One Yonge Street Community Recreation Centre Community Consultation Meeting 1: Draft Summary
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DRAFT ONE YONGE STREET COMMUNITY RECREATION CENTRE COMMUNITY CONSULTATION MEETING 1: DRAFT SUMMARY Wednesday, May 3 2017 / Pinnacle Centre / 18 Harbour Street, Toronto / 6:30pm - 8:30pm INSERT PHOTO FROM MEETING PROJECT BACKGROUND of two public engagement events aimed at receiving feedback from the community on their needs and City of Toronto is undertaking the design of a new aspirations for the future community centre. community centre to be located within the base of a mixed use high rise development. Part of Lower Over 40 people were in attendance at the meeting. Yonge precinct, One Yonge Street will include 5 towers The group included local residents, including residents (22-95 stories), the Toronto Star building upgrade, of Toronto Island. Additionally, staff from the City of 2860 residential units, office and retail space, and Toronto, including Parks, Forestry and Recreation an approx. 51,000sf community centre. A future park department, Perkins + Will Architects, Pinnacle is also proposed adjacent to the development. The International and Councillor Pam McConnell were also community recreation centre will be implemented in attendance. in the first phase of the proposed development. The preliminary program includes a gymnasium, swimming The purpose of this meeting was to: pool with change rooms, and spaces for activities, • Introduce the project and provide fitness, multipurpose use and social gathering. background information OVERVIEW • Share the work done to date • Understand community needs and issues On May 3 2017 the City of Toronto, Perkins+Will Architects and Pinnacle International held a public • Ask for input and ideas consultation meeting for the proposed One Yonge • Share information on future public meetings Street Community Recreation Centre. This was a first and how to stay informed about the project 1 The draft meeting summary was prepared by Perkins EMAIL SUMMARY + WIll Architects and is subject to participant review prior to being finalized. Any comments and suggested Several comments were also received by email, which edits to this draft can be sent to the attention of Phil are summarized below and also attached to this report. Fenech at Perkins+Will: + Some residents would like to see an off-leash dog area in the park, and to consider a dog friendly community [email protected] centre. Six boards describing the project and programs + Concerns about overall lack of family & community were set up in the room. City staff, Perkins+Will and programming in the area. Childrens after school Pinnacle representatives circulated amongst the programming at the community centre can include childrens sports, learning centre, library, math visitors engaging in dialogue about the project. At 7:30 programs. a 20 min presentation was hosted by Phil Fenech + Childrens gymnastics programs are also needed, as and Paul Kulig of Perkins + Will. This presentation there are none available in the city centre. included comments from Howie Dayton - Director of + Would like more athletics and sports space. Parks Forestry and Recreation and councillor Pam + Gyms and pools are already available in the McConnell. At the conclusion of the presentation, surrounding buildings. The need in the community the presenters from Perkins+Will, Pinnacle, the City centre is for certified instructors for aquatics and and the Councillor responded to questions from the gymnastics to support these facilities. attendees. The presentation is attached to the end of + YMCA types of services and amenities this report. + Bilingual services, programs and signs for Boreal college students DROP IN DISPLAYS + Accommodate multi-faith prayer, such as bookable multi-purpose room The boards on display asked the participants the + Provide work-study and resting spaces for students following questions: + Useful feedback was also provided about accessibility • What activities and experiences would you and inclusivity of the public engagement event like to see at this community centre? • Convey your community needs and issues • Do you have any name suggestions? Feedback was gathered through an interactive exercise and small group discussions at the “Idea Stations” facilitated by the members of the project team. The workshop included poster boards that illustrated initial ideas around possible experiences at the community centre, organized into the following themes: Activities+Multipurpose, Fitness and Wellness, Community Gathering, Gym and Sports, Aquatics. The participants were provided with plenty of stickers and asked to place them beside their favourite ideas on each of the Idea Boards. Participants were also encouraged to write in their own suggestions for experiences and activities that were not listed on the boards, by attaching post it notes with written suggestions to Other Ideas category of the boards. Additional two boards were used to gather input on the potential community recreation centre name, and to identify which parts of the surrounding neighbourhoods the participants lived in, worked and played. 