I was going to go looking for autumn but, silly me, I soon realized that I didn’t need to look for it. It’s all around us. All you have to do is look out the window, or better yet, step out the door and you’re in the middle of it. It’s falling in front of you, swirling in the breezes and crunching under your feet.
The Frederick G. Gardiner Expressway, commonly just called the Gardiner, has been in the news a lot lately. This 18 km stretch of road between the city and the lake was completed in 1965 after years of planning and building. At the time that it was built, Toronto’s waterfront was largely industrial and there wasn’t much objection to having a 4 to 6 lane expressway, with many sections elevated, built there. The railway had begun the process of dividing the city from its waterfront a hundred years previously.
As the city changes and grows, more and more people live in the downtown core. Industry has moved out and residents have moved in. For so long the land south of the Gardiner as well as under the Gardiner was neglected, especially from a city planning point of view. But now, the city is looking differently at that swath of land. The far east elevated section between the Don Valley Parkway and Leslie Street was demolished in 2001 and there have been calls for the next section (Jarvis to the DVP) to be demolished as well. There has been some controversy as to whether to demolish it or move it… and if move it, where to? I am not even sure what the plans are at the moment. On the other hand, the western section of the elevated expressway (Strachan to Spadina) will remain standing. Work is underway to refurbish the structure – the city doesn’t want any more stories of pieces of concrete dropping onto cars beneath! Plans are being implemented to use the land under the Gardiner much more efficiently. To make it work for the public.
The Bentway is the name that has been given to this new park, or public space, beneath the Gardiner Expressway from Strachan 1.4 kilometres east to Spadina. The first phase is due to open Canada Day 2017 and it involves the stretch between Strachan and Bathurst. Many of you have probably driven on the Gardiner but do any of you know what is under it now? Let’s take a look.
below: The Gardiner passes over Strachan Avenue which in turn passes over the railway tracks.
below: On Strachan Ave looking west. Condo development in this area has extended right to the railway line. The Exhibition GO train station is in the distance. You can also see the Gardiner to the left of the tracks. Here the north side of the under part of the expressway is walled in and the enclosed space is used by Exhibition Place. At this time there is no plan for the Bentway to extend this far; I have used this photo to provide more context as to the location of the park.
below: A closer look at the Gardiner on the west side of Strachan Avenue. Maybe there is potential to expand the park westward? to Exhibition GO station? And by the way, those concrete structures holding up the expressway – those are called ‘bents’ and that is why the park is called what it is.
below: This photo was taken as I stood on Garrison Common and looking towards Strachan Avenue. This will be the western end of the new park. You can see the underside of the Gardiner as it passes over Strachan Ave which in turn is also a bridge. This bridge once crossed the Grand Trunk Railway tracks that were built in the 1850s. New entrances to the park are planned that incorporate the present sloped embankment of the bridge.
below: A quick aside: It’s a slightly different angle, but here is a photo of the Strachan Avenue bridge from 1959, before the Gardiner was built. I suspect that there has been upgrades made to the bridge since then. Photo credit: R.L. Kennedy, found online (also a good source for the history of the Grand Trunk Railway in Toronto). Garrison Common is to the right.
Garrison Common is the green space surrounding Fort York. It will abut (be continuous with?) the new Bentway. Fort York is a National Historic Site and on its 43 acre site are original buildings from the War of 1812 as well as an 1813 battle site. Did you know that the Americans beat us here in 1813 and controlled the city of York (as Toronto was known then) for a few days?
below: The new Fort York Visitors Centre is now open. There is still being work done both inside and outside, but it is open to visitors. For so long the fort was hidden away and difficult to get to; it is nice to see it receiving more attention.
below: Jake from Park People, one of the groups helping to design the new park, stands under the Gardiner as he talks to a group of us on a tour. Here, by Fort York, the Gardiner is the equivalent of 5 storeys from ground level, the highest it reaches as it crosses the city.
below: Standing on the grounds of Fort York. The Bentway will be beyond the stone wall. You can get a good idea of the spacing between the bents. These spaces are being referred to as ‘rooms’ and there are 55 of them between Strachan and Spadina.
below: One obstacle is the fact that Fort York Blvd passes under the Gardiner on a diagonal. Plans are to build a pedestrian/cycle bridge over the street. Also in the photo, note the TTC bus – Fort York and vicinity are finally on a bus route. Route 121 runs between the Portlands and Fort York via Union Station.
below: The section under the Gardiner Expressway between Bathurst Street and Fort York Blvd is not city owned. It is owned, and has already been developed, by the Onni Group who built the Garrison at Fort York condominiums on either side of it. This is the eastern end of phase 1.
below: Northbound traffic on Bathurst passes under the Gardiner.
