Parks - new & revitalized

[jje1000]

I'm as concerned about upkeep and maintenance as much I am about new parkland- if a new park ends up looking as ratty as June Callwood Park after a few years, it doesn't bode well to the public image.

If city council is unwilling to raise the Parks Department budget, then the way the city administers parks will require a rethink.

 

[ADRM]

From KWT's latest newsletter:

Phase 2 construction for Ramsden Park begins!

If you're strolling through Ramsden Park, you can see that the Phase 1 upgrades, including the new children's playground and tennis courts, are now in full use. Now that the rainy weather has eased up, crews are set to begin Phase 2 of construction.

Phase 2 is expected to proceed throughout construction season 2017, and conclude in 2018. Changes will include: an upgraded dog off-leash area; upgraded Hillsboro entrance, with accessible ramp; a new multi-use sports court; and upgraded Yonge Street entrances and pathways. Crews will also be installing new park furniture, and landscaping to give the park a beautiful new look.

Please note, the dog off-leash area will need to close briefly during construction. Closure is not expected to occur until after Labour Day, and work will be completed within 2017.

 

[DSC]

Not sure where in Toronto, if anywhere, a project like this London (UK) one would be good but it's an interesting read. https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2017/jul/17/london-park-underground-mega-basement

 

[interchange42]

Here's how Bellevue Park looked yesterday:

42

 

[Northern Light]

Overhaul coming to Dufferin Grove Park.

https://wx.toronto.ca/inter/pmmd/calls.nsf/0/A9D05FDC2A6D7676852581D8004CA0E6?OpenDocument

 

[junctionist]

The city should maintain more park walkways in the winter. Not maintaining the walkways makes the city less pedestrian friendly. There's a park in my area with a walkway to George Bell Arena, a city arena. The walkway is not maintained in the winter, and the only way to walk to the arena is through the parking lot. So kids end up walking with their rolling hockey bags along a street with no sidewalk and frequent tractor trailer traffic and then through a parking lot, which is perhaps 4x the walking distance.

 

[DSC]

The city should maintain more park walkways in the winter. Not maintaining the walkways makes the city less pedestrian friendly. There's a park in my area with a walkway to George Bell Arena, a city arena. The walkway is not maintained in the winter, and the only way to walk to the arena is through the parking lot. So kids end up walking with their rolling hockey bags along a street with no sidewalk and frequent tractor trailer traffic and then through a parking lot, which is perhaps 4x the walking distance.

This has been a long-term problem in St Lawrence with Berczy and St James. Response from City is lack of $$. In many parks the pathways are really sidewalks.

 

[ADRM]

The city should maintain more park walkways in the winter. Not maintaining the walkways makes the city less pedestrian friendly. There's a park in my area with a walkway to George Bell Arena, a city arena. The walkway is not maintained in the winter, and the only way to walk to the arena is through the parking lot. So kids end up walking with their rolling hockey bags along a street with no sidewalk and frequent tractor trailer traffic and then through a parking lot, which is perhaps 4x the walking distance.

Seeing that sign in the picture above also triggered me; penny pinching suburban councillors (and a fundamentally cautious mayor) strike again.

 

[Avenue]

Overhaul coming to Dufferin Grove Park.

https://wx.toronto.ca/inter/pmmd/calls.nsf/0/A9D05FDC2A6D7676852581D8004CA0E6?OpenDocument

Dufferin Grove is way overdue. It's been ignored by the city even though neighbourhood itself has long been gentrified.

 

[junctionist]

Parks shouldn't be ignored by the city until the neighbourhood has gentrified in the first place.

 

[Avenue]

I don't make the rules!

 

[old boy]

If more people made noise about the need for more parks and for better upkeep of existing parks, the politicians will listen. Make it an election issue. This seems like a topic that just now is entering the larger public consciousness. Keep the ball rolling.

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

New TO Core Downtown Parks and Public Realm Plan (Full Report - 100+MB)

AoD

 

[Adjei]

So the city comes up with a new park sign and some are complaining about it:

https://www.thestar.com/yourtoronto/the_fixer/2018/05/27/a-sign-of-things-to-come-in-city-parks.html

This sign is 100 times better than the current signs:

 

[Johnny Au]

How about this sign:

Fairbank Memorial Park still has this sign design.