Renderings provided courtesy of Hines.

The Hines plan will transform the Bayside development site into an active and diverse mixed-use community connected by major parks and public spaces.   Complete with 1,700 homes, a bustling main street and office and employment space for 2,400 jobs, Bayside is the single largest parcel of land to be developed by Waterfront Toronto.

“Council’s approval is a huge milestone not only for waterfront revitalization but for the City of Toronto,” said John Campbell, President and CEO of Waterfront Toronto. “With Hines, we can now move forward with reconnecting the city to the waterfront by building a liveable, walkable, community defined by beautiful parks and public spaces.”

Backed by an $800 million private sector investment, the Bayside development will result in approximately $1.6 billion in total economic activity and $20 million in development charges for the City of Toronto.  To promote lasting economic development, Bayside is being targeted as an employment hub on the waterfront, particularly for knowledge-based industries such as information and communication technology companies and the creative sector.

The new neighbourhood, located on a 4 hectare (10 acre) site between Lower Sherbourne and Parliament Streets, is expected to be constructed in phases with first occupancy of buildings and completion of new public spaces as early as 2014.  The entire project is expected to be completed by 2021.

“We are delighted with City Council’s approval and to be working with Waterfront Toronto in creating a dynamic new live/work/play neighbourhood on the harbour,” said Avi Tesciuba, Hines vice president of Canadian operations.  “Bayside is an extremely important development for Hines, and we look forward to the excitement of bringing the vision to fruition.”

Renderings provided courtesy of Hines.

Hines assembled an internationally renowned design team led by luminary architects Cesar Pelli, Fred Clarke and Stanton Eckstut to develop its plans for Bayside. The plans will deliver a vibrant new neighbourhood built on a human scale, with mews and small streets that promote a sense of closeness and community all year round.  The neighbourhood’s main street — Bonnycastle Street — will draw visitors from across the city and will provide connections to neighbouring public spaces, including the soon-to-be-completed Sherbourne Common, Queens Quay linear park, and the Water’s Edge Promenade.

The Bayside development is an integral part of the remarkable transformation already well underway in the new East Bayfront precinct that Waterfront Toronto is developing. Employees have now moved into the area’s first commercial building, Corus Quay, the new headquarters of Corus Entertainment.   Construction is well underway on George Brown College’s new state-of-the-art Health Sciences Campus. Canada’s Sugar Beach and the first stretch of the Water’s Edge Promenade are now open and next month Waterfront Toronto will open Sherbourne Common, the area’s other major new park.

The Governments of Canada and Ontario and the City of Toronto created Waterfront Toronto to oversee and lead the renewal of Toronto’s waterfront. Public accessibility, design excellence, sustainable development, economic development and fiscal sustainability are the key drivers of waterfront revitalization.

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Media Kit:

NEWS RELEASE
BAYSIDE BACKGROUNDER
EAST BAYFRONT BACKGROUNDER
BAYSIDE DEVELOPMENT SELECTION PROCESS BACKGROUNDER
HINES DESIGN TEAM BACKGROUNDER

For more information, please contact:

•    Samantha Gileno, Waterfront Toronto 416-214-1344 x264 or 416-271-1316, sgileno@waterfrontoronto.ca

•    George Lancaster, Hines 713-966-7676 or George.lancaster@hines.com

To learn more about the project, developer and design teams:

Waterfront Toronto
Hines
Pelli Clarke Pelli
Ehrenkrantz Eckstut & Kuhn Architects
Adamson Associates

Bayside Image and Video Gallery:

High-resolution renderings and a project animation video are available for download below.  Please note that any use of the animation video and/or renderings should credit Hines.

Bayside Animation Video

Bayside Aitken Place. Renderings provided courtesy of Hines.

Following an extensive competitive selection process, Waterfront Toronto has chosen Hines, one of the world’s premier real estate firms, to develop Toronto’s next great waterfront neighbourhood.

Hines will help Waterfront Toronto transform the Bayside development site into a vibrant and diverse mixed-use neighbourhood, complete with 1,700 homes, a bustling retail, restaurant and entertainment corridor, and office and employment space for 2,400 jobs. Situated in a prime downtown location in the emerging East Bayfront waterfront district, the Bayside site consists of 4 hectares (10 acres) of underutilized city-owned land south of Queens Quay Boulevard between Lower Sherbourne and Parliament streets.

Having received unanimous approval from Toronto City Council’s Executive Committee on August 16, the development agreement for the Bayside project will be presented to City Council for final approval at the August 25/26 council meeting.  If approved, the new neighbourhood will be constructed in phases with first occupancy of buildings and completion of dynamic new public spaces as early as 2014.  The entire project is expected to be completed by 2021.

