Dennison Square, Toronto

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❖Dennison Square, Toronto, 2020[for full experiece open full screen version of this square]

Previous St. James Town Plaza, Toronto

On May 5, 2009 I visited this square and was impressed by the community of Kensington market involvement, care and devotion to the maintenance and improvements of this square/park.

There is an article on this website about "Participatory Urban Democracy" written at that point. I promised then that I will visit this place again since there was a significant change coming soon.

So here we are. It is September 2020, second stage of Covid 19 distancing so it is understandable that there is much less people around.

Place, much more park then square completely surrounded with two levels residential houses, now is tidy and clean but it looks that it lost its community value. It is completely turned toward kids. More than 30% of the surface is converted to the splash pad so it looks quite unpleasant and unfriendly with its sky blue plastic surface.

Here and there small groups of people are gathering beneath few still standing mature trees. That is one more noticeable difference from 11 years ago. Much less trees in the park and much less opportunities for social interaction.

Maybe its just me, I am quite disappointed with the change :(.

Next Plaza Central, Liberia, Costa Rica

East York Civic Centre Park, Toronto, Map

❖..c l a s s i f i c a t i o n ... s y s t e m..❖
more about evaluation method		more about types of squares
sociability	10	ceremonial	x
uses & activities	8	religious	x
access & linkages	10	social	x
comfort	8	residential	x
image	8	shopping	x
tourist value	6	with park	x
total	50	market	x