Toronto –

Since 2002, The GLOBE Awards for Environmental Excellence have recognized leading Canadian companies for outstanding achievement in environmental stewardship. Canada’s most high profile annual national environmental accolades, the GLOBE Awards are judged by a panel of recognized experts. The Award for Excellence in Urban Sustainability honours a local government, private sector company or consortium that has developed and applied outstanding urban sustainability principles.

“We are honoured that our efforts have been recognized by the Globe Foundation for leadership in promoting and encouraging urban sustainability principles,” said John Campbell, President and CEO of Waterfront Toronto. ”Ensuring that sustainability principles are integrated into all facets of waterfront revitalization has been a core principle for Waterfront Toronto since our inception.  The Minimum Green Building Requirements were developed as a strategic tool for achieving our goals and to encourage innovation and market transformation.”

Waterfront Toronto’s revitalization process is designed to make Toronto a world leader in sustainable development with buildings and neighbourhoods that are among the greenest in the world. Its Minimum Green Building Requirements were developed to help achieve that objective and drive market transformation.

The requirements support Waterfront Toronto’s integration of sustainability into every facet of planning, design and development on the waterfront. They define Waterfront Toronto’s vision for green building design and construction, and the requirements mandate high performance buildings, which represent superior conditions for occupant health, comfort, conservation and cost savings.

The Minimum Green Building Requirements also support Waterfront Toronto’s achievement of LEED ND Gold for the planning stage, which focuses on sustainability at a neighbourhood-wide scale, taking green development beyond the threshold of energy-efficient buildings.

With funding support from the Ontario Power Authority, the Minimum Green Building Requirements were updated in 2011 to ensure that they were leading the market in best practices for the building industry, incorporating the newest building methods and technologies available.

Waterfront Toronto’s recently developed Carbon Tool provides the corporation and its building partners an objective tool for understanding and influencing sustainability choices at the design stage. Developed in collaboration with the C40-Clinton Climate Initiative, the Carbon Tool has the ability to analyze carbon reduction strategies to effectively understand and plan energy needs and carbon outputs, supporting the Minimum Green Building Requirements and outstanding urban sustainability principles.

The GLOBE Foundation

The GLOBE Foundation is a Vancouver-based, not-for-profit organization dedicated to finding practical business-oriented solutions to the world’s environmental problems. Formed in 1993, the foundation has helped companies and individuals realize the value of economically viable environmental business opportunities. The foundation is a leader in championing green initiatives and leveraging sustainable ventures into mutually rewarding opportunities for enterprise and the environment. From urban sustainability to climate change, we’re helping change the world by degrees.

Waterfront Toronto

The Governments of Canada and Ontario and the City of Toronto created Waterfront Toronto to oversee and lead the renewal of Toronto’s waterfront. Public accessibility, design excellence, sustainable development, economic development and fiscal sustainability are the key drivers of waterfront revitalization.

Media Contacts:

Tari Stork, Manager, Project Communications, Waterfront Toronto

416-214-1344 x 279 / tstork@waterfrontoronto.ca

The goal of the initiative is to deliver a high-level road map for accelerating development and maximizing the value of the Port Lands as a unique city legacy. The undertaking is the result of Toronto City Council’s September 21 unanimous decision for Waterfront Toronto in conjunction with the City of Toronto to lead a review of the Port Lands and to ensure the process is informed by extensive public consultation.

An initial public meeting is being held from 6:30pm to 9:00pm on Monday December 12 at the Toronto Reference Library, 789 Yonge Street. The meeting will include a summary of the work to date, the goals for the Port Lands initiative and an overview of acceleration opportunities and challenges for development.  The meeting will provide the public with an opportunity to ask questions and discuss their goals and ideas for the Port Lands.

“The work being undertaken is an opportunity to seize the full potential of these lands and to deliver development of enduring value and legacy to the people of Toronto,” said Councillor Peter Milczyn, chair of the City’s Planning and Growth Committee. “It is a first step in realizing our joint objective of creating one of the world’s great waterfronts.”

