Since the conception of the REimagining Yonge proposal by the City of Toronto for the Willowdale area in 2017, the future of the stretch of Yonge through North York City Centre has been trending towards a more pedestrian-oriented approach. While City Council has approved the concept plan to beautify the streetscape and improve the walkability of what is currently a 6-lane major arterial road, a detailed, comprehensive design has yet to materialize. The Willowdale Business Improvement Area (WBIA) hopes to change that.
Formed in 2021, the WBIA’s mandate is to improve the economy within their local area, which encompasses a lengthy corridor of Yonge Street, spanning from Highway 401 to Bishop Avenue, just north of Finch. As part of that mandate, the WBIA is making an effort to ensure that REimagining Yonge is activated based on a vetted and strategic framework, and is calling on qualified teams of urban designers to help put that framework together.
Until July 14th, the WBIA will be accepting submissions in response to an RFP, with the goal of creating a Placemaking and Public Realm Master Plan that will guide the impending improvements to the Willowdale BIA area.
Speaking with UrbanToronto about the forces behind this RFP, WBIA Executive Director Laura Burnham told us that “overall, the aim is to create a distinct downtown type of neighbourhood. A Master Plan will allow us to better communicate a cohesive vision for the public realm in our district and work together with the City to implement it during upcoming public works projects.”
For Burnham and the rest of the WBIA, there’s no question that the public realm is where this effort begins. “Public Realm is one of the BIA’s key strategic pillars. It has a significant impact on the flow of people within our district, and the experience they have while living, working or playing in Yonge North York (Willowdale) BIA,” she said. “If your public realm and main street is vibrant, clean, green and safe,” she continued, “it is natural that you are more likely to attract workers, residents, and visitors to your district.”
What the WBIA hopes to see from the responding submissions is a master plan that not only creates a vibrant and rejuvenated streetscape, but also one that can guide the community into the future. “We are looking to select a winning firm that can work with us to develop a plan that is thoughtful and integrated with future usage by our audiences,” Burnham said.
This is arguably one of the most important factors, because projects of this nature are the kind that happen only twice in a century – at best. Of course, that’s also an exciting notion for Burnham, who noted that the coming improvements “provide an opportunity to create an even more cohesive public realm, initiate modern features and seek hyper-local offerings that are aligned with the specific needs of the district.”
With the window for submissions open until mid-July, our first look at the future of Willowdale’s public realm could be just around the corner.
UrbanToronto will continue to follow progress on this development, but in the meantime, you can learn more about it from our Database file, linked below. If you’d like, you can join in on the conversation in the associated Project Forum thread or leave a comment in the space provided on this page.
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