gorgeous Romanesque building -- built in 1893 by Archibald Dingham -- is tired, but otherwise fully qualified for the Drake treatment.

(rest here)

It should be true, even if it's not. Along with closing the jail, it's one of the better things that could happen to south Riverdale.

Update: This seems to be one of those rumours that real estate agents like to start to make neighbourhoods seem up-and-coming, like the imminent closure of the Tecumseth St. abbatoir, imminent since about 1980.

Anyway, it's repeated (I found the link through Google, honest) on a strip club discussion board:

Club: Jilly's Comment: Have ya’ll heard the news? The grand old lady has been sold to the same developers who bought the Drake Hotel and took it from skidrow to swanky. And now they have their sights set on Jilly’s for a similar transformation. It’s kinka sad really. I mean, there are plenty of mainstream (read - non "adult") places you can go to for a drink and a meal, or even catch a live band – but the number of rippers in Toronto is slowly creeping down, what, with various "busybody" neighborhood groups complaining that the don’t want guys hanging around for a beer an a peek at some tail. Jilly's, old girl, you will be sorely missed.

Posted by Patrick at June 17, 2006 06:29 PM