EllisDon is proud to announce the Port Lands Flood Protection project in southeast Toronto has hit the biggest milestone yet: the renaturalization of the mouth of the Don River. The water is, once again, flowing freely!

“Flood protection would not be a reality had it not been for the unwavering commitment over the 7+ years of all our partners. A special thank you to our project lead, EllisDon, for taking on this project that is very complicated and risky. Anyone with experience in large scale infrastructure projects understands that the biggest risks are found underground. The work we did together from the get-go including budgeting, assessing, constructability, ongoing evaluate engineering made this a successful project we see today.” said George Zegarac, President and CEO, Waterfront Toronto.

Our collaborative approach and the relationships we’ve built with partners, along with our team's dedication and commitment have enabled us to seamlessly overcome this challenging phase to accomplish this milestone.

“I’m especially happy that this will create better access to the water, address the city’s urgent need for new housing, parks, and imaginative green space and that it will become a destination for Downtown Toronto’s waterfront. This project certainly aligned with my Nation’s values and the duty to consult process as the treaty holder.” said Claire Sault, O’gimaa-kwe (Chief), Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation.

The area is slated to be a mixed-use community with housing, parks, trails, retail spaces and more in an effort to expand and renew critical public infrastructure over the next decade. The former industrial lands on the newly created island are set to be transformed into:

• 20.2 hectares of new greenspace
• 6.1km of land for trails
• 4.5km of underground utilities
• 19.4 hectares of developable land

The progress made on this project is one to be celebrated. We are proud of our team for getting us to this milestone and excited to continue working with our partners to create a beautiful destination for the City.

Photographs Courtesy of Waterfront Toronto
Photography by Vid Ingelevics & Ryan Walker