Taken from the report posted earlier:
Port Lands Site Plan Legend
1. Main Gate (Gate 1): It is anticipated that a major influx of visitors would approach the site at this gate, which is close to the city centre. Under an expansive welcoming roof that stretches along Commissioners Street, the gate is designed to meet ticketing and security requirements for 1,000 guests per hour per turnstile.
2. Secondary Gate (Gate 2): Also located under the welcoming roof structure, this would be another popular access point to the site. There is a length of space for 16 coach buses or other mass transit vehicles to easily pull in and drop guests off between Gates One and Two. Both the Main and Secondary Gates are located across from Commissioners Park.
3. East Gate: Located near the Turning Basin, this gate would guide visitors into the far end of the site, permitting them to walk along the north side of the dockwall or to cross a new bridge to the south side.
4. Commissioners Park: This 17-hectare park that includes community sports fields, a TWRC-led project slated for completion prior to 2015, would offer a visual carpet of green immediately in front of the main gates.
5. Plaza of Nations: A large open space to support a gathering of over 10,000 people, this central space would be the cultural heart of Expo 2015. In order to capitalize on its welcoming feature inside a major arrival point and its proximity to the large water-based venue close by, the space would include a logical north–south pedestrian route into the site that has been enlarged to support peak crowd flow as a gathering and events space. Innovation would prevail as pedestrians could initiate ever-changing coloured light patterns under foot as they walk. Tall, tilted masts, fitted with solar disks, nod to the east, mimicking the angle of the adjacent Canada pavilion.
6. Canada Pavilion: The tallest and most prominent building on the lands, the Canada Pavilion’s iconic legacy architecture would draw inspiration from the past as its spirited sail (or teepee-like form) looks toward the Expo site on one side and opens up to the city on the other. A long, low base stretches west, ending in a specialized state-of-the-art Great Lakes Discovery Centre submerged into the lake. Sustainable in all respects, this pavilion has a life after Expo. During the Expo, this world-class pavilion would present a strong message of unity and harmony and would showcase our collective achievements as all the provinces and territories unite under one “roofscape†to present their distinctive attributes. The City of Toronto could play international host at Club 2015, located in the peak.
7. Great Lakes Discovery Centre: A special legacy tourist and local destination that would be located at the end of a quay as part of the Canada Pavilion during Expo.
8. Amphitheatre: A major covered performance venue for 5,000 people, strategically positioned on the water’s edge and facing the city skyline beyond. Intended for large performances, including fireworks and music, various stage configurations are envisioned in the water to meet a variety of functions. An enclosed electronic “billboard†could address both the Expo site and the city beyond.
9. Innovative Housing: A small percentage of staff working on the Expo site would come from abroad for the set-up, duration, and decommissioning of the site. While many of these employees may be billeted as part of a multicultural initiative, some would require housing either on or near the site. Affordable housing units already anticipated to be built north of the site in the West Don Lands and west of the site in East Bayfront may be available to coincide with the Expo period, but more are required. This need offers an opportunity to include a highly progressive demonstration housing project as part of the Expo programming. A dockside location, just outside the main gate, could allow this project to offer tours during the event.
10. International Business Centre: This facility, located near the main gate, would offer much-needed assistance, including conference facilities and technological support for visitors. Part of the mandate would be to provide special services for developing countries. The location is strategic, since post- Expo the building is envisioned to be an Imagination Centre for Creative Cities, accessed directly from Commissioners Street when the gates are removed.
11. Theme Pavilion: As part of an exposition, the host country generally creates several pavilions that represent it in form and content, one of the sub-themes of the current Expo. A placeholder has been positioned along Commissioners Street in anticipation that it could become a community centre or other required facility post-Expo. Depending upon community need and theme requirements on the site, this location may be changed. Similarly, on the south side of the dockwall, near the Don Greenway and Lake Ontario Park, a theme pavilion is suggested and may become a school in the future.
12. Theme Pavilion: Similarly, a second theme pavilion, adjacent to #11, might become a library or serve a similar function post-Expo. Both structures could be accessed directly from the north side after the gates and the roof structure overhead are removed. It is possible that the expansive roof form may be considered a positive enduring element along the south edge of Commissioners Park, creating another legacy and informing the design of the
roofscape itself.
13. Performance Venue: An anchor position on the site at the east end of the Ship Channel, this venue would allow a spectacle of colour and form as swirling tent structures fly over part of the Turning Basin, a floating stage with cantilevered seating for 2,000 people.
14. Hearn: It is hoped that part of the structure could be adaptively re-used for various functions during the Expo, particularly restaurant, retail, or even some small pavilion displays. In any event, the character of the façade or building at large will add character and ambiance along the new promenade/dockwall.
15. Amusement Park: Considered a popular element of a fair, this festive park would offer an unusual experience as rides for both adults and children are located within a green labyrinth—a huge Ferris wheel and other interactive and passive events are being considered.
16. World Museum of Aboriginal Art: Hinting at a theme that may include “humanity†and its potential to create a participatory, connected world, this pavilion would be a legacy on the site. Positioned within view of the major
gate at the end of the Plaza of Nations, it would be clearly visible from many directions. Its location, fronting on Cherry Street, could be integrated in future development blocks.
