Morning Brew: PanAm organizers still booking venues, is Toronto becoming NYC (for homes)?, Union Station renos continue, Chow for mayor, and Apocalypse T.O.

PanAm games officials are still working to book arenas and stadiums for many of the events at the 2015 event despite publicly announcing deals were already in place, reports The Globe and Mail. Organizers are confident they can secure the necessary spaces, which include the new sports arena upstairs at Maple Leaf Gardens, before it's too late.

Is Toronto's downtown core being "Manhattanized"? According to real estate honcho Brad Lamb, it is. He says families are being forced out of the core by increased demand and rising prices for single and detached homes. Lamb says condos are the future of housing for families who want to live in the city, like it or not. Do you find the prospect of home ownership depressing?

Union Station's dingy train shed is slowly giving way to sunlight and fresh air as renos on the heritage structure push forward ahead of schedule. The Star has an update on the project.

Olivia Chow would beat Rob Ford in an election if it were held today, according to a weekend poll by Forum Research for the Sun. 58% of those asked said they would vote for Chow, while just 34% said they favor Ford. The rest were undecided. Would you vote Chow if she made a run for mayor?

In other polls for the newspaper, three quarters of Torontonians asked support a ban on handguns in the city. The same research team also found support for mandatory bike helmets, free parking for veterans, and city funding for High Park Zoo and Riverdale Farm.

Ever wondered what a post-apocalyptic Toronto would look like? If you have, you're probably some sort of maniac. That or you're Jonas De Ro, a Belgian artist who specializes in visualizing cities in ruin.

In other news, what the heck is that washed up on an Ajax beach? (via Reddit)

Finally, it's been a week or so since the Construction Safety Association of Ontario scared us straight. Here's a shocking PSA from 1983 from Retrontario:

IN OTHER NEWS:

• Blue Jays burned by grand slam in Royals rout [CBC]
• Shootings, drownings claim at least seven lives during long weekend in Ontario [National Post]
• Toronto police investigate apparent high-rise meth lab [CBC]

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Photo: "Grandma K.O" by kaigakyoshite in the blogTO Flickr Pool.