[Amare]

Actually why even bother going ahead with this project right? They might as well let John St crumble away.

Or maybe they're waiting for a massive sinkhole to open before they actually do anything.

This city is a joke.

 

[busybeaver]

Actually why even bother going ahead with this project right? They might as well let John St crumble away.

Or maybe they're waiting for a massive sinkhole to open before they actually do anything.

This city is a joke.

I emailed Chow and other City staff about both the Yonge St and John St improvement delays back in July and so far it's the expected radio silence. delays, inaction and non-communication being the status quo:

'The announcement that construction may not begin until 2030 is incredibly disheartening, especially considering the current state of congestion, disrepair, and general disarray that makes daily use of Yonge Street an increasingly unpleasant—and at times unsafe—experience. While I understand that large-scale urban infrastructure projects require time and planning, it is difficult to accept that no meaningful improvements will be made in the interim. I urge the City to consider tapping into Toronto’s vibrant local creative community to implement temporary solutions that would enhance the street’s functionality and livability while we wait for construction to begin.

Why not explore tactical urbanist interventions—such as pop-up patios, pedestrian green spaces, public art installations, or temporary pedestrian zones—that could bring immediate relief and visual interest to the corridor? These kinds of community-based, cost-effective solutions have been successfully implemented in cities around the world during prolonged construction periods or infrastructure planning. I'm sure there are private enterprises that would donate funding to this initiative— or a GoFundMe campaign.

Such efforts would not only benefit the businesses and residents in the area but also demonstrate that the City is responsive to the needs of its people in real time—not just in the distant future. Toronto has no shortage of architects, designers, artists, urban planners, and community groups who would welcome the opportunity to help reimagine Yonge Street in the interim. Let’s activate their talents now rather than let this iconic main street languish for another five years. The same goes with the John Street cultural corridor initiative. The street improvement has been over a decade in the making—and this year is the 50th anniversary of TIFF where journalists and people from around the world will experience the sad state of the street. I recall one summer there was a temporary beautification project on John Street and it worked very well!

I would appreciate your thoughts on this proposal and urge you to bring this idea forward to relevant city staff and committees. Yonge Street deserves better—and so do the people who use it every day.'

 

[goodcitywhenfinished]

This is incredibly infuriating.

How does the city fail again and again and again and again at achieving material progress?

We can move to rename Dundas Square at lightspeed without ANY public consultation because some Ryerson academic had their feelings hurt but when it comes to doing things that will tangibly improve quality of life in this city the city just does not care and stalls things to death. Oh to be alive in Chow and Malik's Toronto.

have a great weekend everyone, I'm logging off before I get banned

 

[Northern Light]

This is incredibly infuriating.

How does the city fail again and again and again and again at achieving material progress?

We can move to rename Dundas Square at lightspeed without ANY public consultation because some Ryerson academic had their feelings hurt but when it comes to doing things that will tangibly improve quality of life in this city the city just does not care and stalls things to death. Oh to be alive in Chow and Malik's Toronto.

have a great weekend everyone, I'm logging off before I get banned

I'm not letting the current admin off the hook in the least, but lets be clear, from concept, the majority of the delays occurred under Mayors Ford and Tory on these, Chow has been in power less than 2 full years.

 

[DarwinP]

Actually why even bother going ahead with this project right? They might as well let John St crumble away.

Or maybe they're waiting for a massive sinkhole to open before they actually do anything.

This city is a joke.

There’s a bigger chance of a sinkhole than this project ever being completed. Sad reality

 

[WalkieScorchie]

I took @DSCToronto 's advice and emailed the engineer + councilor regarding this project. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but this was the response I received:

"The project team has recently updated the project website. Construction is now anticipated to begin as early as 2027 and the project team is currently coordinating with other planned major infrastructure projects in the area. As the coordination progresses and we move closer to issuing the construction tender, we will have a better understanding of the anticipated construction timeline and how the work will be phased."

According to the project website it is still in the design phase...

