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City Parks

B

buildup

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It seems to me most of the city's smaller parks are drab, especially as compared to Montreal. And its not just the parks, its the buildings surrounding them. Two small parks that could really be pleasant little spots with a bit of imagination (I'm not talking about Fred Law Olmstead here...) are on Wellington at Spadina & Portland.
If some small condos could be built facing & enclosing these parks they could be attractive.
The city seems to think that some grass and a couple of trees suffice. I think not. And having buildings addressing the park is important.
 
I think you raise an important point. In my opinion the interface or inter-relationship between a park (large or small) and the private and public property adjacent to it is its most important element. We seem not to understand this here in Toronto. It seems that our designers, planners, developers and even the neighbourhood associations and organizations who champion parks and public spaces also don't get this concept.
 
The best park in the city, as far as beauty, variety of use and relationship to adjacent buildings would have to be Bellevue Square.

As far as larger parks, Withrow Park takes the crown.

Notice how both are in residential areas. It seems like many of the downtown parks have little connection to their surroundings i.e. Metro Square and Harbour Square Park. The Cloud Garden seems to be one of the few exceptions, but it isn't really a "park" in the classic sense.

One strip of parks that often get ignored, and I think can be put to much better use, is that strip of greenery north of the Danforth between Broadview and Donlands station. A few of the parks have been recently redone (namely the piece just west of Logan) which is hopefully a bright sign of things to come.
 
It seems to me most of the city's smaller parks are drab, especially as compared to Montreal.
Click to expand...


I'm gonna bet the difference between what "seems" and what is...is vast.

With 1500 parks of every size, shape and style, Toronto is probably the world's least entitled city to bitch about parks.

Montreal??? Gimme a break.

Many of these small neighbourhood parks aren't "drab"...they're just functional. Not every park is supposed to function as some kind of fucking designer showboat...yes...generally all that is needed (and preffered in most cases) is a nice quiet space, with grass, trees, benches and the occasional children's playing apparatus.


Two small parks that could really be pleasant little spots with a bit of imagination (I'm not talking about Fred Law Olmstead here...) are on Wellington at Spadina & Portland.
If some small condos could be built facing & enclosing these parks they could be attractive.
Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure I know what two parks you are talking about, and i don't see your point....they are surrounded by development. Or at least they will be, as these little squares are in the midst of being surrounded by development...and were up until recently, more or less dead little parks in dead little areas. And I believe both are in line to have improvements by the city now that these areas are no longer dead. Lots of development means lots of Section 37 funds to do these things.

Yea...we're just sooooo hard done by in the parks department here in poor ole parkless Terawna.

I mean...go ahead and bitch...just do it about something worth bitching about.



In my opinion the interface or inter-relationship between a park (large or small) and the private and public property adjacent to it is its most important element. We seem not to understand this here in Toronto. It seems that our designers, planners, developers and even the neighbourhood associations and organizations who champion parks and public spaces also don't get this concept.
Click to expand...

Perhaps you should look into Dufferin Grove Park...it personifies the idea of grass-routes park usage...and has made the headlines around the world for doing it.

I reject your theory on the grounds it is unfounded.

Again...claiming Toronto is bad at parks...that is absurd.
 
Certainly a lot of important parks could use some TLC. Clarence Square, for instance (on Spadina) has no lighting at night, and dilapidated (and too few) benches.

Down Wellington from there, Victoria Memorial Square recently got a complete overhaul, which is lovely except for the fact it seemed to include taking out all the benches. There are now only a couple of park benches, out on the grass, which are awkward to use unless you're a group. Did this park deliberately get turned into a pass-through-only area? Seems like benches would be a fairly cheap and useful amenity, to make this charming park a bit more inviting and useful to people.

Just up the street, the park at Adelaide and Brant was revamped in a more people-friendly manner.

Anyway, just throwing in two cents from my neck of the woods...
 
Clarence Square has an amazing story behind it.
http://www.wellingtonplace.org/projects/Clarence Square Draft2.pdf

There are some fantastic images in that file of plans for that part of town in the 1830s. I think the square has a lot of untapped potential considering the new developments in the area. As one of the oldest parks in the city it should be better treated that's for sure.

Down the road is Victoria Memorial Square. There were some community plans drawn up to try and improve the space. http://www.wellingtonplace.org/resources/New_life_to_VMS.pdf

For parks, they're perfect examples of years of neglect, and untapped potential.
 
