{"id":13437,"date":"2010-08-19T09:00:30","date_gmt":"2010-08-19T13:00:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/spacingtoronto.ca\/?p=13437"},"modified":"2013-01-21T15:29:23","modified_gmt":"2013-01-21T20:29:23","slug":"how-to-not-promote-access-to-the-waterfront","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2010\/08\/19\/how-to-not-promote-access-to-the-waterfront\/","title":{"rendered":"How to (not) promote access to the waterfront"},"content":{"rendered":"

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I’m not sure if anyone else has noticed but Toronto’s waterfront doesn’t seem to be on the radar of the mayoral candidates in this election. This is surprising since one of the candidates (Joe Pantalone) is a city councillor of a ward that borders Lake Ontario while another one (George Smitherman) used to represent a provincial riding that includes the Toronto Island, airport, Don River, and skirts the Port Lands. I suspect it’s only a matter of time before HTO Park’s yellow umbrellas<\/a> are introduced to the miser wrath of Rob Ford.<\/p>\n

But this post is not meant to challenge candidates. Instead, I’d like to discuss our access to the waterfront. Or more importantly, how the City of Toronto and Waterfront Toronto have dropped the ball on effectively directing pedestrians and cyclists to make their way down to Lake Ontario.<\/p>\n

I live in the most southern part of Parkdale, just west of the CNE grounds. The Jameson pedestrian bridge that crosses over the eastbound lanes of Lakeshore Blvd.<\/a> is a one-minute walk from my place and I have a clear view of it from my balcony. It’s used quite often by walkers and cyclists. But it’s the only entry point to the waterfront and the Martin Goodman Trail for over a kilometre in either direction.<\/p>\n

So how is this vital access point promoted? With two rather insignificant signs: one is a few blocks away from the bridge itself (see it on Google StreetsView<\/a> at Jameson and King West) and another sign is two short blocks away at Dunn and Springhurst<\/a>, both residential streets (shown above). These are the only signs I’ve found in the western part of the city promoting access to the waterfront. The other popular pedestrian bridge, at Roncesvalles and King<\/a>, has a grand total of zero signs promoting its location.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Not only is the current sign poorly designed, its placement is odd: they are installed at a height designed specially for drivers, yet the signs are intended for pedestrians and cyclists. Better placement of the sign \u2014 possibly eye-level and installed in the boulevard part of sidewalks \u2014 would be more appropriate, as would placing them much further north into the city.<\/p>\n

And it’s not as if the City doesn’t know the value of good signage: the recently installed signs for ravines, creeks and rivers (shown below) are great examples of how to promote the city’s greatest natural asset.<\/p>\n

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What’s more frustrating (for me, at least) is that there are less traffic obstacles for pedestrians and cyclists in this part of the city than currently found in the central waterfront area (see Dylan Reid’s post from August 2008 about walking to the waterfront south along Spadina<\/a>). Overtly promoting the safe access to the waterfront in this part of the city should be a no-brainer.<\/p>\n

In Spacing’s second issue<\/a>, back in the summer of 2004, we talked to Ken Greenberg, one of Toronto’s most highly-regarded urban designers, about the one specific thing he’d do to promote walking in the city. His idea was the create “Walks To The Water”. Simply put, if the City improved the experience of walking down to the lake along the north-south streets more people will go the waterfront.He wrote:<\/p>\n

“One of the great pedestrian divides in Toronto is the inhospitable passage from the established part of the city north of Front Street and east of Yonge Street, the Esplanade and Mill Street to the central waterfront. While it is physically possible to cross these relatively short distances on foot on Cherry Street, Parliament, Sherbourne, Jarvis, Yonge, Bay, York, Spadina, Bathurst and even on Strachan, not one of these walks is inviting. In fact they are downright discouraging and bleak. Eventually they may be improved by redevelopment along the routes, but at the current rate this could take forever. Why not show a positive sign now and make modest investments in making these into great \u2018Walks to the Water\u2019 with improved paving, lighting, street furniture, planting, signage, and public art?”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

If Toronto is ever to get serious about attracting people down to the lake from other parts of the city, one of the easiest things they could do is to start installing a series of well-designed signs that promote waterfront access points. And hopefully, there will be more than two signs.<\/p>\n

Top photo by Matthew Blackett; bottom photo by Esmond Le<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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