One of Toronto's most beloved mid-century architectural landmarks will now be lit up permanently at the foot of Dufferin Street.

Exhibition Place announced last week that Dufferin Gate, the large concrete arch marking the north entrance to the Ex grounds, will now be illuminated nightly, welcoming visitors to the site year-round.

The 1959-built expressionist parabolic arch gate soaring 65 feet above the Dufferin Bridge was previously only lit during special events like the CNE's brief run each summer.

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People seem genuinely excited about the announcement, with one user writing, "I was wondering why it's been turned back on! Honestly, been nice seeing it lit up! Keep it going!!"

"This is the start of the Exhibition Place Renaissance to a brighter, animated pedestrian visitor experience," wrote another commenter in response to the news.

The existing 65-year-old Dufferin Gate is actually the third such gate to bear this name. Long before the current arch, a previous wooden structure was constructed in 1895, and replaced by a second, more impressive gate in 1910.

For 17 years, until the Princes' Gates opened at the east end of the Ex grounds in 1927, Dufferin Gate was the primary entrance for the annual summer festivities.

With its importance overtaken by the new gates, the second Dufferin Gate would survive for just over two more decades before it was demolished in the 1950s to make way for the construction of the Gardiner Expressway.

The new gate cost $265,000 in 1959, equal to about $2.74 million adjusted for inflation in 2024.

The current Dufferin Gate actually stands about 15 metres south of the lost gates — their former location standing at the approximate area of the southernmost eastbound lane of traffic and shoulder of the Gardiner Expressway.