The work is a highly collaborative process. Waterfront Toronto and the City are working closely with Toronto and Region Conservation and seeking input from other agencies such as The Toronto Port Lands Company and the Toronto Port Authority.  Stakeholders such as land owners, tenants, port users and sector specific groups are being engaged throughout the process.

Work on the Port Lands acceleration initiative is well underway. A series of technical working groups are examining key issues including land use and design, infrastructure and constructability, and real estate development and financing.  Waterfront Toronto has also issued or will be issuing a number of Requests for Proposals to competitively procure the required technical expertise.

“Our intent is to take a fresh and wide-ranging look at the challenges and opportunities of developing the Port Lands, including examining phasing options, higher-value interim uses, and the feasibility of modifying or removing existing constraints,” said Waterfront Toronto President and CEO John Campbell.

The comprehensive undertaking builds on the large body of work delivered to date on the Port Lands and Lower Don Lands and explores new ideas and creative solutions. The project includes:

• Further examining the options for the Don Mouth Naturalization and Port Lands Flood Protection Environmental Assessment (EA) within the EA’s terms of reference, by reviewing costing and exploring options for value enhancements through such things as alternative construction approaches and project phasing, and by increasing the development potential of surrounding lands;
• Identifying financial and policy tools, incentives, and delivery mechanisms that enable development and offset or reduce the initial public sector investment needed to provide required infrastructure such as roads, services, utilities and flood protection;
• Exploring opportunities to increase private sector investment involvement; and
• Ensuring that the plan delivers a great waterfront for people to live, work and play.

Public consultation will play a central role in the creation of the go forward plan for the Port Lands and will include traditional in-person public meetings and interactive social media and/or web enabled consultations. The on-line consultation initiative is expected to launch early in 2012. In addition to the December 12 meeting, two rounds of public consultation are planned to be held throughout the city in 2012.

The final report on the results of the Port Lands review is expected to be completed for the June 2012 City Council meeting. On January 24, 2012 the City and Waterfront Toronto will provide City Council’s Executive Committee with a report on required funding for the review.

The Governments of Canada and Ontario and the City of Toronto created Waterfront Toronto to oversee and lead the renewal of Toronto’s waterfront. Public accessibility, design excellence, sustainable development, economic development and fiscal sustainability are the key drivers of waterfront revitalization.

Toronto is Canada’s largest city and sixth largest government, and home to a diverse population of about 2.7 million people. Toronto’s government is dedicated to delivering customer service excellence, creating a transparent and accountable government, reducing the size and cost of government and building a transportation city. For information on non-emergency City services and programs, Toronto residents, businesses and visitors can dial 311, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

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Media contacts:

Michelle Noble, Waterfront Toronto, 647-288-8048

Wynna Brown, City of Toronto, 416-392-8937

The blog surveyed international green spaces for the best in emerging standards for design in the public sphere. Sherbourne Common shares the list with eight other spaces from countries across the globe.

Sherbourne Common is a unique park that seamlessly blends art and innovation. Located in the heart of the new East Bayfront neighbourhood, Sherbourne Common is far more than the area’s main park. It is the first park in Canada to incorporate a neighbourhood-wide stormwater treatment facility. Public art is integrated with the water infrastructure to create a public space that is as beautiful as it is functional. The park also features a splash pad that’s a skating rink in the winter months, a playground, an open green space and a pavilion.

The Atlantic Cities explores innovative ideas and issues facing today’s global cities and neighborhoods. Last month, the blog also ranked Underpass Park at the top of its list of Nine Cool Projects Under Freeway Overpasses.

OPPI’s annual Excellence in Planning Awards Program recognizes excellence in all aspects of the planning profession.  Waterfront Toronto’s Lower Don Lands Plan won in the Urban/Community Design category which acknowledges planners’ contributions to the built form within our communities and recognizes planned, newly constructed or renovated sites or areas.

