Waterfront Revitalization – Western Beaches Public Realm Plan

• Winter 2024 to Spring 2025: Hire a design team
• Summer 2025: Community engagement Phase 1
• Fall 2025: Community Engagement Phase 2
• Winter 2026: Community Engagement Phase 3
• Spring 2026: Final Western Beaches Public Realm Plan Update

Virtual Public Meeting

• Date: November 27, 2025
• Time: 6 to 8 p.m.
• Register for the virtual public meeting

Join the virtual public meeting to learn about and provide feedback on the draft recommendations for the Western Beaches Public Realm Plan Update.

Online Survey

November 18 to December 8, 2025

Take the online survey to provide feedback on the draft recommendations for the Western Beaches Public Realm Plan Update. The project team will use this community feedback to draft the updated plan.

The survey results will be shared on this page.

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Sign up for updates related to the Western Beaches Public Realm Plan Update or unsubscribe from the mailing list.

Level of Engagement

This project has been classified as an Involve project based on the International Association for Public Participation Spectrum. This means we work directly with the public, stakeholders and rightsholders throughout the Public Realm Plan update process to ensure that ideas and aspirations are understood and considered.

Community Advisory Committee

This project will have a Community Advisory Committee (CAC) with a mandate to provide a forum for feedback, guidance and advice to the project team at key decision points during the community engagement process. The CAC will meet once during phase 1 and phase 2 of the community engagement process. The CAC is not a decision-making body and does not speak on behalf of the entire community.

Indigenous Advisory Circle

This project will have an Indigenous Advisory Circle consisting of Indigenous leaders, knowledge keepers, community advocates and design professionals to establish meaningful dialogue and provide cultural insights throughout all engagement phases on Indigenous Placekeeping for the Western Beaches.

2023

Public Life Study

In the summer and fall of 2023 a Public Life Study mapped five zones in Western Beaches to gather data on park users’ demographics and activities, assess amenity provisions, and observe conflict areas between motorists, cyclists, and pedestrians to improve usability and safety.

The study found underrepresentation of children, teenagers, and older adults, with male users being the majority among cyclists and in the evening. Summer attracts more visitors from other areas of the city whereas fall sees more local residents. Over 80% of visitors have positive responses to the Western Beaches, valuing water access, and suggesting improvements such as additional food/drink vendors, better water quality, and enhanced lighting.

The study highlights opportunities to enhance safety, improve maintenance and amenities, and encourage year-round engagement with the Western Beaches through better trail delineation, safer intersection crossings, and an all-season public space design program.

View the full report.

Interactive Mapping

Between October 12th to December 13th, 2023, an interactive mapping exercise gathered approximately 1,300 comments from around 1,500 unique users, fostering lively discussions about the Western Beaches study area.

Participants shared their experiences on this online forum on how they travel and use the Western Beaches area. They also identified various areas of concern and improvement, highlighting priorities for further exploration and discussion. There was strong consensus on enhancing user safety and comfort along the Martin Goodman Trail and emphasizing the importance and diversity of community uses along the western waterfront. The image below shows the commenting platform highlighting areas of concerns and areas for improvements in Western Beaches.

In this phase, the City worked with the community, the Community Advisory Committee and the Indigenous Advisory Circle to review and update the vision, guiding principles and big moves for the Western Beaches Public Realm Plan. The outcomes informed the development of draft recommendations in Community Engagement Phase 2.

The anticipated community engagement activities in this phase include:

Draft Vision Statement

The vision is created with the community to describe the ideal future Western Beaches area. It is a big-picture statement that should inspire everyone toward a common understanding of the project’s overall goals and objectives. The draft vision statement is:

Western Beaches will be many things at once – offering a multitude of experiences to all users. It will continue to be a beloved and versatile stretch of Toronto’s western shoreline, with a series of parks, paths, and beaches that invite people to linger, play, reflect and move through. Movement will feel seamless and intuitive, supported by meaningful connections and a strong sense of place. It will be a vibrant and welcoming destination to everyone, animated by places to sit, gather and reflect. More than just a view, it will offer a true waterfront experience, where people can see, touch and feel the water.

