Anniversary Park Improvements

• Winter 2023: Hire a design team
• Spring to Fall 2023: Community engagement
• Spring 2023 to Fall 2024: Design development
• Spring 2025: Construction starts
• Winter 2025: Construction complete

The timeline is subject to change.

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The design for the park improvements, referred to as the preferred design throughout the community engagement process, was developed using community feedback.

1. Long bench
2. Ornamental water fountain
3. Unit paving
4. Tables and chairs
5. Native pollinator-friendly planting
6. Existing tree
7. Proposed tree
8. Tree in grate with soil cells
9. Light standard
10. Water bottle filler

In this phase of the community engagement process, the City and the design consultant worked with residents and stakeholders to define a renewed overall vision for the park, including a series of design principles to guide the development of design options in Community Engagement Phase 2.

Outcomes

Vision Statement

Anniversary Park will be a green and calm urban oasis that supports community safety and comfort. It will be a welcoming place for people of different backgrounds, ages, and interests to meet and spend time, creating a vibrant new entrance to the Cabbagetown neighbourhood.

Design Principles

• Community safety and belonging: support community safety, comfort, and accessibility for all ages and abilities as a top priority
• Balance space for socializing and relaxation: enhance amenity options, while balancing space for socializing and relaxation
• Champion resilient approaches: enhance green spaces through plantings that provide shade and environmental benefits
• Integrate with the neighbourhood: improve entrances and park edges, creating a design that connects with surrounding areas and feels less isolated

Community Engagement Meetings and Events

April 2023

Community Stakeholder Workshop

In April, the project team held an in-person workshop with community stakeholders. Participants included representatives from local neighbourhood organizations that serve patrons of the park. The workshop allowed participants to share their thoughts about opportunities, challenges, and ideas for the future Anniversary Park. Approximately 13 community stakeholders provided feedback at this workshop. Three project team members were available to collect feedback and answer questions.

Key Feedback:

• Ensure it is an inviting, inclusive space for all park users
  • Welcoming for all community members, demographics and abilities
  • A child-friendly space
  • Support local businesses by providing a place to sit and eat
• Introduce an updated water feature
  • A water feature that takes less space and offers positive visual and audio impacts (e.g., decorative fountain or mister)
  • Water draws people together and is healing
• Prioritize greenery and calm spaces
  • Provide calm, lush areas to sit, linger and relax
  • Provide shade so people feel comfortable to stay in the park longer
  • Add pollinator-friendly planting
• Improve safety
  • Provide lighting throughout the park
  • Ensure good visibility into, out of, and through the park
  • Provide furniture that cannot be moved or lifted
• Provide a wide range of seating options
  • Ensure seating is accessible
  • Include a mix of group and individual seating
  • Include tables/places to eat
• Space for community events and gathering
  • Demarcate a flexible space for community events such as markets, pop-ups, or installations
  • Provide electrical power and outlets for events
• Other key suggestions from the workshop include:
  • Make the park look and feel like a gateway into Cabbagetown
  • Upgrade the drinking fountain (bottle filler and drinking fountain)

Review the workshop summary board.

Online Survey

From April 6 to April 23, over 120 people responded to an online survey. The feedback collected in the survey informed the vision statement and design principles and will guide draft design options for the park.

Download the survey summary.

In-Person Pop-Up Event

In April, over 80 community members participated in a pop-up event at Yonge Street Mission Davis Centre, located on Gerrard Street East, north of Anniversary Park. The pop-up allowed community members to engage in dotmocracy exercises and provide feedback in person. Two project team members were available to collect feedback and answer questions.

Key feedback, with the total number of ‘agree’ responses in parentheses, follows.

