Impacts and solutions to transit-related construction in Liberty Village
September 2024
This Liberty Village BIA Research and Needs Assessment project is intended to help:
• better understand and identify the impacts and challenges of major transit project-related construction on the people living and working in Liberty Village.
• explore potential solutions to mitigate these problems.
The project has been graciously funded through the City of Toronto’s Construction Mitigation Grant Program and the Government of Canada through the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario.
Led by:
Project overview
The purpose and process for this work
Purpose
There are several major transit and transit-related projects unfolding in and around Liberty Village BIA. While these projects represent a significant long-term investment and future benefit, they will involve many years of construction which will impact the BIA and broader community.
To better understand the impacts of this construction on people living and working in the area, the Liberty Village BIA has undertaken a Research and Needs Assessment Project. The purpose of this project was to:
• Understand different stakeholders’ pain points and concerns about construction impacts
• Identify the “top problems” worth solving
• Propose solutions to address constructionrelated challenges (including implementation and phasing)
About this report
This Recommendations Report is the second of three documents informing the Research and Needs Assessment. It identifies recommended solutions the BIA could pursue to mitigate problems based on an evaluation of the BIA’s role in delivering the projects as well as high-level assessment of the projects’ feasibility, desirability, and value.
The other documents are:
• A Current State Report that summarizes the details of the construction projects as well as top pain points and problems worth solving (based on stakeholder engagement).
• An Implementation and Phasing Strategy that includes a phased road map for developing top solutions
What’s informed the work
This Research and Needs Assessment work was informed by four key inputs: direction from the Liberty Village Business Improvement Area, the findings from a background review, feedback from community stakeholders, and feedback from public agency stakeholders.
Background review
Site visit, project websites and reports, BIA studies and reports
These inputs helped inform:
• The details, timing, impacts, and inprogress mitigation efforts related to transit-related construction projects.
• The top pain points / problems worth solving.
• The identification of potential solutions to construction-related challenges.
• The evaluation of potential solutions to construction-related challenges.
Input and direction from Liberty Village BIA
Advocacy Committee, Board of Management
LVBIA
Research and Needs
Assessment
Feedback from community stakeholders
Commercial property owners, small businesses (retail, restaurants, services), “top 10” employers, residents, and visitors
Feedback from public agency stakeholders
Metrolinx, City of Toronto, TTC
Approach
Round One
Understanding needs and ideas
June - July
Focus: stakeholders’ pain points, needs, top problems worth solving, thoughts on solutions
Advocacy Committee
Meeting 1
Review background and confirm approach
Agency stakeholder meetings
Metrolinx / Ontario Transit Group, City, Infrastructure Ontario
Virtual community stakeholder meetings Commercial property owners, “top 10” employers, small businesses (retail, restaurants, services), residents
Online community survey
Advocacy Committee
Meeting 2
Current state report
Round Two
Identifying solutions and implementation
August
Focus: identify and evaluate top solutions, identify phasing
Advocacy Committee
Meeting 3
Final recommendations report and implementation strategy
The Research and Needs Assessment followed a two round process. The first round’s focus was understanding the details of the construction projects and different stakeholders’ pain points, needs, thoughts on top problems worth solving, and suggested solutions. The second round’s focus was evaluating potential solutions to identify top solutions and inform implementation and phasing. The process design evolved over the course of the work in response to stakeholders’ availabilities and consultation preferences as well as BIA timing priorities.
Engagement by the numbers
Stakeholder meetings
8 meetings
4 with BIA members and community stakeholders, including small business owners, top 10 employers, commercial property owners, and resident associations, totalling 15 participants
4 with agencies, totalling 11 participants
1 survey receiving almost 100 responses, with a 100% completion rate
4 newsletters sent to 1,200 subscribers, earning 966 opens
Context and construction overview
Details, timing, and pain points
About Liberty Village BIA and community
The Liberty Village BIA is home to over 600 businesses. Unlike many BIAs, Liberty Village is not centred on a main street — it is a campus that is divided into two areas: a commercial area on the west side and a residential one on the east. It is also largely a commercial BIA. Many members are property owners and major employers, though there are several retail, food, and service businesses.
