Here’s the latest on construction projects along Toronto’s waterfront

If you’re travelling along or near Toronto’s waterfront, the signs of change are hard to miss — especially in the Port Lands precinct.

“There really is a lot going on at the waterfront, and I think in the coming couple of years it’s really going to look and feel different,” Christopher Glaisek, the chief planning and design officer with Waterfront Toronto, recently told CityNews.

“I think a lot has happened but a lot is still happening and I think everyone should keep coming down and checking it out.”

CityNews asked for updates on three projects currently underway: The Port Lands, Parliament Slip and Love Park.

Toronto’s mega project: The Port Lands

The redevelopment project at the Port Lands, located south of where the Don Valley Parkway and the Gardiner Expressway meet, began a few years ago and it was pegged at being around $1.25 billion. It’s set to be finished by the end of 2024.

Construction crews are revitalizing around 400 acres of land and creating 100 new acres of parks. The project is more than just redeveloping the land, it’s about stopping flooding of the Don River by creating a new kilometre-and-a-half extension into the harbour.

“We are actually moving the entire mouth of the Don River about half a kilometre south from where it presently is in the concrete-lined Keating Channel into a fully naturalized aquatic habitat supporting river mouth,” Glaisek said, noting they have removed enough soil to fill the Rogers Centre multiple times.

“It’s an incredibly ambitious civil work, but the Don is one of the biggest flood risks in the Toronto area and I’m sure there are many people who have seen floods on the Don Valley Parkway and elsewhere from the fact in the early in the 20th century we created a pinch point for the entire Don Valley to flow through this skinny little concrete channel called the Keating Channel.”

RELATED: Waterfront Toronto names new partners for land Sidewalks Labs intended to build on

The new river extension has been largely excavated in the middle while ends at the current foot of the Don River and the harbour remain plugged. Special lining to prevent soil contamination, river stone, logs, armour stone have all been added to the new river bed. The plan is to slowly begin flooding it and after the water pressure stabilizes, the river should be flowing fully by the end of 2023.

New bridges, which were manufactured in Holland and shipped to Halifax for assembly before being barged all the way to Toronto, are mostly in place.

As crews continue working on landscaping, efforts are underway to open the realigned Cherry Street (about a block west of the current configuration) by the end of 2022. Cherry Street as well as others like the Don Roadway and Commissioners Street are all being rebuilt at a higher grade since the land sits on a flood plain.

“When you’re out there you feel like it’s a landscape you can get lost in except for the fact you can see the skyline of Toronto very clearly in the background,” Glaisek said.

Parliament Slip

Public consultations and design work are currently underway for the Parliament Slip, located just south of the intersection of Parliament Street and Lake Shore Boulevard East (currently several smaller cruise ships dock at the location.”

“We’re trying to create a whole new type of, kind of aquatic recreational centre … and get in the water, feel that connection to the harbour, which is something you can’t really get anywhere on the central waterfront today,” Glaisek said.

Construction could begin as soon as next year with a tentative end date of 2026. The current vision, which Waterfront Toronto staff are soliciting feedback on, involved kayak and canoe rentals, a floating pier with concessions and restaurants, mooring for visiting boater, a pier for water taxis and a potential sea bus to connect with other destinations, and harbour-side pools.

However, the pools could be different from what exists in Toronto. Staff are reviewing the feasibility of heating the pools to 82 F with waste energy from the downtown so people could swim in the winter, something seen in cities like Copenhagen.

“Will Torontonians want to do that? That’s one of the questions we’re trying to get answered,” Glasiek said.

Love Park

Located at the southeast corner of York Street and Queens Quay West, the new Love Park is the site of the former York-Bay exit ramp from the Gardiner Expressway.

It’s a partnership between Waterfront Toronto and the City of Toronto. It underwent an open design competition and is set to open by the end of 2022.

“The idea is to create a reflecting pool in the shape of a heart. I think that the architect would tell you his goal was to actually literally bring some love and some soul to a part of the waterfront that has not had it,” Glasiek said.

“As an off-ramp, it was a fairly kind of soulless space although it was used because any open space is precious in the downtown.”

He said the pond, the park’s focal point, will be lived with ruby red mosaic tile similar to something seen in Barcelona. The heart-shaped foundation has been poured and is visible from the air.

The pool is also going to be a spot for people to play with model boats. Glasiek said the park will have plenty of wisteria and lawn space, a dedicated area for dogs and public seating.