“We are honoured that the Lower Don Lands has been recognized as a model of excellence by the Ontario Professional Planners Institute,” said John Campbell, President and CEO of Waterfront Toronto. “The Lower Don Lands is an incredibly complicated yet integral piece of the waterfront puzzle and one that is essential to get right.”

Located in the flood plain of the Don River, The Lower Don Lands is a 110 hectare (272 acre) brownfield site at the eastern end of Toronto’s harbour. The site is at the junction of two new waterfront communities already under construction, and it is the gateway to the larger Port Lands area and the first stage of the Port Lands that will be developed. Planning for the area had to address a myriad of requirements and challenges including flood protection, infrastructure, urban design, transportation and contaminated soil and groundwater.

Waterfront Toronto’s plan for the Lower Don Lands, created by a team lead by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates Inc., reroutes the mouth of the Don River through the area and creates vibrant mixed-use communities around the new river mouth. The plan enables the development of 13,000 new homes, 3,000,000 square feet of commercial/retail space, plus 53 hectares (130 acres) of parks and public space. The plan also protects more than 230 hectares (568 acres) of land currently at risk due to flooding.

The Lower Don Lands plan has been recognized as an exceptional model of sustainable urban development, and has won numerous local and international awards. The Lower Don Lands project is one of 16 founding projects of The Climate Positive Development Program: a partnership between the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, the Clinton Climate Initiative (CCI), and the U.S. Green Building Council.

OPPI

OPPI’s Awards Program acknowledges the significant contribution that professional planners make in their communities, and helps to build awareness of the planning profession among related professions, government, the private sector, and the general public.

OPPI is the recognized voice of the Province’s planning profession. Its more than 3,500 members work in government, private practice, universities, and non-profit agencies in the fields of urban and rural development, urban design, environmental planning, transportation, health and social services, heritage conservation, housing, and economic development.

Waterfront Toronto

The Governments of Canada and Ontario and the City of Toronto created Waterfront Toronto to oversee and lead the renewal of Toronto’s waterfront. Public accessibility, design excellence, sustainable development, economic development and fiscal sustainability are the key drivers of waterfront revitalization.

Media Contact:

Tari Stork, Manager, Project Communications, Waterfront Toronto
T: 416-214-1344 x 279 / C: 416-414-1577 / tstork@waterfrontoronto.ca

Loretta Ryan, MCIP, RPP, CAE, Director, Public Affairs, Ontario Professional Planners Institute
C: 416-668-8469 / policy@ontarioplanners.on.ca

Underpass Park is the most extensive park to ever be built under an overpass in Canada, and the first of its kind in Toronto. The unique urban park is transforming the derelict space beneath the Eastern Avenue, Richmond and Adelaide overpasses into a bright and welcoming neighbourhood amenity and a key public space in the West Don Lands community.

“Underpass Park embodies the kind of infrastructure project the federal government stands four-square behind,” said Minister Flaherty.  “Transforming once derelict lands into inviting parks and open spaces is a direct investment in healthier and greener communities where businesses flourish and families thrive.”

“The transformation of the West Don Lands into a vibrant, flourishing community where people will live, work, play and learn is the kind of public infrastructure project that really excites us,” said Minister Murray. “Underpass Park is a welcome addition to a renewed waterfront where businesses want to invest, families choose to live and communities continue to thrive.”

“What makes Underpass Park so unique is the inspiration came from the overpass structure,” said Councillor Norm Kelly, Chair of Parks & Environment for the City of Toronto. “I am looking forward to the completion of the park so everyone in our city can take advantage of what will be a beautiful, open public space,” Kelly added.

The imposing concrete structures of the overpasses currently act as a barrier between the north and south parts of the community. Underpass Park innovatively re-engineers the area under the overpasses to create an inviting public space that connects the two parts of the West Don Lands, contributing to the vibrancy of the neighbourhood and the success of the development projects underway in the area.

“Underpass Park embodies design excellence and creativity,” said Mark Wilson. “Its design and adaptive reuse of derelict urban land raises the bar for urban space in the city and beyond.”