Liberty Village construction projects
The projects highlighted below were the focus of this Research and Needs Assessment work. While not the primary focus, the project team kept in mind other relevant construction projects, events, and changes, too.
Focus projects
King-Liberty SmartTrack GO Station
King Street West water main and
TTC streetcar track work
Exhibition Transit-Oriented
Community (Jefferson and Atlantic sites), Ontario Line track work, Exhibition Station upgrade
Liberty Village BIA boundary
Broader Liberty Village Community
Other relevant construction, events, and changes
• Gardiner Rehabilitation Project
• Road resurfacing projects
• Property redevelopments
• Ontario Place redevelopment
• Sewer Replacement Project-Fraser Avenue and Liberty Street (October- Spring 2025)
• Future “Liberty New Street” (connecting Strachan to Dufferin at south end of community
Focus projects overview
While all the focus projects are transit-related, each has a different and unique focus.
Ontario Line, Exhibition Station, and Exhibition Transit-Oriented Community
• Updated Exhibition Station will be a new transit hub for west Toronto, hosting both GO (Lakeshore West line) and new Ontario Line service
• Transit-oriented community includes four mixed-use towers across two sites (19 - 20 storeys).
King-Liberty SmartTrack GO Station
• Located on the Kitchener line between Union and Bloor GO Stations
• New station to include two pedestrian bridges and access to King, Sudbury, and Joe Shuster Way
King Street West watermain and TTC streetcar track replacement
• Part of plan to renewal aging streetcar tracks and 146-year-old watermain
Timelines and select major impacts from focus projects
Combined, the focus projects currently are planned to run from 2022 to 2031. The most intense and disruptive periods are currently scheduled to begin imminently and continue through to 2028.
Project
Ontario Line track work, Exhibition Station, Exhibition Transit-Oriented Community
2025 - 2027
Trucks, noise, and dust from tunnelling and station construction
King-Liberty SmartTrack GO Station
King Street West streetcar track replacement and watermain work
Q2/Q3 2025 - 2027
Sidewalk and one lane closure, north side King Street West at Atlantic for new station entrance
Feb - Nov 2024
Full and partial road closures of King Street West (Dufferin to Shaw)
Feb - December 2025
Full and partial road closures of King Street West (west of Dufferin) and King / Dufferin intersection
Top pain points and suggested solutions
BIA staff, Board members, other members (commercial property owners, employers, businesses), residents, and visitors all shared feedback in this Research and Needs Assessment process. The following emerged as top “pain points,” suggested solutions, and other feedback:
Top pain points / problems to solve
• Traffic congestion and longer wait and travel times on public transit
• Dirt, dust, noise, and mess from construction
• Decreased safety in and around construction (especially for pedestrians and cyclists)
• Reduced access to and impacts on businesses in Liberty Village
• Confusion from lack of signage, particularly at the GO station
Top supported or suggested solutions
• A traffic congestion area study
• Promoting sidewalk alternatives
• Improving wayfinding and visibility through ads, maps, and signs (both at transit stations and throughout Liberty Village)
• Promoting alternative ways to get to Liberty Village (like cycling)
• Rail corridor initiatives: updated murals and art; LED Liberty Village sign on pedestrian bridge
Other feedback and suggestions
• Suggestions to advocate to City to delay non-essential construction and improve congestion through strategies like hiring traffic wardens, changing signal timing, and more
• Concerns about construction delays, crowding at GO station, and Emergency Services access to Liberty Village
• Consider the construction impacts nighttime and daytime economies differently in Liberty Village
Managing construction and adressing impacts
Roles and in-progress efforts
Roles
There are several actors involved in managing these transit construction projects and mitigating their impacts. This Research and Needs Assessment focuses primarily on two sets of actors: the Liberty Village BIA and select public agencies involved in the construction.
