Public Realm in Canadian Cities - Developments

[Hawrylyshyn]

Montreal's public realm is on another level compared to the rest of Canada

[Rico Rommheim]

Remarkable. I haven't seen it in person yet, but I'm going to nike down there tonight for the sunset. Pretty excited actually.

[megadude]

Not a regular on here but I'm going to assume the rendering for Love Park in Toronto has been posted here. Here's a snap from today. Ignore the reflection of my shirt.

[Hali87]

Dresden Row @ Spring Garden, Halifax:

[theman23]

Originally Posted by megadude

Not a regular on here but I'm going to assume the rendering for Love Park in Toronto has been posted here. Here's a snap from today. Ignore the reflection of my shirt.

I just checked this area out on street view, and I just realized for the first time how much less visible Gardiner has become from the street level in Harbourfront.


Before:


VS

After:


side by side:


Source is google maps.

[J.OT13]

New space at Zibi (not quite open yet when this picture was taken). Stairs down to the Ottawa River on the Québec side.

Bottom of the stairs will be a new river front park, set to open later this summer.

Originally Posted by zzptichka

They just installed a new mosaic mural. Pretty cool.
Why do they have to keep the steps closed to people though?

[niwell]

Originally Posted by theman23

I just checked this area out on street view, and I just realized for the first time how much less visible Gardiner has become from the street level in Harbourfront.

Very much so. While there's still a long way to go it's helped confirm one of my long-held controversial opinions that the Gardiner isn't the issue downtown, and if we make better use of the space around/underneath it will less of a barrier. Southcore is getting there, though Lakeshore still needs a lot of work. The majority of traffic seems to be waiting to get on the Gardiner so maybe some of the lanes are extraneous.

[WhipperSnapper]

I can't say I've experienced the before and after while exiting the Gardiner. The only real complaints so far are from people that possibly drive to their next door neighbours. Their opinion is as fair and balanced as Fox News. This was during the pandemic. Couldn't say how things are at full capacity.

I still don't really get the suspended hoop.

Zibi ... concrete lovers rejoice

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by Hawrylyshyn

Montreal's public realm is on another level compared to the rest of Canada

This might sound weird but it's an obvious by-product of not being afraid of taking the risk of being labelled as tacky.

[WhipperSnapper]

I disagree. There's a ton of risk taking across the country.

Montreal simply has by far the best foundation of high quality pre and post war public spaces in the country to expand and/or renovate. Other places are more likely to build from scratch with emphasis on contemporary landscape design themes over sound principles and inferior finishes.

Love Park is going to be a pretty Cormier Park. What condo dwellers need more is a yard; grass (turf would be better) with some seating and shade. Perhaps a water hook to flood an area for an ice rink in the winter

[hipster duck]

Originally Posted by Hawrylyshyn

Montreal's public realm is on another level compared to the rest of Canada

Pound for pound, I would say the best public realm in Canada is in Vancouver.

If you go to any random sidestreet or park in an area where tourists never go, you'll find things like cohesive materials and design guidelines that are applied citywide. Things like decent sidewalks, curb bulbouts for pedestrians, attractive landscaping and planting, pavement in good condition, attractive lamp posts, etc.

Vancouver is probably the closest to a northern European city when it comes to general user-friendliness and design of its public spaces. Like in Northern Europe, the Oceanic climate certainly helps. I'm not one of those guys who uses climate as an excuse not to improve our public realm, but you can't deny that the eastern half of the North American climate subjects our spaces to a lot more challenges than what they face in Amsterdam. Snowplows chew up the curbs; aggressive weeds accidentally introduced from the Eurasian continent where they're native poke out of any sidewalk crack and take over lawns; road salt kills street trees.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by hipster duck

Pound for pound, I would say the best public realm in Canada is in Vancouver.

If you go to any random sidestreet or park in an area where tourists never go, you'll find things like cohesive materials and design guidelines that are applied citywide. Things like decent sidewalks, curb bulbouts for pedestrians, attractive landscaping and planting, pavement in good condition, attractive lamp posts, etc.

Vancouver is probably the closest to a northern European city when it comes to general user-friendliness and design of its public spaces. Like in Northern Europe, the Oceanic climate certainly helps. I'm not one of those guys who uses climate as an excuse not to improve our public realm, but you can't deny that the eastern half of the North American climate subjects our spaces to a lot more challenges than what they face in Amsterdam. Snowplows chew up the curbs; aggressive weeds accidentally introduced from the Eurasian continent where they're native poke out of any sidewalk crack and take over lawns; road salt kills street trees.

I agree. Of every Canadian city I've visited, Vancouver feels the most "complete". Transit, pedestrian and cycling infrastructure are all well built and in good conditions (as you mentioned, the mild climate helps from a maintenance perspective). Very few surface parking lots. Great public buildings and squares.