Phase 2 of the park’s development involves land between Bathurst and Spadina. This is an area that is undergoing a lot of changes at the moment, i.e. a lot of construction.
below: Immediately south of the Gardiner on the northeast corner of Bathurst and Lakeshore is a construction site. Demolition of the old 1928 Loblaws warehouse building is now complete. The facade of the old building was disassembled rather than demolished; after cleaning and refurbishing of the bricks, it will be rebuilt in its original location. Two condo towers are planned for the space between Loblaws and the Gardiner. Yes, more condo towers to face the Gardiner and add to the tunnel effect that you get when you drive on the expressway.
below: The development of this site is a collaboration between a number of developers. I found a photo of one rendition (source) of what the space under the Gardiner will look like here in the future. Public space including a cafe are part of the plans. Check back in a couple of years to see what really happens here!
below: Standing on Bathurst Street, looking east along what will be Housey Street. This is just north of where the Loblaws development (above) will be. As you can see, you can’t walk there yet.
below: Southeast corner of Bathurst and Fort York Blvd. This is the section of land just north of Housey Street. Construction hoardings and cranes – familiar sights in this area. It also means that taking photos of under the Gardiner here are difficult!
below: Development north of the Gardiner between Bathurst and Dan Leckie Way.
Dan Leckie Way is a north-south road that runs under the Gardiner just east of Bathurst. It is the western boundary of Canoe Landing Park. This park is north of the Gardiner and the Lakeshore.
below: ‘Tom Thomson’s Canoe’, by Douglas Coupland sits at the highest point of land in the area; it’s almost at the same level as the Gardiner and is very visible as you drive by. This park extends down the hill.
below: Looking the other way from the same vantage point. The street running under the Gardiner here is Dan Leckie Way . Up until this point the Lakeshore is south of the Gardiner.
At Dan Leckie Way, the Lakeshore is still south of the Gardiner and the space under the expressway is wide open. By Spadina, one major block east, the situation changes. The Lakeshore splits and westbound traffic lanes go north of the Gardiner and eastbound lanes stay south. Shortly after Spadina, the Lakeshore runs under the Gardiner and there is no room for any further development under the road.
below: Standing on Spadina, just south of the Gardiner and looking west. Here there is a lot of road to cross for pedestrians on Spadina. Not only has the Lakeshore split to run on either side of the Gardiner, but there are also ramps between the Gardiner and the Lakeshore.
below: Still on Spadina, and still looking west, but now under the Gardiner. The space under the road is not as high as it was previously. Its lower and darker and not as inviting. It will be interesting to see what phase 2 of the Bentway development will look like in this space. I am not sure when it will to be finished but I will keep an eye on it!
As for the eastern Gardiner, what does that look like? Well, that’s a whole other blog post!
Project: Under Gardiner On this site you’ll find detailed maps and diagrams of this area as well as information about the plans for the various sections of the space.
Well, this May 2 4 weekend has been splendidly sunny and fabulously warm! I hope you’ve had the chance to take advantage of it, whether sitting on a patio with a cold drink and friends, or out enjoying the the greenness that has bloomed all around us. It’s been a great few days to get up close and take a good look at nature.
below: Old moss covered metal seems to reach out of Lake Ontario like claws.
below: Reflections in the Yellow Creek, Beltline trail.
below: Wet pebbles with the beginnings of green moss growing on them shine in the morning sun.
below: Greater celandine, a yellow flowering plant, blooms along the railing of Milkmans Lane.
below: New growth unfolds in the sunshine.
below: The dark pink blossoms were at their peak this week.
below: Green and brown mosses sway with the water currents along the shore of Lake Ontario.
below: The snow fences have been bundled up and put away for the summer.
There is time between winter and spring that is a dreary time of greyness and dullness. It is a time when the the snow is gone but nature hasn’t come out of hibernation. It is also a time best forgotten.
Luckily we don’t have to wait long.
… just a little longer ….
or if you can’t wait, there’s always plastic!
From the time the first spring flowers start to show
until the time they are in full bloom is usually only a matter of days.
Trees too soon show their colours. The yellows of the willow trees usually appear first.
Almost daily the trees are greener…
… or full of flowers.
And for another year we forget the last grey days of winter
Have you ever noticed how many trees there are in this city?
Have you ever stopped to examine the visual relationship between trees and architecture, the patterns of leafless branches superimposed on straight man-made lines?
For the past couple of weeks I have been keeping an eye open for such relationships while I walk. As it turns out, there are lots to be found…. and some are even interesting 🙂
Just for fun I googled “How many trees are there in Toronto?”. I got answers! One link was particularly useful: available in pdf from the City of Toronto’s website is a report titled, “Every Tree Counts: A Portrait of Toronto’s Urban Forest” (updated in 2013). It is estimated that Toronto has about 10.2 million trees and they provides a tree canopy over between 26% and 28% of the city.
