Completed Port Union Waterfront Park Now Open

November 26, 2012, Toronto, ON—The second and final phase of Port Union Waterfront Park, a lakefront green space in the eastern end of Toronto, is now open for the public to enjoy.

The 13.5 hectare (33.4 acre) park, which provides access to the waterfront in an area that had previously been cut off from the lake, was constructed in two stages.  The second phase expanded the park east from Port Union Road to the Rouge River and added approximately 5.5 hectares of park space and 1.8 kilometres of waterfront trail.

Port Union Waterfront Park was constructed through a lake filling process and was designed and built by Toronto and Region Conservation (TRCA). The completed park features 3.8 kilometres of waterfront trail, 10 cobble beaches, shoreline enhancements, aquatic and terrestrial habitat improvements, and the creation of wetlands between Highland Creek in the west to Rouge River in the east.

The first phase of the park, from Highland Creek in the west to Port Union Road in the east, opened in September 2006 and included a bridge over Highland Creek and a pedestrian underpass at Port Union Road. The park’s Western Gateway, a partnership between Waterfront Toronto, Toronto and Region Conservation and the City of Pickering, opened in 2010. The Gateway features a pedestrian bridge and raised boardwalk that were created to connect Toronto and Pickering and provide visitors and trail users with safe and easy access to the lake and waterfront trail systems.

An event to celebrate the completion of Port Union Waterfront Park is planned for spring 2013.