{"id":18573,"date":"2023-06-23T20:52:48","date_gmt":"2023-06-24T03:52:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/love-park-grand-opening-celebrated-on-torontos-waterfront\/"},"modified":"2023-06-23T20:52:50","modified_gmt":"2023-06-24T03:52:50","slug":"love-park-grand-opening-celebrated-on-torontos-waterfront","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/love-park-grand-opening-celebrated-on-torontos-waterfront\/","title":{"rendered":"Love Park Grand Opening Celebrated on Toronto’s Waterfront"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Not even the rain could stop the people of Toronto from feeling the love today,\u00a0 as a crowd of hundreds gathered at the waterfront to celebrate the grand opening of the highly-anticipated Love Park<\/a>. After more than two years of construction, the romantic design from CCxA<\/a> has finally been brought to life, and with families, couples, and pets all getting comfortable around the heart-shaped pond, iconic enough in concept that the freshly opened park is already becoming one of the most revered Toronto public improvement projects in recent memory.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Looking west at the central pond at Love Park, which officially opened today, image by Matias Bessai<\/span><\/p>\n

The opening celebration for the joint City of Toronto<\/a> and Waterfront Toronto<\/a> project kicked off at noon in a grand fashion, with live music from a string trio and family games like a scavenger hunt. By 1 PM, the program of speeches began, with Toronto City Councillor for Ward 10, Ausma Malik, serving as the MC.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Looking down at the pond from above, image by UrbanToronto Forum contributor Dustin William<\/span><\/p>\n

Among the various speakers Malik invited to the podium, Deputy Mayor Jennifer McKelvie\u2019s words did well to capture the sentiment of the day. \u201cLove Park is a space like no other, from the signature heart shaped pond to its lush tree canopy,\u201d she said. \u201cThis park would not have been possible without the incredible community partners who worked to make this labour of love a reality. This work and these investments are transforming Toronto\u2019s waterfront and will continue to enhance it as a top destination to live, work, and play for years to come.\u201d<\/p>\n

Deputy Mayor Jennifer McKelvie speaks at the opening ceremony, image by Matias Bessai<\/span><\/p>\n

Returning to the podium before the ceremonial ribbon cutting, Malik took a moment to reflect on the incredible transformation that saw Love Park created where an off-ramp of the Gardiner Expressway once stood. \u201cIt\u2019s hard to believe that not long ago, we would have been standing under a part of the Gardiner Expressway,\u201d she said. \u201cThis was an ambitious vision, taking obsolete transport infrastructure, redesigning it, and opening up the full potential of what was then called the York Offramp Park. It truly deserves a new name now, wouldn\u2019t you agree?\u201d<\/p>\n

The ribbon cutting marked the official opening of Love Park, image by Matias Bessai<\/span><\/p>\n

Following the ribbon cutting, we had a chance to speak with the project\u2019s lead designer, Claude Cormier, to discuss this unique public project in greater depth. As an celebrated landscape architect with an extensive body of work already embedded in the fabric of Toronto, Cormier told us that the primary motivation behind Love Park was to bring positivity and joy to a city that is often burdened by the weight of complex social issues.<\/p>\n

Looking down at the pond from above, image by UrbanToronto Forum contributor BJT<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe felt a sense of darkness in the city, sadness and negativity, and we wanted to bring a notion of optimism and hope, especially after Covid,\u201d he explained. \u201cIt\u2019s a beautiful design but today we are seeing beautiful people. You can just feel the way that they are so happy, and I think they got the message of what we wanted to do. Positive urban space made with a feeling of love.\u201d<\/p>\n

Claude Cormier speaks with the public after at the opening of Love Park, image by Matias Bessai<\/span><\/p>\n

Speaking about what he is most excited about with the completion of Love Park, \u201cFor me it\u2019s the pond,\u201d Cormier said. \u201cWith the seating, with the mosaic, it creates this magical element and it works. You get the name, you get the park, and you get the movement, and today we see how people are interacting and talking to each other. It\u2019s an element of triangulation, it brings everybody together.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cormier cited the pond and the surrounding bench as his favourite part of the project, image by Matias Bessai <\/span><\/p>\n

Located at the northeast corner of York Street and Queens Quay West, Love Park is the latest addition to a total of 106-acres of parkland and public spaces lining Toronto\u2019s Waterfront, planned and implemented by Waterfront Toronto. As the revitalization of the lakeshore continues to bring vibrancy and community programming to the waterfront, the excitement is slated to continue throughout the decade.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A miniature boat floats on the pond at Love Park, image by Matias Bessai<\/span><\/p>\n

Several bronze animals can be found dotting the park’s landscape. We included the chipmunk in today’s Daily Photo, while you can find this beaver and several other of the animals in the various posts by UrbanToronto Forum contributors in the thread, starting here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

A beaver poses patiently on a rock in the pond, image by UrbanToronto Forum contributor ADRM<\/span><\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

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UrbanToronto has a research service,\u00a0UrbanToronto Pro<\/a>, that provides comprehensive data on construction projects in the Greater Toronto Area\u2014from proposal through to completion. We also offer\u00a0Instant\u00a0Reports<\/a>, downloadable snapshots based on location, and a daily subscription newsletter,\u00a0New Development Insider<\/a>, that tracks projects from initial application.<\/p>\n\n\n
Related Companies:\u00a0<\/td>\n\nCCxA<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n