Item - 2013.TE25.56

The Toronto and East York Community Council:

1.         Approved the park name “Corktown Common” selected by Toronto residents in the public naming competition for the new park in the West Don Lands neighbourhood, located between Bayview Avenue and the GO/CN railroad lines, from King Street to the rail corridor in the south.

2.         Officially named the park bound by Lawren Harris Square and Bayview Avenue “Lawren Harris Square” in honour of Lawren Harris, Canadian painter and member of the Group of Seven.

This staff report is about a matter for which Community Council has delegated authority from City Council to make a final decision.

This report responds to the direction of Toronto and East York Community Council, at its

April 9th, 2013 meeting (TE23.86, Recommendations 1 and 2), authorizing a public competition to select a name for the new park in the West Don Lands neighbourhood, located between Bayview Avenue and the GO/CN railroad lines, from King Street to the rail corridor in the south.  The public park naming competition has concluded and the new name chosen is “Corktown Common.”

The Parks, Forestry, and Recreation Division is recommending that the park name selected by Toronto residents, “Corktown Common,” be officially adopted as the name of the new park.

In addition, Parks, Forestry, and Recreation is also recommending that the park bound by Lawren Harris Square and Bayview Avenue be officially named  "Lawren Harris Square", as per Toronto and East York Community Council's direction of April 9, 2013 (TE23.86, Recommendation 3). This naming proposal met all the criteria of the Council-approved Honourific and Street Naming Policy.