Last week, 311 workers finally repaired the path between Jean Tweed and Humber! This path, which leads toward Sam Smith Park both ways, had been in a terrible state of disrepair for quite a long time.
DASSP is glad to see that this little part of the world will be a lot safer for elderly and disabled from now on.
The park fencing has gone up as of the end of 2024, and we are anticipating heavy construction vehicles over the first 3 to 4 months of 2025. This has already been delayed by 8 months.
The vehicles will likely ruin the eastern pea gravel path going into SSP. This, combined with the soft and muddy ground resulting from the winter freeze/thaw cycle, will likely disrupt the spring return of wheelchair and elderly folks into the park.
Hopefully the work will be well executed and completed in a timely fashion over the next 2-3 years, unlike the endless construction at Prince of Wales park, nearby at the end of Third St.
Time will tell....
DASSP has been following up with Toronto Parks, however we are still being told that we will have to wait until later in the year to see what the 2025 budget looks like.
We have noticed that since Jorge retired, his current replacements are notoriously unresponsive to issues concerning Disabled/Elderly Park goers at SSP.
We will keep pressing for further updates...
NOTE: This activity has now been delayed a few months, until June 2024
Today I wheeled through the park and encountered a band of surveyors between the pond and third beach.
I spoke to the lead surveyor who stated that they were measuring the pea gravel paths to determine their width for heavy equipment which would be required to carry out the work next year. Additionally, he was there to determine the impact of the heavy equipment on tree roots underneath the path.
This work will definitely impact the access of disabled park users, as the heavy equipment on the heavy traffic pea gravel routes would likely become impassable by wheelchair users, while vision impaired visitors would likely be unable to process audible environmental clues needed to make their way through the park unaided.
DASSP has learned of a Lakeshore Grounds Committee community group, of with FOSS is a member, operating out of Humber College, which learns of these project ahead of time. DASSP will be seeking to participate in these meetings going forward, so that we can represent the needs of the mobility, visibility and hearing impaired park users, as well as the elderly.
As far as DASSP is aware, this work would commence sometime in 2024. We would seek to ensure that all paths remain wide enough for disabled access, and advise on any other access impact/issues that we are currently unaware of.
DASSP has followed up with Jorge, from Toronto Parks, on this important issue (please see our earlier post).
The dog park remains largely inaccessible to our members in wheelchairs (both manual and power) due to the uneven tree roots and post rain mud and mire.
Please stay tuned. We are hoping to have this sorted or at least an update before the autumn rainy season.
One of the main issues that remained, following all the recent improvements identified by DASSP, was the fact that the Creek footbridge, between the narrow path into the park from the schools and the playing Oval, had become unfriendly for those using wheelchairs.
Over time, the soil on either side had fallen away from the cement, like the issue previously fixed at the Pavillion.
The good news is that the problem has successfully been remediated, and it is now safe for those in power chairs.
The bad news is that for those in manual chairs, the steep slope on the east side of the footbridge requires an extension of the handrails on either side, or a correction on the degree of incline into/from the Oval.
We are following up on that issue and hope to have it remediated in a timely fashion.
This morning DASSP had a meeting with Ray Vendrig of Toronto Urban Forestry, and Scott Laver of Green Toronto.
In the meeting DASSP outlined the issues regarding the lack of inclusivity for the upcoming Tree Planting at Sam Smith Park on Saturday, September 25th.
Ray and Scott outlined the process of site selection, as it exists now, and noted that DASSP had not been included the the original site selection onsite review which occurred with FOSS only, early this year.
We are assured that DASSP will be included in the site selection next year, to ensure that inclusive planting sites are chosen from now on.
DASSP outlined three (3) inclusive sites for this month's event. Two of the sites are flat and currently occupied by goldenrod, while the other is a previously used tree planting area beside the Pavillion. The site will be selected next week during another meeting, and all three sites support bird life and migration, while paying attention to the creation of shade as well.
This year's tree planting for Disabled and Seniors, would unfortunately, be on a different site, from the one selected by FOSS.
The meeting culminated with a discussion on tweaking the actual yearly planning process, to ensure that DASSP is involved for SSP planting events, and that other Disabled and/or Senior groups are involved in events throughout Urban Toronto Green parks, to support the inclusive expansion of the valuable tree canopy in Toronto.
Urban Forestry and Green Toronto both stated that they support DASSP's goal of all Toronto Park events being inclusive for all Black, LGBTQ+, Disabled, Islamic, Senior, Aboriginal, etc., citizens !
Stay tuned for next week's update !
Last autumn, the Parks Department installed a number of wheelchair friendly park benches near the eastern entrance to Sam Smith Park, at the end of Lakeshore Rd, in New Toronto.
The benches have an extended pad, wide enough for a wheelchair user to sit beside someone while facing the Park, looking out towards the lake. This wider pad is also useful for Seniors using their walker to sit in, making it easier to enjoy a conversation while sitting at the proper height for easy standing, upon departure.
Hats off to Jorge and his workmates from Toronto Parks and Recreation !