There are at least 116 different tree species in the city. The 10 most common species account for close to 58% of the total. We have a lot of maple trees – Norway Maple, Sugar Maple, and Manitoba Maple were the top 3 species. Next in the list were Green Ash, White Spruce, Silver Maple, American Elm, Eastern White Cedar, Austrian Pine, and White Ash.
When Dutch elm disease devastated the city’s elm trees in the 1960s and 1970s many were replaced by Norway maples. These proved to be hardy but they were also very invasive and damaging to ravines and other natural spaces. As a result they are rarely planted on city property anymore. Still, they represent 15% of Toronto’s tree coverage.
Of the total tree population, 6.1 million (60%) trees are on private property, 3.5 million (34%) trees are in parks and ravines, and 0.6 million (6%) trees are on city streets.
Trees make a significant contribution to our life. Not only do they look nice, but they also provide benefits. They provide shade in the summer and they help improve the air quality. They help prevent erosion in our ravines and they provide habitat for insects, birds and animals. Our parks would be poorer places without trees.
One goal that the city has is to increase the canopy cover over Toronto to 30%. To this end, between 2004 and 2012 the city and its partners planted almost 100,000 trees per year. That’s almost 900,000 trees. Not all survive but progress is being made. Tree cover increased slightly (1.3%) between 1999 and 2009.
below: A map of Toronto showing the tree canopy in each neighbourhood
Take a moment to look at the trees you pass, yes, look up! Especially in the next week while the branches are still bare. Better still, look up often and watch the changes unfold as the trees bud and bloom. At this time of year the trees change quickly and before you know it the city will be transformed.
It was a nippy morning at Cherry Beach today. The ice has been off Lake Ontario for a while now and the snow that fell this past week has melted. There was only a small clue that winter is still clinging on.
The morning started off grey but it wasn’t long before the sun came out.
below: Cherry Beach lifesaving station in the distance.
(Except for a few airplanes and the shouts of a lacrosse tournament in the distance) the only sounds on the beach were the chirps and tweets of birds and the squawking of seagulls.
The noises increased when food arrived!
There was even a lovebot hanging out at the beach, standing tall at the lifeguard chair.
April showers bring May flowers, or so they say.
BUT, wait just a minute! You know it always snows in Toronto in April. Always.
And this year is no exception.
It’s cold enough that even the poles are wearing scarves.
But why should that stop us? There’s always a silver lining and there’s always lemonade to be made.
In this case, it is the opportunity for one last look at the city in winter (we hope!)
The Christmas flower show at Allan Gardens conservatory is back,
which means lots of poinsettias… over 30 varieties in fact.
A rare purple glitter ball tree is also in bloom.
below: He has a carrot nose and a corn cob pipe,
but he doesn’t look very frosty. Maybe it’s the red vest that’s keeping the chill away.
below: With its silver beak and its twiggy tail, this little fluffy bird perches on a palm tree.
below: Christmas greenery – ever green baubles hang from a vine.
below: All bundled up for a toboggan ride down a mountain of poinsettias.
below: Flowering Christmas cacti hang from the roof.
In addition to the Christmas plants like poinsettias
and amaryllis,
some of the conservatory’s usual cast of floral characters are on display, such as orchids
and hibiscus plants.
The first three days of November have been wonderful – three beautiful warm sunny days, perfect fall weather.
below: Taking advantage of the warm afternoon in front of Osgoode Hall.
below: On St. George Street in front of Sir Daniel Wilson residence, University College
below: Looking across Kings College Circle towards University College
below: Maple leaves still on the tree.
below: Mary Pickford looks over University Avenue.
There is an historical plaque beside this statue and it reads: “Born in 1893 in a house which stood near this site, Gladys Marie Smith appeared on stage in Toronto at the age of five. Her theatrical career took her to Broadway in 1907 where she adopted the name Mary Pickford. The actress’s earliest film, “Her First Biscuits”, was released by the Biograph Company in 1909 and she soon established herself as the international cinema’s first great star. Her golden curls and children’s roles endeared her to millions as “America’s Sweetheart”. She was instrumental in founding and directing a major film production company and starred in over fifty feature length films including “Hearts Adrift”, “Pollyanna” and “Coquette”. For the last named film, she received the 1929 Academy Award as the year’s best actress. “
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below: Two women outside Emmanuel College, Queens Park Circle
below: Northrop Frye sits on a bench on the campus of Victoria College (U of T).
This life sized statue was created by Darren Byers and Fred Harrison and was unveiled in October 2012.
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This week all the flowering trees and shrubs have come to life. Also, a number of times I have looked out the subway window as the train passed Mount Pleasant cemetery and noticed the blossoms on the trees there. Past experience says that the pinks and whites of these trees may not last long. So I took my camera and macro lens to Mount Pleasant cemetery and played.
There were lilacs and forsythia and many others that I don’t now the name of.
below: Apparently this tree is called a Moose Maple.
as I walk Toronto 