To develop its winning proposal, Hines assembled an internationally renowned design team led by luminary architect Cesar Pelli, who is responsible for such iconic buildings as the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur and Manhattan’s World Financial Center, and Stanton Eckstut, the visionary behind New York’s celebrated Battery Park City waterfront development.

The Bayside site will be the single largest parcel of land developed to date by Waterfront Toronto.  Backed by an $800 million private sector investment, the development will result in approximately $1.6 billion in total economic activity and $20 million in development charges for the City of Toronto.  To promote lasting economic development, Bayside is being targeted as an employment hub on the waterfront, particularly for knowledge-based industries such as information and communication technology companies and the creative sector.

“The Bayside development is another major step forward in the complete revitalization of our waterfront and it will be an integral part of East Bayfront, which is already taking shape into a showcase 21st century community,” said John Campbell, President and CEO of Waterfront Toronto. “We look forward to working in partnership with Hines, a company with an extraordinary track record for sustainable development, energy efficiency and innovative operational practices, to ensure that Bayside will be a model for green building across the city and around the globe.”

In addition to meeting or exceeding Waterfront Toronto’s Mandatory Green Building Requirements, Hines is planning a number of strategic green programs for Bayside, including the implementation of the Hines GREEN OFFICE Tenant Program, which enhances the sustainable features and operations of employer spaces in commercial buildings.  The firm has also proposed the creation of an ENERGY STAR® pilot program for commercial construction, which would see Hines partner with Natural Resources Canada to expand the Canadian Building Standard for single-family residential construction into commercial development.

“We are elated by the opportunity to be part of the remarkable transformation underway along Toronto’s waterfront, and especially with a project of this importance and magnitude”, said Gerald D. Hines, Chairman and Founder of Hines.  “With a presence in more than 100 cities around the globe, Hines has the breadth of experience, network of expertise and financial strength required to ensure the timely development of this large and complex waterfront site.”

Bayside Bonnycastle Street at night. Renderings provided courtesy of Hines.

Hines’ plans for Bayside will deliver a vibrant and dynamic neighbourhood that is full of life and activity all year round.  A significant retail and entertainment destination on Bonnycastle Street will draw visitors from across the city and will provide connections to neighbouring public spaces, including the soon-to-be-completed Sherbourne Common, Queens Quay linear park, and the Water’s Edge Promenade. To ensure the neighbourhood is just as vibrant during the colder months, the design team drew inspiration from successful winter environments like Québec City, Montréal and Stockholm.  These considerations are evident in the area’s non-linear street network, which creates a variety of intimate and weather protected spaces, and the planned construction of a winter garden.

“The people, who will eventually live, work and play here, were our first and foremost design consideration,” said architect Cesar Pelli.  “The neighbourhood will be built on a decidedly human scale, with mews and small streets that promote a sense of closeness and community.”

“Among other things, we are trying to create the most walkable neighbourhood in all of Toronto,“ added architect Stanton Eckstut. “The most walkable is also the most sustainable approach to city design.”

Rounding out the Bayside design team is award-winning Toronto-based Adamson Architects, with their local knowledge and years of collaborative experience on large-scale development projects, including London’s Canary Wharf.

Waterfront Toronto

Since 2005, Waterfront Toronto has opened 16 new or improved parks or public spaces including wavedecks, sports fields, revitalized trails and new waterfront parks.  Waterfront Toronto has also finalized development agreements with Great Gulf Homes and Urban Capital for the first private sector developments on the waterfront.

The Governments of Canada and Ontario and the City of Toronto created Waterfront Toronto to oversee and lead the renewal of Toronto’s waterfront. Public accessibility, design excellence, sustainable development, economic development and fiscal sustainability are the key drivers of waterfront revitalization.

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Media Kit:
NEWS RELEASE
BAYSIDE BACKGROUNDER
EAST BAYFRONT BACKGROUNDER
BAYSIDE DEVELOPMENT SELECTION PROCESS BACKGROUNDER
BAYSIDE DEVELOPMENT MEDIA BRIEFING SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES
HINES DESIGN TEAM BACKGROUNDER

For more information, please contact:

•    Samantha Gileno, Waterfront Toronto 416-214-1344 x264 or 416-271-1316, sgileno@waterfrontoronto.ca

•    George Lancaster, Hines 713-966-7676 or George.lancaster@hines.com

To learn more about the project, developer and design teams:

Waterfront Toronto
Hines
Pelli Clarke Pelli
Ehrenkrantz Eckstut & Kuhn Architects
Adamson Associates

Bayside Image and Video Gallery:

High-resolution renderings and a project animation video are available for download below.  Please note that any use of the animation video and/or renderings should credit Hines.

