Parkway Mall
A community-scale shopping centre serving Toronto's Maryvale neighbourhood in Scarborough, Ontario.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Parkway Mall is a community-scale shopping centre at the southeast corner of Victoria Park Avenue and Ellesmere Road in Toronto, Ontario. It serves the Maryvale neighbourhood in Scarborough and is oriented toward everyday shopping, groceries, personal services, and other local needs rather than the broad regional catchment associated with major Toronto destinations such as Fairview Mall or Scarborough Town Centre. The centre was originally known as Parkway Plaza. Its principal supermarket building dates from 1958 and was designed by the Toronto architectural firm Bregman & Hamann. The building was created for Grand Union supermarkets and was briefly operated under that name before becoming a Steinberg's store after Grand Union's Canadian business was acquired in 1959. Over subsequent decades, the supermarket anchor operated under several banners, including Miracle Food Mart and Dominion. Since 2008, the space has been occupied by Metro. The supermarket structure is notable for its large parabolic-arched roof, curved wooden supports, and glass end walls. The design represented an ambitious form of post-war suburban commercial architecture and was unusually prominent for a local shopping centre. In the late 1970s, Parkway Plaza underwent major alterations. A circular record-store building was removed, retail areas were expanded into former parking space, and many shops that had previously faced outward were reoriented toward internal mall corridors. These changes made the centre more inward-facing and contributed to a less transparent exterior composed in part of service doors and largely blank concrete walls. Parkway Mall's identity has remained closely connected to convenience and neighbourhood service. Its long-running grocery presence has provided a daily-use anchor, while the surrounding retail mix has supported routine purchases, food, personal services, and local errands. The centre is therefore best understood as a community shopping facility rather than a destination mall built around luxury, entertainment, or a large regional merchandise mix. It historically also contained a Zellers discount department store, which operated there until the early 2000s. The supermarket building acquired heritage significance as an example of post-war Canadian suburban commercial design. In 2009, Parkway Plaza became the first post-war supermarket building placed on the City of Toronto's Inventory of Heritage Properties. Toronto subsequently designated the property under the Ontario Heritage Act in May 2015. The designation reflects the architectural and historical importance of the original supermarket structure, even though the broader retail complex has been altered over time. Today, Parkway Mall remains an active Toronto shopping centre with a local-service orientation. Its name, retail role, and heritage context connect a functioning neighbourhood mall with the history of post-war suburban development in the city.
History
Parkway Mall began as Parkway Plaza, a post-war suburban shopping centre in Toronto's Scarborough district. Its development was tied to the expansion of automobile-oriented neighbourhood retail in the late 1950s, when supermarkets and small shopping plazas became important elements of suburban life. The centre is located at Victoria Park Avenue and Ellesmere Road in the Maryvale neighbourhood, positioning it to serve surrounding residential communities. The best-known original component was the supermarket building completed in 1958. Designed by Bregman & Hamann, the structure was created as a Canadian store for Grand Union supermarkets. Its large parabolic-arched roof, curved wooden structural members, and glazed end walls gave it a highly distinctive profile. The building was among the largest examples of its type in Canada at the time and expressed the optimism and architectural experimentation associated with post-war suburban development. Grand Union's operation at the site was short-lived. After the company was acquired in 1959, the supermarket became a Steinberg's store. The anchor later operated as Miracle Food Mart and then Dominion, reflecting the succession of grocery banners that served Toronto consumers during the second half of the twentieth century. It has operated as a Metro supermarket since 2008, preserving the building's long-running grocery function while changing its corporate identity. The shopping centre was substantially altered in the late 1970s. A circular record-store building was demolished, and retail space was enlarged into an area that had previously been used for parking. Shops that had once opened toward the surrounding streets were turned inward toward the mall, changing the relationship between the complex and its urban surroundings. The renovation increased internal retail capacity but left parts of the exterior dominated by service entrances and plain concrete walls. Parkway Plaza also historically included a Zellers discount department store. That anchor remained for many years before leaving the centre in the early 2000s. The centre's retail role has generally remained local and practical, with grocery shopping, essential merchandise, food, and personal services taking precedence over the large-scale fashion, entertainment, and luxury offerings found at regional malls. The original supermarket structure later became important as a heritage landmark. In 2009, the City of Toronto placed it on the Inventory of Heritage Properties. Contemporary coverage emphasized both the building's unusual design and its value as evidence of a period when suburban commercial architecture was treated as a significant expression of civic and consumer life. In May 2015, the property was designated under the Ontario Heritage Act. This made the structure a protected example of post-war supermarket architecture while it continued to function as part of an active shopping centre. Parkway Mall remains a neighbourhood-oriented retail destination. Its history combines changing grocery banners, alterations to a mid-century shopping complex, the disappearance of former department-store and specialty anchors, and the preservation of an architecturally distinctive supermarket building. The result is a functioning community mall whose heritage significance rests particularly on its original 1958 anchor.
