The West Toronto Railpath. Bridge over Bloor Street. (Dave LeBlanc)
Wildflowers in bloom along the path. (Dave LeBlanc)
‘We set up a topography of things along here and tried to create a system,’ says architect James Brown of Brown + Storey Architects, who, with Scott Torrance Landscape Architect, began developing the WTR in 2006. ‘There’s something rough and beautiful about integrating into these industrial spaces.’ (Dave LeBlanc)
West Toronto Railpath: Pedestrian stairs from Dupont. (Dave LeBlanc)
Walkers and baby strollers. To Dupont, much of the path backs onto residential Osler Street. (Dave LeBlanc)
John Dickson sculpture on the path. Once over the Dupont bridge, hulking industrial buildings, such as the former Viceroy Rubber Plant, push right up against the path. (Dave LeBlanc)
Another John Dickson sculpture on the path. South of Bloor, vistas open up and birdsong multiplies. (Dave LeBlanc)
Designers James Brown, left, and Scott Torrance walk the rail path. (Dave LeBlanc)
Scott Torrance, left, and James Brown. (Dave LeBlanc)
After regrading and paving was complete, an “extremely dry, sandy soil” was brought in to match what existed; this, explains Mr. Torrance, not only makes for a low maintenance park, it discourages big, non-native plants from taking root. (Scott Torrance Landscape Architect)
The rough charm of the West Toronto Railpath an exercise in ‘resilience ecology’ (Scott Torrance Landscape Architect)
to get it and come back to see the ad in front of this gallery.
