Marine Use Strategy Process
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Marine Strategy Resource Guide FINAL - MARCH 2006 PART 1 Marine Use Issues, Context and User Information 1-1 : Waterfront History & Revitalization Context 1-2 : Marine Use Issues and User Information 1-3 : Stakeholder Consultation Summary PART 2 Marine Use Inventory & Analysis 2-1 : Recreational Boating on the Toronto Waterfront 2-2 : Charter and Tour Boat Business on the Toronto Waterfront 2-3 : Cruise Ship Activity on the Toronto Waterfront 2-4 : Industrial Shipping Activity on the Toronto Waterfront PART 3 Dockwall Condition Assessment mbpc Monteith Brown planning consultants Marine Strategy Resource Guide Introduction Introduction This Marine Strategy Resource Guide has been prepared for the Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Corporation (TWRC) by a multi-disciplinary team of professionals in consultation with the project steering committee, the TWRC and representatives of Toronto’s marine community. The Guide is a compendium of information accumulated during an extensive program of research and consultation completed during the Marine Use Strategy process. The Resource Guide informs and provides support for the vision, objectives and strategies presented in the Marine Use Strategy Final Report, and is intended to be read in conjunction with that report. It also serves as a resource providing key information required for effective implementation of the Marine Use Strategy. Content Summary The Resource Guide provides a comprehensive inventory and analysis of marine activities on the Toronto Waterfront, including detailed information about marine uses and users, issues and priorities identified by Toronto’s marine community, current and future marine facility needs, and a condition assessment of the city’s marine infrastructure. It includes the following chapters: Part 1-1: Waterfront History and Revitalization Context The first section provides a brief overview of the historic and current context as well as the overall waterfront revitalization framework within which the Marine Use Strategy has been undertaken. Within the overall revitalization initiative, there are a number of plans and projects that have been undertaken by the TWRC, the City, the Toronto Port Authority (TPA), and the Toronto Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) to guide the redevelopment of the waterfront. A detailed review of these plans and initiatives is included in the background research. Part 1-2: Marine Use Issues and User Information This section provides an overview of the range and type of marine uses and related facilities and services that currently exist along Toronto’s 46-km waterfront. It summarizes the marine issues affecting the Toronto Waterfront which were given detailed consideration in the development of the marine strategy. The analysis incorporates the input received from marine stakeholders, consultation with the TWRC, TPA and the City of Toronto and background research completed during Phase 1 of the Marine Use Strategy Study. Part 1-3: Stakeholder Consultation Summary Over 40 marine user groups and organizations participated in the Marine Use Strategy study process, including representatives of a wide range of recreational, commercial and industrial users. The process also included ongoing consultation with the City of Toronto, the Toronto Port Authority (TPA), the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) and the Toronto Economic Development Corporation (TEDCO). This section provides a summary of the issues, priorities and ideas identified by stakeholders and the marine community. Part 2-1: Recreational Boating on the Toronto Waterfront The Toronto waterfront is home to a wide range of recreational marine users ranging from large yachts, sail boats and power boats to rowers, dragon boaters, canoeists, kayakers and small sailing craft. This section of the Resource Guide provides a detailed inventory of the activities and facilities of the various recreational boat clubs on the Toronto Waterfront, and an assessment of future growth in participation and related facility needs. INTRODUCTION Page 1 of 2 Marine Strategy Resource Guide Introduction Part 2-2: Charter and Tour Boat Business on the Toronto Waterfront More than 30 charter/tour boats currently operate in the Toronto Harbour with a total capacity for over 8,000 passengers. This section provides a detailed inventory of the charter and tour boat business on the Toronto Waterfront, including operational details, boat sizes, passenger capacities, mooring locations and other details, as well as an assessment of future growth potential for this sector of marine activity. Part 2-3: Cruise Ship Activity on the Toronto Waterfront This section provides a market assessment of the cruise ship business on the