Downsview Park finally sees action

Mar 29, 2008 04:30 AM

Christopher Hume

It may not be time to hold one's breath, but a few deep inhalations may be in order.

After years of inactivity, Downsview Park is showing signs of life. There still aren't any shovels in the ground, but the park's recently appointed chair, David Soknacki – yes, that David Soknacki – is making things happen.

The former budget chief for Toronto and Scarborough councillor could well turn out to be just what this moribund project needs.

"When I let people know I was stepping down," Soknacki explains, "I got a call from someone in Stephen Harper's office about a couple of files that weren't going anywhere. One of them was Parc Downsview Park and was I interested. I told them I was, but I said that if they selected me, I was going to be a very active chair."

So far, he has been true to his word. Being an ex-civic politician means that Soknacki understands the importance of things such as getting the city to pass a secondary plan. It may not be sexy, but it's the first step toward action.

"It's not rocket science," he admits, "but I can't figure out why no one had done it before."

Most important, however, is the question of what will become of the former military base. In 1999, the federal government organized an international design competition for what it called "Canada's first national urban park." No one was sure exactly what that meant, but the winners were the highly regarded Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas and Canadian graphic designer Bruce Mau. Their scheme, Tree City, was detailed enough to be chosen, but vague enough not to raise specific expectations.

But since then, Tree City has gone nowhere and neither winner remains involved. To be honest, that's probably a good thing, as the plan bordered on meaninglessness. In the meantime, Downsview Park officials have made a series of bad decisions, most notably one to sell off a parcel of land for a big-box centre, precisely what we don't want in the city.

According to Soknacki, 148 hectares of the 230 hectares will be public open space; the rest of the land will be dedicated to mixed-use development. That would include residential, commercial, retail and a new subway station to be located in the middle of the site.

Soknacki estimates it will take two years to gain the various approvals needed from the bureaucracy, municipal and federal. In the meantime, he promises to start work on the park – specifically, a pond and large mound.

"I believe in the magic of the park," he says. "But we still need to figure out what the `wow factor' will be. It's got to be more than soccer pitches, volleyball courts or an outdoor concert venue."

Soknacki has also met with local stakeholders, who he admits are finally starting to grow anxious. Though it won't make anyone's life easier, this bodes well. Torontonians don't welcome change, even when it's desperately needed. But the fact that Soknacki is seeing "signs of apprehension from the neighbours" means they are starting to realize that after a decade of inaction, things are happening.

"I know we can do it," Soknacki insists. "No excuses."

Last June, the land was transferred from the Department of National Defence to Parc Downsview Park, and in December, PDP got borrowing authority. Until now, either move would have been cause for concern, but with Soknacki at the helm, optimism doesn't seem so out of place.

Much remains undone, and there will be many opportunities for things to go wrong. But until now they haven't been going at all.

Christopher Hume can be reached at chume@thestar.ca.