• Existing features that community members enjoy:
  • The central water fountain feature (16)
  • The nature and green space (14)
• Preferred future park character:
  • Calm: A place to sit, linger, eat lunch, and relax (20)
  • Green: Lush with trees and plantings (14)
  • Social: A place for meeting and gathering with people (14)
• Preferred future park activities:
  • Relaxing in a seating area (nine)
  • Eating at a table or picnic area (nine)
  • Attending community events (seven)
• Words that reflect the vision for the future park:
  • Green
  • Calming
  • Peaceful
  • Water/Fountain
  • Safe

In this phase of the community engagement process, the City and the design consultant used the outcomes of Community Engagement Phase 1 to inform two design options for the park improvements. These designs were presented to the community for feedback, with the input collected used to develop a preferred design for the park.

The anticipated phase outcome includes the selection of a preferred design option.

Design Options

The following design options were developed using feedback from Community Engagement Phase 1.

Design Option 1

1. Long bench
2. Vertical misters water feature
3. Decorative paving
4. Tables and chairs
5. Vertical gateway feature
6. Native pollinator planting
7. Existing tree
8. Proposed tree
9. Tree in grate with soil cells
10. Column lighting
11. Water bottle filler

Design Option 2

1. Vertical gateway feature
2. Curvilinear bench seat wall
3. Decorative paving
4. Bubblier water feature on exposed glass concrete pad
5. Table and chairs
6. Native pollinator planting
7. Existing tree
8. Proposed tree
9. Tree in grate with soil cells
10. Column lighting
11. Water bottle filler

Community Engagement Meetings and Events

July 2023

Online Survey

From July 6 to July 30, 342 community members responded to an online survey. Participants were able to review and provide feedback on the draft design options and their components. They were also able to select their preferred design option and share ideas on how to improve the designs so that they better align with the community-led park vision and design principles.

Download the survey summary.

In-Person Pop-Up Events

On July 20, the project team held a pop-up event from 3 to 5 p.m. at Yonge Street Mission, located at 270 Gerrard St. E., close to Anniversary Park to engage patrons of the community facilities at Davis Centre and Genesis Place. That same day, the team visited Anniversary Park from 5 to 6 p.m. to hear directly from park users and those passing by. The pop-up events allowed community members to engage in dotmocracy exercises and provide feedback in person. Three project team members were available to collect feedback and answer questions.

Key feedback, with the total number of ‘agree’ responses in parentheses, follows.

Overall preference with Design Option 1 (six):

• There are good connections to surrounding areas (four)
• The pathways allow me to move easily (six)
• There is a balance between paved surfaces and green space (three)
• There are enough new trees and plantings (six)
• There are enough comfortable seating options (four)
• I like the style of seating (nine)
• I like the water feature (13)
• I like the Cabbagetown gateway feature (five)
• There is enough flexible space to hold community events (four)

Overall preference with Design Option 2 (10):

• There are good connections to surrounding areas (four)
• The pathways allow me to move easily (four)
• There is a balance between paved surfaces and green space (three)
• There are enough new trees and plantings (six)
• There are enough comfortable seating options (six)
• I like the style of seating (seven)
• I like the water feature (seven)
• I like the Cabbagetown gateway feature (three)
• There is enough flexible space to hold community events (four)

In-Person Community Stakeholder Workshop

In July, the project team held an in-person workshop with community stakeholders representing local neighbourhood organizations. The workshop included a presentation of the design options followed by a facilitated roundtable discussion with participants who shared their feedback on the options and their specific components.

Review the workshop summary board.

Design Option 1 specific feedback

• Less favoured design option by participants
• Some participants preferred the paving pattern in Design Option 1
• Some participants preferred the Vertical Misters Water Feature in Design Option 1 over the Bubbler Water Feature in Design Option 2
• A participant suggested relocating the clustered seating away from the busy intersection and closer to Parliament Street and the Gerrard Street slip lane
• A participant liked that the water feature is both ornamental and provides cooling in the summer

Design Option 2 specific feedback

• Most favoured design option by participants
• A participant preferred this option because of the unique curved bench that draws people into the park from adjoining streets and crossings
• A participant liked the way the curve in the bench creates a natural amphitheatre oriented towards the flexible paved area and water feature, which could be used as seating for performances and community events

