Save Smythe Park — Halt the Rockcliffe Riverine Flood Mitigation Project Pending a Workable and Environmentally Responsible Plan

Smythe Park is a rare and beloved community sanctuary in Toronto with natural wetlands that protects nearby homes, supports a wide variety of plants and wildlife, and offers one of the few places where neighbours gather, children play, and nature still has room to breathe. It has baseball diamonds and a swimming pool. This flood mitigation project now threatens to permanently damage or destroy this irreplaceable park—without delivering real flood protection.

Key concerns:

●      An independent flood mitigation expert confirms the current design will not prevent residential flooding

●      Up to 80 hectares of floodplain and wildlife habitat will be replaced with cement

●      847 trees are slated to be removed along Jane Street, destroying sensitive wildlife areas including snapping turtle’s breeding areas, a Species of Concern. The total number of trees to be removed for this project is unknown. 

●      Wildlife will be evicted from their winter shelters in February

●      Dangerous construction sequence that expands the Jane Street bridge before rebuilding the undersized Scarlett Road bridge, increasing the potential for massive flooding impacts of a toxic mixture high in sewage to the park and into neighbouring homes

●      Continued sewage discharges into Black Creek, one of the most polluted watersheds in the GTA

●      City officials are, ignoring community concerns, refusing to compromise, and committing hundreds of millions of tax payers money to a plan that will not work 

●      Carrying Place (ancient First Nations trail) passes through the park which makes it sacred land. First Nations ceremonies are held by the medicine garden and throughout the park. This is not being respected. 

We call on the City of Toronto to:

●      Pause the project immediately

●      Conduct an independent review of the project

●      Build the Scarlett Road bridge first

●      End sewage discharges into Black Creek

●      Restore and protect Lavender Creek

●      Incorporate First Nations knowledge into a revised design

●      Naturalize from Alliance to Scarlett Road, it is a vital wildlife corridor

●      Protect Smythe Park and the entire project area using a proven, nature-based flood solution

We call on the Federal Government to 

·       Withdrawl their funding until an external review of the project is completed and an effective nature based flooding solution is reached. 

We support effective flood protection—but not at the cost of destroying such a vast amount of valuable green space. Tomorrow it could be your local green space at risk. Help us set the precedent. Protect Toronto Parks and Ravines. Save Smythe Park.