In 2024, Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCHC) was entering its final two phases of revitalization for Regent Park in partnership with Tridel Builders Inc. TCHC was seeking innovative ways to develop a Central Plaza site which lies at the heart of a 16-acre parcel of land being revitalized within these phases. TCHC envisions the Central Plaza as a focal point in Regent Park and contracted ULI Toronto to convene a Technical Assistance Panel (TAP) to recommend ways to animate the Central Plaza in a sustained way and establish an important connection with the other phases of revitalization and the broader community.

ULI Toronto brought together an eight-member volunteer team of experts in land use, urban planning and design, food security, and community development to tackle this challenge. Thank you to the Regent Park community leaders who informed the TAP’s walking tour and day-of deliberations by sharing their time, experience, and wisdom.

Among the TAP’s recommendations:

1. Need for Continuous Community Consultation. Community consultation (with emphasis on equity-deserving groups) is a major enabler for the successful completion of the Central Plaza, as it has been in past phases. The community should be treated as part owners, where possible, particularly as it pertains to community and public benefits. Prioritizing community needs through continuous consultation and consideration of Regent Park’s resident demographics at every step is key to understanding the prevailing and evolving mindsets, community needs, challenges, and opportunities.
2. Focus on Creating a Food Economy. Food is the gateway that everyone reaches for, particularly newcomers, creating pathways for local entrepreneurship, community gatherings and celebrations. The TAP recommends prioritizing the creation of a food economy representative of Regent Park’s multicultural diaspora with an ability to scale by adopting a farm-to-table concept, investing in training, production, selling, distribution, and growing food in an educationally fun way, thereby maximizing impact.
3. Safety and Accessibility Must Be Prioritized. Connection and access to the central plaza should be facilitated in every way. Designs and planning should ensure that new pedestrian spaces along the east west spine feel welcoming and accessible to the entire community and should be opened to allow clear views to the spaces, minimizing blind spots and “private” pockets. Possible north south atrium connections through the buildings should be considered.

Read the Full Report here.