Liberty Village Business Improvement Area
Business Improvement Areas are made up non-residential property owners and tenants who join together to carry out improvements to promote economic development within their designated area. BIA’s typically lead efforts like:
• Overseeing the improvement, beautification, and maintenance of municipally-owned assets within a BIA
• Promoting the area as a business, employment, tourist, or shopping area
• Undertaking safety, security, and crime-prevention initiatives
• Preparing strategic plans
• Advocating on behalf of the interests of the BIA
Roles
Metrolinx and Infrastructure Ontario
Metrolinx is an agency of the Government of Ontario that was created to improve the coordination and integration of all modes of transportation in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area. Metrolinx is overseeing two of the major transit investments in Liberty Village: the KingLiberty Smart Track GO Station and the Ontario Line construction (including track work, Exhibition Station, and future Transit-Oriented Community).
Ontario Transit Group
The Ontario Transit Group is a joint venture between global infrastructure design and construction leaders. It is designing, constructing, and financing the critical downtown Toronto portion of the Ontario Line subway project for Metrolinx and Infrastructure Ontario.
City
of Toronto and TTC
The City of Toronto and TTC manage the King Street West watermain and streetcar track replacement work.
Infrastructure Ontario is a Crown agency of the Province of Ontario that supports the Ontario government’s initiatives to modernize and maximize the value of public infrastructure and real estate.
Infrastructure Ontario’s role is, in part, to support the development of Transit-Oriented Communities at Ontario Line stations.
The City also maintains the Liberty Village Construction Hub, a group that conducts logistical planning in the City’s right-of-way, reiews Construction Management Plans, connects travellers with real-time information, collaborates with enforcement officers, and communicates impacts and changes to bussinesses and communities in the neighbourhood.
Addressing impacts: who does what
Each of the actors has a different mandate, responsibility, and degree of influence when it comes to addressing construction-related transit impacts.
The BIA
• Leads efforts within BIA’s mandate: marketing (digital, physical, and in-community), operational, programming, and BIA member and community engagement
• Collaborates with others to lead mutually beneficial projects (such as public agencies, Exhibition Place, and others)
• Encourages and advocates to others to either support BIA-led projects or to lead projects
Public agencies
Metrolinx, Ontario Transit Group, Infrastructure Ontario, City
• Manage construction (road closures, diversions) and provide notice about disruptions
• Develop and implement impact mitigation efforts (truck and traffic congestion, dust, noise, vibration, scheduling, environmental impacts, and more)
• Provide grants and funding to support BIA-led projects
• Share information and engage with the community on an on-going basis
• Promote local businesses and events
Addressing impacts: public agency-led efforts in-progress
The public agencies involved in the focus projects have several initiatives underway to mitigate the impacts of construction:
• Managing truck traffic and congestion. Traffic management, safety, and trucking plan; City of Toronto Liberty Village Traffic Action Plan
• Limiting noise. Efforts to limit work to daytime, plans to loop trucks (avoiding back-up noise), noise and monitoring devices
• Reducing dust and dirt. Street sweepers, wheel cleaning, construction hoarding, dust nets
• Maintaining transit and neighbourhood access. New GO Station platform, temporary pedestrian bridge over rail corridor, temporary Exhibition Station entrance, elevator upgrades, lighting upgrades
• Informing and engaging the community. Construction Liaison Committee, online “Construction Hub,” community artwork program survey
• Promoting BIA events and local businesses in notices
The BIA has already begun advancing several projects and initiatives aimed at addressing transit-related construction impacts and supporting businesses and property owners. Some projects are in very early stages, while others are already underway.
The following pages summarize these projects, including how they strive to mitigate construction impacts. Some projects appear in both sections since they both support businesses and strive to address construction impacts.
