This Toronto alley is bringing a beloved piece of the city’s past back to life

Honest Ed’s may have departed us years ago, but the quirky aesthetic and playful spirit of the lost Toronto landmark has returned to Bathurst and Bloor in a big way this summer.

The sprawling Mirvish Village community has transformed the former Ed’s site into a mixed-use community home to rental residences, shops, restaurants — including a new outpost of the city’s hottest pizzeria — as well as a new park named in a nod to the former retail landmark.

Even before its completion, the development from Peterson, featuring five purpose-built rental buildings as tall as 26 storeys, has received positive attention for its mix of uses and design from Vancouver-based Henriquez Partners Architects working alongside Toronto’s Diamond Schmitt Architects.

That reception is coming from more than just the injection of much-needed rental housing at a major intersection, but also how the project team went that extra mile to make sure its nods to the past were far more than just your standard post-redevelopment lip service.

And, eight years removed from the demolition of Honest Ed’s, the visual legacy of the bargain institution has begun to creep back into the redeveloped city block in a delightfully welcome way.

This massive infusion of residential density is being woven back into the DNA of the block it supports with nods like the aforementioned park, as well as other public realm upgrades like a space known as “Ed’s Alley.”

In July, the public got a glimpse of this restored legacy with the installation of the first of many signs and lanterns set to illuminate the reinstated Ed’s Alley running north-south between Bathurst and Markham streets.

The realization of Ed’s Alley 2.0 has only progressed further in the weeks since this glowing neon sign was installed, including the addition of several more signs dotting the laneway that will be lined with micro-retailers, pop-ups, and fun concepts.

Crews were busy installing signage when blogTO stopped by the site on Wednesday.

Among the many signs now visible in Ed’s Alley, a handful bear the iconic hand-painted style and colour scheme of the famous Honest Ed’s product signage — thousands of which were famously auctioned off following the retailer’s closure.

Another nod to the past is a replica of the famous marquee that once wrapped around the Bathurst and Bloor intersection, a nice little Easter egg for passersby that was not shown in preconstruction renderings of the community.

Mirvish Village sign is being installed. The homage to Honest Ed’s wasn’t in the initial renderings. pic.twitter.com/lDeLL22Tod

— Observing The City (@observinthecity) August 3, 2026

The restoration of Honest Ed’s branding throughout the block is just one example of how city planners and real estate developers can look to the future without ignoring the past — something I’d argue we need more of in this rapidly transforming city.

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