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Construction is now underway on the David Crombie Park Revitalization, a major public realm project set to renew a 1.6ha linear green space in Toronto’s St Lawrence neighbourhood. Extending from Lower Jarvis Street to Parliament Street, the long-established park is being reimagined through a design led by Arcadis in joint venture with SLA for the City of Toronto, with Tawaw Architecture Collective guiding Indigenous design and engagement. Rather than replacing the existing landscape, the project focuses on upgrading aging amenities and social infrastructure while retaining the park’s defining character.
UrbanToronto spoke with Neno Kovacevic, Practice Group Manager, Placemaking, Canada East, at Arcadis to learn more about the project.
David Crombie Park forms a linear green corridor through the St Lawrence neighbourhood, framed by residential buildings, streets, and community destinations on either side. The well-used park has long functioned as an amenity for locals, with a sequence of outdoor spaces that include sports courts, playgrounds, pathways, and water features woven through a mature tree canopy. Over time, however, many of these elements have aged.
Central to the proposal is a preservation-led design strategy that works within the park’s existing framework rather than replacing it outright. The approach prioritizes retaining healthy trees, established circulation routes, and program elements such as sports courts and gathering spaces, while introducing targeted upgrades. “Rather than reinventing the park, the revitalization builds on these patterns, reinforcing what already works while improving performance,” said Kovacevic. “This approach also preserves the park’s ‘muscle memory,' ensuring that long-time users continue to recognize and feel ownership over the space.”
Existing concrete walls, paving, and sports courts are being repaired and retained where feasible, with salvaged materials such as unit pavers and stone reintroduced across the site. New elements are layered into this framework through warmer materials, including timber seating, play structures, and social spaces that soften the park’s established concrete character. Additional planting, including native and pollinator species, will improve biodiversity while reinforcing the park’s green spine. “The project’s aesthetic ambition is rooted in restraint rather than spectacle,” said Kovacevic.
Sustainability is a central driver of the revitalization, with design decisions guided by detailed carbon modelling. Rather than pursuing a full rebuild, the project prioritizes retaining existing materials and landscape features to significantly reduce embodied carbon, while introducing low-impact strategies. These include permeable paving, porous concrete, regrading, and bioswales to address existing drainage challenges and improve stormwater infiltration. New interventions are supported by low-carbon materials and locally sourced inputs, alongside expanded native and pollinator planting.
“A full demolition and reconstruction scenario would have resulted in carbon neutrality after approximately 28 years,” noted Kovacevic, “whereas a preservation-led strategy achieves neutrality in roughly 13 years while avoiding approximately 560 tonnes of CO₂.”
Indigenous placemaking is embedded throughout the revitalization. The redesign introduces elements such as a Sacred Fire, storytelling spaces, and teaching features rooted in Indigenous knowledge systems, alongside planting strategies that reflect cultural and ecological relationships. “Rather than treating Indigenous placekeeping as a layer of features, the process reframed how the park is understood as a site of ongoing cultural practice, learning, and stewardship,” said Kovacevic.
The revitalization extends beyond the park’s boundaries, with coordinated improvements planned along The Esplanade. New and upgraded cycling infrastructure, pedestrian routes, and improved crossings will link the park more directly to the St Lawrence Market, the Distillery District, and adjacent schools and community facilities. Within the park itself, a reinforced promenade and secondary routes will support both direct east–west movement and more informal circulation through play areas, gathering spaces, and planted zones, while redesigned edges will create more open and active connections between the park and the street.
“The design extends beyond the park boundaries to reposition it as part of a larger public realm network within the St Lawrence neighbourhood,” Kovacevic told UrbanToronto.
Construction is being carried out in a multi-phase sequence extending from 2026 through 2028, beginning with work in the western portions of the park near Lower Jarvis Street and St Lawrence Market. Initial phases include Blocks 2 and 5 in 2026, followed by Block 3A in 2027, with subsequent work on the wading pool in Block 3B and additional sections continuing into 2028, alongside concurrent cycle track upgrades on The Esplanade. The phased approach allows portions of the park to remain accessible throughout construction, with pathways kept open where possible and temporary closures introduced only as required.
UrbanToronto will continue to follow progress on this development, but in the meantime, you can learn more about it from our Database file, linked below. If you'd like, you can join in on the conversation in the associated Project Forum thread or leave a comment in the space provided on this page.
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| Related Companies: | Arcadis |
