Thunder Bay Unseen

Superior History

The Commercial Crest of Red River Road

The crest of Red River road runs for six blocks between the Thunder Bay Expressway and Algonquin Street. This area is long known as a commercial district, predating the construction of the Expressway itself. The area has been called 'The Fast Food Mecca' by a friend of mine due to the profusion of the fast food restaurants along this strip. It is a great place to go if you want to view a progression of architectural styles in popular culture from service stations, to strip malls, to fast food restaurants.

The commercial zone actually starts at the corner of Windemere Avenue and Red River Road. Recently renovated as a branch of the Fort William Credit Union, this building has housed many tenants including the March of Dimes MOD shop and a sports collectibles store. The lot next door has been redeveloped as well into a typical strip mall.

Across Red River Road from these businesses lie two ex-service stations. The placement of their pump islands are still readily visible in the concrete in front of each building. One building has managed to survive the loss of its fuel pumps, recreating itself as a mechanics and oil change shop. The building still sports the fine retro look that once graced all service stations. The futuristic lines that made the station seem more impressive than it actually was.

This Pizza Parlour once was home to a bakery and outdoor cafe. The sunken private patio is in the back of the building and would require very little work for it to become usable again.

The former home of Papa Joe's Pizza. The restaurant was a Thunder Bay Institution - you could order a bucket of spaghetti for delivery. Alas, Papa Joe's is no more but the building has been taken over by a pet store, Tropical Fish & Pet Supplies, which was formerly known as Current River Pets. The street level door is merely ornamental now and the actual entrance is around the back.

Homes have been renovated to serve as store fronts along this heavily traveled stretch of road. The first house has seen minimal work to its conversion

The second home has seen extensive work including immaculately kept grounds, a lighted parking area keeping the grounds and building theme. The home has some striking architectural designs to it including the squared dormers and flat roof.

Algonquin Avenue was named in commemoration of the local Algonquin Lacrosse team which won the Western Canadian LaCrosse Championship.

Algonquin Avenue once was a straight through street but increased traffic has led to the addition of traffic lights and a realignment allowing for 90 degree turns.

The corner of Clarkson and Red River Road sits a branch of The Beer Store. This store actually boasts one of the highest consumer ratios of beer consumption of any beer store in Ontario. In simple terms - More beer is sold here in a year than just about every other beer store in Ontario.
The location of the store, with its loading doors facing the intersection at Red River and Clarkson, has been known to cause a fair disruption to traffic.
Update: This alignment was changed during a renovation in late 2007.

This strip mall was once a Safeway grocery store. Although its former life as a grocery store is difficult to see from the street, the rear of the building gives it away. Note the typical rounded roof in the picture below.
The angled entrance door to Kelly's (the green sign) in the picture to the lower left was once the western entrance to the store, right beside the former produce section.

Across the street from the former Safeway lies a branch of KFC - Kentucky Fried Chicken. The building has been updated a number of times over its lifetime as its parent company's styles have changed.

Unlike many modern KFC Franchises, this location only houses a KFC outlet and not an associated Taco Bell.

Next to the former Safeway lies one of the tallest residential buildings in Thunder Bay - Red River Towers.
At eleven stories, plus basement, there are few residential or commercial buildings that rival its size
The front of the lot is beautifully landscaped with a sidewalk-side stone retaining wall similar to others found in Port Arthur. This will all be modified or eliminated in the coming years as the city begins construction of a left-turn lane, widening narrow Red River Road.

At the crest of Red River Road lies McDonalds. This McDonalds is an example of the classic restaurant designs employed by that company during the 1970s.

Update - This location was closed on August 29th, 2005. It will be torn down and replaced by a new building with a more modern design. The new building is to be opened on or around December 15th, 30 years to the day the original franchise opened at this location.

Across from McDonalds lies Arby's Restaurant. It is housed in a former Taco Bell location - the south-western styling of that chain are readily apparent in the building's design.

The most nondescript building along the crest of Red River Road is he Highview Veterinary Clinic. A squat, one story animal clinic this building is one of the older, still surviving buildings along this often redeveloped stretch of road.

The only physical reminder of the former Crest Hotel are the currently useless entrance and exit onto Red River Road. The building had been torn down years previously and recently replaced with a Wendy's Restaurant.

Update: With the widening of Red River Road in 2009, these reminders have disappeared as well into history.

Across from Wendy's is a commercial building that houses a Blockbuster Video and a Salvation Army store. This site used to be home to a bowling alley. In the front of the parking lot is a stone retaining wall of the same type found throughout the former Port Arthur.

The construction crew above is removing an island from the parking lot to make room for more parking.

The corner of Junot and Red River Road is home to the Port Arthur Brasserie and Brew Pub. The building recently saw the addition of commercial space on its east side, housing a drug store and clinic.
The Brew Pub is now closed and rumours about about it's possible re-development into a Shopper's Drug Mart

Above the intersection of Red River Road and Junot sits a full service Shell Gas Station and convenience store. This used to be a Beaver Gas Station until 2004. Prior to that it was a service station and garage - a quick walk behind the station uncovers a service bay door that is no longer used. Also behind the station are a string of power poles that seem to only serve the gas station and adjacent fire hall. Originally these poles also provided power to another business that was torn down to make room for the construction of a highway clover-leaf intersection. That construction has never taken place although it is still on the books.

In the fall of 2005, the automatic car wash at this former 7-11 (now Macs) was permanently closed. Renovations are ongoing to convert the building into a Subway. Take a closer look and you can see the new brickwork covering up the old doors, the driveway leading to nowhere, the pole that held the entry keypad, and the spill catch grate at the rear of the building.

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The Commercial Crest of Red River Road