From Green to Concrete
a little history on how the revitalisation of Regent Park has changed the green space landscape of this neighbourhood
This section examines the history of Green Spaces in the neighbourhood. It identifies areas where changes to the concentration of Green Spaces have occurred over time throughout the phases of Regent Park’s redevelopment process. The images used for our timeline range from 2003 to 2022. Using this historical narrative and framework, we will be presenting a series of areas of green spaces that hold importance and meaning to the community such as the Peace Garden, parks, open green spaces, and the remaining community gardens in the North Side.
1) Regent Park – 2003 (Pre-development)
In 2003, the city council approved the first phase of Regent Park’s revitalization (TCHC, n.d). Although the neighbourhood consisted of old apartments from the 1960s, the abundance of green spaces and trees was evident. Parks, open green spaces, and gardens were vital to the community’s well-being and have since continued to provide the residents with much-needed ecosystem services. For example, these spaces provide areas for children to play and climb trees, families to congregate outside of their homes, and the neighbourhood to host events for cultural or recreational purposes.
These green spaces were easily accessible by the public, giving residents the freedom to roam and enjoy the interconnected green spaces of the area. The ability to freely access these spaces allowed the residents to establish a strong sense of social cohesion and a strong community well-being. In addition, the community gardens also held valuable meaning as they became spaces for older residents to congregate and connect with one another thus making these spaces intergenerational and all-age friendly.
2) Regent Park 2005 - 2009 (Phases 1 & 2)
In 2005, the first redevelopment plan was approved, leading to the relocation of residents between Dundas and Oak Street. The 2007 image below shows the first deconstruction of the buildings between these two streets. In this area, there were open green spaces and community gardens that people often used to gather. The second phase marks the development of the new high-rise buildings presented in the 2009 image. Unfortunately, the original green spaces were permanently removed and were replaced by unusable green roofs, privately nurtured planters, and bioswales.
3)Regent Park – 2012 (Phase 1 completion – Phase 2 continued)
Fast forward to 2012- this year marked the completion of the first redevelopment phase, bringing in a mix of newer high-rise buildings and townhouses. Nevertheless, the issue remains at large, where the loss of open green spaces was replaced by private spaces (green roofs and enclosed parks) that catered to specific buildings, rather than the community. In other words, this phase completion marked the rise in the inaccessibility to such spaces. Given the image below, a green space exists within the 480 Dundas and 335 Parliament buildings (point to this on the map); however, this space can only be accessed by residents of these buildings. Subsequently, the continuation of Phase 2 further eliminated a majority of Regent Park’s larger green spaces, which included the old baseball field now known as the Regent Park across Daniel Spectrum, and marked the relocation of the Peace Garden to the North. During this year, a large open space that was beside the South Centre was also removed.
​
We must be reminded that the baseball park and the open green space that were removed were used as spaces for community gatherings and barbecues, and by Muslims in the community to practice their faith and pray during Ramadan. Consequently, not only were accessibility inequities present, but members of the community also lost a space that allowed them to practice their faith.
4)Regent Park – 2016 (Phase 3)
With the completion of Phase 1 and the near completion of Phase 2, the number of green spaces in Regent Park has drastically declined. The development of the new baseball replacement park called “Regent Park” is also now complete, while the construction of the soon-to-be Athletic grounds to the southeast is underway. On a positive note, the open space beside the South Side Community Centre, an important gathering space for the community, was brought back along with the addition of a multi-recreational facility.
Along with the deconstruction of the Duke of York, the open green space was also removed, and this was particularly important as people who went to the mosque across the street used this area for social gatherings after prayer time. It has also been observed that the green spaces in the North Side Regent, between River and Tubman were completely removed. These areas were also community gardens that residents relied on for food security, as well as spaces where residents enjoyed sharing moments with their neighbours and discussing recipes from their own cultural backgrounds- a type of intergenerational, intercultural agent of socialization and community building.
5) Regent Park – 2022
(Phases 2 and 3 completed)
With Phases 2 and 3 completed, the process of selecting new development partners for Phases 4 and 5 is now underway in 2022. The question remains, what new green spaces will be developed once the redevelopment is completed? In the image below, the completion of Phases 1-3 is clearly visualized and demarcated by the increasing presence of vertical density and concrete additions. Comparisons to the 2003 images above will show the drastic changes to green space presence. The green spaces in the neighbourhood are no longer interconnected and other forms of green spaces such as gardens and small parks have become private, catering to only members of Regent Park who live within these high-rise buildings.
The availability of larger green spaces for community usage has drastically decreased while the population density and built areas of the neighbourhood have greatly increased. In other words, the green density growth is disproportionate to the exponential growth in vertical and population density. A neighbourhood that was once a large area of interconnected accessible green spaces for the community has now become a neighbourhood that focuses on pockets of green spaces specified for each building dweller.
​
Although developers, media, and other governing bodies perceive that the quality and overall aesthetics of these spaces may have improved, the overarching theme of green space loss is still in play. Quality and aesthetics unfortunately do not account for the low green density of the area. The community that was once strongly and easily connected to one another is now fragmented by the barriers posed by the privatisation of these green spaces. Today, residents of Regent Park continue to utilize the available spaces such as the Regent Park Park and the Athletic Grounds where people continue to use these spaces for large community gatherings and spaces for prayer during Ramadan.
6) Today, What has remained?
With the application of ArcGIS Pro, we were able to identify the Green Spaces that are publicly accessible to the whole community. The map below presents areas such as the community gardens in the North Side, Regent Park, South Centre Park, and the Athletic Grounds. The total area of Regent Park (Open Green Space) measures at 13,031m2, the Athletic Grounds at 30,844m2, and the South Centre Park at 7,237m2.
This means that at the current population of 12,000, each individual has 4.2m2 of space with the combination of all the green spaces together. This is far less than the current guidelines of the World Health Organization- 9m2 with 50m2 being ideal units.