Bayside Animation Video

(Left to Right): Toronto Centre MPP Glen Murray, Toronto City Councillor Pam McConnell, Federal Minister of Finance Jim Flaherty, Waterfront Toronto’s Chair Mark Wilson, Mayor of Toronto David Miller, and then Ontario Minister of Energy and Infrastructure Brad Duguid officially open Canada’s Sugar Beach and phase one of the Water’s Edge Promenade.

Toronto’s downtown waterfront that was until now mostly derelict industrial land that few people had visited. Canada’s Sugar Beach and the Water’s Edge Promenade (phase one) are unique new urban spaces that have transformed a lakefront parking lot and underused area into waterfront attractions.

Located just east of Lower Jarvis Street and south of Queens Quay Boulevard, Canada’s Sugar Beach is an 8,500m2 (2 acre) park which welcomes visitors with its brightly coloured pink beach umbrellas, sugar-like sand and iconic candy-striped rock outcroppings.  At the base of the park, the first phase of water’s edge promenade stretches almost 300 metres east along the waterfront, providing Torontonians and visitors with the opportunity to enjoy part of the lakefront that they have not had access to in the past.

After only nine months of construction, the park and promenade were officially opened by Waterfront Toronto and its government partners, the Government of Canada, the Government of Ontario and the City of Toronto. Both projects were completed on schedule and on budget. The budgets – $14.3 million for Canada’s Sugar Beach and $10 million for the Water’s Edge Promenade (phase one) – include design, construction and landscaping costs.

“Only nine months ago, we broke ground on what was a parking lot,” said Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty. “Today’s opening makes it clear that Federal Government investment in waterfront revitalization is making a significant difference.  It’s helping to transform these industrial lands into beautiful parks and recreational spaces that can be enjoyed by the residents of Toronto and the people of Canada.”

“The McGuinty government is proud to be a partner in the revitalization of Toronto’s waterfront,” said Brad Duguid, Ontario’s Minister of Energy and Infrastructure. “The opening of Canada’s Sugar Beach and the Water’s Edge Promenade is yet another major milestone toward that vision. We will continue to invest in projects like these — projects that make our urban spaces beautiful and inviting, and that contribute to a great quality of life for Ontario families.”

“I’m proud and excited that mere months after breaking ground on this wonderful new public asset we are able to celebrate its official opening,” said Toronto Mayor David Miller. “We promised Torontonians a revitalized, public waterfront promenade and we are delivering on that vision. Canada’s Sugar Beach joins the numerous waterfront amenities we’ve already opened…and there are plenty more to come.”

The beach and promenade are the first new public spaces to open in East Bayfront, one of two new waterfront neighbourhoods currently under construction as part of Toronto’s waterfront revitalization.

“Since they opened to the public in July, the beach and promenade have become must-see waterfront destinations,” said Mark Wilson, Chair, Waterfront Toronto. “These delightful public spaces show us that our waterfront can be something to be proud of — and they demonstrate, beyond a doubt, that waterfront revitalization is moving full steam ahead.”

Aerial View of Canada's Sugar Beach

The design and construction of these public spaces exemplify Waterfront Toronto’s commitment to design excellence. Conceived as part of international design competitions that actively engaged the public, both the park and the promenade help to raise the bar for city-building in Toronto by setting a new standard for the creativity of design and quality of materials.

Canada’s Sugar Beach was designed by Claude Cormier Architectes Paysagistes in association with the Planning Partnership, while West 8 + DTAH was the team behind the promenade. The two project teams collaborated and shared key design elements and materials to deliver on Waterfront Toronto’s goal of creating a cohesive and integrated public realm throughout the waterfront.

Comprised of a plaza, an urban beach and a tree-lined promenade, Canada’s Sugar Beach is like three parks in one. Its engaging plaza space features an oversized candy-striped granite rock outcropping and large grassy mounds that form a colourful amphitheatre-style space. At the beach, white Muskoka-style chairs under bright pink umbrellas give people a place to while away the afternoon. Its tree-lined promenade, which runs diagonally through the park and connects to the Water’s Edge Promenade, includes a granite maple leaf water feature where people can cool off next to the beach.

