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Former Home Of CKLW & CBC Windsor May Be Designated A Heritage Site
The building at 825 Riverside Dr. housed the Big 8 until 1972 and CBC Windsor for several years. Now the new owner wants to develop it and put up over 1,600 condo units. The question for politicians in Windsor is whether to designate it a historic heritage property and preserve at least some of its landmark qualities.
That won't stop the development but it would remind the world about what happened in that buildiing.
“A big radio station that has a 50,000 Watt signal that blasts deep into the American Midwest,” said Robert Nelson, the head of the history department at the University of Windsor.
“What's of incredible historical value is the decisions that were made in this building in the late 1960s into the early 1970s, and that was to promote Motown, the music coming out of Detroit across the river.”
From 'Big 8' radio to 1,602 condos: Windsor to weigh heritage status for CBC building
- Shorty Wave
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Re: Former Home Of CKLW & CBC Windsor May Be Designated A Heritage Site
It is too bad that there is a trend to destroy historical buildings and crap out condo/office buildings in their place. For example, in downtown Toronto, Brookfield Place, formerly BCE Place, took out over five acres of historic Toronto buildings and left only a dozen of them, sad, so much history wiped out, and facades don’t replace buildings.
Windsor should save this building, they can build condos pretty much anywhere without erasing part of local history, especially the former home of the Big 8, which is fairly well known!
- gch
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Re: Former Home Of CKLW & CBC Windsor May Be Designated A Heritage Site
I grew up in southeast Michigan and remember CKLW be for the Big 8 days, with announcers such as Bud Davies, Joe Van, Conrad Patrick and newscaster Austin Grant...........afterwards, the Big 8, under the music direction of Rosalie Tremblay, and great newscasts of Dick Smythe.....(20/20 news)
I also remember that CKLW TV had, for a while, to black out Leaf games when the Red Wings were at home.
Some one got very angry about this and attempted to topple the CKLW TV tower.....as a kid I performed on one oof the local talent shows on Channel 9.
I would hate to see the building go, but I guess things change.
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Re: Former Home Of CKLW & CBC Windsor May Be Designated A Heritage Site
I would open a restaurant on the site and call it "The Big Ate!"
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Thread Starter- WindsorWatcher
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Re: Former Home Of CKLW & CBC Windsor May Be Designated A Heritage Site
Make that Rosalie Trombley.
- gch
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Re: Former Home Of CKLW & CBC Windsor May Be Designated A Heritage Site
Hi Windsor watcher! Thanks for the correction....I knew better....I really like the statue of her downtown.
Speaking of things Windsor: three questions
How is CKWW doing? I remember when they first came on air when I was a teenager. I remember Al Shaver, and Barry Kentner, and Ron Burgoyne. They have some commercials, but like CKOC, they seem to have no on-air announcers except the morning news, with Al Pervin (on both stations!)
Second, does anyone know what ever happened to Rick Hamilton, who was a DJ at CKWW in the 1970s?
One other question...when did CKLW move on to Ouellette Ave?
- WindsorWatcher
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Re: Former Home Of CKLW & CBC Windsor May Be Designated A Heritage Site
I was really referring to the CBC article, gch, which has since been corrected.
This from The Big 8 CKLW: "The switch was pulled at 10 am on Aug. 20, 1972 by chief engineer Ed Butterbaugh as the signal was transferred from the Riverside Studios to 1640 Ouellette Ave."
Last edited by WindsorWatcher (May 27, 2026 1:57 pm)
- Dale Patterson
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Re: Former Home Of CKLW & CBC Windsor May Be Designated A Heritage Site
1331 Yonge (CHUM) should also be declared a heritage site, if it hasn't already.
"Life without echo is really no life at all." - Dan Ingram
- mace
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Re: Former Home Of CKLW & CBC Windsor May Be Designated A Heritage Site
Dale Patterson wrote:
1331 Yonge (CHUM) should also be declared a heritage site, if it hasn't already.
Too late. The former CHUM building was demolished in 2016 to make for [gee what a surprise] more condos. However, there may be some sort of acknowledgement on the site.
- gch
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Re: Former Home Of CKLW & CBC Windsor May Be Designated A Heritage Site
They still have the CHUM sign on the Richmond Street side of their building...but if all operations move out to Agincourt, what will happen to the sign?
I remember when there was a Chevrolet dealer on the west side of Yonge and the CHUM building on the east.