MASTER PLAN QUEEN ST. WEST BIA

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2 QUEEN ST. WEST BIA MASTER PLAN QUEEN ST. WEST BIA EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE IN ASSOCIATION WITH PMA LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS LTD. SWEENY STERLING FINLAYSON & CO ARCHITECTS INC. FUGITIVE GLUE MARCH 2013

3 4.5.4 PLAZA VISUALIZATIONS BEFORE AFTER 74 QUEEN STREET WEST BIA STREETSCAPE MASTER PLAN

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6 3.0 STREETSCAPE APPROACH AND GOALS A key objective of the streetscape master plan is to create a consistent aesthetic vision for Queen St. West and identify streetscape improvements that can be implemented in the short and long-term. Below we have outlined the basic elements of the design team s proposal to upgrade the streetscape. These elements will help build the overall vision for Queen St. West, and capitalize on the existing strengths ato develop a unique, cohesive streetscape design. DESIGNATE 01 A LINEAR PLAZA AS THE HEART OF QUEEN ST. WEST As the widest part of stretch within the BIA, the civic linear plaza will be the headquarters for larger seasonal events and spontaneous happenings unique to Queen St. West. There will be an abundance of designated areas for seating, bike parking and people-watching. RECOGNIZE HERITAGE THROUGH UNIQUE PAVING AND SITE FURNISHINGS paving will distinguish the contributing heritage buildings on the street. Diagonal connections that visually link heritage architecture across Queen St. West proper, provide clues towards recognizing the context of a heritage landscape without compromising the quality of the materials. Site furnishings also 02Special reference heritage through material selection, shape and form. 950 PLAZA SPACE SQ. M 1,300 l.m CONTRIBUTING BUILDING-FACADE CREATE 03 GATEWAYS THAT WILL BRAND THE STREET AND PROVIDE LANDMARKS Strategically located, the gateways will both unify the street and compliment the already eclectic, unique identity of Queen St. West. The gateways will be works of public art in their own right and act as new landmarks for residents and visitor to the area. 04 Sophisticated durable and accessible materials will be selected for the paving treatment and street furnishings will be designed and sited to ensure fl exibility of the public space while maintaining minimum City clearances. The cleaner streetscape will inherently enhance the experience of the day and night life on Queen St. West 07 CONNECTION MAKE PEDESTRIANS A PRIORITY: ENCOURAGE PEDESTRIAN MOVEMENT BY MAXIMIZING CLEARANCES FOCAL POINTS of 2.1M ACCESSIBLE SIDEWALK WIDE 44 QUEEN STREET WEST BIA STREETSCAPE MASTER PLAN

7 EMBRACE TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION TO INCREASE SOCIAL ENERGY select locations, wifi hotspots will be designated creating a social media connection or simply for wayfi nding along Queen St. West. Water conservation through a sidewalk strip drain along the curb edge will set a precedence for other BIA s throughout the GTA. Solar lighting and water bottle fi lling stations 05At are some other opportunities being explored. 07 WIFI STATIONS CREATE PARKETTES AND PARK-LETS THAT EXCITE AND ENGAGE PEOPLE minor intersections, the side fl ankages of buildings are great opportunities for developing parkettes that would help to inject green (i.e. trees and groundcover planting), public art, seating areas, mass bike parking, or simply something visually stimulating that would occur as a rhythm along Queen St. West. 06At Likewise the lay-by area just east of Spadina provides a huge opportunity for seasonal public space. PLANT MORE STREET TREES TO INCREASE TREE CANOPY trees to be planted along Queen St. West, and at proposed parkette locations. This objective will create more shade and therefore a more comfortable microclimate in pedestrian areas. A line of trees also gives the attractive experience of a boulevard allee, and visual cohesion of a street. 07High-canopy ADD BIKE RACKS AND A SHARED BIKE LANE TO ENCOURAGE CYCLISTS TO COME should be given towards a bike network will run along the street as a shared lane, complete with bike box markings major intersections to improve awareness and visibility of cyclists. An abundance of bike racks will be added in the street furnishings zone along the entire corridor with selected 08Consideration hubs for corralled bike parking PUBLIC PARKETTES TREES 195 BIKE RACKS 45

8 4.0 STREETSCAPE DESIGN AND GUIDELINES The following section outlines all elements included in the design which make up the Streetscape Master Plan. The implementation of all of these elements will need to be vetted through the detail design process, and checked against detailed above and below-ground conditions. S TREETSCAPE ELEMENTS INDEX bus shelter 1 Bus Shelters - Street Furniture Program The City of Toronto developed the Coordinated Street Furniture Program, through which it has contracted Astral Media to provide furniture for streetscapes across the City. Bus shelter sizes and locations need to be assessed at each location, and sized appropriately to meet the 2.1m sidewalk clearances. sidewalk standard 4 Queen St. West Sidewalk Standard A BIA-standard family of specialty paving will relate to the heritage contributing and noncontributing architecture. This material palette will include a consistent tree pit treatment, and trench drain detail. trash/recycling 2 Trash & Recycling Receptacles - Street Furniture Program The BIA needs to actively coordinate the location and sizes (where available) of all standard street furnishings, so that it is functional yet minimizes visual clutter on the streetscpape. 5 Trees, Tree Pits and Tree Guards Trash and recycling receptacles needs to be sized appropriately, and locations need to be assessed and directed by the BIA. tree pits Additional street trees will be installed where there are gaps within the existing line of trees, as well as at parkette locations. All street trees will be planted in continuous soil trenches to provide adequate soil volumes. The trees will be irrigated passively by means of trench drain that collects surface water which will lead to the soil below. The finishing treatment at the base of the tree will be consistent with the sidewalk standard. bike parking 3 Bike Parking There will be a new standard bike rack for the BIA. As this new BIA standard is implemented, the existing City bike rings will remain but become phased-out. The ambition is to double bike parking on the street, but predominantly at parkette locations wherever feasible. seating 6 Seating Existing Benches to remain until funding is available for custom furnishing program. Specific locations will be selected based on adjacent building usage, available sidewalk space and visibility. Existing benches can be reprogrammed for parkette spaces in the future. 50 QUEEN STREET WEST BIA STREETSCAPE MASTER PLAN

