A walk through Downtown Brampton  Downtown Brampton, with the
1880s Dominion Building and the Rose Theatre behind.  I grew up
in the suburban city of Brampton, just north-west of Toronto.
Today, it is one of the most interesting suburban cities in
Canada, experiencing rapid population growth and demographic
change. I hope to make this one of several tours of my hometown
over the summer here at Spacing Toronto. I may have left,
wanting something closer to downtown Toronto, but it being so
close, I pass through Brampton and can remark on some of the
changes over the past few years. A few days ago, I attended a
local meeting and took the opportunity to walk around after
getting off the GO Train.  Until it was influenced by Toronto’s
rapid suburban growth in the 1950s, Brampton was a small town of
about 5,000 to 6,000 people, the seat of Peel County and a minor
railway junction. Its main industries were mass horticulture
(the massive greenhouse complexes gave it its nickname,
Flowertown), brick production and a f