Leaside Traffic Management Plan update
The first virtual public consultation meeting for the Leaside Traffic Management Plan (TMP) will be happening soon. While the meeting was originally scheduled for the evening of Tues., Jan. 18, (as reported in our print edition), due to staffing availability related to the COVID-19 situation in Toronto, the public meeting for the Leaside Traffic Management Plan is being re-scheduled to a later date. More information, including the new meeting date, will be provided in a Public Notice to be circulated in the coming weeks. A public notice will be delivered to all residents in the study area offering more details.
The Leaside TMP was initiated by a motion I moved at North York Community Council earlier this term, which directed the new Area Transportation Planning department to work closely with the community on a plan to address traffic volume, speeding, and infiltration issues. When I initiated the TMP, I also worked closely with a group of local neighbours and the Leaside Residents Association to lower the speed limit on all local roads in Leaside to 30km/h.
While there have been several traffic studies undertaken in Leaside over the years, the Area Transportation Planning department will take a different approach by evaluating broader neighbourhood traffic patterns and approaching solutions on a holistic, network-wide basis. Now that the City-wide pause on traffic studies resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic has been lifted, I have been assured by the General Manager of Transportation Services that the Leaside TMP will be prioritized.
A new park in Leaside
A new, 1,718m² park is coming to Leaside at 939 Eglinton Avenue East.
The preliminary park design includes a heritage hub commemorating the history of the site, an open lawn area, a tree grove with benches and a walkway, as well as an outdoor amphitheatre. More than 540 people responded to an online visioning survey undertaken in mid-November to collect community feedback and determine priorities for the project.
Through the survey, some of the City’s key findings included:
• 80% of respondents stated that they would walk to the new park;
• 61% of respondents stated that they would visit the park with their spouse or parent; and
• The majority of respondents would use the space to relax, observe plants and greenery, or eat.
Park design refinement will continue into Spring 2022, with construction anticipated to begin in 2023. If you have any questions on the engagement process to date or feedback on the project, you can contact the project coordinator, Mark Lowe, at . Additionally, check out Geoff Kettel’s article in this edition of Leaside Life for more details.