9 crosswalks 7 Articulated Crosswalks Crosswalks would ideally continue the standard sidewalk treatment (and specialty paving) through the road, to clearly denote a pedestrianpriority crossing. In the short-term, painted lines would also suffice. 11 bump outs Existing curb line Proposed Curb Extension Bump-Outs Where feasible, street corner bump-outs should be provided to maximize opportunities dedicated to the upgrades of the pedestrian realm. They can also be programmed as spaces dedicated to gateways, public art, planting, bike parking, and/ or patios. bike lanes 8 Bike Lanes Pursuing City of Toronto standard shared bike lanes into the roadway on both the north and south sides of Queen St. West should be considered. All types of commuters, regardless of the mode of transportation, should be encouraged to come to the stretch 12 bike box Bike Box As part of the strategy to encourage more cyclists through Queen St. West, improved bike boxes shall be located at street light intersections. These represent designated safe zones for cyclists as they ride up to a red light at an intersection. utility pole sleeves 9 Utility Pole Sleeves/Wayfinding Utility Pole Sleeves with the BIA s logo should be 13 Public Art and Gateways integrated into the existing utility poles. Colours and/or pattern to match BIA graphic branding. Wayfinding signage is to be incorporated into the streetscape elements program, or onto existing street signage, versus its own independent structure, to minimize visual clutter. public art/gateways Public art installations will be interspersed along Queen St. West at selected intersections. These gateway markers should be curated to reflect the identity and spirit of Queen St. West. The sculptures should be scaled appropriately to the context of the intersection to ensure visual impact at the vehicular and pedestrian scale. 10 parkettes Parkettes Side-flankage parkettes will be integrated at most intersections, and provide a rhythm of interesting urban park spaces to sit and linger, park one s bicycle or engage in public art. They are also excellent opportunities to successfully install more shade trees and planting. Parkettes are cost-efficient projects that can be built independently as funding arises. 14 park-lets Park-lets These seasonal urban parks or sidewalkextension zones will occupy existing parallelparking spots in the layby area east of Spadina. These Park-lets can provide seasonal patio spaces, extra bike parking, additional outdoor seating, gardens and planting, and/or public art. 51

10 4.1 S TREETSCAPE ELEMENTS VISUALIZATION BUMP OUTS BIKE PARKING BIKE LANES PARKETTES UTILITIY POLE SLEEVES BIKE BOX ARTICULATED CROSSWALKS POTENTIAL PUBLIC ART SEATING TREES, TREE PITS, TREE GUARDS 52 QUEEN STREET WEST BIA STREETSCAPE MASTER PLAN

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12 4.3 TYPICAL SIDEWALK CONDITION 3The typical condition for the sidewalk is divided into two areas: the pedestrian clearway and the site furnishing zone. All main pedestrian circulation will occur in the clearway, and all of the typical elements [outlined in section 4.4] will be placed in the site furnishing zone. PEDESTRIAN CLEARWAY varies (2.1m min) SITE FURNISHING ZONE constant (1.2m) continuous soil trench 56 QUEEN STREET WEST BIA STREETSCAPE MASTER PLAN

13 POLE COVER DECORATIVE WRAP TO COMPLIMENT BIA BRANDING SIDEWALK (TYPE 1 - Contributing) UNIT PAVERS OR SPECIALTY CAST-IN-PLACE CONCRETE TRENCH DRAIN (75mm wide) (various options) SPECIALTY CONCRETE OR CORTEN STEEL HERITAGE BANDING (100mm wide) (various options) SPECIALTY CONCRETE OR CORTEN STEEL OR UNIT PAVERS SIDEWALK (TYPE 2 - Non-contributing) UNIT PAVERS OR SPECIALTY CAST-IN-PLACE CONCRETE TREE GUARD CUSTOM TREE GUARD TO COMPLIMENT SITE FURNISHINGS TREE GUARD/PIT TREATMENT (1.6m x 1.6m) (various options) ARBOR RESIN OR CORTEN STEEL OR UNIT PAVERS 57

14 PARKLETS +/- 11m Right of Way with lay-by On a seasonal basis, the BIA should consider implementing Park-lets: it is an idea derived from maximizing pedestrian areas by replacing on-street parking stalls with seasonal parkettes, patios and the like. This urban design trend has precedence in Montreal, Vancouver, and San Francisco, and is in its experimental stages in Toronto. The layby parking area associated with the Linear Plaza directly east of Spadina is within the BIA s right-of-way, and therefore is a great opportunity to provide even more places for visitors and residents to linger, dine outdoors, rest, or park their bike. 72 QUEEN STREET WEST BIA STREETSCAPE MASTER PLAN

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