City Council asked to authorize release of Section 37 funds for Gardiner underpass improvements at four downtown intersections

transit

City Council asked to authorize release of Section 37 funds for Gardiner underpass improvements at four downtown intersections

Toronto City Council is being asked to approve the release of Section 37 development charge funds to support the Gardiner Gateways East Project, which would improve pedestrian conditions in the underpasses beneath the Gardiner Expressway and Union Station rail corridor at Lower Jarvis, Lower Sherbourne, Lower Parliament and Cherry streets through enhanced lighting, wayfinding and placemaking. The project continues a multi-year partnership with The Bentway to implement the Under Gardiner Public Realm Plan approved in April 2024.

not yet heardToronto City Council · Wed, Jul 29You can weigh in

Who did what

Councillor Ausma Malik (Ward 10, Spadina-Fort York) movedDeputy Mayor; moved the motion to authorize Section 37 fund release for the four-intersection project.
Councillor Paula Fletcher (Ward 14, Toronto-Danforth) secondedCouncillor; seconded the motion.

Also in this item

• The project builds on recently completed intersection improvements at Dan Leckie Way/Lake Shore Boulevard West (2025) and Bathurst Street/Lake Shore Boulevard West (2026), establishing a pattern of incremental waterfront public realm investment.

• The project integrates improvements to both the under-Gardiner spaces and the Union Station Rail Corridor underpasses, treating the rail corridor as an additional barrier to waterfront access that requires lighting and wayfinding upgrades.

The journey

Wed, Jul 29 · Toronto City Council · not yet heard

Time to act

You can weigh in

Residents can attend City Council on 2026-07-29 to depute if they have concerns or support for the project; the motion is on the published agenda.

Why is this story here?

ContainedA decision to deploy Section 37 funds to four specific intersections is bounded to those locations and to a defined public realm improvement scope. The expenditure is within the Section 37 budget framework (a revenue stream already collected and earmarked for public benefits), so it is not a departure from an existing budget. Hard to reverse without political cost, but reversible. Affects a specific neighborhood and transit corridor, not city-wide policy or institutional structure.Touches a narrow groupThe improvements target pedestrian experience in specific downtown underpasses used by commuters, waterfront visitors, and people crossing the rail corridor to reach the waterfront. Current effect is zero; nothing changes until construction begins. The constituency is real but localized: residents and workers in the downtown waterfront area. No present-week effect.

Stories are ordered by how much weight a decision carries and how directly it reaches daily life. They rise as a decision date approaches and fall as they age.

Official title: Authorization to Release Section 37 Funds Gardiner Gateways East Project - Intersection and Underpass Improvements at Lower Jarvis, Lower Sherbourne, Lower Parliament and Cherry Streets - by Deputy Mayor Ausma Malik, seconded by Councillor Paula Fletcher · meeting video