Designed by landscape architectural firm Phillips Farevaag Smallenberg with The Planning Partnership, Underpass Park maximizes the unique site conditions imposed by the massive concrete overpasses to convert a neighbourhood liability into a welcoming and distinct public space.

The park is being built in two phases, with the portion east of St. Lawrence Street adjacent to both the River City private sector development and the new affordable housing complex by Toronto Community Housing, being constructed first.  The first phase is expected to be complete by the end of 2011.  The second phase of the park, on the western side of St. Lawrence Street, will be built next.

Construction of Underpass Park is another sign of the momentum and progress being made in the West Don Lands, which will be home to the Athletes’ Village during the 2015 Pan Am Games.  Work is well underway throughout the West Don Lands, both in the area that will be home to the Athletes’ Village and the areas surrounding it.

Waterfront Toronto

Since 2005, Waterfront Toronto has opened more than 17 new or improved parks or public spaces including wavedecks, sports fields, revitalized trails and new waterfront parks.  Last year the organization opened Canada’s Sugar Beach and Sherbourne Common South in the new East Bayfront neighbourhood, and started construction of Don River Park in the West Don Lands. Waterfront Toronto has also finalized development agreements with Great Gulf Homes, Urban Capital and Hines for private sector projects on the waterfront, as well as with George Brown College for the development of their new state-of-the-art Medical Arts Building on Queens Quay.

The Governments of Canada and Ontario and the City of Toronto created Waterfront Toronto to oversee and lead the renewal of Toronto’s waterfront. Public accessibility, design excellence, sustainable development, economic development and fiscal sustainability are the key drivers of waterfront revitalization.

Media Contact:

Tari Stork, Manager, Project Communications, Waterfront Toronto

T: 416-214-1344 x 279 / C: 416-414-1577 / tstork@waterfrontoronto.ca

The new Minimum Green Building Requirements update existing requirements and incorporate additional categories to reflect changes in the marketplace and to address local and regional priorities.  The revisions also reflect the growing market acceptance of green building strategies which allows Waterfront Toronto to set even higher standards for waterfront communities.

They were renamed “Minimum” to encourage design and development teams to innovate and go beyond the thresholds set within the requirements.

A strategic tool for achieving sustainable development goals, the requirements guide Waterfront Toronto’s developer partners and increase the potential for the design and development of high performance buildings.

Among the changes are new requirements for water conservation and an increase in the energy efficiency requirement for buildings, from better than code to 50 percent efficiency. Also, three percent of a building’s total energy use will now need to be supplied by on-site renewable energy.

The new minimum requirements will ensure that waterfront buildings will be able to support electric vehicles. All parking in new buildings, both residential and commercial, must be built with the electric vehicle infrastructure roughed in. Plus two percent of the parking spaces in residential buildings must be fully built with charging stations for electric vehicles.

The new requirements will apply to all future development projects.

Developers of existing projects must follow the earlier Mandatory Green Building Requirements and can elect to incorporate the new requirements as part of their design as voluntary innovations.

The Athletes’ Village will provide accommodations for athletes and officials during the Games. After the Games, the village area will become a mixed-use, pedestrian-friendly riverside community that includes affordable housing as outlined in Waterfront Toronto’s Precinct Plan for the West Don Lands.

Project highlights include design and construction of:

• a new mixed-use neighbourhood, including market and affordable housing;
• an environmentally sustainable community that aims to achieve Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Gold certification for the design and construction of the new facilities. LEED® standards focus on healthy indoor environments, reduced greenhouse gas emissions and efficient use of energy, water and other resources; and
• new roads and services, such as hydro, sewer and water infrastructure.

