[Torontovibe]

Then someone must be putting in a lot of over-time. It will be nice to have a new skating rink this winter.

 

[interchange42]

The south half of Sherbourne Common was officially opened on a warm, beautiful, blustery morning in Toronto today. Officiating at the ceremony was Mark Wilson, chair of Waterfront Toronto, who was joined at the microphone by Toronto City Councillor Pam McConnell, whose ward Sherbourne Common is in, the Hon. Jim Flaherty, Federal Minister of Finance, and the Hon. Glenn Murray, Ontario Minister of Research and Innovation. Lead designer on the project was Phillips Farevaag Smallenberg of Vancouver. Greg Smallenberg and members of his staff were on hand for the opening.

Doug Dent, whose name for the park was chosen in a contest hosted at Torontoist.com, was give a framed rendering of the park as a token of appreciation.

The taps are turned, and Sherbourne Common's splash pad springs to life.

The ribbon was also cut today on the park's water channel and the innovative ultraviolet treatment facility that will purify stormwater runoff before returning it to Lake Ontario.

The park is about more than water though; there are places to sit and relax, play, read, eat. Member's of George Brown College's soccer team were on hand for the opening. George Brown's Medical School will open on the west side of the side in September 2012.

Views of the downtown skyline are pretty spectacular from the park. This view is from the east side of Teeple Architects-designed the pavilion which will house the snack bar, washrooms, and water treatment facility. Note the rings for licking up bicycles.

Much work is still to be done at the site.

The waterfront promenade was extended from Corus to the Common today, but work continues to bring it east.

The portion of the water channel connecting it to the lake also remains under construction.

Much of the cladding on the pavilion remains to be attached, and the snack and washroom facilties are not open yet.

Work also continues on the north side of the park across Queens Quay. It is expected to have a soft opening before the end of the year, with a grand opening planned for spring 2011. Seen from the south side, artist Jill Anholt's Light Showers sculptural fountains will be the north common's visual signature.

UrbanToronto will be back at Sherbourne Common as more facilities come to completion. In the meantime, Waterfront Toronto has added another jewel to the increasingly bright crown of waterfront parks in Toronto.

42

 

[PinkLucy]

It looks great, and it also looks like quite a few folks were there. What was that Rob Ford said about people not being interested in the Waterfront?

 

[taal]

Wow ... colored me impressed - this doesn't look like the typical city built park ... same goes with sugar beach.
It looks like what they're building in MCC may be pretty nice to (maybe to early to tell) - it's great cities are stepping it up a notch.

The big fountains are only in the north end right? If I go tomorrow will the water be on ? I have very bad luck with that - out of my 3 visits to sugar beach I never saw the water on once.

 

[CityPainter]

I was also at the opening this morning and was extremely impressed with everything I saw, including the workmanship and an attention to detail that goes way beyond the norm. Many thanks to interchange42 for that great set of photos and explanations. I can't wait to see what this will be like when the northern portion opens, when Queen's Quay has been refurbished, and when the park, splash pads and ice rink are in full use.

Jim Flaherty's speech was somewhat interesting. He talked about the importance of this section of waterfront development, and reminded us that the largest investment came from the Federal government -- $25 million -- which is an amount that dwarfs the investments from Ontario and the city itself. This, he said, should be proof to doubters that the federal government does in fact support Toronto. Any points he might have won with that argument, however, were immediately lost when I came home and read that at the same event Flaherty went on to heartily endorse Rob Ford for mayor -- the same Rob Ford who was on record earlier this week stating that "Toronto can't afford the waterfront". Give with one hand and take away with the other, I guess.

Which leads to the question: would Ford's election put in peril the rest of the upcoming waterfront development now getting underway? Or will the fact that it is quite far along and primarily funded by the province and the feds keep it safe from cancellation?

 

[taal]

Here's my guess as to what would happen if he gets elected ...

1) Don't forget, whomever he is, this is politics, things take a long while.
2) At best (or worst depending on what side you're from) I think the most he could accomplish is:
A) Probably going ahead with east bayfront as is - it's pretty much completely planned at this point - this includes the buildings to the north.
B) The pan am games are going ahead so he won't be able to change much of the West donlands but he may be able to cheapen it to a certain degree.
C) He could stall any plans for the port lands or other areas in the west donlands.

D) Probably the worst is this, queens quay makeover has funding for 800m or so, and that's it - I think the rest will be coming from the city with little funding from anywhere else. This may be canceled / delayed outright. With this, implies the east extension of the streetcar also delayed / canceled. The TTC would probably be forced to run buses instead as they have a commitment for east bayfront otherwise all office development can be put on hold (according to the contract).

E) Maybe scale back NPS revitalization (partly needed for pan am games).
F) Any of the in study stage projects (Dundas west) will be put on hold.