I followed up my original email by asking them to clarify what "other planned major infrastructure projects" will be conducted in the area, as I understood most of the utility relocation work to have already been completed. Their response was as follows:

"That’s correct and much of the utility work on John Street has already been completed. However, some remaining utility work, private development sites and watermain replacements near John Street still require additional coordination. In addition to managing construction projects, the team is also working closely with organizers of major events such as FIFA and TIFF to minimize disruptions."

Sure, that's fine, but you've had many years to coordinate around TIFF - an annual occurrence that surely would be baked into the planning of this project from the beginning. Also, I struggle to see how crowds from the World Cup would be affected by work if it started in the stretch from Stephanie to Queen St W. Need I remind them the World Cup is only on from June - July?

And catering to private developments? Realistically, what private developments in this corridor are even close to getting started? Maybe get those private developers to make some kind of contributions to the public realm in the process of their construction?

Let me be clear, I'm not saying I want the job of having to coordinate this nightmare but there has to be a point where enough is enough. This should be the top priority for this area - as many have pointed out, it's not only an area with a high density of residents, but also a major cultural corridor and tourist destination. It only gets harder to do this work the longer they wait...

On the other hand, I can understand wanting to avoid having various adjacent projects tearing up the nice work they have completed here, but a) that's impossible to avoid and b) maybe create some kind of bylaw that mandates contractors return existing finishes in a designated cultural corridor back to their original condition?

I think I've had enough of trying to rationalize the thought process behind any of this

 

[nightstreak]

Pardon me as I wiggle in through the justified outrage about another delay of the John Street Revitalization, but can someone please back up my recollection of a "Festival Square" (?) design competition for the little parkette at John and King Street, proudly announced by a beaming Joe Cressy as a part of this revitalization but completely vanished. I googled everywhere and could find no references to this design competition. I thought I might've been undergoing a Mandela Effect but now I see that something is actually under construction.

Photo: @Paclo

Are they actually building the winning design or just some basic vanilla standard city planters?

 

[myself]

Pardon me as I wiggle in through the justified outrage about another delay of the John Street Revitalization, but can someone please back up my recollection of a "Festival Square" (?) design competition for the little parkette at John and King Street, proudly announced by a beaming Joe Cressy as a part of this revitalization but completely vanished. I googled everywhere and could find no references to this design competition. I thought I might've been undergoing a Mandela Effect but now I see that something is actually under construction.

Photo: @Paclo

Are they actually building the winning design or just some basic vanilla standard city planters?

I thought they were moving the childcare to the north side and then the fire hall to the south side of metro hall as part of the relocation of the one on Adelaide?

 

[nightstreak]

I thought they were moving the childcare to the north side and then the fire hall to the south side of metro hall as part of the relocation of the one on Adelaide?

Possibly, though they've completely tore up the landscaping along King Street that's not related to the building itself. I swear I'm not going crazy, there was an entire design competition for this when Joe Cressy was on city council. It was some sort of Festival Square apart from David Pecaut Square.

 

[busybeaver]

Possibly, though they've completely tore up the landscaping along King Street that's not related to the building itself. I swear I'm not going crazy, there was an entire design competition for this when Joe Cressy was on city council. It was some sort of Festival Square apart from David Pecaut Square.

you’re not going crazy.. there was a competition but it was more an exercise to explore design ideas for a public square on the southeast corner of John & King. some screenshots and from:

https://yourexperienceawaits.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/DWBIA-Growth-Development-Framework-Sept-2024.pdf

 

[nightstreak]

you’re not going crazy.. there was a competition but it was more an exercise to explore design ideas for a public square on the southeast corner of John & King. some screenshots and from:

https://yourexperienceawaits.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/DWBIA-Growth-Development-Framework-Sept-2024.pdf

View attachment 689804View attachment 689805

Thank you!! I could not find this anywhere. Phew, my sanity is good — for a little while at least.

I did pass by and @myself, you’re probably right. They’re renovating the interior, likely for the daycare, and the outdoor space is probably replacing the one on Wellington. It’ll be too bad if this space is closed to the general public though.