Draft Guiding Principles

The guiding principles are high-level directions that reflect the community’s most important values and ideas for how Western Beaches should look and feel. There are also several key technical considerations such as flood and erosion mitigation, climate change, and transportation-related goals that inform and need to be reflected in these principles. They help to clarify the vision statement and guide how the area should be planned for by describing the desired outcomes. The draft guiding principles are:

• Design a range of spaces that support diverse activities – from quiet reflection to active play – for people of all ages and abilities.
• Incorporate flexible infrastructure and programming that embraces all seasons, including Indigenous seasonal calendars.
• Celebrate Indigenous presence and embed Indigenous cultures, values, and teachings through design, naming, art, and interpretation.
• Reflect Indigenous ways of being and the teaching of “All Our Relations” by designing a public realm that expresses interconnection and supports the well-being of all forms of life.
• Restore shoreline habitats, protect ecological systems, and prioritize nature-based solutions throughout the site.
• Create immersive lakefront experiences that allow people to safely touch, see, and feel the water.
• Expand access to water-based recreation, including swimming, paddling, and beach activities that invite interaction with the shoreline.
• Reveal the distinct identity of the Western Beaches through design that reflects its cultural history and natural character.
• Improve safety for all road and trail users by providing clear, continuous, and universally accessible paths for walking, cycling, and rowing.
• Strengthen access to park destinations and connections to nearby neighbourhoods by active transportation and transit.
• Create welcoming places to sit, gather, and enjoy food and drink that encourage people to linger and return.
• Embed climate resilience through adaptive planting, shade, and stormwater strategies that respond to a changing climate.
• Incorporate public art, interpretation, and storytelling that encourages learning about the history of the place and its culture.
• Create a flexible plan and design with phased implementation to accommodate future growth and changing needs.

Community Engagement Meetings and Events

July 2025

In-Person Pop-Up Events

On July 6, the design team held a pop-up event in Sunnyside Park (immediately west of Sunnyside Pavilion) and Budapest Park (immediately west of Palais Royale). On July 15, the design team held a pop-up event in Sir Casimir Gzowski Park (near the playground and picnic shelter) and Marilyn Bell Park (near the tennis courts and outdoor fitness equipment). These events shared and collected feedback on the emerging vision, guiding principles and precedent images for the Western Beaches Public Realm Plan Update.

Online Survey

From July 11 to July 27, an online survey collected feedback to help shape the emerging vision, guiding principles and priorities for the Western Beaches. The survey was promoted through on-site signage, this page, email and social media and digital ads. The survey received 1,448 responses.

Key Survey Feedback

Respondents were asked how satisfied they were with the vision statement

• 17 per cent of respondents were very satisfied
• 48 per cent were somewhat satisfied with the emerging vision
• 20 per cent described themselves as neutral towards the vision
• 10 per cent as somewhat dissatisfied
• 5 per cent a very dissatisfied

62 per cent of respondents suggested changes to the vision statement. Respondents wanted more attention in the vision statement to the following areas. Ideas are organized from most to least common:

• The vision statement should better capture the need to improve access to the area from adjacent and more distant parts of the City
• There should be greater focus on being on or in the water including recreational boating and swimming
• The vision statement should refer to safety in general and more specifically safety across travel modes
• Issues with breakwater management or improvement should be included in the vision statement
• The vision statement should include reference to improved amenities
• The vision statement should include reference to environment and wildlife
• The vision statement should better indicate the importance of diverse users
• The vision statement should be written in clearer and more specific language

The 14 guiding principles were shared with survey respondents. When asked to rank their top five most important guiding principles from most to least important, the results based on weighted ranking were as follows:

• Improve safety for all road and trail users by providing clear, continuous, and universally accessible paths for walking, cycling and rowing (14 per cent)
• Restore shoreline habitats, protect ecological systems and prioritize nature-based solutions throughout the site (13 per cent)
• Expand access to water-based recreation, including swimming, paddling and beach activities that invite interaction with the shoreline (13 per cent)
• Strengthen access to park destinations and connections to nearby neighbourhoods by active transportation and transit (10 per cent)
• Design a range of spaces that support diverse activities – from quiet reflection to active play – for people of all ages and abilities (nine per cent).
• Create welcoming places to sit, gather and enjoy food and drink that encourage people to linger and return (nine per cent)
• Embed climate resilience through adaptive planting, shade and stormwater strategies that respond to a changing climate (nine per cent)
• Create immersive lakefront experiences that allow people to safely touch, see and feel the water (eight per cent)
• Create a flexible plan and design with phased implementation to accommodate future growth and changing needs (four per cent)
• Incorporate flexible infrastructure and programming that embraces all seasons, including Indigenous seasonal calendars (four per cent)
• Celebrate Indigenous presence and embed Indigenous cultures, values and teachings through design, naming, art and interpretation (two per cent)
• Reflect Indigenous ways of being and the teaching of “All Our Relations” by designing a public realm that expresses interconnection and supports the well-being of all forms of life (two per cent)
• Incorporate public art, interpretation and storytelling that encourages learning about the history of the place and its culture (two per cent)
• Reveal the distinct identity of the Western Beaches through design that reflects its cultural history and natural character (one per cent)

283 respondents (28 per cent) suggested changes or additions to the guiding principles.  The key themes suggested that the guiding principles better address the following areas. Themes are listed from most to least common:

• Repair or remediation of the breakwater should be included in the guiding principles
• Guiding principles should address active transportation, mobility conflicts and traffic concerns
• Guiding principles should suggest improvements to amenities
• The guiding principles should clearly suggest improvements to water access and quality
• There was interest in prioritizing nature, limiting changes and maintaining the parks
• Comments reiterated the importance of recreational water uses
• Other feedback included: being family friendly, addressing homelessness, improving beach access, building social gathering places, multi-season use, disability access, sport courts, city-wide access and dogs
• There was a desire for clearer and more specific language in the guiding principles

Participants were asked to select which of 12 interventions they thought would help achieve the vision and guiding principles for the Western Beaches Public Realm Plan Update. The ranked responses are as follows.