I'd say Hull/Gatineau is the least complete of the cities I've truly experienced. Built for cars. Poorly maintained. Quality and design of buildings is sub-par (with a few exceptions). The contrast between Ottawa, which is quite mediocre outside the central area, and Gatineau is quite jarring. It has potential, but that hasn't been tapped.

EDIT - The above applied mostly to Hull, old Gatineau, Mason-Anger. Historic places like Aylmer are gems. The Plateau is a decent modern suburban area with plenty of density. Development over the last five years in Le Plateau has been far superior to Ottawa's modern suburban areas. Even old Gatineau's 1990s downtown is developing into a decent (in terms of municipal amenities, not bars/restaurants) entertainment district.

[Denscity]

The landscaping in Vancouver is definitely top notch that's for sure.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

I'd say Hull/Gatineau is the least complete of the cities I've truly experienced. Built for cars. Poorly maintained. Quality and design of buildings is sub-par (with a few exceptions). The contrast between Ottawa, which is quite mediocre outside the central area, and Gatineau is quite jarring. It has potential, but that hasn't been tapped.

We're definitely the worst in Quebec of all the major cities and even compare poorly to many of the smaller ones.

Not sure how much of Canada you have seen but we're actually not too bad or at least similar compared to a number other fairly large places, though.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by Acajack

We're definitely the worst in Quebec of all the major cities and even compare poorly to many of the smaller ones.

Not sure how much of Canada you have seen but we're actually not too bad or at least similar compared to a number other fairly large places, though.

In my adult life (anything before the age of 12, I don't have enough of a formed opinion)I've been to Quebec City, Montreal, Georgian Bay, Winnipeg, Vancouver and Victoria. In the U.S. I've seen Ogdensburg. Never travelled abroad. So my perspective is based on relatively limited experience.

[MonkeyRonin]

Originally Posted by hipster duck

Pound for pound, I would say the best public realm in Canada is in Vancouver.

If you go to any random sidestreet or park in an area where tourists never go, you'll find things like cohesive materials and design guidelines that are applied citywide. Things like decent sidewalks, curb bulbouts for pedestrians, attractive landscaping and planting, pavement in good condition, attractive lamp posts, etc.

Vancouver is probably the closest to a northern European city when it comes to general user-friendliness and design of its public spaces. Like in Northern Europe, the Oceanic climate certainly helps. I'm not one of those guys who uses climate as an excuse not to improve our public realm, but you can't deny that the eastern half of the North American climate subjects our spaces to a lot more challenges than what they face in Amsterdam. Snowplows chew up the curbs; aggressive weeds accidentally introduced from the Eurasian continent where they're native poke out of any sidewalk crack and take over lawns; road salt kills street trees.

I'd agree that general quality of Vancouver's public realm is the best in the country, at least insofar as things like streetscaping go. Victoria too - the climate on the west coast certainly helps. What Montreal has though are the best public spaces - parks, squares, plazas, and the like. Vancouver doesn't really have any of those classically beautiful urban spaces like Place d'Armes, Square Saint-Louis, Square Phillips, etc.

[esquire]

^ Robson Square is up there. The Coal Harbour waterfront is maybe not the most traditional urban space but it seems to draw a crowd, and it's beautiful, in addition to all the other waterfront areas like the seawall, English Bay, etc. Vancouver holds its own IMO.

[Kilgore Trout]

I agree that, overall, Vancouver has the best quality, best maintained public spaces in Canada. That said, I find they sometimes lack a bit of whimsy and imagination in their design, and the suburban nature of Vancouver means you don't have many interesting spaces beyond downtown, the Seawall and a small handful of neighbourhoods. The Seawall is probably the best collection of public spaces in Canada but a neighbourhood like Mount Pleasant is left wanting for a real gathering place.

I think that's where Montreal excels – it has some really delightful public spaces, not just downtown but in neighbourhoods all over the city. The difference with Vancouver is that the overall quality of the spaces in between (eg the average sidewalk) is pretty rough because of deferred maintenance and damage caused by snow removal.

[Kilgore Trout]

Here's an example of what I mean: the Place des Fleurs-de-Macadam is finally open. This is a former Esso station on Mont-Royal Avenue that was first transformed into a pop-up temporary park, then permanently redone. It's fun and the variety of public seating is top notch – there are places to eat and drink, places to sit, places to lounge and even sleep. The materials aren't quite as nice as what you'd find in Vancouver, but it's more dynamic. And it's not downtown.

Video: https://twitter.com/jacouzi/status/1537533079497191424


https://forum.agoramtl.com/t/place-d...macadam/359/70


https://forum.agoramtl.com/t/place-d...macadam/359/69

[WhipperSnapper]

That's cool to see a gas station replaced with a park however, the kid riding his bike through the boulders perfectly summarizes landscape architecture and user friendliness and flexibility. Star architecture is usually not an efficient use of space. It still provdies flexability for a variety of uses.