It Was Great While It Lasted

Celebration Park was a wonderful experiment.  It helped shift people's expectations and perspectives of nature in the urban environment.  For a month long project we could not have asked for more success.

Below is an article about Celebration Park.  If you have questions; would like to explore this kind of project in your community; or are interesting in speaking with Adam or Rob about other opportunities, their contact information is in the article.

Celebration Park - The Future of Nature and Urbanism by robert voigt

Love Celebration Park, Love Toronto, Love Letter

On September 6th, Lindsay Zier-Vogel will be joining us at Celebration Park.  She is a writer, arts educator, book maker, and love letterer!  

Lindsay’s The Love Lettering Project (http://loveletteringproject.com/) is a community arts project bringing love letters to strangers.  It focuses on the joy and goodness of the world we live in, without requiring anything back from the recipient. It gets people talking about their city and the stories of their days.  In this, The Love Lettering Project is participatory and has the ability to transform a familiar landscape that is often too easy to take for granted.  

Toronto Life magazine has said The Love Lettering Project is one of the top 50 reasons to love Toronto! It has also been featured on Canada AM, Global National News, The Toronto Star, CBC Radio, CBC Television, the Globe and Mail and others! In 2012 nearly 1000 anonymous love letters have been written and distributed all over Toronto.

So why not come to Toronto’s newest park space that is turning people’s ideas about city life around and write a love note to something you love about the city.  Slip the letter into an airmail envelope; then leave it for a stranger to stumble upon! 

You can come out at 6:00 to 9:00 pm tomorrow (September 6th) meet Lindsay, and show your love for Celebration Park and for the great city of Toronto.

Where is the next Celebration Park?

The purpose of Celebration Park is to show the people of Toronto what is possible; what connecting to nature can be in the city; and, what their city could become with a shift in perspective.  All that is needed is a dedication to designing our communities as if people matter and giving them the kinds of things that make spaces more comfortable and useable.

By focusing on peoples’ needs, we can create safe, healthy, and really interesting spaces in our parks, public plazas, and even along our streets as we have done here on Yonge Street.

These projects and changes don’t have to be particularly expensive or complex either.  The best public spaces are those that people use all the time as part of their everyday lives.   Often the existing buildings and storefronts can provide a great backdrop and framework to begin with; as you can see when you are at Celebration Park.

With the features of our temporary park we have added just the right elements to make what was once just a lane of stuttering traffic into a great place for people to enjoy.  

 People are telling us they really appreciate Celebration Park and how comfortable the street has become and how much more enjoyable it is.  As you can see in these pictures, now people can do simple things along Yonge Street that were impossible before, making their time along Yonge Street better: enjoying some greenery and having a bite to eat; sitting in the shade of a tree; or even getting a glass of lemonade.  

These are the simple kinds of activities that need to be nurtured in our communities to make them great places to live, and the kinds of spaces both Adam Bienenstock and Robert Voigt are involved in designing and creating, with the facilitation of people like ING’s Nick Cluley.  

With the right team and a willing neighbourhood or community, you can do just about anything.  Close down a lane of Yonge Street - bring in nature - make it better for biking and walking - have fun events - no problem!  The only question is “Where to next?”

Lunch and Learn at Celebration Park

Lunch on Yonge Street has never been so good!

On Wednesday, August 29^th make your plan for lunch hour a trip down to 221 Yonge Street.  That’s the home to the city’s coolest new people place, the one everyone has been talking about - Celebration Park.  What you’ll experience is city living the way it is meant to be; a place where people are connecting with each other and with nature.

As Adam Bienenstock, the Chief Designer and Builder says of his vision for Celebration Park: 

"Asphalt and concrete has been replaced with towering trees, massive logs, boulders, grasses and flowers, a 30 seat amphitheater built into the rolling earth, three patios, and a cedar ‘cabin’.  All of this is meant to inspire people to re-connect with nature in the most urban of settings.”

Wednesday at the park is going to be extra special because you will be treated to a one-time presentation by renowned author Gord Hume.  Gord’s first book, “Cultural Planning for Creative Communities”, published in 2009 is in print in more than 15 countries.   His second, “The Local Food Revolution” broke new ground by exploring how food has shaped municipalities and the health crisis now confronting our society. 

On Wednesday, Gord will be giving a special presentation exploring the theme “Taking Back Our Cities”, which is also the work of his upcoming book.  You will have a chance to hear about why local government has become the most important, but also how we must change the system to build prosperous Canadian cities that can compete in the global economy. 

What better setting for an inspiring and intriguing talk, than at civic space built to change perceptions of what is possible.  Come down at lunch on Wednesday and feast your eyes on a great civic space; fill your soul with the company of others; and, feed your mind with Gord Hume’s presentation!  Hope to see you there.

Mr. Hume will begin his talk shortly after 12:00 noon.

What Have We Done With the Cars?

Great pictures of Celebration Park on Yonge Street, Toronto.Come down and enjoy a bit of nature in the heart of the city.Add a comment to our guest book page & maybe even tell us about how your neighbourhood or community could benefit for a space like this!

Place is Defined by People

The success of a public space is measured by the number of people happily using it.  If there are many different people, doing many different things, and at many different times of the day in a space; what you have created is a PLACE.  The difference is that spaces are defined by physical features; places are defined by people. 

With this project Designer, Builder ("Chief Alchemist") Adam Bienenstock has created a framework of natural materials within which public PLACE can take hold; an environment were people can connect with each other and also be "inspired to re-connect with nature in the most urban of settings".  

Although temproary, Celebration Park will awaken the imagination of Torontonians.  As people experience the Park they will be able to envision a wondorous future where they can connect with life in the city in a whole new way. 

Making PLACE from SPACE

Sometimes we see gaps in our communities that just need to be filled.  Sometimes these gaps are in the physical world; some in the social and cultural world.  

With Celebration Park we are trying to bridge these; trying to create PLACE from SPACE.  

Over the past two days we have seen the evolution of the built environment with the construction of Celebration Park.  Over the next few weeks with our programming, and the participation of it's citizens, we will help fill the gap in the social world of this corner of "Toronto the Good".  

What was a poorly functioning single lane congested with vehicles, will become a PLACE with a human-centred design.  A PLACE that adds to the experiences of people, the activity of businesses, and the livability of the city.  

We are looking forward to watching it happen.  

Remember - When your city doesn't have a sandbox for you to play in, just build your own.