The design for the Water’s Edge Promenade, one of the defining features of the West 8 + DTAH award-winning plan for Toronto’s downtown waterfront, creates a stunning tree-lined granite walkway with a two-toned maple leaf mosaic design.  As the development of East Bayfront progresses, a wooden boardwalk will be built alongside the promenade over the stormwater management system for the area. Together, the promenade and boardwalk which will stretch almost a kilometre from end to end, will provide uninterrupted public access along the harbour.

Both projects were completed on schedule and on budget. The budgets – $14.3 million for Canada’s Sugar Beach and $10 million for the Water’s Edge Promenade (phase one) – include design, construction and landscaping costs.  The Federal Government has contributed over $13 million to the Canada’s Sugar Beach project and another $1.5 million to phase one of the Water’s Edge Promenade.

Revitalization efforts are well underway across the waterfront. In East Bayfront, a second park, the majestic 1.5 hectare Sherbourne Common, is set to open later this summer and construction continues on the George Brown College Waterfront Campus which will welcome students in September 2012. In the West Don Lands, Toronto Community Housing has begun construction on the area’s first affordable housing complex, and construction is set to begin on Don River Park this fall. Plans for the Lower Don Lands were endorsed by Toronto City Council this summer and in the Central Waterfront, the first phase of construction to revitalize Queens Quay will begin next year.

Waterfront Toronto
Since 2005, Waterfront Toronto has opened 16 new or improved parks or public spaces including wavedecks, sports fields, revitalized trails and new waterfront parks.  Waterfront Toronto has also finalized development agreements with Great Gulf Homes and Urban Capital for the first private sector developments on the waterfront.

The Governments of Canada and Ontario and the City of Toronto created Waterfront Toronto to oversee and lead the renewal of Toronto’s waterfront. Public accessibility, design excellence, sustainable development, economic development and fiscal sustainability are the key drivers of waterfront revitalization.

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Media Kit:
Canada’s Sugar Beach Fact Sheet
Water’s Edge Promenade Fact Sheet
East Bayfront Backgrounder
French News Release

Media Contacts:
•    Michelle Noble, Director of Communications, Waterfront Toronto 647-288-8048 or 416-294-7762
•    Chisholm Pothier, Press Secretary, Department of Finance Canada, Minister’s Office 613-996-7861
•    Andrew Block, Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, Minister’s Office 416-327-6747
•    Stuart Green, Deputy Director of Communications, Office of the Mayor 416-338-7119

Images (click image for high resolution download):

Waterfront Toronto, in conjunction with the City of Toronto and Toronto and Region Conservation, sought Toronto City Council’s authorization to submit all the necessary planning documents to support an Official Plan Amendment for the Lower Don Lands plans. The Official Plan Amendment paves the way for future revitalization of the area including rerouting the river, building flood protection and ultimately building new communities.

Council’s endorsement means the draft Don Mouth Environmental Assessment can be submitted to the Ministry of the Environment for approval under the Environmental Assessment Act, and the Official Plan Amendment and new Zoning By-law can be submitted to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing and the Ministry of Natural Resources for consistency with provincial flood management policies. 

Following approval by the ministries, the Official Plan Amendment and Zoning By-law will go back to City Council in August for final approval.  If passed in August, Toronto’s Official Plan will be amended to enshrine the Lower Don Lands plans, ensuring future development in the area is in harmony with the principles and standards of the plan.  

“Revitalization of the Lower Don Lands is an integral part of overall waterfront revitalization.  The renaturalized Don River will become the centerpiece of a 21st century, mixed-use neighbourhood,” said John Campbell, President and CEO of Waterfront Toronto.  “I’m confident the Lower Don Lands will finally realize its potential and become one of the most sought after spots in the City to live, dine, and relax at the water’s edge.”

Regeneration and development of the Lower Don Lands has until now been hindered by flood risk, isolation, soil and groundwater contamination and inadequate infrastructure.  The plans address and overcome these factors, and will protect more than 230 hectares (568 acres) of land currently at risk due to flooding.  The flood mitigation measures in the plan eliminate a potential half-billion dollar flood risk, while simultaneously unlocking the economic development potential for the lands.  The plans will transform this post-industrial area into a vibrant mixed-use neighbourhood that combines sustainable city building with major river restoration and naturalization.

The plans were developed as a result of an international design competition in 2007 and were taken through a rigorous technical analysis as part of a comprehensive environmental assessment.  Using an integrated design process, the plans skillfully apply ecology to reconnect the city, lake and river, and set the stage for wholesale transformation of the area.  The new Lower Don Lands will be a vibrant, mixed-use sustainable community and a sought-after destination to live, work and play.

