Terrible news for miniature train enthusiasts: Canada's largest (and best-loved) model railway is soon to be dismantled. The Model Railway Club of Toronto has announced that as of April 30, 2013, the club (in operation since 1938), will be leaving its Liberty Village home in the basement of an old armaments factory. And in particularly disheartening news, the move is prompted by yet another condo proposal which will see several character buildings demolished.

However, this is not the first such move for the Toronto club — it was previously ousted in 1946, following the war, from their original home in Union Station. In 2013, the club will yet again dismantle its O scale Central Ontario Railway, and has stated that plans are already underway to find a new home.

It's yet another David vs. Goliath moment in which dedicated hobbyists get bullied by larger forces (i.e. Lifetime Development Group), but at least the 2013 deadline gives you ample time to enjoy the railway in its current digs. The club is putting on a series of shows — dubbed "Romance of the Rails-the Last Run in Liberty Village" — beginning over the holiday season and continuing on into February 2013 (the club's 75th anniversary).

The last show will be on Family Day (February 18), and following that, the taxing task of dismantling the almost 500 sq. m. railway will begin. All proceeds from the various shows will go towards rebuilding it in its new home.

Photo by Bobcatnorth