New Toronto park already in such sorry state it's being compared to WW1 battlefield

A relatively new Toronto park rebuilt entirely and reopened in 2019 is already in an alarmingly sorry state just five years later.

Barbara Ann Scott Park — often referred to as College Park — finally reopened in 2019 after three long years of reconstruction, but it's already being compared to a World War One battlefield after just a few years of use.

The 0.75-hectare public space at the rear of the College Park shopping mall shuttered in 2016 for revitalization, paid for with $3 million in funding sourced from developer Canderel through its complex of condos flanking the park.

While the park has become known for its annual winter skate trail, it seems other elements of the project haven't aged terribly well, as one online commenter has compared the park's barren patches of dead grass and ad-hoc walkways forged through the dirt to the famously devastated battlefields of The Somme.

This city is so fucking embarrassing sometimes. Whatever was the point of these green spaces if we didn’t have the time, budget, care, skill, attention span, or desire to maintain them? It’s early June, we haven’t had snow or frost in months, and it looks like The Somme. Unreal. pic.twitter.com/q6xbMg8KGe

— Urban Cayman (@ProjectEND) June 5, 2024

The post has been met with dozens of comments and hundreds of likes on X (formerly Twitter).

Trampled grass and exposed earth are being blamed on poor park design. A handful of commenters note that the obvious route pedestrians would take through the park was disregarded by designers, with path placement forcing parkgoers to detour in order to remain on paths.

Would have helped if they designed the park to reflect desire lines and the way people actually use the space rather than arch school bs. Maybe then the grass wouldn’t get trampled 🤷‍♂️

— Paco Montiel (@prsvinTO) June 5, 2024

"I will say this until they fix it– it was gross incompetence from the landscape architect to not place this concrete path in alignment with the oh-so obvious path of travel across the site," remarked another user.

Others attribute the park's condition to a lack on maintenance, blaming the upkeep issues on the City's years of austerity measures.

"I don't even blame the path being wrongly designed but the lack of maintenance and budget that had plagued the entire city of Toronto where almost every public space, park, sidewalk, road is poorly maintained these days," said another commenter, adding, "The city is falling apart and government does nothing."

A City of Toronto representative said in an email statement to blogTO that the park in question "is quite popular and very well used."

"Unfortunately, this presents a challenge as there is a high volume of foot traffic across the grassy areas which has resulted in the wearing down of the turf.  Staff are working to address this issue and are investigating alternative turf options."