124:, a joint venture of the City of Toronto, the Government of Ontario and the Government of Canada. The agency's purpose was to reclaim the waterfront for development after decades of decay. Revitalization of the West Don Lands was identified is one of the first four priority projects for Waterfront Toronto and in 2004 the WDL Precinct Plan was created. At the same time work on an Environmental Assessment for flood protection works for the Don River mouth began which ultimately led to construction of a flood protection landform (berm) that took the WDL out of the flood plain of the Don River and cleared the way for development. The 2008 global financial crisis dimmed the prospects of timely implementation of the Precinct Plan, but that changed when Toronto won the bid to hose the
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a new community known as
Atatiri. The industrial history meant the soil was highly polluted and needed expensive cleanup before any residents could live there. The risk of flooding from the Don River also required a flood barrier to be erected. By 1992 the city and province had already invested some $ 350 million in purchasing and clearing the site, and new estimates put the final cost at more than a billion more. The real estate market had also collapsed, making any private investment unlikely. The new Ontario government of
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and acres of railyards. After mergers in the packed meat industry, pork processing moved gradually away from the site. By the 1970s, much of the land was left abandoned. In 1988, the West Don Lands was expropriated by the City of
Toronto in partnership with the Government of Ontario in order to build
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project and it is a hilly park with pathways and prairie grasses, overlooking the mouth of the Don River, which doubles as a 8.5 m (28 ft)-high berm designed to protect the eastern downtown from a major flood, even a 500-year storm by shunting potential flood waters south toward the lake.
139:. The Common's berm is a flood protection landform which was started in 2007 and was necessary before any other development of the West Don Lands could occur. The berm also meant clean soil was brought to the site to make it suitable for recreation.
128:. The West Don Lands was chosen to host the athletes' village for the games and a large part of the planned precinct plan was built to first house the athletes and then be turned over to condo purchasers.
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to the east. It was built on remediated industrial lands to be the centrepiece of a new emerging neighbourhood in downtown
Toronto. It also provides a barrier to flooding from the Don River.
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The West Don Lands, including what is now the
Corktown Common, was once an industrialized area, once notably occupied by the pork processing plants of the
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thus decided to cancel the project in 1993 and the West Don Lands was left deserted for the next 15 years.
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Associates, and opened with over 700 trees and thousands of shrubs and grasses that are native to
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In the 2000s, the site was shown renewed interest after the formation of
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side of the park, there is a 3.2 hectares (7.9 acres)
333:"Corktown Common sets the standard for Toronto parks"
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90:, Canada which opened in 2013. It borders the
301:"New Toronto park doubles as flood protection"
78:is a park in the south eastern portion of the
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131:The Commons site itself was located in the
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280:2015 Pan American Games Athletes' Village
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250:The Corktown Common is located east of
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830:St. Andrew's Market and Playground
160:Its name before it opened was the
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987:park without swimming • Proposed
331:McGinnis, Rick (August 3, 2013).
354:Corktown Common Official Website
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527:Alexander Muir Memorial Gardens
496:Rouge National Urban Park beach
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299:Lorinc, John (June 28, 2013).
135:of the Don River and required
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164:. The park was designed by
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359:Friends of Corktown Common
155:The Corktown Common was a
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146:Corktown Common July 2013
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569:Toronto Sculpture Garden
547:Toronto Botanical Garden
491:Marie Curtis Park beach
382:43.653965°N 79.352101°W
166:Michael Van Valkenburgh
126:2015 Pan American Games
41:7.3 hectares (18 acres)
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110:William Davies Company
974:West Toronto Railpath
481:Humber Bay Park beach
440:List of Toronto parks
426:Parks and squares in
387:43.653965; -79.352101
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967:Martin Goodman Trail
800:Rouge National Urban
625:Colonel Samuel Smith
564:Toronto Music Garden
471:Hanlan's Point Beach
461:Bluffer's Park beach
378: /
1010:Waterfront Toronto
740:Maple Leaf Forever
309:. Toronto, Ontario
306:The Globe and Mail
225:off-leash dog area
179:The park contains
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122:Waterfront Toronto
50:Waterfront Toronto
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926:Victoria Memorial
860:Trinity Bellwoods
815:Sherbourne Common
755:Milliken District
685:Fairbank Memorial
231:sculpture titled
174:Carolinian forest
82:neighbourhood in
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1005:Parks in Toronto
962:Waterfront Trail
845:Thomson Memorial
750:McCowan District
645:David A. Balfour
600:Bobbie Rosenfeld
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170:Southern Ontario
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151:Park description
137:soil remediation
56:Operated by
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850:Toronto Islands
825:Sorauren Avenue
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252:Bayview Avenue
237:Mark di Suvero
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162:Don River Park
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102:Main article:
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227:. There is a
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931:Yonge-Dundas
765:Olive Square
745:Marie Curtis
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590:Barbara Hall
466:Cherry Beach
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311:. Retrieved
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985:Urban beach
957:The Bentway
906:Mel Lastman
760:Morningside
735:Loring-Wyle
559:Kew Gardens
501:Sugar Beach
385: /
256:King Street
254:, south of
181:playgrounds
176:ecosystem.
133:flood plain
999:Categories
901:Maple Leaf
840:Sunnybrook
805:Roundhouse
775:Pine Point
710:Humber Bay
670:Earl Bales
665:E.T. Seton
635:Coronation
615:Centennial
373:79°21′08″W
370:43°39′14″N
286:References
258:, west of
229:public art
217:bike paths
193:open lawns
185:splash pad
865:Underpass
835:St. James
810:Runnymede
795:Riverdale
785:Rail Deck
655:Downsview
610:Cedarvale
486:Kew Beach
239:. On the
221:boardwalk
213:fireplace
92:Don River
896:Clarence
855:Trillium
715:Inukshuk
675:Eglinton
585:Aga Khan
476:HTO Park
274:See also
233:No Shoes
209:barbecue
28:Location
921:Trinity
884:Squares
870:Withrow
790:Ramsden
780:Queen's
770:Olympic
720:Ireland
520:Gardens
454:Beaches
428:Toronto
313:July 4,
223:and an
205:benches
115:Bob Rae
98:History
88:Ontario
84:Toronto
46:Created
940:Trails
916:Pecaut
820:Simcoe
690:Grange
595:Berczy
337:blogTO
201:tables
695:Guild
578:Parks
241:river
197:marsh
187:, an
705:High
315:2018
219:, a
211:, a
207:, a
195:, a
183:, a
69:2013
66:Open
38:Area
235:by
172:'s
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442:•
335:.
323:^
303:.
270:.
264:CN
260:GO
247:.
215:,
203:,
199:,
191:,
86:,
419:e
412:t
405:v
339:.
317:.
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