ONTARIO LINE
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1West(Exhibition to Queen/Spadina)
3East(East Harbour to Pape South)
2Downtown(Osgoode to Don Yard)
4North(Pape to Science Centre)
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2
3
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15.6 kilometres
long
As frequent as every 90 seconds during rush hour
388,000 daily boardings
40+ connections to other transit options
255,000 more people within walking distance
to transit
Up to 47,000 more jobs accessible in 45 minutes or
less, on average
15 stations
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• Indigenous Peoples
• First and Second Parliament buildings of Upper
Canada (1795 – 1824)
• Home District Gaol (1840 – 1860)
• Consumer Gas Company (1879 – 1954)
HISTORY OF THE SITE
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1
FIRST PARLIAMENT SITE – CURRENT USE
25 Berkeley
44 Parliament
271 Front265 Front
Parliament Square Park
DavidCrombie Park
Front Street East
Berk
eley
Stre
et
Parl
iam
ent
Stre
et
Province of Ontario(Ontario Heritage Trust)
City ofToronto(TPA and Car Wash Budget Rental)
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CONSTRUCTION AND STAGING
Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) assembly then segment storageTBM launch box
Water treatment and laydown area
Removed soil handling Tunnel construction staging
Previously identified as approximate site of First Parliament and Gaol
Sample TBMs from Eglinton Crosstown
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TIMELINE
Spring/Summer 2021 Fall/Winter 2021 2022 2023
Major construction begins
We are here
Phase Two Environmental Site Assessment (ESA) begins
Designated Substance Survey, building demolition and archaeological investigations begin
Draft Early Works Report for public feedback
Draft Environmental Impact Assessment Report for public feedback
Development of heritage interpretation and commemoration plan (building on Heritage Interpretation Strategy and Master Plan work)
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ARCHAEOLOGICAL WORK
• Significant amount of archaeological assessments have been completed at First Parliament Site
• Archaeological assessments will continue in accordance with Ministry standards
• Construction/staging work will not happen until all archaeological assessments are complete.
• Close collaboration with the City of Toronto, Ontario Heritage Trust, Indigenous Nations and Ministry of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture (MHSTCI) on archaeological approach
• Coordination with Indigenous Nations for archaeological fieldwork and review of draft reporting
• Stage 4 Assessment required for full site
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PHASE 2 ESA AND CONTAMINATION WORK
• Significant known contamination on site due to past uses by the Consumer’s Gas Company.
• Additional due diligence work is required to inform our archaeological plans on site. Environmental testing of soil and groundwater is currently underway in order to understand the levels of contamination.
• Health and safety is always our number one priority. Results of environmental testing will have implications on the ability to preserve and curate artifacts. Plans to be updated as needed in collaboration with stakeholders and regulator.
(Stantec 2021)
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• Metrolinx recognizes the extensive work the City and its partners have completed envisioning a new future for the First Parliament Site
• The preparation of an Interpretation and Commemoration Plan will integrate the extensive research and public engagement completed by the City, OHT, and their partners which identified and clarified the stories and narrative themes, audiences, interpretive framework, and tools
• Metrolinx, working with the City, OHT, and other stakeholders wants to link this vision to execution to be informed by the results of thearchaeological assessments Source: City of Toronto, First Parliament Heritage Interpretation Strategy
and Master Plan Heritage: Heritage Interpretation Strategy (DTAH, 2020)
INTERPRETATION AND COMMEMORATION PLAN
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NEW TORONTO COURTHOUSE – ARCHAEOLOGY & HERITAGE COMMEMORATION
Infrastructure Ontario led a complex archaeological dig of the new Toronto courthouse site in 2015, which recovered archaeological features and artifacts related to the site's history as part of St. John's Ward, or “The Ward.”
The site was once inhabited partly by prominent members of Toronto's early African-Canadian community and was home to refugee slaves who escaped via the Underground Railroad in the mid-19th century. Many families of Irish, Chinese and Russian-Jewish descent also settled on this block up until the mid-20th century.
