Last year, Stackt opened with great fanfare and was an instant hit as THE local outdoor spot to hang out in downtown Toronto. It was a perfect storm of a public outdoor space that filled a big void in a city critically devoid of such spaces, where culture, entertainment and commerce would co-exist.
A year later, despite a global pandemic having changed everything, it is still a booming spot that has lost none of its original qualities, owing in large part to the fact that it's predominantly outdoors. In my opinion, what makes it particularly resilient is that it's adaptable, diverse in its uses and programming and therefore attracts many kinds of people for many reasons. In short, it has most, if not all of the attributes that make a vibrant place, in spite of the fact that it started out in a less than ideal location that in no way guaranteed its success.
It was a big gamble, but with big risks, come big rewards.