Toronto Bloor Street Revitalization | ?m | ?s | Bloor-Yorkville BIA | architectsAlliance

I'd be surprised. You see rows of mature ones in town centres all over the south of France, which is normally a quite hot and dry place.
 
Re: Street Trees

I thought this News Release from the City of Vancouver exemplifies the different approach each city takes to care for street trees. I was impressed by this. Now, wether or not people actually do this is another thing but still, I thought it was a neat way for the city to engage residents to do their part. Something parents could do with their kids and teach them urban agriculture at the same time - much better than video games!

Residents asked to water young street trees during heat wave
July 9, 2010 (No. 33) - The Vancouver Park Board is encouraging residents to water street trees in front of their homes and on their block - not only during this heat wave, but throughout the summer.

Watering trees is very important to their growth and health. They require even more water during hot spells like the one we are currently experiencing. Extreme hot weather is especially damaging to newly planted trees which are still establishing their root systems. Trees planted within the last four years - many of which have "new tree" tags attached - would benefit most by watering at this time.

Residents are asked to keep vigilant for young stressed street trees adjacent to their property - usually indicated by leaves turning brown or falling. The best practice is to apply at least 12 to 20 litres of water (five to 10 minutes with a slow running hose or a couple of watering cans full) two to three times per week over the roots. Regional water restrictions do not apply to trees and shrubs. However, be water-wise by ensuring that all of it gets to the tree.

In the past four years, the Park Board has planted more than 11,000 trees on our streets. It is estimated that the 137,000 trees currently found on Vancouver's streets are valued at more than $500 million.

More information about Vancouver's street trees can be found at vancouverparks.ca. Click on the 'Trees' link under 'For your information.'
 
I'm not surprised by the clamorously crowded annual plantings, given the nature of this frantic shopping district, but perennial beds can work just as well - if not better. For instance, whoever is in charge of it did a fine job in overhauling the rodent-infested raised flower beds along Market Lane Park between the St. Lawrence Market North and the Market Square condos, and replanting them using a subdued and verdant pastel colour palette that's refreshing to look at and doesn't need to be replanted every year.
 
i walked along Bloor St. on Sunday. I thought the flower plantings were lovely, well thought out, and, yes, perhaps a tiny bit exuberant. The trees are doing as well as trees do during the first year that they are in the ground. A few are struggling and that's to be expected in any large scale planting. What counts is how they do next year and the year after. I probably wouldn't reach any definite conclusions until the third year( unless of course a whole bunch are dead as doornails next year). So don't get too worked up yet.
 
I had my first opportunity to walk Bloor Street last night since they fired up the ground lights to reflect up and illuminate the trees. Unfortunately you can really see how many bare branches there are in the trees under these conditions, I found it a little troubling but perhaps it's a lot about nothing. The other minor problem (I'm being picky here) is the flower beds with the tree in the middle cover the upward lighting so the trees are not illuminated as the lights are buried under vast amounts of foliage. All in all a little disappointing, it's not as impressive an effect as I was looking forward to. Hopefully next year the tree leaves will come in a little fuller than this year.
 
Bare branches are a sign of stress, which is common during transplanting. My parents planted a couple of maples in their backyard, about the same size as these, and one of them, which was transplanted incorrectly, lost 75% of its leaves last season. Yet this season it is full and leafy. You almost can't tell a difference between the two. So that's a good sign for the future, as long as they get enough water.
 
BLOOR STREET

Construction Update

July 27, 2010


Bloor Street Transformation Update



Temporary Road Closure Notification



Please note that Bay Street will be closed at Bloor Street on Friday, August 6th at 7:00 p.m. and will reopen on Monday, August 9th at 5:00 a.m., or earlier if the work is completed sooner. The northern portion of Bloor Street will be rebuilt at Bay Street , maintaining the eastbound and westbound traffic on the southern portion of Bloor Street .



Southbound traffic will be diverted with advisory signage, while northbound traffic will be diverted to eastbound and westbound Bloor Street .



Once again, eastbound and westbound traffic on Bloor Street will be maintained.





Yonge Street to Avenue Road:



All major excavations have been completed for the north boulevard works, and granite installation has begun west of Bay Street .



Excavation of the roadway has begun between Yonge and Bay Streets, and will continue westward towards Avenue Road, following installation of the granite curb. The base coat of asphalt will be layed, however, the top/final coat of asphalt will not take place until the project is completed. The tree installation will take place this fall, and if all goes according to plan, we can expect that all of Bloor Street will be in bloom by Spring 2011.
 
Bloor Street East, just west of Church St. facing west, looking beautiful on a dull day

Click on the thumbnail to enlarge, then click again on the image for full size.

 
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I hope the city adds some benches to Bloor street. People are sitting on the planters near tinge and bloor due to lak of nice places to sit.
 
lead82 said:
I hope the city adds some benches to Bloor street. People are sitting on the planters near tinge and bloor due to lak of nice places to sit.
Click to expand...

Bike posts would also be nice.

Of course, this being Toronto, neither will probably materialize anytime soon, if ever. Many of Toronto's busiest retail strips lack benches. I believe this is because the shopkeepers don't want to encourage loitering or attract--gasp!--homeless people who may temporarily occupy said benches. In terms of creating a pleasant atmosphere and environment for pedestrians, Toronto has to be one of the worst major cities in the world.

I think that when Bloor St. is finally finished, there will be a small outcry about the lack of furniture, artwork, water features and any other elements that could enliven the appalling sterility of this cold, barren stretch of real estate. (The larger outcry will be over the money and time wasted in this failed endeavour).
 
Irishmonk said:
I think that when Bloor St. is finally finished, there will be a small outcry about the lack of furniture, artwork, water features and any other elements that could enliven the appalling sterility of this cold, barren stretch of real estate. (The larger outcry will be over the money and time wasted in this failed endeavour).
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Sorry, but I cannot see this as a failed endeavour. I think that when Bloor St. is finally finished, a cheer will go up for the beautiful new sidewalk, the lush planters, and the stone benches that we have that we never used to have. East of Yonge Bloor looks like a destination now: it's just going to need the buildings and ground floor offerings themselves to improve!

When we take a big step forward, unrelenting negativity amazes me. We may not be getting something perfect, and we will likely identify some aspects of the project that need further action, but mostly I think people will be hugely happy with how great Bloor looks.


BloorEofYonge.jpg



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