We’re in the last stages of developing the Yonge North York BIA Public Realm Plan!

The BIA aspires to become the preferred destination in North Toronto for businesses, residents, and visitors to live, work, and play.

The purpose of the BIA’s plan is to improve the public realm, promote the neighbourhood, and support the local business community. It is closely coordinating with other major efforts being led by the City of Toronto, such as the North York Centre Secondary Plan update and the Transform Yonge street design.

The plan will define the BIA’s position on the future of the public realm within their boundaries, conceptually illustrate projects that the BIA could lead or support, and identify potential project scheduling and partners.

Fill out the online survey before it closes on November 26 to help us further develop the document, which will be finalized by early next year.

Redpath Avenue Parkette started construction this month!

Improvements to the neighbourhood park, located near Erskine Avenue and Redpath Avenue, were developed through extensive public engagement. The design aims to create a safe, fun, and welcoming space for users of all ages and abilities to enjoy. Concerns for the safety and accessibility of the existing parkette will be addressed by increasing visibility and implementing AODA standards. Plenty of seating and lounge areas will be added to activate the park, and a new playground and outdoor fitness area will promote healthy activities for children and adults alike. The design features new planting and playful pavement motifs, and a whimsical barn-themed play structure, which pays homage to the neighborhood’s history as one of the largest cattle grazing area in Upper Canada.

DTAH Partner James Roche is speaking at the upcoming OALA Conference, where he will discuss the Bloor-Annex BIA Parkettes. The theme of this year’s conference is Ripple Effect, exploring how small interventions can have lasting impacts on the well-being of our communities.

The award-winning Bloor-Annex BIA Parkettes is a compelling example of how the transformation of small spaces can have a big social, environmental, and economic impact on the surrounding neighbourhood. These asphalt paved spaces, used for parking and storage of garbage and waste material, were transformed, and reimagined into dynamic green social community spaces. Adaptive pollinator plant species and shade trees were carefully curated and porous surfaces were introduced to facilitate stormwater absorption. Reclaimed materials from local construction sites and quarries were salvaged and repurposed as sculptural seating elements, completing the transformation.

The result is a series of passive sustainable public amenity spaces for rest, contemplation, and social interaction. The dramatic shift from unsightly asphalt paving to lush, ecologically functional parkettes, serves as a successful model that can be implemented across other neglected small brownfields within the city.

Learn more about the Conference here

DTAH a proud sponsor of this year’s Park(ing) Day in Toronto, on Friday, September 20, to Sunday, September 22.

Park(ing) Day is an annual global event where citizens, artists, and activists temporarily transform parking spaces into pop-up parks and social spaces for a day. Park(ing) Day draws attention to the need to improve access to public open spaces in densely populated urban areas. By encouraging people to think critically about the allocation and usage of public space in cities, Park(ing) Day promotes civic engagement and raises awareness of the need for more open, green, and social areas in our urban environments.

The initiative began in 2005 by the design studio Rebar, transforming a single parking spot in San Francisco. Since then, it has grown into a worldwide movement, featuring hundreds of installations in over 35 cities across the globe.

Park(ing) Day Toronto 2024 Grants Program

Park(ing) Day Toronto is coordinated locally by Dubbeldam Architecture + Design. This year, DTAH has partnered with Dubbeldam Architecture + Design, SvN Architects + Planners, Arup Canada, and MASSIVart, to create a grants program to encourage more activations throughout the city. The program will offer grants of up to $500 for eligible activations hosted by non-profits, local community groups and individuals.

Host Your Own Park(ing) Day Activation

Create your own pop-up park in any parking space and join the global movement! Whether you're an individual, community group, or non-profit, hosting a Park(ing) Day activation is a unique way to reimagine urban spaces and foster community engagement.

To get started:

1. Register Your Activation: Visit the Park(ing) Day website to register your event and let the world know about your upcoming creative transformation. https://www.parkingdaytoronto....

2. Apply for a Grant: Take advantage of our grants program, offering up to $500 to eligible applicants and activations. This support can help turn your ideas into reality. The deadline to apply is August 23.

3. Get Inspired: Follow us on Instagram @parkingday_Toronto for inspiration and ideas from past activations and connect with others in the Park(ing) Day community

Activation Dates: Third weekend in September (Friday September 20 – Sunday September 22, 2024).

For more information, visit www.parkingdaytoronto.ca or reach out to us at [email protected]. We look forward to celebrating the transformation of urban spaces together!

DTAH Partner Megan Torza will be featured in an internationally recognized exhibit celebrating women in architecture.

From the MAXXI Museum in Rome, “Buone Nuove: Good News from Italy,” is a traveling exhibition that presents the work of women Italian designers to an international audience and recognizes their significant contributions and achievements. By highlighting their work, the exhibition aims to address the historical underrepresentation and to celebrate the accomplishments of these designers.

The Toronto exhibition is presented in partnership with Toronto Metropolitan University Department of Architectural Science, after traveling to cities including Doha, Qatar; Stockholm, Sweden; and New Delhi, India.

Megan is one of 14 prominent women architects in the region selected for the local component of the exhibition, which focuses on their leadership, mentorship, and advocacy. The exhibit also presents community-inclusive projects that exemplify their commitment to designing innovative and inspiring spaces.

As an architect and urban designer, Megan’s professional development has been influenced by a strong personal interest in sustainability and adaptive reuse and the integration of contemporary architecture into historic urban fabric. The award-winning Tommy Thompson Park Entrance and Pavilion is featured in this exhibition for its successful embodiment of the rich history of the Leslie Street Spit, while providing a new front door to the park that is welcoming, engaging and ecologically sensitive to its context.

Women in Architecture: Practices, Stories, Visions
September 5 – October 10, 2024
Paul H. Cocker Gallery
Toronto Metropolitan University

Dufferin Grove Park is a vital community hub supporting a range of programs, including the popular weekly Farmers’ Market on Thursday afternoons. DTAH led architecture and landscape architecture improvements to the northwest corner of the park to increase the accessibility, functionality and capacity of the park’s Clubhouse and surrounding landscape to support existing and future community programming.

Improvements include a renovated Clubhouse, including a new kitchen, an enlarged multi-purpose room for community use, new all-gender and universal washrooms and improved storage space and consolidated utilities; a new double-pad ice rink; a separate Zamboni garage; a new basketball court with six basketball nets (including two at child-height); a permeable pedestrian plaza between the Clubhouse and rinks and other green stormwater management and sustainability features; and accessibility improvements to this corner of the park to meet AODA standards with improved pathways, additional seating, and more efficient and effective lighting.

After over 30 years at 50 Park Road, we are looking forward to beginning a new chapter in Toronto’s King-Spadina neighbourhood. Effective Monday, June 24, 2024, our new address will be:

425 Adelaide St. W
Suite 600
Toronto, Ontario
M5V 3C1

We’re excited about the possibilities and opportunities of our new location!

City of Vaughan recently celebrated the grand opening of the first phase of Edgeley Park with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Wednesday, June 12.

Located at 300 Maplecrete Road, this is the first public park to open in the Vaughan Metropolitan Centre. DTAH led the architecture and landscape architecture for the park, which features a new pavilion and green roof, accessible washrooms, a community use room; a skating loop; a splash pad; a unique play area designed by Earthscape; and an open lawn.

The first phase of Edgeley Park is an active play area for the larger Edgeley Pond and Park, an important open space for the Vaughan Metropolitan Centre, which is intended to function as a naturalized online stormwater management facility for the growing neighbourhood. DTAH led the vision and design for the site, which will integrate passive recreation opportunities while celebrating the important role that Black Creek plays in the larger watershed.