In-progress BIA-led efforts to support businesses and commercial properties
In-progress BIA-led efforts to mitigate impacts of transitrelated construction
How the project strives to mitigate transit-related construction impacts
1 Traffic congestion area study
2 TO360 wayfinding
3 Walk Liberty program
Participation in Ontario Line Construction Liaison Committee Participation in Metrolinx’s regular Construction Liaison Committee
The LVBIA is considering hiring a traffic planning and transportation engineering consultant to do this study upon approval of the project budget.
A partnership with the City of Toronto’s Transportation Services division to rollout pedestrian wayfinding products in and around Liberty Village. Includes sign products, maps, and finger posts.
An interactive self-guided walking tour in which participants can explore and learn more about Liberty Village history, architecture, destinations, and more.
Participation in Ontario Line Construction Liaison Committee (CLC) meetings (and others) to learn and share feedback about construction management issues
5 Sharing information with business members and residents Sharing construction project updates, area events, road closures, and traffic management plans in newsletters and through social media posts.
6 Collaboration with FIFA Toronto Secretariat
7 Advocacy to the City of Toronto and Metrolinx
Discussions to anticipate and develop strategies to mitigate impacts from the 2026 World Cup games played at Exhibition Place and developing traffic and crowd management plans for Liberty Village
On-going efforts to encourage City and Metrolinx to mitigate impacts, such as advocating for delays in non-essential construction; improved planning of truck parking and traffic management; hiring traffic wardens; changing bus routes, adjusting ride-share locations, and more.
Aims to develop a strategic plan that will significantly reduce traffic congestion in Liberty Village
Aims to improve pedestrian wayfinding and safety by showing how to navigate Liberty Village. Also supports businesses by making the area more legible and easier to explore.
Attracts visitors and customers to Liberty Village by encouraging them to visit and explore
Provides Liberty Village businesses with a voice advocating for their needs and perspectives with those managing construction projects.
Keeps residents and businesses informed of upcoming impacts and how to navigate them
Anticipates and strives to address further impacts due to 2026 World Cup games
Ensures that Liberty Village businesses pain points and needs are represented and considered by the City and Metrolinx.
Identifying and evaluating projects and solutions
This Research and Needs Assessment process identified projects from two sources:
Identifying potential projects and solutions
• Ideas identified by BIA Board members and staff
• Ideas suggested by participants in stakeholder engagement
Through these sources, about 30 potential projects or solutions emerged.
To help the BIA think about which projects to pursue, the Research and Needs Assessment team conducted a high-level evaluation of the projects. This evaluation process involved a three-step approach:
Evaluating potential projects and solutions
• Step 1. Identify projects the BIA is already doing and remove them from evaluation. Since the BIA independently evaluated and decided to move forward with these projects, they do not need to be further evaluated. These projects are listed on slides 21 and 22 of this report.
• Step 2. Evaluate remaining potential projects by considering the BIA’s role in the delivering them and scoring each potential project’s feasibility, desirability, and value.
• Step 3. Group the evaluated projects into one of four tiers, with better scoring projects grouped into higher tiers.
Evaluation framework
The BIA’s focus through this Research and Needs Assessment is identifying projects where:
Evaluationcriteria
BIA Role
Feasability Desirability Value
• The BIA can lead
• The project has a high degree of feasibility, desirability, and value To assess potential projects through these lenses, the evaluation framework includes four criteria with qualitative scores assigned based on feedback from the BIA and participants.
Scoring
Higher score
• Role BIA would have in implementing the project Lead
• BIA leads the project largely independently
• BIA experience and/or ability to do this type of project
• Level of BIA interest in doing the project
Lower score
Collaborate / Advocate
• BIA works with others in partnership or encourages others to lead
• Level of public agency support
• Level of support stakeholders shared for this project
• Potential the project has to help address top problems with solving (identified in the Current State Report)
High High High
• High degree of BIA experience and/or ability
• Support from public agencies
• High BIA and stakeholder interest
• High potential to help address top problems
• Some BIA experience and/or ability
• Some public agency support
• Some BIA and/or stakeholder interest (or mixed interest between BIA and stakeholders)
• Some potential to help address top problems
• Lower BIA experience and/or ability
• Low BIA and/or stakeholder interest
• Lower public agency support
• Low or unclear potential to help address top problems
Tier 1 projects
These projects score best in the evaluation because the BIA has the ability, interest, and experience to lead them; participants in the process supported them, and; they have potential to address construction-related pain points (like lost business). They strive to bring value to businesses and property owners by attracting visitors, new tenants, employers, employees, and customers through promoting Liberty Village and offering diverse, rewarding experiences. Combined, they aim to keep Liberty Village an attractive, interesting destination worth visiting and shopping in despite construction.