Based on a competitive request for qualifications process that began in October 2010, and following rigorous evaluations, five teams met the qualifications criteria for the project and the three highest scoring teams have been invited to submit proposals for the project. The short-listed teams all include companies with proven experience and capabilities in financing, designing, developing and constructing large and complex projects. These three short-listed teams are:

Dundee Kilmer Developments Limited
– Dundee Realty Corporation – Equity Investor, Developer
– Kilmer Van Nostrand Co. Limited – Equity Investor, Developer
– EllisDon Corporation – Design Builder, Constructor
– Ledcor Design Build (Ontario) Inc. – Design Builder, Constructor
– Brookfield Financial Corp. – Financial Advisor
– architectsAlliance – Joint Venture Architect
– Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg – Joint Venture Architect
– Daoust LeStage Inc. – Urban Design Architect
– TEN Arquitectos – Design

Legacy Village Partners
– Lend Lease – Master Development Partner, Equity Provider, Project Lead
– Concert Properties Ltd – Master Development Partner, Equity Provider, Market
Rental Developer/Owner
– Tridel – Development Partner, Equity Provider of Market Condo Component
– PCL – General Contractor
– Deltera – General Contractor
– Scotia Capital Inc – Financial Advisor
– IBI – Design Team Lead
– Gehl Architects – Urban Quality Consultants
– Teeple Architects – Student Residence Design
– Wallman Architects – Affordable Housing Design

Village Infrastructure Partners (VIP)
– Fengate Capital- Equity Investor
– The Conservatory Group – Equity Investor, Developer, Constructor
– The Pemberton Group – Equity Investor, Developer, Constructor
– Saddlebrook – Constructor
– Laing O’Rourke – Design Build coordination
– National Bank – Financial Advisor
– TD Securities – Financial Advisor
– B+H Architects – Lead Architect, Coordinating Architect
– RegionalArchitects – Design Lead
– EI Richmond – Design Lead
– Arquitectonica – Design Lead
– West 8 – Lead Architect (Landscape)

Once submissions to the RFP are received and evaluated, the successful team is expected be selected and announced in summer 2011. A copy of the RFP will be available on Infrastructure Ontario’s website at www.infrastructureontario.ca.

The project is proceeding under Infrastructure Ontario’s Alternative Financing and Procurement model whereby risks associated with designing, constructing, and financing the facilities are transferred to the private sector.

Infrastructure Ontario, Waterfront Toronto and Ontario Realty Corporation are working with TO2015 to develop the section of West Don Lands that will be home to the Athletes’ Village.

Infrastructure Ontario and TO2015 are working with municipalities in the GTA and Golden Horseshoe, universities and provincial agencies to procure and deliver the Athletes’ Village and Games venues, such as the Aquatics Centre facility.

Infrastructure Ontario is a Crown corporation dedicated to delivering some of the province’s larger and more complex infrastructure renewal projects – ensuring they are built on time and on budget. As well, it is dedicated to providing the public sector and not-for-profit organizations with longterm financing to renew their infrastructure.

Ontario Realty Corporation manages one of the largest real estate portfolios in Canada and provides customer-focused real estate services to the Ontario government, including strategic portfolio management, asset management, property and land management and capital projects. ORC is leading the preparation of the West Don Lands for future redevelopment by conducting the required environmental work and constructing the flood protection landform, sub-surface infrastructure and roads.

The Governments of Canada and Ontario and the City of Toronto created Waterfront Toronto to oversee and lead the renewal of Toronto’s waterfront. Public accessibility, design excellence, sustainable development, economic development and fiscal sustainability are the key drivers of waterfront revitalization.

Quotes:

Honourable Bob Chiarelli, Minister of Infrastructure
“The Athletes’ Village project will increase the pace of the West Don Lands revitalization and provide a sizable stimulus to Ontario’s economy by directly and indirectly creating and supporting thousands of jobs.”

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Media Contacts:

• Mandy Downes, Infrastructure Ontario, 416-327-5246
• Tari Stork, Waterfront Toronto, 416-214-1344
• Laura Toogood, Ontario Realty Corporation, 416-326-9122

Disponible en français

The prestigious awards are considered the Canadian industry standard for recognizing excellence in leadership and innovation in brownfield redevelopment and commitment to the remediation of brownfield projects. Waterfront Toronto’s pilot soil recycling facility won in the Remediation Technologies and Technological Innovation category.