Park layout and programming feedback

Some of the comments shared by participants included:

• The overall layout is easy to understand and navigate in both design options
• pathways lead to entrances and exits and there are no dead ends in both design options
• The space is divided into smaller areas/zones with the west side being more passive and the east side more active
• There is a good balance of programming that will help prevent the park from being dominated by one group of users at the exclusion of others
• Concern that both the park design options may be oriented too much towards the north/east, and that consideration should be given to the experience of the park from the south side of Parliament Street

Water feature feedback

• A participant noted that both the bubbler water feature and vertical misters water feature are child and family-friendly
• A participant suggested putting the vertical mister water feature in Design Option 2, but relocating it or realigning the posts to create more event space
• A participant was concerned about maintenance and the potential for clogged drainage in the bubbler water feature
• A participant liked the bubbler water feature in Design Option 2 as it resembles the look, sound and feel of water
• A participant was concerned that the water feature in either design would create underutilized space when not in use during winter months.

Water bottle filling station feedback

Several participants liked the water bottle filling station proposed in both designs.

Seating feedback

• Some participants liked the integration of lighting under the long bench in Design Option 2
• A suggestion was made to include armrests on the long benches in either design
• Some participants liked the inclusion of clustered seating; some felt that more should be added in both Design Options, particularly along the Gerrard Street slip lane.
• A participant liked the backless benches adjacent to the slip lane as they contribute to a pedestrian-friendly realm in combination with the upcoming complete street improvements, and provide a visual cue to drivers that it is a slow/pedestrian-friendly zone
• A participant suggested including games tables to provide additional passive recreation options in the park

Flexible space feedback

• Several participants liked the flexible space provided in both design options, and that it would support programming and community events; some participants felt that the flexible space in Design Option 2 would be more accommodating for events than Design Option 1
• A participant was concerned that the flexible space may be under-programmed and underutilized

Plantings feedback

• Several participants liked the inclusion of the large pollinator planting bed in both designs
• Several participants appreciated the preservation of existing healthy trees
• Participants noted that consideration should be given to:
  • Sightlines, which should not be obstructed by plant material
  • Year-round interest in the planting palette
  • Shade for seating areas

Gateway feature feedback

• Several participants liked the location of the gateway features in both designs and felt that they were well-positioned for visibility to people approaching the park
• A participant suggested that a gateway feature be included at both locations in the preferred design
• A participant suggested making the gateway feature bolder and brighter
• A participant was concerned that the cabbage motif ideas presented were too obscure and difficult to read or identify and suggested using a clear and graphic cabbage motif that can be readily identified
• It was noted that consideration would need to be given to safety in the design of the gateway feature(s), to mitigate the potential for climbing, or damage

Decorative barrier fence feedback

A participant liked the low barrier fence on the south side of the park along Gerrard Street and felt it would be important to deter unsafe jaywalking across the busy street, but noted that it also needs to be visually appealing for views to the park from the south.

Historical considerations feedback

• A participant noted the Victorian history of “Cabbagetown” that is still present in the architecture
• They also shared how it was once an unfavourable name that the community has since embraced
• This participant suggested possibly incorporating Victorian elements into the preferred design

In this phase of the community engagement process, the City shared the preferred design with the community and collected feedback. Following this phase, the project will move into the detailed design phase, where the design team will finalize the preferred design by working through the technical details and developing detailed plans and drawings to be used by the construction contractor.

Visit the Design section to learn about the preferred design.

Community Engagement Meetings and Events

January 2024

Indigenous Placekeeping Meetings

On January 19 and January 29, the project team hosted virtual meetings with community representatives from Native Women’s Resource Centre of Toronto and Thunder Woman Healing Lodge Society. The meetings included a presentation of the preferred design and a discussion about opportunities to implement Indigenous Placekeeping elements within the park. Overall, the preferred design was well received by the community representatives.

