Designer behind some of Toronto's most beloved spaces passes away
Acclaimed landscape architect Claude Cormier has passed away at the age of 63, leaving a legacy of beloved public spaces in Toronto.
The Montreal-based designer and former principal at CCxA was the visionary behind some of Toronto's most renowned public parks and spaces, including 2007's HTO Park, 2010's Sugar Beach, the 2017-completed Berczy Park rebuild and its centrepiece dog fountain, and, more recently, the 2023-opened Love Park.
Canada has lost Claude Cormier it's greatest living landscape architect, years ahead of his time.
— Phil Pothen (@pothen) September 15, 2023
Amid a generation of practitioners that largely resigned itself to putting lipstick on the stinking pig of car-dominated sprawl, Cormier created urban public spaces for PEOPLE. pic.twitter.com/x5FvN6qzYy
Cormier passed away in his Montréal home on September 15 at the age of 63 due to complications from Li-Fraumeni Syndrome, a rare hereditary genetic condition associated with high risks of multiple types of cancer.
The designer developed a reputation for whimsical designs since starting his firm as Claude Cormier + Associés in 1994.
The firm was renamed in late 2022 as Sophie Beaudoin and Marc Hallé took the reins as co-presidents, however, the since-rebranded CCxA continues to carry the torch lit by Cormier almost three decades earlier with avante-garde visions.
While he may be gone, Cormier's visions continue to materialize in Toronto. Work is currently wrapping up at the site of The Well at Front and Spadina, where his firm led design on landscaping and public spaces.
Cormier's vision for the Leslie Lookout Park is also wrapping up construction in the Port Lands neighbourhood, and is expected to bring a new public space with a fake beach and lookout tower to the city later this year.
