Two buildings that have sat kitty-corner at one of downtown Toronto's busiest intersections for decades are now being gutted and razed, respectively, for a new station on the forthcoming Ontario Line subway.

Passersby will have noticed that construction fences began going up around the properties at the northeast and southwest corners of Queen and Spadina in late spring, following the closure of numerous businesses that were forced to vacate to make way for the new infrastructure.

Among these was a location of Fancy Franks, a walk-in clinic, a fur coat store, and a TD Bank on the south side, all of which had held their locations for many years before being expropriated by the provincial government.

As of late this week, this stretch on the southwest side has been nearly completely demolished, with full fencing, scaffolding and signage about the Ontario Line surrounding the premises.

The CIBC that was located in the historic banking building on the opposite corner at 378 Queen St. W/165 Spadina Ave., which was originally built a staggering 120 years ago, has also been gone for months — now, nearly without a trace of what it used to be.

Designed by George Wallace Gouinlock for the Bank of Hamilton (which later merged with CIBC), the structure was completed in 1903 and received heritage designation in the early 1970s.

It is known as one of the oldest buildings in Canada, and is now almost completely gutted as work on the new transit stop really gets going, though exterior facades remain.

Peering into the holes that were once the bank's windows, one can see that most pre-existing interior finishes, walls, and more have been removed, with the upper levels looking eerily dark and empty.

Metrolinx tells blogTO that in regards to the building, it is "committed to preserving Toronto's history," and that the demo work is being performed under the supervision of a cultural heritage specialist.

"Preservation work is well underway at the intersection, where crews are preserving materials that will be reinstated as part of the future station buildings," a representative said Friday.

"Some of this work involves 'panelization' where existing building façades are divided into smaller panels and removed using a crane. The panels are carefully lowered onto a truck outfitted with a special metal-framed truss that is designed to support these important pieces of Toronto's heritage when they're taken off site."

Yes, like historic monuments at the site of another future Ontario Line stop at Queen and University, portions of the building will be moved into storage before being revived as part of the new station design.

Subtle remnants of the bank below can still be seen in the form of pendemic-era decals left in the windows, and ATM-shaped spaces where exterior-facing machines used to operate on Spadina.

Along Bulwer Street behind the building, an exterior wall can be seen holding on for dear life, part of it torn down and the outside skin removed.

Metrolinx says some 7,500 bricks have been extracted thus far, and that that any in decent shape will be kept and used in the construction of the future station entrance.

"All the materials are being carefully transported to a facility for safekeeping until they can be incorporated into the future station buildings, while some elements of the buildings will remain in place throughout construction," the spokesperson said.

Later this month, new retention towers will be appearing to "safely hold the building façade in place" while behind it, the shiny new terminal comes into existence.

Rendering of what the future northeast corner of Queen and Spadina might look like from Metrolinx.

But, it's still unclear how much the corner will resemble its former self when all is said and done, as renderings are still preliminary and are likely to change.

Metrolinx notes on its website that the blueprints are "subject to further approvals and consultations," and that some artist depictions do not include the condo proposed for the southwest as part of a new transit-oriented community.

Rendering of what the future southwest corner of Queen and Spadina could look like, without transit-oriented community plans taken into account, from Metrolinx.

By 2041, Metrolinx says that the station will see 7,200 customers and 3,800 transfers during its busiest hour, with some 28,000 people living within walking distance.

The 15.6 km-long, 15-station subway line will span from Exhibition Station in the southwest to Flemingdon Park in the northeast, a terminus already branded as the Science Centre stop before Premier Doug Ford announced the institution would be moving.

An earlier rendering of what the southwest corner could look like with a new condo as part of one of the transit-oriented communities planned along the new subway route.

Other transit-oriented hubs along the line are currently planned for around King and Bathurst, Exhibition Place and Corktown Station, while tons of snazzy new public spaces and bridges will also be part of the new infrastructure.