The sad state of Toronto’s Nathan Phillips Square

Many great cities have a grand square at their heart. In Beijing, it is Tiananmen. In, London, Trafalgar. In Mexico City, the Zocalo.Toronto’s version is Nathan Phillips Square. Named after the city’s fifty-third mayor, it opened in 1965 in front of the dramatic new city hall designed by Finnish architect Viljo Revell. With its reflecting pond, which turns into a skating rink in winter, it’s been a focus for celebrations, protests and fairs ever since.