Toronto's St. Lawrence Market neighbourhood is set to see even more construction in the months to come, as the City works to improve Market Lane Park, which connects Front Street East and King Street East. 

The revamped park is part of a network of public spaces that are being improved in the St. Lawrence Maret area, which also includes the North St. Lawrence Market redevelopment. 

The building's redevelopment was initially approved by city council in 2008 with a budget of $75 million, although its price tag has increased dramatically over the years. This July, it was revealed that the City would have to pay an extra $9.5 million to the contractor behind the project to avoid a potential lawsuit that would delay its opening. 

The park, which is located just a stone's throw away from the building, means an extra few months of construction for local residents, who have already been grappling with it for several years. 

Feedback from the local community, stakeholders, and Indigenous communities is being used to inform the park design. The preferred design is a linear plaza comprised of five connected but unique outdoor rooms. 

The park in its current state. Photo: sesquiotic. 

Design features include long bench-style seating, three outdoor "rooms" that will provide space for Indigenous-led programming (ie. specialty food markets, ceremonies) as well as market-related programming, seating around a water feature, and a large boulder that creates an overlook to the north side of the park. 

The form and materials of the park design also recall the receding shoreline of Lake Ontario and the rivers and streams that define the lake's edge. 

Rendering for the revamped park. Photo: City of Toronto.

The park design also seeks to address several key elements, including the preservation of existing trees, reimagining the existing fountains with a new water feature, upgrading lighting and site lines to improve safety, and improving pedestrian connectivity from King Street to Front Street. 

According to the City's website, a construction team is set to be hired to transform the park sometime this winter, with construction commencing in spring 2025 and coming to a close in winter 2025.

Although this timeline is subject to change, the City anticipates that the park will be reopened sometime next winter.