“We are very proud and honoured that the Canadian Urban Institute acknowledged our pilot soil recycling facility with a Brownie,” said Waterfront Toronto President and CEO John Campbell.  “Soil recycling is an opportunity to turn contaminated soil into a resource instead of a liability.  Our pilot facility has the potential to change the way impacted soil is managed in Ontario.”

Waterfront Toronto established the Port Lands Pilot Soil Recycling facility in July 2010 as part of its soil management strategy and overall commitment to sustainability.  The objective of the pilot is to determine the viability of treating and reusing impacted soil as an alternative to the traditional dig-and-dump disposal of brownfield soil.

The revitalization of Toronto’s waterfront is one of the largest urban brownfield remediation projects in the world. Revitalization of the waterfront area depends on the ability to deal with soil that has been impacted by decades of industrial uses, and by infilling long ago when environmental standards were not as stringent as today.

Waterfront Toronto anticipates that it will need to manage approximately 2,000,000 cubic metres of contaminated soil over the next 10 to 20 years.  By recycling waterfront soil, Waterfront Toronto would be treating soil near its source, diverting soil from landfill, and providing a source of treated soil that can be used in waterfront revitalization projects.

The pilot enables Waterfront Toronto to fully assess the environmental, economic and operational viability of treating and reusing soil before committing to a full-scale recycling facility.  The goals of the pilot are to identify the range of treatment options and costs of remediating soil; confirm that impacted soil can be treated to an environmental condition that allows it to be reused in revitalization projects for residential, parkland and commercial projects; and showcase treatment technologies that will benefit brownfield remediation.

The pilot’s operators, DEC and Tetra Tech /Stuyvesant, began processing soil in early September. Testing is expected to be complete by early November, and then the operators will prepare reports for Waterfront Toronto’s review and assessment.

During the pilot approximately 20,000 cubic metres of soil are being processed employing the newest and best technologies available to treat contaminated soils.  The pilot’s operator teams are using soil washing, complemented by field trials of a number of other cutting-edge technologies. Both teams operate similar facilities in Europe and the United States.

Waterfront Toronto’s sustainable development approach is guided by a comprehensive Sustainability Framework, which serves as a roadmap to ensure that sustainability principles are woven into every facet of operations and decision making.  By employing global best practices and made-in-Toronto solutions, Waterfront Toronto is developing new waterfront communities that protect and enhance our natural environment, and that will ultimately be recognized as global models for sustainability.

The Governments of Canada and Ontario and the City of Toronto created Waterfront Toronto to oversee and lead the renewal of Toronto’s waterfront. Public accessibility, design excellence, sustainable development, economic development and fiscal sustainability are the key drivers of waterfront revitalization.

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Media Contact:
Tari Stork, Project Communications Manager, 416-214-1344 x 279

Federal Minister of Finance Jim Flaherty, Toronto City Councillor Pam McConnell, Chair of Waterfront Toronto Mark Wilson and Ontario Minister of Research and Innovation Glen Murray officially open Sherbourne Common.

Located in the heart of the new East Bayfront neighbourhood, the south side of Sherbourne Common, which opened today, stretches more than a hectare from Lake Ontario to Queens Quay. When the north side of the park opens later this fall, the 1.5 hectare park will cover two city blocks from the water’s edge to Lake Shore Boulevard.

With development growing all around it, including George Brown College on its western edge, the newly approved Hines Bayside development to its east and flanked by Great Gulf’s Parkside development to the north, Sherbourne Common will become the heart of this new community and a major civic destination.

More than just a beautiful public space, Sherbourne Common is also the first park in Canada to integrate an ultraviolet (UV) treatment facility for neighbourhood-wide stormwater treatment into its design. Collected stormwater is treated in a UV Facility located in the basement of the park’s Pavilion and released from three dramatic art features into a 240-metre long water channel — or urban river — and back out to Lake Ontario.

“Today’s opening demonstrates the importance of Federal government participation in the revitalization of Toronto’s waterfront,” said Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty. “The federal government’s $27 million contribution to this beautiful and innovative park supports a unique venue that will become a landmark not only for Torontonians but all Canadians.”

