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Ontario Place Re-Vision
As soon as its doors opened in 1971, Ontario Place established itself as a destination that attracted visitors from every corner of the province. At a time when Toronto’s waterfront was actively industrial, the idea of creating a destination and park along the waterfront reshaped the relationship between the urban landscape and Lake Ontario. Today, Ontario Place remains an important public asset and provincially significant cultural heritage landscape but its role in the contemporary city is unclear.
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Location
Toronto, ON
Scope of Work
Landscape and Public Realm Vision
Project Size
39ha
Role
Landscape Architecture
Client
Infrastructure Ontario
Collaborators
Urban Strategies (Lead Consultants), BA Group (transportation), Savanta (natural heritage), The Municipal Infrastructure Group (servicing), DPM Energy (utilities), N. Barry Lyon Consulting (market), LPS Avia (Aviation), HGC Engineering (Noise)
PUBLIC WORK Design Team
Marc Ryan, Adam Nicklin, Chester Rennie, Lauren Abrahams, Stephanie Braconnier

Working as part of a multi-disciplinary team lead by Urban Strategies, PUBLIC WORK was focused on elevating the potential of landscape as part of the site’s transformation. Inspired by the site’s legacy of innovation, fun and live music, the new design vision helped the province re-imagine Ontario Place as a year-round destination to engage visitors of all ages in a new parkland setting for recreation, festivals, music, culture and discovery. The new vision features a mix of urban and natural parks with cultural and community amenities set within the landscape across the islands.

At the iconic core of Ontario Place, PUBLIC WORK developed the design vision for a vibrant new year-round waterscape. This waterscape will bring activity and people onto the water with a series of floating elements and surfaces around the pods and Cinesphere. ‘Blue Park’ has the potential to host diverse activities, such as cultural performances on floating docks, water sports (canoeing, kayaking and swimming) and opportunities for visitors to learn about aquatic habitat in an immersive environment like no other on the waterfront. As part of the new Ontario Place vision, the province will also look to partner with cultural, academic and community organizations to establish new facilities that invigorate the place with a focus on learning and research.