Drake Hotel

The Drake Hotel on Queen Street West in Toronto, Ontario, Canada near Parkdale, was opened in 1890 as "Small's Hotel". At the time, the area was a major Canadian Pacific Railway hub near what was then one of the wealthiest neighbourhoods in the city. In 1949, the hotel was acquired by new owners, who expanded the building and renamed it the Drake. The hotel eventually fell on hard times, along with its neighbourhood. In the 1970s, it fell into use as a flophouse like many hotels in American cities. Other uses in the in the 1980s, and 1990s include a punk bar, and rave den. In 2001, the hotel was purchased by Jeff Stober, who renovated the hotel with the goal of turning it into a bohemian arts and culture mecca in the midst of the city's...