1. Access to water (76 per cent)
2. Multi-user paths (70 per cent)
3. Connection to transit (69 per cent)
4. Naturalized ecologies (66 per cent)
5. Diverse seating options (58 per cent)
6. Terraced sea wall with seating (55 per cent)
7. Meadow landscape (51 per cent)
8. Small gathering areas (50 per cent)
9. Floating wetlands (43 per cent)
10. Sand dunes (29 per cent)
11. Outdoor classroom (20 per cent)
12. Marking site history (17 per cent)

409 respondents (41 per cent) provided suggestions for additional big moves. The common themes of this feedback from most to least common include:

• Improve access to the area
• Provide local food options
• Prioritize swimming, beach and water quality
• Provide additional amenities
• Prioritize nature
• Support water-based recreation
• Add parkland

Community Advisory Committee Meeting 22

On July 3, the project team met with the Community Advisory Committee for the second time. The meeting introduced members to draft vision and guiding principles, provided opportunities for interactive feedback, and hosted breakout workshops on identity, mobility, recreation and natural systems.

Download the July 3, 2025 Community Advisory Committee meeting summary.

June 2025

Community Advisory Committee Meeting 1

On June 26, the project team met with the Community Advisory Committee for the first time to discuss the project, answer questions and establish terms of reference.

Download the June 2, 2025 Community Advisory Committee meeting summary.

In this phase, the City and its design consultants will work off the outcomes of Community Engagement Phase 1 and technical considerations to develop design options for the Western Beaches Public Realm Plan Update. These plan options will be presented to the community for feedback and will be used to develop the final Western Beaches Public Realm Plan Update.

The community engagement events anticipated in this phase include:

• An online survey
• A public meeting
• Community Advisory Committee meeting
• Indigenous Advisory Circle Talking Circles

In this phase, the City will share the final Western Beaches Public Realm Plan Update at a final Open House event. It will also be posted on this webpage and shared with the subscribers on the project mailing list. The project will then move on to develop the final implementation and costing strategy.

The anticipated outcome of this phase is the final Western Beaches Public Realm Plan Update.

The community engagement events anticipated in this phase include:

• Public Open House event
• Indigenous Advisory Circle Talking Circle

The Western Waterfront Master Plan (WWMP) was approved by City Council in 2009. Its purpose was to provide a vision for the Western Waterfront and guide future decisions regarding improvements to the public realm. The plan aimed to shape the development and transformation of the Western Waterfront over the next few decades. It has proposed several large initiatives such as north-south pedestrian and cyclist crossings, enhancements to the Martin Goodman Trail, expanded beaches with improved water quality, and increased opportunities for water-based recreation.

The context of the Western Beaches has changed since 2009. Developments such as rising lake levels, shoreline erosion, an aging break water, the COVID-19 pandemic, the adoption of the Reconciliation Action Plan, and increased awareness of the historical and cultural significance of the mouth of the Humber River has resulted in the need for an updated plan.

The update to the 2009 Plan will share progress made to date, list current initiatives, reconfirm project objectives, refresh priority actions, and identify new opportunities for improvements to the parks, trails, roads, and other facilities that support the Western Beaches and its visitor experience.

The goals of Western Beaches Public Realm Plan Update are to create a trajectory for the Western Beaches as:

1. Central to Toronto’s sense of place where everyone can access and engage with Lake Ontario and enjoy its beauty.
2. A local and regional destination that protects its natural and cultural heritage, grounded in Indigenous knowledge and Placekeeping.
3. A public amenity with a diverse and high-quality visitor experience, inclusive of passive and active recreational activities, food and beverage, and programming opportunities.
4. A place that offers safe and convenient mobility and recreational options for all users and improves the conditions for pedestrians and people cycling.
5. An implementable plan with near term, mid-term, and long-term actionable steps outlining tangible outcomes, budgets, and works.

Study Area

The Western Beaches spans over four kilometers and covers an area of 120 hectares in Toronto’s western waterfront. It extends east from the mouth of the Humber River to the eastern edge of Marilyn Bell Park. Its northern boundary follows the historic shoreline along the CN Rail Corridor embankment and The Queensway, while its southern boundary extends into Lake Ontario to include the existing breakwaters.