When travelers hear the word “islands,” they often picture land surrounded by water, palm trees and perhaps a bridge linking it to the mainland. In Toronto, however, the Bentway Islands reinterpret that idea: they are traffic islands beneath and beside the busy Gardiner Expressway, reinvented as public spaces. A “bent,” explains David Carey, co-executive director of The Bentway, is an architectural and engineering term for the column-and-beam structures that form the space under highways and bridges like the Gardiner.
© Nic Lehoux, courtesy of The Bentway
Field Operations, a New York-based design firm known for large civic projects, together with Brook McIlroy, a Toronto-based practice specializing in architecture, urban design and landscape architecture, have been selected to design the Bentway Islands. Their plan will transform three sizable traffic islands—totaling about 125,000 square feet between Dan Leckie Way and Spadina Avenue—into lively public spaces for the surrounding neighborhoods.
The Bentway Islands will serve as a “sister site” to The Bentway’s existing Phase 1 location: a much-loved cultural destination under the Gardiner that has hosted more than 1.4 million visitors since opening in 2018. Adding the Islands will create more outdoor room for recreation, culture and daily life in a part of the city experiencing rapid growth.
© Jack Landau, courtesy of The Bentway
“The Bentway Islands mark an exciting next chapter in our ongoing mission to reimagine the Gardiner Expressway,” said Ilana Altman, co-executive director of The Bentway. “This site will provide spaces for recreation, play, culture and small-scale retail, promote biodiversity, and set a benchmark for low-carbon landscape design. Above all, it will help convert a long-standing barrier into a stronger connector and gateway.”
This initiative is the first concrete outcome of the Under Gardiner Public Realm Plan, a comprehensive vision for the underused areas below and beside the Gardiner Expressway. The plan was developed by The Bentway in partnership with the City of Toronto and was approved by Toronto City Council in April 2024.
© David Pike Photography, courtesy of The Bentway
The design team was chosen through a competitive selection process judged by representatives from The Bentway, the City of Toronto, local community members and an Indigenous engagement advisor. Field Operations brings experience from projects such as Waterfront Seattle and New York City’s High Line, and Brook McIlroy contributes deep local expertise in urban design and landscape planning.
Design development will draw on lessons learned from The Bentway’s Phase 1 site, pilot projects along the Gardiner, and input from nearby residents, Indigenous communities and technical specialists at the City of Toronto. Initial design concepts are expected to be revealed in 2025, and construction will follow a multiyear rehabilitation of the Expressway in the area.