17. Entertainment Venue: Strategically placed with views in all directions, this dining, cabaret, and café venue would look both inward to a courtyard ambiance and outward to the lake on a projecting patio.
18. Shipping Facility: The existing shipping facility would have access through the Expo site throughout the fair’s duration. Vessels traveling up the Ship Channel under full security during the Expo could add credibility to the historic industrial components of the Port Lands.
19. Lake Ontario Park – Cherry Beach: This is a new park legacy, which may be used in part as off-site breakout open space during the fair. Visitors would have the opportunity to share this valuable beach land. During the Expo, sculptures and water features may be introduced. Those wishing to visit Lake Ontario Park only will still have free access to the park via Unwin Avenue without having to go through the Expo site.
20. Parking Structure: Although this would be a transit-oriented Expo, there is a requirement for parking to satisfy special needs. Several options are being considered, all close to the fairgrounds but outside the gates. This location could be used for a multi-tier above-ground parking structure. In the lands just north of this parcel, there is an opportunity to create coach bus parking. There are further opportunities to accommodate parking for 150 buses on lands across Leslie Street on the Ashbridges Bay lands that are already being used for surface parking.
21. Parking: A possible alternate option for part of the parking requirement may be an on-grade, temporary greened parking lot north of Unwin Avenue near Leslie Street. This site will only be considered as a temporary solution if all the parking cannot be accommodated in the parking structure.
22. Cherry Street Bridge: A refurbished lift bridge would be required and would remain as a legacy. During Expo, the bridge may be embellished with lighting to reinforce the extension of the Plaza of Nations. Inventive forms and crosschannel lighting can achieve this illumination.
23. Don Roadway Bridge: This new lift bridge, providing critical pedestrian movement across the channel, would remain as part of the new neighbourhood development.
24. Bridge at Turning Basin: This required lift bridge would prove useful today and tomorrow. It is envisioned that the three bridges across the Channel may be designed as sculptural pieces in the Expo park. With innovative coordination, the artful handrail forms could be distinctive and provide overlapping perspectives from various vantage points on the site.
25. Cable Car Experience: Most Expos provide an overhead ride that allows visitors an orientation of the fair and an interesting method of transportation from one end to the other. Several stops are being considered, starting between the two main gates and with the cable extending out over the water. The cars could dramatically slow down to allow views in all directions - the islands, skyline, and lake with boats sailing beyond. The ride would continue around the Museum and travel until it reached the Turning Basin. Stops would often coincide with the bridges to make pedestrian connections obvious.
26. Human Kaleidoscope: Throughout the Expo, there would be opportunities to provide unexpected delights and experiences—both within pavilions and other venues and within the varied hard and soft landscapes. One such opportunity might be constructed on the long, low roof extending from the Canada pavilion. Connected by an accessible ramp, a colourful, highly graphic walking surface would be punctuated by giant rows of mirrored spherical, hovering “trees.†Reflections of many colours underfoot contrasted with those of the water, city, and people would challenge visitors’ perceptions of space and form. Participants could walk between and around the spheres, which would seem to disappear in favour of the reflections. Night lighting would add another dimension.
27. Dockwall: One of the most appreciated legacies of this fair may become the revitalization and humanization of the Port Land’s dockwall experience. Over 7,000 linear metres of dockwall could be designed as a pedestrian edge along the Channel and the outer quays, as shown. An ambiance learned from ourexperience with the Toronto Harbourfront, and from Amsterdam and Paris with their multi-leveled docks, would create an organizing element for the Expo and a legacy for all time.
28. Lake Ontario Parkside Drive – Unwin: This drive, slightly reconfigured to create a winding route, is contemplated as a treed boulevard park drive from Leslie Street into Lake Ontario Park and then west toward Cherry Street. This infrastructure would enhance the Expo grounds and, again, provide a legacy for the park.
29. Theatre: Situated along the dockwall in a vibrant café, dining, and cabaret zone just south of the Film Port District, this 500-seat theatre would offer special performances throughout the Toronto 2015 World Expo including live theatre or movie premieres and provide a much-needed venue post-Expo.
30. Electronic Totem Poles: As the host country, Canada has an opportunity to showcase its past while inspiring its future. Throughout the fairgrounds, presentations, performances, and specially-created environments can challenge expectations and create delight. One such manifestation of this approach could be the very tall and slim structures shown punctuating the dockwall. They would call to mind Native Canadians’ meaningful and colourful
totem poles, which remain memorable artifacts in Canada to this day. These “interventions†have many purposes, from way-finding and general information kiosks to magical light sources along the walkway that beam across the channel, But most of all, they would be defining urban elements of electronic art.
31. Pontoons: Designed as one- or two-storey forms, floating water pavilions (pontoon forms) could respond to the need for cross-channel connections at any point along the way, shifting dockside to permit vessel passage. Among other possible presentation uses, each pontoon could serve as an interactive bridge with strategically incorporated performance venues, such as a stage for cabarets and bands or as an interesting dining venue.
AoD
