Downtowns were once called the “heart” or “soul” of a city, a metaphor that lends emotional weight to the multi-layered and densely populated regions that once defined city life, say professors Michael Darroch and Lee Rodney of the School of Creative Arts.

A “participatory strata-walk” through Windsor’s core on Friday, October 20, led by the Hamilton Perambulatory Unit with Drs. Darroch and Rodney of the In/Terminus Research Group, will celebrate the conversion of the Windsor Armouries into the school’s new downtown campus.

“This walk is both a reconnaissance into the historical military foundation of the city, and an attempt to track the current location of its heart and soul,” says Rodney.

The two note that the Windsor Armouries were at the civic centre for most of the last century, providing a form of fortification and security that is now changing.

“We will investigate how security has changed from the early 20th century and ways in which it is displayed or hidden in our urban landscape,” Darroch says.

This walk is presented in conjunction with the Art Gallery of Windsor and its 2017 Windsor Triennial Exhibition, “Downtown/s: Urban Renewal Today for Tomorrow,” on display through January 28. Those joining the walk will enjoy a free coffee after leaving at noon from the gallery’s main entry, 401 Riverside Drive West.