Parks
-
What Amsterdam taught a Torontonian about urbanism
Tulips, windmills, and all those salacious, smoke-filled thoughts aside, Amsterdam is internationally regarded as a haven for urbanism and as a hub for...
By Katerina Ryabets -
Exploring Black Creek, Toronto’s mini-LA River
I’ve been reading a lot about the LA river recently because of the announcement that Frank Gehry is working with the City of Los Angeles on plans to...
By Jake Tobin Garrett -
Blending public and private space at Winchester Park
When you boil it down, there are really two basic types of open space in a city: public and private. You’ve got your beaches, ravines, parks, and plazas...
By Jake Tobin Garrett -
PARKS CRISIS conclusion: 10 ideas to help solve Toronto’s parks acquisition crisis
In May 2014, council gave the city’s planning team the green light to embark on a three-year planning exercise, branded TOCore, that’s meant to figure out...
By John Lorinc -
PARKS IN CRISIS part 6: Are privately owned public spaces the answer to parks deficit?
Over the next year, City of Toronto politicians and planners will be faced with an unprecedented challenge: how to create amenable public open spaces in...
By Kimberley Noble -
PARKS IN CRISIS part 5: The system worked (slowly) for a west end park
On a warm spring afternoon, the park on the corner of Sorauren and Wabash avenues in the west Toronto neighbourhood of Parkdale looks like a perfect dream...
By Kimberley Noble -
PARKS IN CRISIS part 4: A tale of two parks
By John Lorinc and Alex Steep Over the past few years, the city has seen a handful of examples of park construction that offer impressive illustrations of...
By John Lorinc -
PARKS IN CRISIS part 3: The perils of cash-in-lieu
By John Lorinc and Alex Steep At its final meeting of the fractious 2010-2014 term, City Council gave its blessing to what will become one of the few new...
By John Lorinc -
PARKS IN CRISIS sidebar: How Section 42 works
Under Section 42 of the Ontario planning act, municipalities can ask developers to dedicate land or cash for the purposes of creating new parkland. The...
By John Lorinc -
PARKS IN CRISIS part 2: How the money flows
By John Lorinc and Kimberley Noble The information shouldn’t come as a surprise, but the numbers are nonetheless startling. According to data obtained by...
By John Lorinc -
PARKS IN CRISIS part 1: All built up and no place to go
By John Lorinc and Alex Steep At a raucous public meeting about the future of Bickford Park last year, emotions ran high. Some residents wanted to remove...
By John Lorinc -
Stadia mania: Toronto’s six-decade quest for a civic stadium
The Stadocentre, Metrodome, Astrodome, and Tower Dome: Toronto historically has had no lack of imagination when it comes to dreaming up gleaming...
By Chris Bateman