 

[Rowe]

^ I'm so depressed now.

 

[taal]

^ I'm so depressed now.

Sorry!

That was just a guess anyway I'm sure those who are more politically involved would be able to provide a better awswer - maybe not so much what would ford, himself, do; but what could anyone in general do to delay the project.

Also remember, this is still a very long term construction project 20+ years - so it may not matter much what he does in the short term.

But I'm pretty sad about D) and I think that's very likely.

 

[MetroMan]

Here's my guess as to what would happen if he gets elected ...

1) Don't forget, whomever he is, this is politics, things take a long while.
2) At best (or worst depending on what side you're from) I think the most he could accomplish is:
A) Probably going ahead with east bayfront as is - it's pretty much completely planned at this point - this includes the buildings to the north.
B) The pan am games are going ahead so he won't be able to change much of the West donlands but he may be able to cheapen it to a certain degree.
C) He could stall any plans for the port lands or other areas in the west donlands.

D) Probably the worst is this, queens quay makeover has funding for 800m or so, and that's it - I think the rest will be coming from the city with little funding from anywhere else. This may be canceled / delayed outright. With this, implies the east extension of the streetcar also delayed / canceled. The TTC would probably be forced to run buses instead as they have a commitment for east bayfront otherwise all office development can be put on hold (according to the contract).

E) Maybe scale back NPS revitalization (partly needed for pan am games).
F) Any of the in study stage projects (Dundas west) will be put on hold.

You're spot on. The biggest loss would be the Queens Quay redevelopment because that requires approval for more funding and to close lanes. Only a portion of it is funded and I'm not quite sure what WATERFRONToronto would do with the option of going ahead with a small section of the project or cancelling what would never be completed anyway. There's no way Ford would sit back and watch Queens Quay turned into a pedestrian and transit priority, one way street.

Well, hopefully Ford doesn't win. From what I understand, Smitherman and Pantalone would both go ahead with Waterfront reviltalization as planned. Rossi is a reasonable person. I think he also understands the importance of the waterfront for Toronto, both culturally and economically.

 

[Brans89]

The city is cash strapped for years now. Even with David Miller there was barely any money. I view the Waterfront as a Federal, Provincial project. They are the ones who provide the money. The city only approves projects they do not fund them.

 

[Torontovibe]

Wow ... colored me impressed - this doesn't look like the typical city built park ... same goes with sugar beach.
It looks like what they're building in MCC may be pretty nice to (maybe to early to tell) - it's great cities are stepping it up a notch.

The big fountains are only in the north end right? If I go tomorrow will the water be on ? I have very bad luck with that - out of my 3 visits to sugar beach I never saw the water on once.

I was there around 6pm and the water to the channel was flowing but the fountains in the splash-pad/skating rink, were turned off. Some parts of the channel had very shallow water, (maybe half an inch) which was disappointing. The cafe is quite small and I wish they would have put in a large sliding window, so it could be open in summer. It's kinda dull now. (from bones we can see so far) I hope when the north side is functioning, that the water in the channel will be much deeper.

 

[Torontovibe]

Does anybody know why they are building a large stage, outside, on the west side of Corus? Is there a show or concert this weekend? The stage is quite big and there were a lot of people working on it this afternoon.

 

[barrytron3030]

This park looks amazing. After visiting Chicago, New York and Paris, I always dreamed that Toronto would one day possess truly beautiful public spaces. The Waterfront, once completed, will be Toronto's crown jewel.

 

[CityPainter]

I was there around 6pm and the water to the channel was flowing but the fountains in the splash-pad/skating rink, were turned off. Some parts of the channel had very shallow water, (maybe half an inch) which was disappointing. The cafe is quite small and I wish they would have put in a large sliding window, so it could be open in summer. It's kinda dull now. (from bones we can see so far) I hope when the north side is functioning, that the water in the channel will be much deeper.

During the speeches today, someone (I forget who) mentioned that when the George Brown building under construction immediately to the west is done, its entire eastern side will be all glass that opens onto the park. Perhaps integrated into that could be another cafe, or more semi-public spaces. Would be nice, unless George Brown wants to keep all the facilities students-only. Time will tell.

 

[Torontovibe]

During the speeches today, someone (I forget who) mentioned that when the George Brown building under construction immediately to the west is done, its entire eastern side will be all glass that opens onto the park. Perhaps integrated into that could be another cafe, or more semi-public spaces. Would be nice, unless George Brown wants to keep all the facilities students-only. Time will tell.

That's true, I forgot that George Brown Collage will also have restaurants and coffee shops for the general public. The more choices, the better. Over-all, I do like the park and all the water features. The north part is going to be pretty interesting with those unique waterfalls sculptures.