Freshcutgrass

"Many of these small neighbourhood parks aren't "drab"...they're just functional."

Thankfully you're not our parks planner...I hope you're not our parks planner.

"generally all that is needed (and preffered in most cases) is a nice quiet space, with grass, trees, benches and the occasional children's playing apparatus"

Who said otherwise? I did say I wasn't calling for an Olmstead.

"I'm pretty sure I know what two parks you are talking about, and i don't see your point....they are surrounded by development. Or at least they will be...And I believe both are in line to have improvements by the city now that these areas are no longer dead..."

Improvements are just what I was calling for....

"I mean...go ahead and bitch...just do it about something worth bitching about."

I'm not complaining about your lawnmowing efforts or whatever it is you’re so prickly about.

"Perhaps you should look into Dufferin Grove Park...it personifies the idea of grass-routes park usage...and has made the headlines around the world for doing it."

Will do
 
freshcutgrass, everyone is entitles to their own rant I mean what else is the internet for? But honestly I don't see it. Our parks in my opinion leave much to be desired and form one of the weaknesses not strengths in this city, from a design perspective to public usage to the state and condition of the designated use spaces such as sporting fields and community centres. You might not think so but then I don't really know what to say. Don't get me wrong there are areas of strength and perhaps the haphazard informality and neglect of the assets we have may be an asset in that it invites inclusion of people at the grass-roots level in shaping the usage and design of the space.
Dufferin Grove is a perfect example of this, a park I am reasonably familiar with that has a great core of grass-roots community support, a model that could stand to be emulated elsewhere. Is Dufferin Grove the end-all-be-all however? Not at all, it is more the beginning of a dialogue which I personally doubt merits praise at an international level.
 
The park inbetween College Park and ROCP is city maintained and it is truely disguesting. The park does not look like it has experienced upkeep in 15 years, let alone landscaping or grooming. And this is in the central core, where both density and tonnes of tourists should see and experience the best, not the worst the city has to offer.

If there was ever proof that our parks suffer neglect at the hands of the city, this park is it.
 
buildup said:
It seems to me most of the city's smaller parks are drab, especially as compared to Montreal. And its not just the parks, its the buildings surrounding them. Two small parks that could really be pleasant little spots with a bit of imagination (I'm not talking about Fred Law Olmstead here...) are on Wellington at Spadina & Portland.
If some small condos could be built facing & enclosing these parks they could be attractive.
The city seems to think that some grass and a couple of trees suffice. I think not. And having buildings addressing the park is important.
Click to expand...
I live very close to both Clarence Square and Victoria Square, and imo a simple resodding would do them a world of good. The grass is always patchy and large mud puddles form every time it rains.
 
jn_12 said:
Clarence Square has an amazing story behind it.
http://www.wellingtonplace.org/projects/Clarence Square Draft2.pdf

Down the road is Victoria Memorial Square. There were some community plans drawn up to try and improve the space. http://www.wellingtonplace.org/resources/New_life_to_VMS.pdf

For parks, they're perfect examples of years of neglect, and untapped potential.
Click to expand...

Fascinating reading, thanks for posting!! I love these little layers of history that can be uncovered in a city that so many feel has none. What a delightful little node a refurbished Victoria Square-Wellington Place-Clarence Square would make for the area. Bring it on!
 
it's symptomatic of the same city hall attitude that allows asphalt patches to sprout all over our already drab sidewalks, and practically every pole of any kind in the city to be leaning at an angle. the sad part is that the average citzen doesn't seem to really care about the sad state of city, otherwise it would be more of an issue than it is.
 
3Dementia said:
The College Park park will receive some TLC as part of the Aura development. It has good bones and is in a great location... lots of potential. A few thousand new neighbours should help animate it.
Click to expand...

Somehow I have that same feeling; that the new condo neighbours will help kick-start a long-overdue makeover.

It may say something that the existing park aesthetics are a little too "80s condo sales office"; like, it was designed for development that should have happened 20 years before it did. As I've suggested before, the present atmosphere of the place is a little too Sussussudio, not to mention Hip To Be Square...
 
There's a great series of well maintained parkettes which run just east of Yonge Street from Charles Street down to Dundonald Street. The grass is maintained, there's a huge variety of flowers, colourful shrubs, mature and newer trees and numerous benches to sit and enjoy. Grab some great tasting grub off Yonge street and dash around the corner to one of these parkettes to enjoy a lunch or light dinner.
 
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