Cabbagetown Streetscape Revitalization Plan (Sun Arts Design)

[GraphicMatt]

Has anyone seen this new report commissioned by the Old Cabbagetown BIA? It's a 50MB download for the pdf, but a ton of cool ideas for improving the main streets of Cabbagetown.

The report: http://www.sunarts.ca/pdf/Sunarts_Design_Cabbagetown_Preliminary_Report_30_March_2009.pdf

Some highlights from the report:

Stylish Lamp posts with vines!

Cabbages in the pavement at major intersections and snazzy roads.

Better connection to Allan Gardens.

A forest of whirly gigs!

Wide sidewalks, lots of bike parking:

Rejigged corner at Parliament/Gerrard. Closing the road above the park to traffic.

A shrine to bikes, celebrating their inevitable victory in the War on Cars that grips this city.

Bump outs on Parliament Street:

Kind of a neat idea to make laneways a little greener:

 

[Torontovibe]

I like some of those ideas. I hope it comes to fruition.

 

[toraerach]

It will certainly be nice to have more chess tables around the city.

 

[Archivist]

Interesting. Some of it seems a tad cute for my taste, but I am thrilled that they would close that useless bit of roadway at Gerrard and Parliament in favour of linking the existing traffic island and making it a kind of public square.

Can closing the small stretch of equally useless road at Dundas Square in front of the Hard Rock be far behind?

 

[Roy G Biv]

Dilla posted this in the Cabbagetown thread in the Neighborhood Node. I like a lot of the ideas, but the giant brick cabbages are a little much.

The KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid) formula could probably be applied to most beautification projects in this city: Get rid of overhead clutter (power lines) and attack spaces with green (trees, vines).

 

[Tewder]

The cabbage motif has to go, it is a little too cute! The homage to the bike is a little embarrassing too. The rest looks good.

 

[adma]

Can closing the small stretch of equally useless road at Dundas Square in front of the Hard Rock be far behind?

I don't mind it as a taxiway or service entrance...

 

[allabootmatt]

More power to them; I find Cabbagetown is really compromised by brutal streetscaping.

Alas, so much of this is down to Hydro and the TTC. Without them on board, it's hard to do much.

 

[toraerach]

The cabbage motif has to go, it is a little too cute! The homage to the bike is a little embarrassing too. The rest looks good.

Yeah, I'm not too fond of the cabbage thing everywhere, but at least the bike thing is sort of practical in that the sculptures seem to indicate where bicycle parking can be found.

Other than that, I would really have liked to have seen at least some recognition of the Irish history in the area.

 

[GraphicMatt]

Yeah, my only worry is that this will look a little too much like a themed street in Disney World. It just needs to be toned down a little bit.

I think the bike oasis thing will be located outside of Jet Fuel, which makes a lot of sense.

Archivist: I'd like to see that road outside the Hard Rock at Dundas Square shut down too, but I think that would mean they'd need to relocate the entrance to the parking garage.

 

[Dilla]

Dilla posted this in the Cabbagetown thread in the Neighborhood Node. I like a lot of the ideas, but the giant brick cabbages are a little much.

I've been usurped! There isn't much I wouldn't like to see implemented here, but I'm with Roy on the cabbages in the middle of the intersections. Tacky.
And why the hell is there a bicycle on top of that archway? What does that have to do with anything? I'm thinking the people at Jet fuel are become all but too powerful.

On another note, my apartment backs onto that alley in the before and after picture.

 

[cdr108]

you know those cabbage emblems are going to fade to oblivion with neglect after the 3rd year.

TO roadways suffer too much abuse by weather and roadsalt to even bother with that.

 

[Tewder]

Yeah, I'm not too fond of the cabbage thing everywhere, but at least the bike thing is sort of practical in that the sculptures seem to indicate where bicycle parking can be found.

Other than that, I would really have liked to have seen at least some recognition of the Irish history in the area.

Agreed, maybe the city should drag Coupland out again.

 

[Urban Shocker]

Twee Grows In Cabbagetown. More prissy design-by-BIA - especially the Ye Olde Worlde Lampe Posts.

 

[Dilla]

Oh, good god!

Upon further investigation, I have noticed that the goddamn wheels on the wholly unnecessary bike are cabbages. I think I'm going to be sick. I'm going to have to get in touch with the BIA and tell them they should turn it down a bit. We get it, cabbages, we get it.

EDIT: I see now that the bike rack is under the arch. Still, I don't see the arch as at all necessary, people will find the bike rack regardless. It's just too busy and fussy.