- 2015
Heritage designation is enacted
[1]Toronto designates the property under the Ontario Heritage Act in May, recognizing the building's architectural and historical value.
- 2009
Supermarket building enters Toronto heritage inventory
[1]The City of Toronto adds the post-war supermarket building to its Inventory of Heritage Properties.
- 2008
Metro becomes the supermarket tenant
[1]The long-running grocery anchor begins operating under the Metro banner.
- 1970
Major late-1970s redevelopment
[1]The centre undergoes significant alterations, including the removal of a circular record-store building and the reorientation of shops toward internal mall space.
- 1959
Supermarket becomes Steinberg's
[1]Following Grand Union's acquisition, the grocery operation at the site changes to the Steinberg's banner.
- 1958
Original supermarket building opens
[1]The distinctive supermarket structure at the centre opens as a Grand Union store and forms the architectural anchor of Parkway Plaza.
Products and positioning
A practical neighbourhood shopping centre focused on groceries, essential retail, and everyday services, with a distinctive heritage-listed post-war supermarket anchor.
Grocery anchor · 2008
Metro
Metro is the current grocery anchor identified with Parkway Mall. Its presence continues the centre's original and longstanding role as a place for routine food shopping and daily household needs. The supermarket occupies the historically significant building that previously housed Grand Union, Steinberg's, Miracle Food Mart, and Dominion operations.
Discount department store
Zellers
Zellers was a former major tenant at Parkway Mall and provided general merchandise and discount department-store shopping. It operated at the centre for many years before leaving in the early 2000s.
Community shopping centre offering · 1958
Neighbourhood retail and services
Parkway Mall's broader offering consists of local-serving retail, food, personal services, and convenience-oriented shopping. The centre is positioned around recurring neighbourhood errands rather than a specialized luxury or regional-destination assortment.
Brand decisions
2015
Heritage designation under the Ontario Heritage ActOtherBackground
The original supermarket building was recognized for its distinctive parabolic-arched design and its importance as an example of post-war Canadian suburban commercial architecture.
Action taken
Toronto designated the property under the Ontario Heritage Act in May 2015 after it had been added to the city's heritage inventory in 2009.
Aftermath
The designation established formal heritage recognition for the building while it continued to serve as the grocery anchor of the active shopping centre.
Recent events
- 2015
Supermarket building designated under the Ontario Heritage Act[1]
Regulation
Toronto formally designated the heritage property in May 2015, protecting the cultural heritage value associated with the supermarket building's architecture and history.
- 2009
Metro store nominated as heritage property[3]
Other
The supermarket building at Parkway Plaza was reported as a candidate for heritage recognition because of its unusual post-war architecture and historical importance as a suburban supermarket structure.
- 2009
Parkway Plaza added to Toronto's heritage inventory[1]
Other
The City of Toronto placed the post-war supermarket building associated with Parkway Plaza on its Inventory of Heritage Properties, making it the first building of its type in the city to receive that recognition.
Sources3 sources
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