{"id":2212,"date":"2007-11-02T11:12:16","date_gmt":"2007-11-02T15:12:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/spacingtoronto.ca\/?p=2212"},"modified":"2013-01-21T14:18:31","modified_gmt":"2013-01-21T19:18:31","slug":"new-stadium-new-space","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2007\/11\/02\/new-stadium-new-space\/","title":{"rendered":"New stadium, new space"},"content":{"rendered":"

The University of Toronto’s new, very simple Varsity Stadium at Bloor W. and Bedford<\/a> has been criticized<\/a> for not contributing to this rapidly developing stretch of Bloor by adding retail, residents or interesting architecture. To me, however, its simplicity is actually a good balance — it opens up a stretch of the street just as other parts are being enclosed in by a series of new buildings — the ROM and Royal Conservatory extensions, the new University of Toronto residence at St. George, tall condos on the north side. As these parts get filled in, the formerly hulking Varsity Stadium has been removed and replaced with hardly a structure at all, just a mostly open perimeter, revealing a lovely space, letting in light and a view of downtown. The University could have closed it off to prevent people from seeing what’s happening in the field, but instead they have made the space very transparent.<\/p>\n

It helps that the new little plaza at the corner of Bloor and Devonshire has been nicely designed, to create a good new public space at a busy corner. I expect it will become a common meeting place — it is pleasant, there is seating and views to look at, and it’s at a cross-roads of destinations. I’ve seen quite a few people sitting there on pleasant fall days. This is a good example of\u00a0the kind of placemaking the City needs to encourage systematically across\u00a0Toronto.<\/p>\n

One feature I particularly noticed is how they have covered the tree pits. They used simple metal grates, which let the water in but keep passersby from compacting the soil. I confess I’m at a loss as to why we don’t use these everywhere in the city – maybe they’re more expensive than concrete, but they last well and probably save the cost of replacing the tree as often. Someone suggested to me that there’s a concern that the metal will get stolen, but I think that it could be secured in concrete pretty easily — I haven’t heard of tree grates being stolen in other cities.<\/p>\n

A city staffer once told me that the reason was that weeds grow through the grates — a process you can see in the picture below, and they were even larger earlier in the summer before they were cut back — and that as soon as weeds appear, the city gets lots of complaints from people because they think it looks unkempt. This attitude leaves me at a loss — to me, it’s great to see healthy green plants growing in these spaces — that should be an advantage, not a problem, and there’s no need to even cut them back. Maybe a solution instead is to seed the spaces around the tree with attractive native grasses and wildflowers, so that they look pretty and purposeful, but still take care of themselves without needing extra care.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The University of Toronto’s new, very simple Varsity Stadium at Bloor W. and Bedford has been criticized for not contributing to this rapidly developing stretch of Bloor by adding retail, residents or interesting architecture. 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