West Don Lands Project Update

The massive urban revitalization project in Toronto's West Don Lands continues at a steady pace. The first architects have been selected and a condominium sales centre opened in February 2010. Sales of the first 850 LEED Gold residential units of the planned 5,800 unit green community have commenced. In addition, the West Don Lands was recently selected as the site for the 2015 Pan Am Games athletes village.

Construction of the flood protection land form (or berm) continues at a steady pace, with the target completion date set for late 2011. Several major soil remediation and drainage projects are now complete.

The massive berm is constructed from clean soil taken from construction sites around the GTA. Upon completion, the berm will provide effective flood protection for the new West Don Lands community, permitting the removal of the flood-plain designation and allowing the land to be rezoned for residential development. The berm will also prevent flooding as far west as Bay Street, protecting Canada’s financial hub from the devastation of any potential storm-of-the-century.

A classic ‘brownfield’ remediation project, the West Don Lands site has not been without significant challenges. Extensive soil remediation projects around the site have already removed vast quantities of earth fouled by over a century of heavy industry – soil contaminated by PCBs and various petroleum by-products. No construction can begin until the ground is deemed safe for development and habitation.

Great care has been taken to control dust and dirt on the site and to protect the surrounding neighbourhood from construction particulates. Measures include the installation of a network of electronic dust sensors that continuously monitor air quality. Not only are workers exiting the site asked to wash mud from their boots, but all vehicles exiting the site are pressure-hosed to ensure that contaminants are not carried off the site onto surrounding roadways.

Forming part of the original course of the Don River, significant portions of the West Don Lands contained extremely soft, waterlogged soils that required major drainage and compacting before construction could begin. To remedy this problem, engineers employed an ingenious groundwater drainage system that forced water out of these wet soils to the surface where it is easily dissipated. This project is now complete.

Also recently completed was a project to re-route a massive sewer line that connects Toronto’s downtown core to the Ashbridge’s Bay treatment plant.

Two additional projects nearing completion are the new pedestrian ramp on the south side of the Eastern Avenue overpass (see photo link below), and the reconstruction of Mill Street east of Cherry Street.

With work still to be done in order to meet ambitious timelines, thanks to the ORC, the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure and Waterfront Toronto, Toronto’s newest sustainable downtown community is fast becoming a reality.

Click here to view photos from July 2009 to Jan 2010

Click here to view photos from mid 2009.

Click here to view the WDL project overview and history.