1.1 Discover Liberty Placemaking Project
1.2 Walking tours
1.3 New year-round attractions and events
An augmented reality tour, light installation, and music series in Liberty Village public spaces.
Guided tours of Liberty Village focusing on different themes, such as architecture, history, food, and more.
Events like art installations, public space animations, and events.
Enhanced plywood construction
fencing at Atlantic Avenue Exhibition
1.4 Neighbourhood ad
Station access that reflects BIA branding and promotes existence of nearby businesses.
Tier 2 projects
These projects score well in the evaluation because the BIA has the ability, interest, and experience to lead them; participants in the process supported them, and; they have potential to address construction-related pain points (like challenges navigating the area). They score only slightly less well than Tier 1 projects because they require a degree of collaboration with others, meaning they may require slightly more effort and/or be slightly more complex to deliver. They strive to bring value to businesses and property owners by making the area more navigable, beautiful, and identifiable, thereby attracting attracting visitors, new tenants, employers, employees, and customers.
2.1 Wayfinding improvements
Develop and install new wayfinding signs and maps near transit stations. Collaborate
Collaboration with Metrolinx / Ontario Transit Group 2.2 Rail corridor mural updates
Update, upgrade, or replace deteriorating murals in rail corridors.
2.3 Promotion through tourism agencies
Promote Liberty Village to Toronto visitors (such as by placing ads in magazines on airlines)
2.4 Sidewalk alternatives
Promoting and animating off-street networks (like laneways) as an alternative to the road network for pedestrians and/or cyclists to navigate Liberty Village. Collaborate High
Collaboration with Metrolinx / Province
Collaboration with provincial / municipal tourism agencies
Collaboration with City of Toronto likely required depending on scope
Tier 3 projects
These projects score somewhat well in the evaluation. While they all have high potential to solve top pain points, they score less well on desirability and/or feasibility because of either mixed interest from participants or the BIA in seeing these projects come to life. Still, should business, community, or BIA interest change, these projects have high potential to bring value to businesses and property owners by addressing pain points about safety, lack of information, and challenges navigating to and from Liberty Village.
Setup and staff (on a temporary basis) a booth to share information about construction projects, advice or options on how to navigate it, and share promotional products (like gift cards) to help support businesses.
A program that provides people in Liberty Village with a walking buddy to accompany them on their journey if they feel unsafe walking on their own.
A promotional effort to inform potential visitors of safe cycling routes to get to Liberty Village (through maps, social media posts, information on the BIA website)
desirability: some BIA and stakeholder interest
Medium feasibility: unclear if BIA has experience/ability to lead
desirability: some BIA and stakeholder interest
desirability: mixed interest
stakeholder interest, but low BIA interest / comfort.
Tier 4 projects
These projects score less well in the evaluation. They are either more difficult to implement (because they are outside of the BIA’s jurisdiction or the public agencies are less receptive to supporting them), less desirable (because either the BIA or participants expressed less interest in them), or less valuable (because the degree to which they solve transit-related construction challenges is less clear). Despite this evaluation, these ideas may still have value for businesses and property owners for reasons not related to mitigating construction impacts.
4.1 King Street underpass improvements Infrastructure upgrades (such as lighting) to make the experience of walking to Liberty Village feel safer.
