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Rail Deck Park (?, ?, ?)

Does anyone have a PDF of the latest LPAT decision they can share? It isn't posted on their website yet. Thanks in advance.
 
July 11, 2019 From: www.toronto.ca/home/media-room/news-releases-media-advisories/ .


Local Planning Appeal Tribunal decision protects land earmarked for Rail Deck Park as parkland

Today, the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal (LPAT) dismissed the appeal of the City Council-approved Official Plan Amendment 395 (OPA 395) which designated the area above the rail corridor for a new park and open space, known as Rail Deck Park. This decision allows the planning vision and framework laid out in OPA 395 to move forward.

In December 2017, Toronto City Council adopted OPA 395 that sets the policy framework for Rail Deck Park, to be constructed in the area from Bathurst Street in the west, to Blue Jays Way in the east, south of Front Street West and above the northern limit of Northern Linear Park to the south (in the CityPlace neighbourhood).

As noted in the LPAT decision, Rail Deck Park is a bold proposal to help address the parkland deficiency in downtown Toronto and support the development of complete communities.

The decision also acknowledged Rail Deck Park as a transformative city-building project which will be recognized on the world stage. Rail Deck Park will be built on an innovative decking structure that protects for the full operation of the railways below.

The City of Toronto continues to advance the Council-approved work plan for Rail Deck Park and looks forward to working with the various stakeholders in the rail corridor, including Metrolinx, to make this project a reality.

Quotes

"Today's decision about Rail Deck Park from the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal is good news for Toronto and its future. This reaffirms the City's initial intentions to make this land available for an important community development that will ultimately be a very popular park."

- Toronto Mayor John Tory


"Rail Deck Park is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to build a larger park in the downtown area. It will create a unique and flexible space that can accommodate a variety of different activities."

- Gregg Lintern, Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning, City of Toronto
 
Thank goodness this happened under the framework of the LPAT and not the soon to be OMB Deluxe*

*Deluxe being the placeholder name i'm using to refer to the seemingly monstrous power the new planning body will have.
 
Amare said:
Thank goodness this happened under the framework of the LPAT and not the soon to be OMB Deluxe*

*Deluxe being the placeholder name i'm using to refer to the seemingly monstrous power the new planning body will have.
Click to expand...
It'll be the same power it always had. Hold off on the hyperbole.
 
So what does this mean in terms of timeline and when construction can begin?

How many more hurdles the Rail Deck Park needs to go through before shovels can hit the ground?
 
Mercenary said:
So what does this mean in terms of timeline and when construction can begin?

How many more hurdles the Rail Deck Park needs to go through before shovels can hit the ground?
Click to expand...
The decision doesn't change anything. The previous official plan allowed a park and other uses, including a mixed use development. OP395 specifically designates the lands for park uses, provided the City buys the air rights. If they don't buy the air rights OP395 is meaningless. Meanwhile, the private application works its way through the OMB process, and the OMB could eventually approve that application, or some version of it.

This is yet another PR stunt on the City's part and it will no doubt fool the uninformed into thinking something meaningful has happened.
 
zot627 said:
The decision doesn't change anything. The previous official plan allowed a park and other uses, including a mixed use development. OP395 specifically designates the lands for park uses, provided the City buys the air rights. If they don't buy the air rights OP395 is meaningless. Meanwhile, the private application works its way through the OMB process, and the OMB could eventually approve that application, or some version of it.

This is yet another PR stunt on the City's part and it will no doubt fool the uninformed into thinking something meaningful has happened.
Click to expand...

Damn, building this park will take 5-7 years. I want this to be built ASAP.
 
Mercenary said:
So what does this mean in terms of timeline and when construction can begin?

How many more hurdles the Rail Deck Park needs to go through before shovels can hit the ground?
Click to expand...

I believe there's a report coming out in September by City staff with a cost estimate for Rail Deck Park and some details on the engineering logistics.
 
I’d much rather invest $1.7 Billion in the islands than Rail Deck Park. We could turn it into a real tourist destination, like Central Park (with beaches!), rather than the poorly maintained mediocre park it is right now. Id never bring tourists to the island in its current shape, it’s so decrepit. A revitalized Toronto island park would be a far bigger tourism driver than the relatively small rail deck park. And we could probably get the job done with $200 Million, rather than $1.7 Billion
 
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TheTigerMaster said:
I’d much rather invest $1.7 Billion in the islands than Rail Deck Park. We could turn it into a real tourist destination, like Central Park (with beaches!), rather than the poorly maintained mediocre park it is right now. Id never bring tourists to the island in its current shape, it’s so decrepit. A revitalized Toronto island park would be a far bigger tourism driver than the relatively small rail deck park. And we could probably get the job done with $200 Million, rather than $1.7 Billion
Click to expand...
And that's assuming the park will cost anywhere near the approved budget. Remember the bike parking lot under City Hall? Originally budgeted at 1.2 million it ended up costing almost $3 million and took something like six years to build. It's nowhere near as complicated as building a park over a rail corridor. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/toronto/article-six-years-to-build-a-bike-garage-really/
 
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No way it will cost 3.4B to 4B. I think the real number will be around 5 Billion when all said and done. But it's well worth it. Toronto needs a grand park near downtown. This is the last area left that we can utilize to build something like this.
 
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