Julie Bogdanowicz

The wood was recycled from palettes used for construction material. It was donated by Ouroboros Deconstruction, our neighbourhood salvage shop located at Eastern / Knox Ave. They sell lumber and other recycled fixtures and are friendlier than Home Depot :) Their shop is beautiful, go say hello!

Thanks to all who were involved in the salvage operation. This small initiative is meaningful for the community and our collective memory about urban space. ✌️And if others would like to share other precedents of salvaged materials reused as urban furniture, I’d love to see it!

The bridge features a Howe truss structure, similar to the nearby Queen Street Viaduct as well as the Sir Isaac Brock (Bathurst Street) Bridge. We were able to salvage other trusses from the bridge and they are waiting for adaptive reuse in future projects.

The bridge was removed as part of the Lower Don revitalization work because it increased flooding risks along this channelized section of the Don River. It would be an impediment to flood waters during a major storm and could come loose, causing harm downstream.

The bridge was a heritage structure that tells a story about our neighbourhood’s heritage. The bridge was abandoned for 60 years. It spanned the Don River since 1932, and was abandoned just over three decades later. The pace of change in Toronto is (has always been?) staggering!

I was able to advocate for the salvage of trusses from the recently demolished Eastern Avenue Bridge, and the design/build came together with Paul from down the street and Etienne from a block over. Hugh’s Room has agreed to adopt them for now.

I was able to advocate for the salvage of trusses from the recently demolished Eastern Avenue Bridge, and the design/build came together with Paul from down the street and Etienne from a block over. Hugh’s Room has agreed to adopt them for now.

The benches are a prototype of a sustainable approach to street furniture. The benches were made from salvaged materials and showcase the value of the circular economy.

Introducing our new East Chinatown bench made entirely from salvaged materials! (bridge and wood pallets) Launched at our community block party, and baptized by teenager garbage, I’m so pleased this came together.

The potluck with the mile-long table is always such a treat, meeting new neighbours - what it’s all about. Cozy movie night is a required feature demanded by my kids. Happy to share learnings if anyone is curious about how to pull this off on their block. 🙌🙏

Huge thanks to Hugh’s Room for the AV and showcasing Siobhan Bodrug. And thx to volunteers! Luc from First Ave hosted a paper airplane workshop and Hank set up his skate park. Teddy Spins was rocking his sweet cotton candy machine, keeping sugar levels high. Elsa brought out the tarot at sunset.

One of the reasons I host the fest is the off chance that we radicalize kids to think about urban space in new ways: streets are for people! And banquet tables! :)

Highly recommend getting a permit to open up your block to cars. That’s a wrap on another sometimes-biennial block party! Thanks to those who joined us to celebrate our village and the super fun closure of the street for First Fest.

The city keeps looking more beautiful, inclusive and sustainable. Also an impressive number of projects that speak to Indigenous reconciliation efforts across the city. Well done, all!

Toronto Urban Design Awards The 2025 Toronto Urban Design Awards winners have been announced. The 2025 Jury Report is now available, showcasing the awarded projects.   Every other year, the City of Toronto holds Urban Design Awa...

Congratulations to all the 2025 TUDA winners. It was a wonderful event put on by Urban Design staff to recognize design excellence in the city. Browse the Jury Report for an inspiring collection of projects. www.toronto.ca/city-governm...

Shawn Micallef: There’s a good reason why some might think Toronto’s best days are behind it. Here’s how we change their minds The best days for the city lie ahead of it, but there are things we have to get right to make sure that happens.

The Toronto Star’s City Report Card survey suggests six in 10 Torontonians believe that the city’s best days are in the past.

Given the challenges Toronto faces right now, it’s an understandable position, but it’s wrong. My column on teenage Toronto. The future is bright if we….(pls read n share).

Holy moly. This is impressive NYC!

That’s lovely. What a young leader! This summer, teaching my kid to ride her bike, commuting from East Chinatown to Danforth for camp, we became painfully aware of the lack of safe routes north-south in the area. Kids notice!

Thx Lanrick! Always a pleasure to do the grunt work to host this block party. Also, my 6 yo asks about this all year: "are we doing a First Fest this year?". It's fun to radicalize small children and show them that streets are for people. The street dance floor is my favorite part :) See you there!

The Guidelines were released in Draft in 2017 and approved in 2020. Let’s look back at 8 years of planning for children!
Here is a sweet example from Eva Road in Etobicoke, a project that I worked on many moons ago.

Are you a residential developer in Toronto? Have you delivered new indoor or outdoor amenity spaces for children? We are looking to learn from great examples that have been informed by the Growing Up Guidelines. Please show off your work here!

Thanks for the spotlight Lanrick! Nice to be sandwiched among some inspiring folks here….✌️

As Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo put it: "A city where you can get let go of your child's hand"

Ahoy Toronto! Biidaagie Park at the new mouth of the Don River is now open. The trees are babies, bring your own shade. The most incredible Park to open in a generation. Congrats to all involved in reaching this milestone, over the last 30 years. The best example of ambitious city building ❤️.

Sweet afternoon hosting city planners here for OPPI conference. Colleagues shared collective decades of experience shaping the connective tissue that knits the waterfront.

It was a privilege to describe the 2.5km long narrative and take it in within one 3 hour gulp.

Full thread on LinkedIn….

I’m curious to hear what local designers think of this article. I provided a few perspective in Kelly’s thread.

This hits close to home for me in my work in development review: I often see pragmatic considerations overtake the ground floor, and the retail space suffers.

Ps: the Planning report on next steps for Missing Middle is here secure.toronto.ca/council/#/co...

Kudos for the analysis, advocacy on this issue. Protecting commercial uses in our communities is critical to thriving, complete communities. Ensuring affordability and access for local business is another tough egg to crack, but part of the puzzle as well. I’m optimistic that we will see progress. ✌️

Another problem that I’ve observed is that developers are the least concerned with the viability of the retail unit (and ensuring the layout is thoughtful). Retail is an after thought, and often developers don’t want to provide retail, it’s not as lucrative as a residential unit.

On the front lines of development review, this topic hits close to home. While we do have these requirements for loading parking, there is often room to widen, deepen, and improve the retail units. Residential lobbies can be smaller, bike parking rooms can be below or above grade, etc.