The planning process for the Lower Don Lands has included extensive community and stakeholder consultation.  Numerous meetings with the public, non-profit agencies, community groups, private land owners and other stakeholders were held throughout the process.
In addition to being the recipient of several prestigious international awards, the Lower Don Lands project is also one of 18 projects of the Climate Positive Development Program, U.S. President Bill Clinton’s joint Climate Initiative with the U.S. Green Building Council. 

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The Governments of Canada and Ontario and the City of Toronto created Waterfront Toronto to oversee and lead the renewal of Toronto’s waterfront. Public accessibility, design excellence, sustainable development, economic development and fiscal sustainability are the key drivers of waterfront revitalization.

For more information:
Lower Don Lands Backgrounder
Lower Don Lands Quick Facts

Media Contact:
Tari Stork, Manager, Project Communications, and Waterfront Toronto 416-214-1344 x 279
tstork@waterfrontoronto.ca

Located at the water’s edge just east of Jarvis St., across the slip from the Redpath Sugar Factory, Canada’s Sugar Beach is the first park to open in the new East Bayfront neighbourhood.  Waterfront Toronto decided to open the park in time for the July long weekend to give the public a chance to enjoy the whimsical new space while finishing touches are being completed.  Over the next few weeks, temporary lights will be replaced, benches installed and the splash pad hooked up to hydro. Reaction from the public has already been overwhelming positive. Please join Waterfront Toronto and our government partners on August 9 at 10:30am for the official opening.

Waterfront Toronto, in conjunction with the City of Toronto and Toronto and Region Conservation, is seeking Toronto City Council’s authorization to submit all the necessary planning documents that would ultimately result in an Official Plan Amendment for the Lower Don Lands plans. The Official Plan Amendment would pave the way for future revitalization of the area including rerouting the river, building flood protection and ultimately building new communities.

At its July 6/7 meeting, Council will be asked to endorse the draft Don Mouth and Lower Don Lands environmental assessments.  If endorsed, the draft Don Mouth Environmental Assessment will then be submitted to the Ministry of the Environment for final approval under the Environmental Assessment Act.

Council will also be asked to endorse an Official Plan Amendment and new Zoning By-law, which require review by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing and the Ministry of Natural Resources for consistency with flood management policies.  If passed by Council in August, Toronto’s Official Plan will be amended to enshrine the Lower Don Lands plans and will bring the project to a point of readiness where funding and economic development opportunities can be seized.

The plans were already unanimously endorsed by Toronto City Council’s Executive Committee on June 14 and by Toronto and East York Community Council on June 22.

“This is a pivotal moment for the future of the Lower Don Lands and is the culmination of years of planning,

design and public consultation,”said John Campbell, President and CEO, Waterfront Toronto.“The plans for the Lower Don Lands represent a unique opportunity to remake a significant and vital part of Toronto’s waterfront.”

Until now, regeneration and development of the Lower Don Lands has been hindered by a number of factors including flood risk, isolation from the rest of the city, soil and groundwater contamination and insufficient infrastructure.  The Lower Don Lands plans address and overcome all of these factors, and will transform this post-industrial area into a sought-after destination to live, work and play based on design excellence, ecology and economic sustainability.

Following an international design competition in 2007, the plans were developed by a team led by world renowned landscape architectural firm Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates Inc (MVVA). The plans were taken through a rigorous technical analysis as part of a comprehensive environmental assessment.  The process looked at several options and ultimately led to the development of the preferred alternative.  The MVVA led team used an integrated design approach – the collaboration of landscape architects, urban designers and leading sustainability experts –which brought together infrastructure, public realm, and ecology to connect the city, lake and river in a dynamic and balanced relationship at the mouth of the Don River.

The plans renaturalize the mouth of the Don River by rerouting it through the Lower Don Lands and at the same time protect more than 230 hectares (568 acres) of land currently at risk due to flooding. The flood mitigation measures eliminate a potential billion dollar-plus flood risk, while simultaneously unlocking the economic development potential for the lands.

The strategies embedded in this approach expand development opportunities for building at the edge of a naturalized river park setting. Under the plans the water’s edge will almost double and 49 hectares (120 acres) will be allocated to parks and open spaces. Comprehensive economic impact assessments project that the plans will result in:
•    $480 million in incremental increases in land value in the Lower Don Lands, before build-out;
•    $300 million in increased land value in surrounding neighbourhoods;
•    $55 million in new annual tax revenue in the Lower Don Lands; and
•    $6.8 billion in private investment leveraged in the Lower Don Lands.

