King Street Causeway Parklet Unveiled
Date
May 16, 2018
On Friday, May 4, the team behind King Street Causeway—IBI Group’s winning submission for the City of Toronto’s Everybody is King Design Build Challenge—gathered to unveil the colourful curbside parklet with Councillor Joe Cressy in front of the TIFF Bell Lightbox Theatre in downtown Toronto.
The City launched the challenge in January, and invited local design professionals to submit their ideas for temporary art and public space installations along King St., (a major downtown artery) in support of its progressive transit pilot which is underway until the end of 2018. Jennifer Lavery, from IBI’s transit architecture group, was on her way to work when she heard the call on local radio station, and decided to rally other designers and architects on her floor to come up with a unique concept.
A small team of Toronto transit, residential and landscape architects and designers got involved and began developing a modular parklet design with a bright, hexagonal (a nod to Toronto’s Drake-approved nickname, The Six) rudimentary basis, inspired by the Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland. King Street Causeway is one of only two durable parklet designs that will improve vibrancy and placemaking along the street and support economic prosperity in the area.
During the day, King Street Causeway is a place for pedestrians to sit and relax while taking in the bustle of the city. By sundown, it becomes a beacon in the Entertainment District, catering to Toronto’s vibrant nightlife. The illuminated crystals have a dichroic quality, reflecting and transmitting an infinite colour spectrum. No two views of this parklet are the same, creating an incredibly dynamic experience.
Regional Director, Trevor McIntyre, who championed the project, said in an interview with CBC Toronto, “this project will help reinforce the cool-ness of Toronto, for its residents and visitors.”
Congratulations to the entire team on this accomplishment, including Trevor McIntyre, Jennifer Lavery, Chris Calabrese, Paige Smith, Danielle Van Ooteghem, Cheng Zhen and Raha Parsa.
Special thank you to our construction partner, PCL Construction, and all of our sponsors for helping us bring this design to life. We could not have done it without the support of UCC Group Inc., Levey Industries, Plas-tech Inc., Acrylite, Paris Site Furnishing & Outdoor Fitness and Marcel Dion Lighting Design.
If you’re in Toronto, be sure to visit King Street and explore all of the installations from Jarvis to Bathurst!