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NEW TORONTO COURTHOUSE – ARCHAEOLOGY & HERITAGE COMMEMORATION
Recognizing the importance of the site's history, and the vested personal interests of the communities with ties to it, Infrastructure Ontario struck a Heritage Interpretation Working Group. The group included representatives from government, various community groups and First Nations and provided a forum for information sharing, feedback, guidance and advice regarding appropriate considerations and suggestions for public interpretation themes and approaches.
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NEW TORONTO COURTHOUSE – ARCHAEOLOGY & HERITAGE COMMEMORATION
Infrastructure Ontario also worked with the City of Toronto and other stakeholders to develop short term initiatives to exhibit a portion of the artifacts found on site, as well as establishing long term and permanent solutions for meaningful and appropriate interpretation into the design of the new Toronto courthouse.
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PROGRAM OVERVIEW
• The Transit-oriented communities (TOC) development program is part of the government’s plan to build new, sustainable transit by placing more housing and jobs near or at transit stations along the routes of the province’s four priority subway projects.
• The program applies to the province’s four priority subway projects, and seeks to balance across a number of government objectives, including: increasing transit ridership and reducing traffic
congestion increasing housing supply and jobs catalyzing complete communities based on good
planning principles offsetting the cost of station construction which
would save taxpayers’ money stimulating the economy through major projects for
years after COVID-19• The province will partner with third parties to build TOC
developments, creating value through streamlining of the development process in collaboration with municipal partners
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TOC PROGRAM GOVERNANCE & CORKTOWN STATUS
TOC MOU
• In January 2020, the Province and the City of Toronto finalized the “Province of Ontario-City of Toronto Memorandum of Understanding onTransit-Oriented Development”
• The MOU establishes shared Ontario-Toronto objectives, consistent with the objectives of the TOC Program and commits to seek andreceive public input through an engagement process
• The Province and City have developed an accelerated TOC intake process to review and seek stakeholder/public input on futuredevelopment of TOC sites.
CORKTOWN STATUS
• In late March, the Province submitted the Corktown TOC development concept to the City under the accelerated review process.• This triggered a public notice and distribution of the development concept to the Councillor (April 12th).• The Corktown TOC development concept considers and incorporates key elements from the City of Toronto’s First Parliament Master Plan.• The province is eager to engage with, and receive, initial feedback from the City, following which, the TOC development concept will be
revised and brought to the community for input (Fall 2021).• We plan to work with the City and the community to raise the profile of the site where Canada’s first parliament buildings used to stand.
While the site is now mostly occupied by a parking lot, we want to make sure that any history hidden under the surface is commemorated aspart of the Ontario Line design.
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CORKTOWN STATION – SITE SUMMARY
NORTH• The site is an assembly of three properties. The two
parcels along Parliament Street are currently occupied bya car dealership (privately owned) and a car parkingowned by the municipality but leased to the cardealership.
• The property along Berkeley Street is occupied by aStaples store, and owned by Greenpark Group under theRoverella corporate name.
SOUTH• The site is an assembly of four properties. Three of those
properties are owned by the City, and one is owned by theprovince (Ontario Heritage Trust).
• Some portions of the site have a heritage propertydesignation associated with the first Canadian parliament.
The Corktown TOC sites are situated within the King-Parliament area, a former industrial area which hasseen a number of properties being redeveloped in recent years.
North
South
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HERITAGE COMMEMORATION & PUBLIC REALM
• Library building plaza• District Branch Library
green roof• Proposed bicycle lane that
connects to Queen Street• Connect site with historic
location of First Parliament building
• Retail frontage to enhance Priority Streets
• Streetscape with trees and planters with a raised curb
• Mid-block connection to Parliament Square Park, the Esplanade and David Crombie Park
A
B
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D
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Co
rkto
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TOC
So
uth
Co
rkto
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TOC
No
rth