“In addition to the economic and environmental benefits to the City, the plans create a unique opportunity for Toronto to showcase its leadership in progressive and sustainable city building,” said Campbell. “Reconnecting Toronto and the Don River at the edge of Lake Ontario will transform Toronto’s waterfront into an internationally recognized destination that combines sustainable city building with major river restoration and naturalization.”

Waterfront Toronto’s plans for the Lower Don Lands have received several prestigious international awards including accolades from the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, the American Institute of Architects, and the Building Exchange (BEX) Conference.

The Lower Don Lands project is also one of 18 founding projects of the Climate Positive Development Program. A project of U.S. President Bill Clinton’s Climate Initiative and the U.S. Green Building Council, the program’s aim is to demonstrate sustainable urban growth models and support large urban developments in achieving zero carbon emissions.

The Lower Don Lands has been designed to achieve climate-positive goals using passive design, optimizing climatic effects from sun and wind, and prioritizing transit and multi-modal transportation options. Energy planning raises the bar for energy efficiency, deemphasizing reliance on the grid. The design also includes strategies for water re-use and leading edge information technology to support sustainable living and working.

The planning process for the Lower Don Lands has included extensive community and stakeholder consultation.  Numerous meetings with the public, non-profit agencies, community groups, private land owners and other stakeholders were held throughout the process.

The Governments of Canada and Ontario and the City of Toronto created Waterfront Toronto to oversee and lead the renewal of Toronto’s waterfront. Public accessibility, design excellence, sustainable development, economic development and fiscal sustainability are the key drivers of waterfront revitalization.

For more information:
Lower Don Lands Backgrounder
Lower Don Lands Quick Facts

Media Contact:
Tari Stork, Manager, Project Communications, and Waterfront Toronto 416-214-1344 x 279
tstork@waterfrontoronto.ca

More than 500 names were submitted and thousands of people voted online during the month and a half long park naming contest. Sherbourne Commons, submitted by Doug Dent, received the most number of votes during the final round of voting followed by Merchant’s Wharf Park and Tkaronto Park. Once approved by Community Council, the park will be officially renamed when it opens later this summer.

“It’s very fitting that the winning name, which reflects the idea that public spaces belong to the people, would come out of a public naming contest,” said John Campbell, President and CEO of Waterfront Toronto. “As we transform East Bayfront from industrial, underutilized lands into one of Canada’s most sustainable and technologically advanced communities, the name Sherbourne Commons, will serve as a continual reminder that the waterfront is first and foremost about the people who will use it.”

The “Rename Sherbourne Park” contest was launched on April 26 by Waterfront Toronto and online news website Torontoist to give people a chance to become part of the history of the waterfront. Between April 26 and May 14, members of the public were invited to submit their park names to www.torontoist.com/park.

A shortlist of eight names, developed by a selection committee representing a broad range of voices in the community, including local City Councillor Pam McConnell, was released on May 31. The shortlist was also vetted by the City of Toronto Parks, Recreation and Forestry Division to ensure the names met the parks naming criteria outlined in the City of Toronto’s Policy Statement on Naming and Renaming Park & Recreation Facilities & Parks.

During the semi-final round of voting, between May 31 and June 7, members of the public ranked their favourite of the eight shortlisted park names. The three top ranked park names — Merchant’s Wharf Park, Sherbourne Commons and Tkaronto Park — were then put forward to the public for a final round of voting.

The park’s working name – Sherbourne Park – was based on its location at the foot of Lower Sherbourne Street in the heart of East Bayfront, a new waterfront community currently under construction between Jarvis St. and Parliament St.  The new waterfront park is transforming a once grim, industrial area into much needed public greenspace on the lake.  When it opens this summer, it will give Torontonians access to a part of the lakefront they have never been able to enjoy.

Mr. Dent, the winner of the Rename Sherbourne Park contest, will receive a commemorative rendering of the park and will be invited to be part of the park’s opening celebrations later this summer.

Learn More:

Rename Sherbourne Park Contest Backgrounder
Official Contest Rules and the City of Toronto’s Policy Statement on Naming and Renaming Park & Recreation Facilities & Parks

Waterfront Toronto
The Government of Canada, the Province of Ontario and the City of Toronto created Waterfront Toronto to oversee and lead the renewal of Toronto’s waterfront. Public accessibility, design excellence, sustainable development, economic development and fiscal sustainability are the key drivers of waterfront revitalization.

Torontoist
Torontoist focuses on absolutely everything interesting related to Toronto, including news, arts, events, culture, transit, politics, photography, advertising, street art and graffiti, food, and a whole lot more.  Established in October 2004 as part of the thirteen-city Gothamist network, Torontoist is now published by Ink Truck Media, and has become the largest, most influential, and most widely-read website of its kind in Canada.