“The Government of Ontario is proud to be a partner in this vibrant, and sustainable public space that makes Toronto, and Ontario, a great place to work, live, play and visit,” said Glen Murray, Ontario’s Minister of Research and Innovation and Member of Provincial Parliament for Toronto Centre. “This project supports the Open Ontario initiative by creating jobs and enhancing the quality of life for Ontarians.”

“Building a new waterfront means leading with public spaces first, and Sherbourne Common is one of Toronto’s most imaginative parks in decades — utilizing many water features from Lake Shore Boulevard to the water’s edge,” said Mayor David Miller.

Sherbourne Common offers something for everyone and will bring people to this formerly industrial part of the waterfront all year-round. Designed by renowned Canadian landscape architect Phillips Farevaag Smallenberg to be both a city-wide destination and neighbourhood amenity, Sherbourne Common features wide open greenspace on the south side of the park providing ample space for festivals, concerts and other city-wide events overlooking Lake Ontario.

“Today we are opening another must-see park on Toronto’s waterfront,” said Mark Wilson, Chair, Waterfront Toronto. “By combining required municipal infrastructure with excellence in design, architecture and public art, Sherbourne Common offers a new model for city-builders nationwide and a fabulous year-round destination.”

In addition to the urban river that runs the length of the park, a 920m2 pond will be frozen for a winter skating rink and act as a splash pad for summer waterplay. Surrounding the pond, a zinc-clad, architecturally award-winning Pavilion offers restrooms and will house a café as the neighbourhood develops.  Teeple Architects Inc. designed the Pavilion, Jill Anholt is the public artist and The Municipal Infrastructure Group engineered the park’s UV Facility. The local consultant is The Planning Partnership.

Chosen after an online public naming contest, the name ‘Sherbourne Common’ reflects the idea that parks and public spaces should belong to the people. Launched earlier this year, the month-and-a-half long public naming contest received more than 500 submissions and thousands of votes from people across Canada.

The budget for Sherbourne Common — both the north and south sides of the park — including site preparation costs (demolition and soil remediation) and design and construction costs for the park, water channel and UV Facility is $28.7 million plus an additional $1.9 million for the public art features.

Revitalization efforts are well underway across the waterfront.

•    In East Bayfront Canada’s Sugar Beach, the first phase of water’s edge promenade and the new headquarters for Corus Entertainment are now open. Construction continues on the George Brown College Waterfront Campus which will welcome students in September 2012 and in August, Toronto City Council overwhelmingly approved Waterfront Toronto’s development agreement with Hines for Bayside — an $800 million private sector investment on the waterfront.
•    In the West Don Lands, Toronto Community Housing has begun construction on the area’s first affordable housing complex, and construction is underway on Don River Park.

Plans for the Lower Don Lands were endorsed by Toronto City Council this summer and In the Central Waterfront, the first phase of construction to revitalize Queens Quay will begin next year.

Waterfront Toronto
The Governments of Canada and Ontario and the City of Toronto created Waterfront Toronto to oversee and lead the renewal of Toronto’s waterfront. Public accessibility, design excellence, sustainable development, economic development and fiscal sustainability are the key drivers of waterfront revitalization.

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Media Contacts:
•    Samantha Gileno, Waterfront Toronto 416-214-1344 x264 or 416-271-1316
•    Annette Robertson, Press Secretary, Department of Finance Canada, Minister’s Office 613-996-7861
•    Stuart Green, Deputy Director of Communications, Office of the Mayor 416-338-7119

Media Kit:
NEWS RELEASE
NEWS RELEASE – French
SHERBOURNE COMMON FACT SHEET
EAST BAYFRONT BACKGROUNDER

For more information, visit the Sherbourne Common project page.

Image Gallery:
High-resolution renderings are available for download below.

A south looking view of Sherbourne Common and the park's Pavilion.

