Design competition conceals,connects and activates rail corridor

Daryl Gonsalves, Columnist –

“Toronto is an hour from To­ronto” is a saying well known, partly due to constant construc­tion as the city strives to keep up with ever-increasing needs.

Toronto’s need for public tran­sit will be tackled by the Ontar­io Line, a new provincial sub­way with 15 stations that will operate from Exhibition Place through the heart of downtown to the Eglinton Crosstown Light Rapid Transit line at Don Mills Road.

Building new transit infra­structure through downtown Toronto is akin to performing open-heart surgery on an ath­lete competing in the Olympics. The construction will inevitably create points of friction as the new infrastructure integrates with existing communities. In Riverside and Leslieville, this change will affect a two-kilo­metre stretch of the rail corri­dor from Eastern Avenue near Broadview Avenue to Gerrard Street at Carlaw Avenue. It will accommodate both the new sub­way and expansion of the exist­ing GO Transit system (known as the GO Expansion Project).

To address these chang­es, Metrolinx launched a de­sign competition in June 2022, inviting community leaders, Business Improvement Areas (BIAs), architects, and interest­ed residents to submit innova­tive urban design and landscape architecture solutions. The goal was to transform potential fric­tion points into clear community benefits for the neighbourhood.

The Lakeshore East Com­munity Advisory Committee, chaired by Shelley Kline, wants the design to be livable, use sus­tainable materials, engage with historical context and create opportunities to restore native ecosystems. The committee be­lieves that the design cannot be ‘one size fits all,’ arguing that the competition’s parameters must be adjusted to treat the rail corridor as four separate and distinct zones, each requiring a tailored response.

Kline praised Metrolinx’s Ontario Line Program Sponsors, Malcolm MacKay, and John Potter, who chaired the ‘Design Excellence Working Group’ in the year-long process to develop community-led design parame­ters that would inform the bid­ders design submissions. This process also included City of Toronto and elected officials. In June 2023, the community-led jury selected the Canadian firm ‘O2 Design Inc.’ for their excep­tional concept, treatments, and materials.

Artist’s rendering of the future retaining wall noise barrier along the rail corridor in the Saulter Street Parkette. Picture from
Design Firm O2 and Metrolinx. Additional park amenities pictured are conceptual.

O2’s winning design incorpo­rates three main concepts:

• Conceal – Minimize visual impacts with textured wall treatments, vegetation, and cre­ative landscaping.

• Connect – Improve wayfin­ding and create new gateways, reconnecting the east and west sides of the rail corridor through colour and cohesive use of ma­terials and colour.

• Activate – Create new gath­ering places with elements of play and art, seating and year-round plantings that provide visual interest.

O2’s concept will guide pro­ject plans and inform the con­struction of retaining walls, noise barriers, station plazas, and landscapes along the rail corridor. Retaining walls and noise barriers are currently be­ing installed on the eastern edge of the rail corridor, to be com­pleted by November of this year. Work on the west/north side of the rail corridor is anticipated to begin in November 2024.

East end residents can engage with Metrolinx at its communi­ty office at 770 Queen St. East, near Broadview Avenue.