For more information, please contact:
Samantha Gileno, Waterfront Toronto – 416.271.1316 or sgileno@waterfrontoronto.ca

The National Urban Design Awards, sponsored by the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, the Canadian Institute of Planners and the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects are designed to promote public and private awareness of urban design. The Spadina WaveDeck was honoured in the Civic Design category for its role in maintaining and enhancing the quality of life in Toronto.

“It is a tremendous honour to be recognized on a national level for our commitment to creating outstanding public spaces,” said John Campbell, President and CEO of Waterfront Toronto. “Like everything we build on the waterfront, the Spadina WaveDeck reminds us that public spaces can be both beautiful and functional.”

Designed by West 8 and du Toit Allsopp Hillier (DTAH), the Spadina WaveDeck opened in September 2008 and was the first wavedeck built along Toronto’s waterfront. Inspired in part by the Canadian cottage experience and the shorelines of Ontario’s great lakes, the Spadina WaveDeck creates more public space along one of the most heavily used parts of the Toronto shoreline.

“This design is a nice piece of art, creating an interesting node and a continuous path that accommodates all abilities and disability,” said the Awards Program Jury in its official comments. “It fully animates the urban environment.”

The Spadina WaveDeck is also the recipient of several other prestigious design awards including a Toronto Urban Design Award, a National Merit Award from the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects and an Honor Award from the American Society of Landscape Architects. It was also the first Canadian project ever to be short-listed for the world-acclaimed Brit Insurance Design Awards.

Since 2005, Waterfront Toronto has completed several parks and public spaces projects in addition to the wavedecks. This summer, Canada’s Sugar Beach and Sherbourne Park will open in East Bayfront and construction starts later this fall on Underpass Park and Don River Park in the West Don Lands.

The Governments of Canada and Ontario and the City of Toronto created Waterfront Toronto to oversee and lead the renewal of Toronto’s waterfront. Public accessibility, design excellence, sustainable development, economic development and fiscal sustainability are the key drivers of waterfront revitalization.

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Learn more about the Spadina WaveDeck. For more information about the landscape architects, please visit www.west8.com and www.dtah.com.

Media Contacts:
Samantha Gileno, Waterfront Toronto 416-214-1344 x264 or 416-271-1316

The final three park names for public voting at www.torontoist.com/park are:

• Merchant’s Wharf Park —pays homage to the old pier that once stood at the foot of Sherbourne Street
• Sherbourne Commons — incorporates both the park’s location at the foot of Sherbourne St. and the concept of “the commons” where the greens/open park-like spaces belong to the people without regulatory restriction or proprietary requirement
• Tkaronto Park —from the Iroquoian word meaning “trees standing in water” also an early origin of the name Toronto

“We’re thrilled that this contest has given so many people a stake in the revitalization of our waterfront,” said John Campbell, President and CEO of Waterfront Toronto. “It’s a reminder that our waterfront isn’t about one community or one pocket of the city —the waterfront is an asset for the entire city.”

The “Rename Sherbourne Park” contest — www.torontoist.com/park — was launched on April 26 by Waterfront Toronto and online news website Torontoist. Between April 26 and May 14, members of the public were invited to submit their park names to www.torontoist.com/park.

A shortlist of eight names, developed by a selection committee representing a broad range of voices in the community, including local City Councillor Pam McConnell, was released on May 31. The shortlist was also vetted by the City of Toronto Parks, Recreation and Forestry Division to ensure the names met the parks naming criteria outlined in the City of Toronto’s Policy Statement on Naming and Renaming Park & Recreation Facilities & Parks.

During the semi-final round of voting, between May 31 and June 7, members of the public ranked their favourite of the eight shortlisted park names. The three top ranked park names — Merchant’s Wharf Park, Sherbourne Commons and Tkaronto Park — are now part of the final round of voting.

The park’s working name – Sherbourne Park – is based on its location at the foot of Lower Sherbourne Street in the heart of East Bayfront, a new waterfront community currently under construction between Jarvis St. and Parliament St.  The new waterfront park is transforming a once grim, industrial area into much needed public greenspace on the lake.  When it opens this summer, it will give Torontonians access to a part of the lakefront they have never been able to enjoy.

The winning park name will be announced on June 16, 2010 and must be formally approved by Toronto and East York Community Council.

