Victoria Hall stands at the southwest corner of Mosley and Victoria Streets. It has a steeply pitched gabled roof, Gothic windows and a brick exterior that has been there since 1883. Aurora Town Square at 50 Victoria Street is a short walk away. Between now and New Year's Eve, nearly every holiday event the Town has planned for the downtown core takes place there.
That makes the corner the busiest one in town for the next two months. The Town's announcement this month says it wants that activity to continue all year.
A restaurant for the heritage hall
On October 9, the Town of Aurora announced an agreement with Stephen Ho, the former owner of Aqua Grill, to run a new restaurant inside Victoria Hall. Aurora Town Council endorsed the deal. According to the release, Ho plans an intimate, casual room with about 30 seats, an open kitchen and a small bar. The food will be made from scratch, with an emphasis on local producers.
"I want this to be a comfortable, relaxed place where you can come in for a plate of pasta, share some food with friends, and stay for a couple of hours," Ho said in the Town's release. He added that he has been part of the community for the last 20 years.
The release also describes the building's long run of uses. It opened as a congregation's home, later served as a public health facility and a library, and passed to the Town in 1951. For decades after that it hosted recreation programs, community meetings and performances. It was designated under the Ontario Heritage Act in 2008.
The Town says it asked for proposals that would bring more activity downtown and support a mixed-use core where people can live, shop, dine and spend time. The calendar below shows how much is already happening a few steps away. Victoria Hall would add a place to eat before the market or after a concert.
The restaurant does not have a name or an opening date yet. The Town says it will share those details once plans are final.
The Town's calendar on Victoria Street
These are the Town's holiday events from Diwali to New Year's Eve. All but two are held at Aurora Town Square. The Town lists the Diwali Celebration, the Christmas Market and Family First Night as free. For the other events, check the Town's event pages for details.
| Event | Date and time | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Diwali Celebration | Friday, November 6, 5 to 7 p.m. | Aurora Town Square |
| Santa Under the Stars Parade | Saturday, November 21, 6 to 8 p.m. | Southbound on Yonge Street, Orchard Heights Boulevard to Murray Drive |
| Christmas Market, first weekend | November 27 to 29, 5 to 8:30 p.m. | Aurora Town Square |
| Christmas Market, second weekend | December 4 to 6, 5 to 8:30 p.m. | Aurora Town Square |
| Deck the Halls Tour | December 6 to 23, 5 to 9 p.m. | Decorated homes and businesses, map coming in December |
| Menorah Lighting Ceremony | Monday, December 7 | Aurora Town Square |
| Family First Night | Thursday, December 31, 6 to 9 p.m. | Aurora Town Square |
A few details are worth knowing before you go. NewmarketToday's preview says the Diwali Celebration includes music, dance, food and crafts, plus a Bollywood dance workshop. The Christmas Market runs over six evenings across two weekends, with seasonal vendors, food vendors and workshops. Two weekends give you a second chance if the first one is cold.
Two schedules are still to come. The Town said more details on the Menorah Lighting Ceremony would follow in November, and the Family First Night program is also due in November. The map for the Deck the Halls Tour is expected in December.
Ticketed nights in the same building
The Town's events cover some evenings. The Aurora Cultural Centre's performance series fills many of the nights in between, and those shows are also at Town Square. Here are the listed prices, in date order:
- Mela Guitar Quartet, Friday, October 30, 7:30 p.m., $60
- Tulua, Friday, November 6, 7:30 p.m., $45
- Martha Chaves, Friday, November 20, 7:30 p.m., $50
- Tea and Classics: Suzanne Shulman & Erica Goodman, Sunday, November 22, 2 p.m., $45
- Ken Whiteley & His Musical Friends, Saturday, December 12, 2 p.m., $15 to $25
- Emilie-Claire Barlow Holiday Show, Saturday, December 19, 7:30 p.m., $60
Tulua plays on November 6, the same night as the free Diwali Celebration. You could spend the whole evening on the square, with Diwali from 5 to 7 p.m. and the concert at 7:30.
The Town's What's On listing adds more shows at Aurora Town Square. Prices aren't listed there, but each event links to tickets:
- FMJ: Foreigner Meets Journey, October 31
- Polished Punchlines Comedy Gala, November 5
- Lennon.Live, November 7
- Strange Advance, November 26
- The Music of Elvis Christmas Special, December 20
Some weeks are packed. From November 5 to 7, there is a comedy gala, Diwali, Tulua and Lennon.Live on three straight nights, all at the same address.
The galleries are free, and one exhibit closes in mid-December
The Aurora Cultural Centre's galleries cost nothing to enter. That makes them a good stop on a market night or before a show.
Some exhibitions are ending soon. Arnie Lipsey's Past. Tense. closes October 31. They are loved: an epidemic of grief and Remix run to November 15. Rain Sun's Self Portraits of a Cat is in the Underground Gallery until November 26.
Others open as those close. The Station Gallery Permanent Collection Show, guest-curated by emerging curator Steffi Ng, runs from November 12 to January 16, 2027. The opening reception and curatorial talk are on November 21 at 11 a.m., the same day as the Santa Under the Stars Parade that evening. In December, the Centre lists a Winter Halls Opening Reception on December 3 at 6:30 p.m. and Gallery Yoga + Sound Bath on December 6 at 10 a.m. Open Studio for ages 18 and up runs Wednesdays at 10 a.m. through November and into early December.
The exhibit with the firmest deadline is about local history. St. Andrew's College: A Century of Tradition in Aurora marks 100 years since the school moved from its first campus in Toronto's Rosedale neighborhood to Yonge Street, just south of St. John's Sideroad. The Auroran's October 15 issue reports that Jeremy Hood of the Aurora Museum & Archives and Gabby Jackowski, archivist at St. Andrew's College, curated more than 100 artifacts. They are shown in cases throughout Aurora Town Square and into the Aurora Public Library.
According to the Auroran, the curators' favorite pieces include a 1946 aerial photo from the National Air Photo Library showing the campus, cadet swords, surviving uniforms, and a student's photo album from the 1940s. The paper also reports that the exhibit is open until mid-December. If you plan to visit during the Christmas Market, go on the first weekend. The second weekend, December 4 to 6, may be close to the closing date.
What changes once the lights come down
The Town says that starting in 2027, it will make major upgrades to Victoria Hall to meet modern safety, accessibility and building-code requirements while keeping its heritage character. The release lists the work:
- A new glass-panelled addition to replace the existing one
- Restoration of the historic windows, interior wood elements and main entrance
- Repairs and restoration to the roof and brick exterior
- New accessible ramps and stairs at the south end
- Two new barrier-free washrooms at the north end
When the work is done, the restaurant will have about 1,650 square feet. Under the lease, the tenant pays for its own operations, interior maintenance, utilities, cleaning and leasehold improvements. In other words, the Town is restoring the building's shell and the operator is responsible for running the business inside it.
So this winter is the last holiday season before construction starts. On a walk between the market stalls and the Cultural Centre doors, you'll pass Victoria Hall's brick and Gothic windows as they look now. The restoration list says which parts will be repaired and which will be replaced, and the next time the hall is busy in December, it should be because people are eating there.
The Victoria Hall work list covers windows, roof, brickwork and accessibility, which are the same things that matter in any older building. If you own an older home in Aurora, or you're thinking about buying one, Pamak Azizi and the PAM Realty team can walk you through what its construction and condition mean for its long-term value. Contact Us when you're ready to talk it through.
