Hamburger Menu Button
Link to Search Page
Collapse Expand Button
September 21 and 22
2 days, 2 disciplines, 2 ways to participate – defining our professional roles and uniting to build more equitable, accessible and inspired communities.
#2GETHER2022
The Port Lands Flood Protection and Enabling Infrastructure (PLFP) Project is a $1.25B landscape infrastructure project led by Waterfront Toronto, funded by the three levels of government. In addition to providing flood protection to approximately 250ha of flood vulnerable lands, this project will transform ~30 hectares of industrial brownfields into a naturalized, multi-outlet river valley system, while unlocking the area for revitalization and facilitate billions of dollars in investment. PLFP will improve quality of life, bring nature back to an underused industrial site, and better protect waterfront neighbourhoods from extreme weather conditions. A comprehensive plan envisions recreating a river mouth, which acts as an organizing structure for a system of new parks and public open spaces that will become catalysts for a range of memorable activities and experiences. At the intersection of two major systems — urban waterfront and natural river corridor — the project focuses on flood control, naturalization, and includes Indigenous place-keeping to bring the Don Valley and the Toronto’s public realm together in a robust and meaningful way. A sustainable approach to design has also been woven throughout the approach to the enabling infrastructure planned for the site. With the reconstruction of three major roads, Cherry Street, Commissioner’s Street, and the Don Roadway, a low-impact development approach has been integrated into the design to manage stormwater and provide passive irrigation. Additionally, innovation solutions have been proposed to knit the roadway and the parks together, taking a systems-based approach to design. This presentation will highlight the lead role landscape architects had in both project delivery and as lead consultants, shaping major project elements that combine to make PLFP one of the most significant changes to the Lake Ontario shoreline in decades and one of largest infrastructure projects in Canada.