Toronto Waterfront, including a look at historical and current trends and future growth potential for this sector of marine activity. An inventory of ship visits, dimensions, capacities and other information is also provided. Part 2-4: Industrial Shipping Activity on the Toronto Waterfront This chapter of the Resource Guide reviews and analyses facts and figures of the industrial shipping sector on the Toronto waterfront. It looks at the history of cargo shipping, the current situation and associated trends, and also provides an inventory of cargo movement and ship traffic at the Port of Toronto. Part 3-1: Dockwall Condition Assessment The final chapter of the Guide reviews the types and conditions of existing shoreline and shore structures along the water’s edge. Based on information available on current conditions and further research undertaken during the Marine Use Strategy study process, a discussion of required repairs and related costs is also provided. Maps As a visual supplement and representation of the information provided in the chapters above, a series of maps are included at the back of the Resource Guide, including: Map 1: Existing Use Map Map 2: Existing Water Usage Map 3: Inventory of Tour and Charter Boats Map 4: Shoreline Structure Types INTRODUCTION Page 2 of 2 PART 1 Marine Use Issues, Context and User Information 1-1 : Waterfront History and Revitalization Context 1-2 : Marine Use Issues and User Information 1-3 : Stakeholder Consultation Summary PART 1-1 Waterfront History and Revitalization Context Marine Strategy Resource Guide PART 1: Marine Use Issues, Context and User Information PART 1-1: WATERFRONT HISTORY AND REVITALIZATION CONTEXT Marine Use Strategy: Context The Marine Use Strategy is one component of a much broader waterfront revitalization initiative and covers an area with a long history of planning and marine use. This section provides a brief overview of the historic and current context as well as the overall waterfront revitalization framework within which the Marine Use Strategy is undertaken. Historical Context: The Toronto Waterfront: Marine History and Background Over the past 200 years, Toronto’s waterfront has undergone significant physical transformation and marine uses have evolved from pre-contact Aboriginal use to early colonization, military occupation and trade, to port expansion, industry and transportation to recreation and commerce1. In the late eighteenth century, the North-West Company used the lower Don as part of their fur trade route to Lake Simcoe and Georgian Bay, and Fort York was established to control entry to the town’s harbour2. By the early nineteenth century, there was considerable traffic of schooners and smaller vessels as water was the most efficient way to move bulk goods, and the waterfront became the obvious location for industry3. From the 1820s to the 1840s, the first harbour facilities, including commercial wharves and piers, were constructed at several locations to the east of John Street, while the British military continued to dominate use of the waterfront to the west3. In the 1850s, the railroads were constructed along the water’s edge3, and the filling of the harbourfront associated with the development of the Esplanade (between Spadina and the Don River) as the major rail corridor resulted in significant changes to the water’s edge2. Commercial and industrial development of Toronto’s waterfront intensified into the second half of the nineteenth century, and by the mid 1870s shipping interests were promoting a dry dock for Toronto, since at that time the nearest repair facilities were at Port Dalhousie on the Welland Canal, or in Kingston2. In 1881, the Toronto Dry Dock Company was formed to construct the harbour’s first dry dock2. Today’s Harbourfront was created by lake-filling in the late 19th and early 20th centuries for shipping and industrial uses4, and alterations to other pre-existing natural features such as sand spits, marshes and the peninsula led to the formation of the present day Toronto Islands2. In 1912, the Toronto Harbour Commissioners’ plan for a waterfront industrial park initiated the conversion of one thousand acres of marsh and shoreline into an industrial zone, an engineering feat that included channeling the Don, constructing concrete dockwalls, and dredging up millions of tons of sand to create the Port Lands3. Following the development of the railways and Port Lands, the waterfront became home to large industrial plants such as Victory Soya, Canada Malting, and Redpath Sugar3. Recreational uses 1 SOURCE: Toronto and Region Remedial Action Plan. 2001. Clean Waters, Healthy Habitats. Progress Report 2001. Waterfront Regeneration Trust. 2 SOURCE: Stage 1 Archaeological Assessment of East Bayfront, West Donlands and Portlands Areas, 2004. City of Toronto. Archaeological