The official contest rules and the City of Toronto’s Policy Statement on Naming and Renaming Park & Recreation Facilities & Parks are available on www.torontoist.com/park. Contest details are available in the Rename Sherbourne Park Contest Backgrounder.

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Waterfront Toronto

The Government of Canada, the Province of Ontario and the City of Toronto created Waterfront Toronto to oversee and lead the renewal of Toronto’s waterfront. Public accessibility, design excellence, sustainable development, economic development and fiscal sustainability are the key drivers of waterfront revitalization.

Torontoist

Torontoist focuses on absolutely everything interesting related to Toronto, including news, arts, events, culture, transit, politics, photography, advertising, street art and graffiti, food, and a whole lot more.  Established in October 2004 as part of the thirteen-city Gothamist network, Torontoist is now published by Ink Truck Media, and has become the largest, most influential, and most widely-read website of its kind in Canada.

For more information, please contact:

Samantha Gileno, Waterfront Toronto – 416.271.1316 or sgileno@waterfrontoronto.ca

The “Rename Sherbourne Park” contest – www.torontoist.com/park – was launched on April 26 by Waterfront Toronto and online news website Torontoist.

Between April 26 and May 14, members of the public were invited to submit their park names to www.torontoist.com/park.  Contest submissions had to follow the City’s policy on park naming and were to reflect the park’s location in one of Toronto’s newest, most sustainable and technologically-advanced communities.

The shortlist, developed by a selection committee representing a broad range of voices in the community, including local City Councillor Pam McConnell, covers a range of historical, commemorative and geographical perspectives which strongly relate to the waterfront and aspects of urban revitalization.

The eight shortlisted names for the Rename Sherbourne Park Contest are:*

• Bayfront Village Green
• Blue Edge Park
• Kanadario Park (from the Iroquois word meaning “sparkling” or “beautiful” water)
• Merchant’s Wharf Park
• Ridout Park
• Sherbourne Commons
• Tkaronto Park (from the Mohawk word meaning “trees standing in water” also an early origin of the name Toronto)
• Waterside Park

The shortlist was also vetted by the City of Toronto Parks, Recreation and Forestry Division to ensure the names meet the parks naming criteria outlined in the City of Toronto’s Policy Statement on Naming and Renaming Park & Recreation Facilities & Parks.

“It’s clear from the overwhelming response to this contest that a lot of people are engaged in waterfront revitalization” said John Campbell, President and CEO of Waterfront Toronto. “We’re now looking forward to broadening the conversation by having the entire city vote for a new name for the park.”

Members of the public have two opportunities to vote for their favourite park name at www.torontoist.com/park. During the semi-final round of voting, from May 31 to June 7, members of the public can rank their favourite of the eight shortlisted park names. The three top ranked park names will move on to the final round of voting which will take place between June 9 and June 15. The name that receives the most number of votes will become the new name of the park.

The park’s working name – Sherbourne Park – is based on its location at the foot of Lower Sherbourne Street in the heart of East Bayfront, a new waterfront community currently under construction between Jarvis St. and Parliament St.  The new waterfront park is transforming a once grim, industrial area into much needed public greenspace on the lake.  When it opens this summer, it will give Torontonians access to a part of the lakefront they have never been able to enjoy.

Sponsored by Waterfront Toronto and Torontoist in collaboration with the City of Toronto, the “Rename Sherbourne Park Contest” gives members of the public an opportunity to become part of the history of the waterfront.  The winning park name will be announced on June 16, 2010 and must be formally approved by Toronto and East York Community Council.

The official contest rules and the City of Toronto’s Policy Statement on Naming and Renaming Park & Recreation Facilities & Parks are available on www.torontoist.com/park.

*Details about the shortlisted submissions are available in the Rename Sherbourne Park Contest Backgrounder  or at www.torontoist.com/park.

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Waterfront Toronto

The Government of Canada, the Province of Ontario and the City of Toronto created Waterfront Toronto to oversee and lead the renewal of Toronto’s waterfront. Public accessibility, design excellence, sustainable development, economic development and fiscal sustainability are the key drivers of waterfront revitalization.

Torontoist

Torontoist focuses on absolutely everything interesting related to Toronto, including news, arts, events, culture, transit, politics, photography, advertising, street art and graffiti, food, and a whole lot more.  Established in October 2004 as part of the thirteen-city Gothamist network, Torontoist is now published by Ink Truck Media, and has become the largest, most influential, and most widely-read website of its kind in Canada.

Rename Sherbourne Park Contest Backgrounder

For more information, please contact:
Samantha Gileno, Waterfront Toronto – 416.271.1316 or sgileno@waterfrontoronto.ca