Cedarvale Park - Designed for the People by the People

April 30, 2012

Cedarvale Park - Designed for the People by the People.

Ask yourself these questions. Who wants to erect a playground
beside a highway? Who wants to make a tennis clubhouse on the
shoulder of a 4-lane expressway? Who wants to play ball, walk dogs
or have a picnic in the middle of an interchange? Does it sound
ludicrous? Hold on a minute, this is what we would all be doing -
right now - when Cedarvale Park almost disappeared in 1971. The
Spadina Expressway was cancelled and Cedarvale Park remains
today.

In short, the vision and hard work of community members retained
Cedarvale Park as a legacy for all the people for future generations. It
unites and benefits the community by being accessible to everyone.

The Issues At Hand
The community engagement process has failed regarding recent and
future plans for Cedarvale Park. Autocratic decisions and absence of
leadership has lead to the appropriation of public space in Cedarvale
Park. Toronto Parks, and the City seem to have admonished their
duty to protect public space. Community members have called for a
Cedarvale Park plan that suggests long-term vision for the park.

A case in point is with the Leo Baeck private school (AMS site see
below). Leo Baeck has proposed a private playground and related
sports areas with limited access times for the public. Another possible
plan is to create a perimeter road that circles Leo Baeck to facilitate
the vehicular traffic and drop-off of students.

Public parking spots at Phil White Arena have been negotiated for
and obtained by Leo back for their staff.

Adjacent to the Leo Baeck site are new tennis courts replacing the
old structures. The newly reconstructed tennis courts were welcomed
by the neighbourhood and community at large, however there was
much vocal opposition when it was revealed that a ‘Cedarvale

Tennis Club’ with 400 plus members was established without prior
knowledge of any of the neighbourhood residents.

Adjacent to the tennis courts and the Children’s Garden are plans for
a play structure with water play features. Community members have
come forward suggesting that the play structures be designed with
cutting edge innovations. These current designs create more creative
play season round. It also makes the site more accessible for all the
community members young and old. See the designs and thinking at

https://www.naturalplaygrounds.ca/

Stand up for your park! Cedarvale Park.com respectfully asks that
any public space be for the benefit for all the community. We ask that
a long term planning be implemented. Please sign the petition and
forward to other interested community members.
https://www.change.org/members/16124096

Please write City Councillor Joe Mihevc
[email protected] and personally request community
consultation and development of a vision and long-range plan for
Cedarvale Park.

A Short History
It was the legacy of community activists such as urban theorist
Jane Jacobs, who said (paraphrased) “Toronto planners haven’t the
faintest interest in the values of neighborhoods or community”. See
Spadina Expressway

The debate over the Spadina Expressway, and its eventual
cancellation, is regarded as a watershed moment in local politics.
Toronto City Council was changing with the likes of David Crombie,
John Sewell, Allan Sparrow and Colin Vaughan. This new council
viewed the Metro government and its officials with suspicion as
not being accountable to local residents. In the 1950s and 1960s,
Metro and City Councils had pushed through numerous large

projects in transportation, and housing. The impacts on the central
neighbourhoods had been substantial and had led to grassroots
organizing.

At its time of cancellation in 1971, premier Bill Davis made this
statement:
“If we are building a transportation system to serve the automobile,
the Spadina Expressway would be a good place to start. But if we
are building a transportation system to serve people, the Spadina
Expressway is a good place to stop”

The neighbourhood directly south of the Spadina Road (Allen
Expressway) termination was then converted to a maze of one-
way streets that exist within the Vaughan Road, Arlington Avenue,
Oakwood and Eglinton Avenues. The one-way streets are meant to
buffer commuters to avoid a short cut through the neighbourhood.
The result is frustrating for drivers but the neighbourhoods south of
the Allen Expressway termination point were united by the existence
of Cedarvale Park and the community thrived with several schools in
the immediate area.

1971 - 2010
In 1970, Arlington Middle School (AMS) building was erected on 1.2
acres of land that the TDSB (Toronto District School Board) obtained
on the fringe of Cedarvale Park. Toronto City Parks owns the parking
lot and surrounding area of the school. It was positioned in close
proximity to the Phil White Arena.

Grades 7 and 8 students attended AMS since 1971. The students
were old enough to bike, walk and transit to the school. Often many
students walked through quiet Cedarvale Park from the nearby
schools such as J. R. Wilcox, Cedarvale, Rawlinson, Humewood,
West Prep, and F.H. Miller. AMS was located between the Eglinton
West TTC station and Vaughan Road TTC service which allowed
students to independently travel from all corners of the city to attend
this premier Middle School.

AMS has functioned as a community hub for many things such as
City of Toronto by-elections, neighbourhood community meetings and
for summer sports and recreation programs.

In 2009-2010 the TDSB held a series of ARCs (Accommodation
Review Committees) to get community input on which schools
should be closed. The ARCs were well intentioned but flawed in their
decision making process. As a result, the AMS site was to be closed.
The TDSB argued that it only owned the building. The community
was furious that the newest school of the five feeder schools was to
be sold. The only silver lining was that the local city councillor Joe
Mihevc wanted to pursue the building as a Community Centre. Many
doubted that this was possible since the building was poorly designed
for a community centre and would need extensive reconfiguration to
properly function.

The community was disheartened when a proposed community
centre did not materialize and the building was sold to a private
school. Leo Baeck has a K-8 student population of which many
students of elementary ages and must be driven and bussed to
school. The neighbourhood has concern because of the possibility of
the daily increase in traffic.

Be An Activist For Your Park!
Take action. Please sign the petition and forward to other interested
community members.
https://www.change.org/members/16124096

Please write City Councillor Joe Mihevc and personally request
community consultation and the development of long rang planning of
Cedarvale Park.
Joe Mihevc - [email protected]

Written by MyPark · Filed Under Community Organizations, Featured, Top Box, contributors