4.2 Retail diversification strategy A strategy to seek and attract more diverse retail.
LED sign installed on the temporary pedestrian bridge at Exhibition Station.
Medium feasibility: public agency support unclear Medium desirability: some stakeholder support Medium value: unclear if/how addresses top problems
: BIA does not typically lead these efforts
desirability: Few expressed support
value: unclear if/how addresses top problems
Low feasibility: public agency expressed caution / reluctance to support
value: somewhat address top problems
Funding
While costing potential solutions was not in the scope of this Research and Needs Assessment project, some participants identified funding sources the BIA could leverage (depending on the project), including:
• Transit Expansion Construction Mitigation Grant Program. Through the Transit Expansion Construction Mitigation Grant Program, BIAs are eligible to receive funding for community-driven initiatives that mitigate the impacts of construction on local businesses.
• The My Main Street Community Activator Grant. Provides support for community projects in southern Ontario designed to draw visitors and increase local vibrancy. This program supports high-impact placemaking projects that seek to revitalize neighbourhoods and reimagine public spaces including main streets, downtown strips and plazas as vibrant and inclusive places that work for everyone.
• Streetscape Improvement Program. Capital streetscape projects not only beautify the city but also make economic sense. Streetscape improvements create safe and attractive retail areas that help BIAs and their members sustain and grow their businesses.
• Main Street Innovation Fund. The City of Toronto’s Main Street Innovation Fund provides grant funding for innovative and creative solutions to Toronto’s Main Street business challenges. The mandate is to support local business communities’ recovery and rebuilding through innovative activations, creative place makings, and community capacity-building initiatives
• Outdoor Mural & Street Art Program. Business associations and community groups with strong business participation can receive one-time funding for outdoor mural projects that help promote a local theme and facilitate commercial or industrial neighbourhood identity. The mural program helps local businesses and communities create an attractive and positive identity for their area.
• Special Events Stabilization Initiative. The Special Events Stabilization Initiative (SESI) is a onetime funding program that provides financial relief to local special event organizers who have been hard hit by rising costs, especially those related to the health, safety and security of the general public and event attendees.
Other funding sources
• Outdoor Mural & Street Art Program.
• Outside the Box Program.
• Support Mural Program.
• StART Partnership Program.
• StART Underpass Program.
• StART Monumental Program.
• Concrete Barrier Art Program.
Identifying and evaluating additional projects
The projects identified and evaluated in the Research and Needs Assessment were a starting point to help the BIA think about how to best address construction-related challenges. The BIA, its members, or other community members may identify other solutions as the situation and/or needs evolve. For example, as the process concluded, additional suggested solutions included:
• improving the aesthetic of the temporary pedestrian bridge at Exhibition Station with BIA signs and wayfinding.
• explore advertising the BIA on the back of 153 Dufferin TTC bus
If and as additional projects emerge, the BIA should evaluate them using the evaluation framework in this report as well as any additional evaluation criteria.
Recommendations
1. Further analyze projects, considering factors like:
• BIA resources and effort – what internal resources (like staff time) would be required to deliver the project?
• Cost – what is the cost to deliver the project? Is there external funding support available?
• Speed – how quickly can the BIA implement the project?
• Economies affected – does the project support the daytime economy, nighttime economy, or both?
• Duplication – to what extent do these projects complement or duplicate the efforts of others?
2. Based on further analysis, identify and evaluate additional projects (if needed) and identify one or several proposed priority projects to consider implementing as soon as possible.
3. Share a community update and host another online survey to: let participants know what the BIA is already doing to address challenges and to share and seek feedback on the proposed priority projects (including rationale for their prioritization). If/as needed, consult further with public agencies to confirm feasibility and/or support for priority projects.
4. Based on further analysis and survey results, confirm priority project(s) and begin implementation.
5. As needed, throughout construction, revisit the list of projects to identify additional efforts the BIA could consider implementing. Consult with stakeholders periodically to confirm or refine priorities, including through newsletters, social media posts, mail drops, surveys, and more.
