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. . . And the winner is:

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Well, even though the official announcement isn’t for another two hours the Star is reporting that West 8 has won the Waterfront design competition:

More than anything, the West 8 proposal saw the exercise as one that goes well beyond simply clearing up the awkward spots where the slips, water and road meet; instead its starting point was the need to reconnect Toronto and the lake and create a sustainable neighbourhood on the edge of the water.

Short notice, but if you want to hear politicians from all three levels of government make the formal announcement, they’ll be doing so at 2:30 this afternoon on the west side of John Quay Promenade (Queens Quay and Rees Street).

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7 comments

  1. I like the plan and would love to see the Gardiner take its last stand, but two issues with this plan: There are no guardrails or even safety guards along those wharfs, my inner lifeguard is cringing. My inner nationalist thinks that floating maple leaf shaped wetlands in the middle of Toronto Harbour is out-and-out ridiculous and I hope that this project runs out of funds before those get built.

  2. I really hope that they don’t go through with that maple leaf design, even though it won’t be built for some time in the future phases. That also goes with that arch with the two dragons. It’s just too tacky and would away from the waterfront.

    I do like the first phase design ideas of West 8. They were the only ones I believe that actually had bridges going over each of the slips which makes it so much easier to stroll down in a straight path instead of curving in a out due to the shape of the slips.

  3. I’m interested that they want to put the ferry docks at the foot of Yonge with an outdoor market – this would be much nicer than the arrangement we have now. It would be a bit like Granville Island, and give us an excuse to sink Captain John’s for a coral reef somewhere on the far side of Madagascar, which should have happened years ago.

    But was this on anybody’s radar?

  4. I wasn’t really impressed with any of the designs.

    They need something that is viable for the WINTER. The winter seems to last 6 months in Toronto, and during those six months the waterfront is miserable and grey.

    Adding piers is just gonna make it miserable and grey… with piers.

    I still think the footbridge at Roncesvalles should be massively widened into a “land bridge”, making an appealing link to the beach.

    http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=toronto,+on&ll=43.637496,-79.447031&spn=0.003921,0.0106&t=k&om=1

    It could be done, couldn’t it?

  5. For all the floating maple leaf nay-sayers, according to the jury’s report, they didn’t like them either and told them they couldn’t build them. So it looks like the essential parts: the redesign of the street (and a possible opening up of the south side of the street for pedestrian/cycling traffic this summer!?) with floating boardwalk, trees, broad promenade will be happening and the other stuff is either nixed or under negotiation.

    I think this will look great! If the politicians back away from closing the east bound lanes for some pedestrian fun (a la Kensington) then perhaps residents should organize some street parties anyway.

  6. Jacob> The land bridge is interesting. As is pointed out by many, it’s not the Gardiner that’s the problem (though it’s the symbol) it’s the expanse of RR lands. At Roncesvalles it’s RR, Freeway and Lakeshore. A land bridge might be like one of those British or Santa Monica piers, over to the lake. With stores or cafe’s (sealed and air conditioned, cuz of the exhaust) and maybe vendors, or some floating trees. That would be nice, as long as it worked. If the businesses failed it would seem deader than it is now.

    As for Captain John, he’d totally fight to the death if an attempt was made to sink him. At the Santa Cruz party last weekend, he was omnipresent, in his captain uniform, ordering his eastern european staff around, and making annoucements on the PA. I don’t know if he’d go gently into the night.