Key feedback include:

• Acknowledgement of the land: There were suggestions to consider a feature that acknowledges that the park is on Indigenous land (e.g., a plaque), or a feature that highlights the significance of water to Indigenous communities.
• Incorporating Sacred Medicines: There was a suggestion to consider planting the four sacred medicines (cedar, sweet grass, sage, and tobacco) to reflect their importance in Indigenous culture and spirituality.
• Indigenous design elements: There were suggestions to consider incorporating Indigenous art or pavement designs.
• Appreciation for proposed park features: The new features proposed in the preferred design were praised. It was noted the community event space would be a welcome addition to the park. There was interest in maintaining a portion of the old iron fence as it holds historical significance.
• Ongoing engagement: The need for Indigenous engagement starting early in the design process was emphasized, and it was agreed that engagement should continue regarding the potential Indigenous Placekeeping elements.

November 2023

Online Survey

From November 10 to 26, a survey collected feedback on the preferred design for the new park, which was informed by feedback collected in Phase 1 and 2. The survey received 272 responses. Overall, the preferred design was well received by community members and feedback collected will be considered in the final park design.

84 per cent of respondents were satisfied or somewhat satisfied with the preferred design, compared to four per cent who were neutral and 13 per cent who were dissatisfied.

Regarding the ornamental water feature:

• 74 per cent liked the water feature a lot or a little
• 13 per cent were neutral or unsure about the seating
• 13 per cent disliked the water feature a lot or a little

Suggestions to improve the water feature included:

• Adding distinct paving or a flowerbed around it for more focus and emphasis
• Enlarging the fountain
• Including lighting in or around the fountain
• Adding a ledge for sitting around it
• Ensuring that the water spray is high enough to be visible
• Considering a more modern design
• Some comments suggested eliminating the water feature, but this does not align with feedback received in earlier phases of the project, in which a majority of community members expressed their preference for a water feature.
• Some comments proposed a water basin and a more interactive feature. However, due to maintenance and drainage concerns, an elevated fountain is recommended at this location in order to mitigate these issues.

Regarding the seating options:

• 74 per cent liked the seating a lot or a little
• 12 per cent were neutral or unsure about the seating
• 14 per cent disliked the seating a lot or a little

Suggestions to improve the seating included:

• Adding more armrests and creating single seats
• Choosing seating styles that match the Victorian character of the neighbourhood and/or water feature
• Choosing durable seating materials
• Including typical park benches
• Some comments suggested movable chairs. However, this is not recommended at this location due to concerns about theft and/or damage.

Regarding the planting palette:

• 92 per cent liked the planting a lot or a little
• five per cent were neutral or unsure about the planting
• three per cent disliked the planting a lot or a little

Suggestions to improve the planting palette included:

• Adding more trees and flower beds and reducing the amount of concrete
• Planting an evergreen that can be decorated with lights for the winter holidays
• Choosing native plants such as Red Osier Dogwood and Black Oak

Regarding the proposed lighting:

• 81 per cent liked the lighting a lot or a little
• 11 per cent were neutral or unsure about the seating
• eight per cent disliked the lighting a lot or a little

Suggestions to improve the lighting included:

• Adding coloured lights and spotlights
• Adding strong lighting with enough brightness and visibility
• There were mixed views expressed about the lighting style in the park. Some liked the lighting to match the Victorian character of the area and the water feature, while others liked the lighting to be more modern and creative.

In-Person Community Stakeholder Workshop

On November 7, the project team hosted a third and final workshop at the Central Neighbourhood House with community stakeholders representing local neighbourhood organizations. The workshop included a presentation of the preferred design and a facilitated roundtable discussion where participants could ask questions and share their feedback on the park layout and specific features. Suggestions to improve the park design included:

• Including a taller barrier fence to enhance safety and security, especially for parents and children.
• Including electric outlets for permitted events and activities.
• Adding brighter lighting along Parliament Street, the main pedestrian route.
• Considering the style of garbage bins
• Including a relief area for dogs
• Considering lighting for the water feature
• Considering maintenance of the planting beds
• Incorporating more colour in the park design