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Plans and Visions During the last 10 years, there has been continual interest in revitalizing the now polluted Lower Don River and the port lands. In 1999 the Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Task Force proposed the Fung Plan, which used the programmatic requirements for Toronto’s 2008 Olympic bid as the driving force behind a systematic renewal of the waterfront. Building on strategies from earlier initiatives such as the Task Force to Bring Back the Don and Waterfront Regeneration Trust, the plan outlined a linked public park system along the water- front and a restored river mouth. A number of new neighbourhoods were planned, including a media and high-technology centre, and live-work communities that would reinhabit the Athletes’ Village and other Olympic sports venues. The plan lost much of its urgency when Toronto failed to win the Olympic bid. Nevertheless, out of the defunct Olympic bid sprang the Toronto Water- front Revitalization Corporation (TWRC), which formed in 2001. The TWRC continues to pursue and develop elements from previous proposals. In recent years, numerous pre- cinct plans have emerged for many of the under-devel- oped lands along Toronto’s waterfront. Following the
2006 international competition for the Central Waterfront won by West 8 + du Toit Allsopp Hillier, the TWRC has recently launched a similar design competition for the Lower Don Lands, which includes the immediate area at the Don River’s mouth. The site presents a complex chal- lenge for designers, with its environmental and physical constraints, but also a unique opportunity. After years of neglect, the mouth of the Don is finally taking centre stage. D 1 Jennifer Welsh, At Home in the World: Canada’s Global Vision for the 21st Century, 189. 2 Statistics Canada. Canada’s Ethnocultural Portrait: The Changing Mosaic, 2001 Census, 12. 3 Ibid., 28. 4 “The concept of ethnicity is fluid and is probably the most complex concept measured in the census. Respondents’ understanding or views about ethnicity, awareness of their family background, number of generations in Canada, and the length of time since immigration can affect the reporting of ethnicity from one census to another. Increasing intermarriage among various groups has led to an increase in the report- ing of multiple origins, which has added to the complexity of the ethnic data.” Ibid., 16. 5 Schama, p250. 6 Tuan, Yi-Fu. Topophilia: A Study of Environmental Perception, At- titudes, and Values. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall Inc., 1974. pp85-91.
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