Toronto, ON – On May 2 and 3, thousands of Torontonians will
take to the streets for the third annual Jane’s Walk, a series
of more than 70 free neighbourhood walking tours across the city
exploring our collective history, architecture, planning and
personalities.
Celebrating the legacy of Jane Jacobs, the foremost urban
thinker of our times, the Centre for City Ecology created Jane’s
Walk to inspire citizens to see how people live, work and play
in their built environment to help shape their communities.
Jane’s Walk is a thriving Toronto export. The CCE administers
the Jane’s Walk program globally, partnering locally with cities
and groups across Canada and around the world. Jane’s Walk is
happening in more than 20 cities across Canada this year, with
as many taking place internationally, including Chicago, New
Orleans, Salt Lake City, and Goa and Mumbai, India.
"For Jacobs, the best way to get to know parks, sidewalks and
streets was on foot," says Jane Farrow, executive director of
Jane’s Walk. "Her eye was always at ground level, and she felt
strongly that no grand planning scheme could substitute for an
understanding of people's everyday experience of the city."
Toronto’s passionate residents share stories and observations
about their neighbourhoods, the urban history and local lore on
this walking, talking exchange. Volunteer tour guides, from
former Mayors and journalists to recent immigrants and high
school students, customize their tours with personal stories,
local perspectives and insider hideaways to help bridge social
and geographic gaps and create a space for Toronto to discover
itself.
This year’s walks cover the Greater Toronto Area from the core
to the suburbs and the exurbs. Explore 200 years of Lakefront
and Harbour development with Fort York staff, tour the high-rise
towers and ravines of the North Kipling site for the Mayor’s
Tower Renewal project led by architect Graeme Stewart or join
special guest recording artist Sarah Harmer on a tour of Front
Street’s academic heritage and archaeology, cuisine and
distillation, led by Environmental Defence lawyer David Donnelly
and archaeologist Dr. Ron Williamson.
May 4, Jane Jacobs’ birthday will be declared Jane Jacobs Day
for the third year by Mayor David Miller, honouring Jacobs’
belief that walkable, diverse and mixed used neighbourhoods are
the hallmark of a health city and citizenry.
Jane’s Walk is made possible with the support of: The Ontario
Trillium Foundation, Toronto Community Foundation, AVANA
Capital, Urbanspace Property Group, City of Toronto Culture &
Transportation Services, The Metcalf Foundation, Greater Toronto
Airports Authority, Media Profile and media partners CBC Toronto
and NOW Magazine.
For a full listing of the tours or to find out how to lead a
walk, visit www.janeswalk.net.
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