Rail Deck Park (?, ?, ?)

[nrb]

Exciting time in the city's history for sure. This park will be looked back on as a line in the sand against unfettered condo development. Between this and the Port Lands naturalization of the Don, the city may finally get its due public parks. Add the DRL, ST/GO RER, and removal or trenching of the eastern Gardiner and we'll have better movement and more attractive streets to go with these added public spaces.

Line in the sand against development? How so? If anything, this will raise property values in the area and make it even more attractive to developers.

Capital costs aside, who's paying for the maintainance of this park? Considering the engineering of a park floating over a major rail corridor, maintainance costs are going to be very large. Of course, Tory will be long gone before then and this won't be his problem.

 

[Ottawan]

This will likely die a quick death in council.

I don't know about that. Whatever your thoughts on Tory, he has built an effective council coalition, and knows how to lead it. By throwing bones to suburban councillors in the form of odd studies of nonstarter subways, and more significantly through the whole Gardiner debate, he has the political capital to bring the majority of them to support this initiative.

I'm also not that worried about this being a tough sell in the suburbs. It is the sort of project that can be sold as "world-class" (whatever that means) which somehow appeals to suburbanites. Like a giant Ferris wheel in the portlands, except that this park would actually be useful.

 

[Filip]

I don't know about that. Whatever your thoughts on Tory, he has built an effective council coalition, and knows how to lead it. By throwing bones to suburban councillors in the form of odd studies of nonstarter subways, and more significantly through the whole Gardiner debate, he has the political capital to bring the majority of them to support this initiative.

I'm also not that worried about this being a tough sell in the suburbs. It is the sort of project that can be sold as "world-class" (whatever that means) which somehow appeals to suburbanites. Like a giant Ferris wheel in the portlands, except that this park would actually be useful.

You'll have every neighbourhood association from Alderwood to Agincourt protesting that the entire city's park fund is going to one park downtown. Parks are absolutely lightning rod issues for these associations. Don't underestimate how powerful and influential they are on local councillors.

This is a great idea! The city should pay its share but this'll need to be primarily funded from other levels of government or privately in order to be successful.

 

[Jonny5]

At this point it feels like less of a proposal and more of a dream. It will make a fine addition to the many others.

 

[W. K. Lis]

That links with Fort York, no, but not Garrison Point?

The Mouth of the Creek Park is on the east side of Bathurst Street, south of the railway tracks.

Rail Deck Park will be over the railway tracks going east from Bathurst Street. The two parks could become one.

 

[Megaton327]

John Tory is building a NINE-TRACK subway! Take THAT, Fords! Only one stop in true Toronto fashion, of course.

 

[PinkLucy]

Mouth of the Creek will link with Fort York beneath the Bathurst St. bridge, which will then link up with the new Bentway park, which you can take over to Garrison Point area (or stroll through Garrison Common), where you can take the new pedestrian bridge to Stanley Park. Potential amazeballs.

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

The development money for parks is split into separate funds for each ward. Ward 20 (Trinity-Spadina) and wards 27 and 28 (Toronto Centre-Rosedale) collected $213 million in cash from developers for parks between 2000 and 2014. If we're ballparking this thing to cost $700 million conservatively, that falls well short, and it is assuming money from Toronto Centre-Rosedale can be pooled in.

Source.

Current money - and development is not going to end post 2014 - phase it properly and you may see it being partially paid for as it goes along.

AoD

 

[Filip]

The development money for parks is split into separate funds for each ward. Ward 20 (Trinity-Spadina) and wards 27 and 28 (Toronto Centre-Rosedale) collected $213 million in cash from developers for parks between 2000 and 2014. If we're ballparking this thing to cost $700 million conservatively, that falls well short, and it is assuming money from Toronto Centre-Rosedale can be pooled in.

Source.

In that case go crazy. I think it'll cost more and will likely need significant help to be built.

Also does that mean the park fund can be used to repairs too?

 

[Filip]

This accomplishes a key thing.. Gets rid of that ugly bridge.

However, Metrolinx caused more than a few problems during its construction and I only imagine how this announcement has raised hairs. Sightlines to Union and all that. Not that it isn't important but perhaps overstated?

 

[Adjei]

Toronto is finally growing up.

 

[salsa]

the entire city's park fund is going to one park downtown.

No it's not. We don't know yet how much it will actually cost. It hasn't been determined where the money will come from or what the timeline is. Discussions are yet to take place with other levels of government, and the implementation strategy report is not due till later this year.

Before blowing a billion dollars on a strip of grass let's fix some broken benches and lights first...

But there are numerous areas in this city screaming for additional parks and spending the whole budget on a single strip of grass downtown is a bit insulting.

So to you, parkland is just a "strip of grass". Is this honestly what you think parkland is all about?

By the way, the city spent a lot of money expanding the waterfront park system in your neighbourhood. But doing the same for another fast growing neighbourhood in the downtown core is "blowing" money? This kind of mentality is such a needless impediment to the enjoyment and enhancement of our city. No matter what, there will always be some "broken benches and lights" to fix elsewhere. But we were still able to build great parks like Queens Quay, Sugar Beach, Corktown Commons and Sherbourne Commons in the last few years. And I'm pretty sure that every other city that has already built their own Rail Deck Parks have plenty of other problems to fix too.

 

[Amare]

I'm looking forward to the endless debates city council will have on this park. If they debate this the way they have debated public transit, this park will take a minimum of 20 years to complete. Forget about the 5 year time frame non-sense Tory is talking about, he was probably referring the time it will take for city council to approve the whole project.

 

[Filip]

Look I get what you're saying and I've said that if this is getting funded out of the downtown wards' budget then great, but no park past and present approached that cost even remotely...

The cost of all park improvements in HBS were self funded through development. And then some. If this park can then great - but I don't think so.

 

[Euphoria]

I bet that at least some of the funding can come from philanthropy if it's marketed as an art park. What makes Millennium Park special are the wonderful sculptures, gardens, and fountains. We should also tap corporate sponsorship.