The Palace Pier
The vision of a grand lakefront amusement pier was conceived in the 1920s as a rival for the neighbouring Sunnyside Pavilion. The pier was designed by Craig & Madill with various structures in a flamboyant Moroccan style of architecture, and was to project 550 metres into Lake Ontario terminating with a steamboat landing. Financial difficulties in the early 1930s delayed the construction. Only the first phase of the redesigned amusement pier, 90 metres long, was opened on June 10, 1941 and it became popular as a major dance hall of the big band era during World War II and the postwar years. The pier was destroyed by fire in 1963, and the site later redeveloped into condominiums and public park. The base of this monument is one of the original concrete pier footings, donated to the City of Etobicoke by the residents of the Palace Pier condominium.
Plaque via Alan L. Brown's site Toronto Plaques. Full page here.