Immersive Bentway Staging Grounds introduced under Toronto’s Gardiner Expressway
Posted September 18, 2023 7:52 pm.
Last Updated September 18, 2023 7:58 pm.
A new, immersive installation has been unveiled under Toronto’s Gardiner Expressway that explores ways to leverage stormwater runoff from the highway to support the growth of flowering plant species.
Bentway Staging Grounds is described as an infrastructure that blends art and environment, public space and experimentation, repositioning the Gardiner as a regeneration site.
“This is a temporary installation that is going to be in place for the next several years before the city begins the rehabilitation of the deck above,” said Ilana Altman, Co-Executive Director of The Bentway.
The installation aims to collect and leverage runoff water from the highway. Altman says planters will support the growth of diverse, flowering native plant species such as Milkweed, Agastache and Yarrow, while passive water filtration and retention help to reduce the risk of local flooding.
Bentway Staging Grounds is a temporary installation that unlocks an expanded public realm and programming opportunity for the CityPlace / Fort York neighbourhood. Photo: The Bentway.
“I think the most exciting feature of this site is the way in which water is being managed and celebrated,” Altman said.
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Bentway Staging Grounds includes a network of ramps and elevated walkways that allow visitors to travel deep into the space as an extension of Canoe Landing Park.
The pathways are all part of The Bentway’s efforts to transform the Gardiner Expressway into a “better connector for pedestrians and cyclists, celebrating their procession to surrounding waterfront parks and trail systems.”
“The Bentway has always believed that the Gardiner can, and must, do more for the city,” said Altman.
“At Bentway Staging Grounds, we’re both unlocking a new temporary public space under the Expressway and discovering new strategies for water filtration and planting that could one day be applied across its length.”
The city’s Gardiner Expressway Rehabilitation Strategy is currently scheduled for late 2025. Over two years, The Bentway will continue commissioning artists to present original and rotating artworks on scaffolding towers facing Lake Shore Boulevard.
