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More than five years ago, the City of Toronto spent $400,000 to move the Joy Oil filling station from the north side of Lake Shore Boulevard West to the south side, near Ellis Avenue, and to fix the place up, adding a new roof, new eavestroughs and downspouts painted orange, and new windows throughout.

The city then erected a two-metre high chainlink fence around the lovely landmark and left it there, unused and inaccessible. When I visited Sunday, throngs of children mobbed slides and swings next to the fence; bikes and inline skaters whizzed by, and the Joy Oil station sat there, unloved and unnoticed.

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This appears to be a textbook case of why governments should never dabble in real estate.

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After fixing up the station, the city approached Sam Caragianakos, whose family has exclusive rights to sell food and beverages in the Western Beaches (including the Joy Oil site) through 2016, and asked for a proposal to open a snack bar.