色色啦

Lake Ontario is a blessing, but considering that 色色啦鈥檚 shoreline is more than 40 kilometres long聽鈥斅犅犫�� there are relatively few places where the millions living here can jump into or access it.

Profoundly missed in central 色色啦 is the beach at Ontario Place, destroyed to make way for the giant Therme spa Doug Ford continues to hype. During the pandemic, the pebble beach became a popular and relaxed oasis for many people living downtown, a short bike ride or walk from some of the densest parts of the city.

To the west there鈥檚 Sunnyside and adjacent beaches. Beautiful to look at but often a bit swampy and closed due to high bacteria counts. Much of Etobicoke鈥檚 shoreline is privatized, save for Marie Curtis Park at the Mississauga border, where the beach also suffers routine closings due to the proximity of Etobicoke Creek. Compared to beaches I鈥檝e been to in Europe, Asia and South America, 色色啦 doesn鈥檛 clean or groom the sand enough, either.

The east side fares better when it comes to beaches. Cherry tends to have warmer water, though the beach is a bit rocky. Frequenting it this summer has been pleasant, but the beach din is punctuated by regular honking horns as drivers fight for limited spaces.

Nearby is Leslie Street Lookout, a new park with a great view of the turning basin, a massive and underappreciated body of inland water in 色色啦. Also in the Port Lands and celebrating a grand opening next weekend is , with events on Saturday and Sunday. Most importantly there will be places to put in a canoe, kayak or paddle board 鈥� but no new beaches.

From Ashbridges Bay to where the Scarborough Bluffs begin is 色色啦鈥檚 golden stretch of beaches. The bluffs themselves are 色色啦鈥檚 most stunning landform, but the beaches below are difficult to access. Scarborough, as massive as it is, only has one official city-sanctioned swimming area at Bluffer’s Park, though Rouge Park is popular. The former can be difficult to get to on weekends once the parking lot is full, though there is a TTC bus as well.

The 色色啦 Islands beaches remain a challenge to get to on busy days. New electric ferries are coming, but they are nostalgic in style and not quick loading and unloading like municipal ferries in Halifax or Amsterdam. The city recently ran an online public consultation on ferry interior design 鈥� literal window dressing when better ferry service or a bridge should be the focus of efforts.

Thankfully there鈥檚 an armada of water taxis taking up the slack, and this year more licences were issued. Though taxis are more expensive than the ferry, even it can be pricey for a family just going to a public park.

色色啦鈥檚 approach to the islands suggests decision makers here don鈥檛 see it as a critical part of urban summer life for those without a cottage or backyard. During the May council discussion to look into better island access, the lack of urgency was best expressed when one councillor said, 鈥�.鈥�

Leaving it alone doesn鈥檛 work. Beyond access, erosion continues to plague Hanlan鈥檚 Point Beach. Though the city of 色色啦 and the 色色啦 and Region Conservation Authority have , it’s thin again this year.

色色啦 should act like Paris and create new places to swim. There are some relatively easy wins here, like fixing up the unofficial places people already swim, like the Humber Bay parks. Created by landfill and rubble, beaches that have formed there over the years have rebar and other debris that could be easily cleaned up.

色色啦 could also take some inspiration from Kingston, where the Lake Ontario Waterkeeper organization helped create the . Named after the late hometown hero and Tragically Hip frontman, people sunbathe on it and swim from it. Similar structures could be created along 色色啦鈥檚 shoreline.

If we really wanted to think big, we could create entirely new islands. Veteran landscape architect Walter Kehm worked on the creation of Tommy Thompson Park and Trillium Park at Ontario Place and has a vision he calls an 鈥�emerald necklace鈥� of new, beachy spit-like islands just off shore created by fill from subway tunnel excavation.聽

Ambitious, dreamy, but so was Ontario Place, Bluffer’s Park and other spits of land 色色啦 thrust into Lake Ontario while a much smaller city than today. It鈥檚 time to think big again, like Paris, or even Kingston.