Corktown Common has more than 700 trees that are bursting with colour right now. (Image by Nicola Betts)

POSTED: NOVEMBER 9, 2016 I PARKS AND PUBLIC SPACES, PUBLIC ART, WALKABLE NEIGHBOURHOODS
By: Meghan Hogan

The Mimico Waterfront Park gazebo overlooks Lake Ontario against a backdrop of boats. 

Parking It is a weekly series of blog posts – running all summer long – that will explore Toronto’s system of waterfront parks.
 

POSTED: JULY 15, 2016
BY: TENNILLE DOWERS 

After a run-off vote, the winner of the Project: Under Gardiner naming campaign is the Bentway.

Over the four-day run-off vote, 1,333 valid votes were cast; the Bentway had 845 votes, while the Artery had 488 votes. The winning name celebrates "the bents", the column-and-beam structures that frame the space under the Gardiner Expressway.

The engagement from the public in naming this new public space has been inspiring. Over the last three months, the project’s community engagement process has resulted in:
 

Project: Under Gardiner’s naming campaign will continue with a run-off vote to be held from May 26-30.

There was suspicious activity during the final hours of voting for the Project: Under Gardiner naming campaign. In the closing hours of the voting, we noticed a significant jump in voting and watched as the six percent gap between the two leading names – the Bentway and the Artery – closed quickly.

Where the Gardiner Expressway passes over Strachan Avenue, there is an opportunity to create a unique space for music, theatre and other kinds of performance. Image courtesy of PUBLIC WORK.

POSTED: APRIL 26, 2016
BY: JACK TOBIN GARRETT, PARK PEOPLE (GUEST CONTRIBUTOR)

Toronto, April 5, 2016 – Reclaim the Name, the naming campaign that is underway to create a new name for the public space under the Gardiner Expressway, is now entering its next phase with the announcement of the Naming Jury. The Jury consists of a diverse group of Torontonians from across the cultural, artistic, design, civic engagement and social activism fields. Their task is to sift through the hundreds of names that have been submitted, and develop a shortlist of three to five names that will then be voted on by the public in May.

Toronto, March 1, 2016 – Today, Waterfront Toronto and the City of Toronto announce the next phase of Project: Under Gardiner, the $25-million partnership that will create vibrant community spaces hosting a range of cultural programming beneath a section of the Gardiner Expressway extending from Strachan Avenue, across Fort York National Historic Site, to Spadina Avenue. Since it was announced in November of last year, Project: Under Gardiner has been a temporary name for the project.

On their surface, the WaveDecks along the Central Waterfront are whimsical and fun elements that enhance the public realm. Underneath they provide a naturalized environment for aquatic life.

PUBLISHED: FEBRUARY 11, 2016
BY: ANNA PALAMARCHUK