A New Subway Station Coming To Moss Park

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 A new subway station is coming to Moss Park neighborhood relatively soon as part of the Ontario Line, a twelve-billion-dollar rapid transit project that will run across 15.5 kilometers connecting the Ontario Science Centre to Exhibition/Ontario Place.

Moss Park is one of the fifteen station locations as part of the Ontario Line and with the exception of the station’s entrance located on the northwest corner of Queen and Sherbourne, it will be built underground.

Anything constructed above ground for the Moss Park Station will be developed by Infrastructure Ontario and anything built below ground will be developed in partnership with Metrolinx.

The Moss Park Ontario Line station will connect a dense and fast-growing area of the city to the subway network. An estimated 7,300 people are expected to use Moss Park station during the busiest travel hour.

However, there are a number of questions and concerns that community members have. ”What are the benefits of this project for the Moss Park community? What is this twelve-billion-dollar project of tax payers money going to mean for the people that live there? How are these infrastructure changes going to impact the neighborhood?” These are some of the questions raised by Kumsa Baker, who grew up in Moss Park and is also an organizing member of the Toronto Community Benefits Network.

Kumsa was invited to speak about the importance of the community involvement in the decision-making process during an outdoor meeting and walk around the neighborhood organized by Building Roots, a community group serving the area. The event was held last month on September 11, 2021, at the Moss Park market, inviting the community to learn more about the Moss Park subway station.

“We’ve been doing a lot of research of all the different developments that are coming into the neighborhood. Condos are coming into the neighborhood and for a lot of us the question is: what is that going to mean for the people that has been living here for a long time? A lot of times when it comes to development, it is usually focused on developers, the government, and the people who makes decisions on behalf of the community. This is an opportunity to create a community voice in the process and to really get involved with different events and consultations. A lot of times, if you are not at the table you probably going to be on the menu. We need to ensure that Moss Park community members have a sit at the table when these decisions are happening and make sure that our voices are heard.” Kumsa said.

One of the concerns among the Moss Park and nearby communities is the land speculation as a result of the upcoming developments. Andre Bermon, member of the Corktown Residents and Businesses Association and publisher of the Bridge Community Newspaper, has conducted extensive research related to the urban impacts of the new transit project in the Downtown East area.

“In tandem with this subway, there will also be massive land speculation; properties will rise significantly just in the word of this infrastructure project. Nothing is being done and Moss Park is being sold and bought several times over with developers coming in purchasing it from the “old guard”, people who have being living here for decades, and now beginning to put their own foot in this neighborhood. Across Queen Street, the neighborhood is going to have three large high-rise towers, 24, 25, and 33 stories each, built by two big developers: One Properties and Tricon.” Andre informed during the event just before a group of Moss Park residents were ready to have a guided walk through the neighborhood to show them the location of the new future developments.

The Metrolinx transit project will give a unique opportunity for community engagement and Moss Park residents get together to express their opinions and thoughts on how the community could be benefited from the project.

Toronto Community Benefits is partnering with Building Roots and other groups in the area to form the Moss Park Benefits Coalition.

“The Moss Park Benefits Coalition is the first real attempt to bring this community together in decades”, Andre said.

Walied Khogali, member of the Regent Park Community Benefits Coalition, encouraged the Moss Park neighbors to take this opportunity to come together, to get organized, and join the Moss Park Community Benefits Coalition to start having conversations on what sort of benefits does the community want.

“I don’t want Doug Ford to build Moss Park, I don’t want one political party to dictate what happens in our community, I want the residents of Moss Park to dictate and decide what happens in their community. Let’s work together to build those priorities.” Walied said.

To see more visit 

https://youtu.be/Qa9-AQWdBm8


Written by
Fred Alvarado

Journalist
FOCUS Media Arts Centre


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