2 IDEA STATIONS RESPONSES The results were prepared by counting the number of post-it-notes adjacent to each of the activities on the Idea Boards. The favourite activities are listed below in order of preference. Other ideas suggested by the participants are also summarized on the following pages. WHERE DO YOU LIVE, WORK, PLAY? All of the people (5) identified the area within the 500m radius of the proposed community centre as their neighbourhood of residence; also all of the people identified this area as their place of work (2). Areas of “play” were distributed more loosely in the broader downtown area (9), with a concentration (4) in the area within 500m radius. AQUATICS - 41 (26%) 1. Lap swimming / training (10) 2. Change areas / accessibility (8) 3. Family / leisure aquatic time (7) 4. Swim lessons (7) 5. Aquatic therapy (7) 6. Pool viewing (2) Other Ideas + 50m pool (2) + 1m diving board (1) + Non removable seat in the showers, i.e folding wall mounted plastic seat (1) + Large transfer bar (1) + Accessible washrooms (1) + Ramp into the pool (1) + Outdoor pool (1) ACTIVITIES & MULTIPURPOSE - 36 (23%) 1. Lectures / Speakers / Workshops (8) 2. Youth After School Programs (8) 3. Painting / Crafts / Woodwork (7) 4. Digital Media Space / Comic Con (6) 5. Kitchen / Nutrition (4) 6. Older Adults Social Clubs (3) Other Ideas + Public Library (3) 3 + Singing (also good for Alzheimer’s) (1) + Language courses, teaching kids (1) + Dance Classes, music concerts, movie nights, wine tasting (1) + Painting, crafts teachers (1) + Older adult exercise classes (1) + Senior centre, with classes in technology, fitness, safety, bridge (1) + Bilingual Services (1) + Hours and programs for people with disabilities (1) + LGBTQ programs and hours (1) + After school programs for children attending island public schools + Events for young professionals (1) + Meeting rooms with wifi/ video (1) + Screen projectors (1) + Place for “time” program (1) + Area to sit, with café / kitchenette FITNESS AND WELLNESS - 32 (21%) 1. Dancing (9) 2. Climbing / Bouldering (7) 3. Yoga / Pilates / Stretching (6) 4. Older Adult Exercises (6) 5. Kids Ballet / Classes (4) 6. Pre Birth Classes (0) Other Ideas + Library (2) + Pool with aqua exercises (2) + Sauna (1) + Adults classes / ballet (1) + Fitness classes (1) + Parkour facilities, training, classes (1) + Tai Chi (1) + Art classes (1) + Sustainability demonstrations (green living, workshops) (1) + Childcare (1) + Yoga for new moms with kids (1) + Meditation (also for kids) (1) + Children’s gymnastics (1) + Stationary bike (1) + Racquet courts (1) + Badminton (1) + Walking track (1) + Elderly activities (1) + Wheelchair activities (1) + Wifi, workstations (1) 4 GYM & SPORTS - 26 (17%) 1. Large Group Fitness (7) 2. Basketball (7) 3. Kids Gymboree (5) 4. Pickleball / Badminton (3) 5. Boot Camp (2) 6. Volleyball (2) Other Ideas + Badminton (3) + Tennis (1) + Indoor running track (1) + Indoor recreational skating rink (1) + Private changerooms – gender neutral, single stall, with toilets and showers, accessible (1) + Gym with heavy equipment for lifting (1) COMMUNITY GATHERING - 21 (13%) 1. Casual Lounging (6) 2. Meeting / Connecting (5) 3. Cultural Appreciation (4) 4. Outreach Services (4) 5. Informal Play (2) 6. Family Gathering (0) Other Ideas + Bigger dance studio – Regent Park is much too small for demand (1) + Kids helping adults + Quiet lounge areas with no children + Stage, runway platform (1) + After school programs for children (1) + Public computers (1) + Rock climbing wall in lobby (1) + Living green wall in lobby (1) SUGGEST A NAME + Jack Layton Community Centre (2) + Harbour Green (both park and community centre) (1) + Lord Simcoe Community Centre (1) + Name it in relation to the park, i.e Harbour Park and Harbour Centre (1) + South Core Community Centre (1) 5 RESULTS SUMMARY The following list presents a ranking of the activities based on the number of responses received. The most preferred activities receiving the highest number of responses are located at the top, while the least desired activities, receiving the lowest number of responses are located at the bottom of the list. # Votes Activity 10 Lap Swimming 9 Dancing 8 Change Areas / Accessibility Lectures / Speakers / Workshops Youth After School Programs 7 Painting / Crafts / Woodwork Climbing / Bouldering Large Group Fitness Basketball Family / Leisure aquatic time Swim Lessons Aquatic Therapy 6 Digital Media Space / Comic Con Yoga / Pilates / Stretching Older