Sherbourne Common's Water Channel with Biofiltration Bed

Toronto City Councillor Pam McConnell, Chair of Waterfront Toronto Mark Wilson, Ontario Minister of Research and Innovation Glen Murray and Federal Minister of Finance Jim Flaherty officially cut the ribbon at the opening of Sherbourne Common.

Park visitors enjoy the new water channel at the official opening of Sherbourne Common.

Renderings provided courtesy of Hines.

The Hines plan will transform the Bayside development site into an active and diverse mixed-use community connected by major parks and public spaces.   Complete with 1,700 homes, a bustling main street and office and employment space for 2,400 jobs, Bayside is the single largest parcel of land to be developed by Waterfront Toronto.

“Council’s approval is a huge milestone not only for waterfront revitalization but for the City of Toronto,” said John Campbell, President and CEO of Waterfront Toronto. “With Hines, we can now move forward with reconnecting the city to the waterfront by building a liveable, walkable, community defined by beautiful parks and public spaces.”

Backed by an $800 million private sector investment, the Bayside development will result in approximately $1.6 billion in total economic activity and $20 million in development charges for the City of Toronto.  To promote lasting economic development, Bayside is being targeted as an employment hub on the waterfront, particularly for knowledge-based industries such as information and communication technology companies and the creative sector.

The new neighbourhood, located on a 4 hectare (10 acre) site between Lower Sherbourne and Parliament Streets, is expected to be constructed in phases with first occupancy of buildings and completion of new public spaces as early as 2014.  The entire project is expected to be completed by 2021.

“We are delighted with City Council’s approval and to be working with Waterfront Toronto in creating a dynamic new live/work/play neighbourhood on the harbour,” said Avi Tesciuba, Hines vice president of Canadian operations.  “Bayside is an extremely important development for Hines, and we look forward to the excitement of bringing the vision to fruition.”

Renderings provided courtesy of Hines.

Hines assembled an internationally renowned design team led by luminary architects Cesar Pelli, Fred Clarke and Stanton Eckstut to develop its plans for Bayside. The plans will deliver a vibrant new neighbourhood built on a human scale, with mews and small streets that promote a sense of closeness and community all year round.  The neighbourhood’s main street — Bonnycastle Street — will draw visitors from across the city and will provide connections to neighbouring public spaces, including the soon-to-be-completed Sherbourne Common, Queens Quay linear park, and the Water’s Edge Promenade.

The Bayside development is an integral part of the remarkable transformation already well underway in the new East Bayfront precinct that Waterfront Toronto is developing. Employees have now moved into the area’s first commercial building, Corus Quay, the new headquarters of Corus Entertainment.   Construction is well underway on George Brown College’s new state-of-the-art Health Sciences Campus. Canada’s Sugar Beach and the first stretch of the Water’s Edge Promenade are now open and next month Waterfront Toronto will open Sherbourne Common, the area’s other major new park.

The Governments of Canada and Ontario and the City of Toronto created Waterfront Toronto to oversee and lead the renewal of Toronto’s waterfront. Public accessibility, design excellence, sustainable development, economic development and fiscal sustainability are the key drivers of waterfront revitalization.

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Media Kit:

NEWS RELEASE
BAYSIDE BACKGROUNDER
EAST BAYFRONT BACKGROUNDER
BAYSIDE DEVELOPMENT SELECTION PROCESS BACKGROUNDER
HINES DESIGN TEAM BACKGROUNDER

For more information, please contact:

•    Samantha Gileno, Waterfront Toronto 416-214-1344 x264 or 416-271-1316, sgileno@waterfrontoronto.ca

•    George Lancaster, Hines 713-966-7676 or George.lancaster@hines.com

To learn more about the project, developer and design teams:

Waterfront Toronto
Hines
Pelli Clarke Pelli
Ehrenkrantz Eckstut & Kuhn Architects
Adamson Associates

Bayside Image and Video Gallery:

High-resolution renderings and a project animation video are available for download below.  Please note that any use of the animation video and/or renderings should credit Hines.

Bayside Animation Video