HTO is an iconic park along Toronto’s waterfront designed to reconnect Toronto with Lake Ontario and attract more visitors to the city’s waterfront.

The park consists of two sections built on existing man-made infill: HTO Park West on the eastern half of Maple Leaf Quay and HTO Park East is built on the old Peter Street Slip. The park is made up of an urban beach, a new concept to Toronto with many successful international precedents, and playful sodded berms.

Shade is offered by tall yellow umbrellas peppered in the sand and silver maples and willows on the berms. Providing a unique yet flexible space where people of all ages can relax by the water without having to leave the city, was an effective strategy in attracting more visitors to the site.

The first urban beach along Toronto’s waterfront, HTO re-introduces the city to the water’s edge as the area transforms from an industrial to a residential neighborhood. Steps from the downtown core, tall yellow umbrellas stand on a sandy beach edged by playful green dunes, creating a space that captures the imagination of both adults and children. HTO has become an iconic destination for tourists and residents alike and has acted as a catalyst for other development across Toronto’s waterfront.

In 2016, HTO Park was included in The Landscape Performance Series Case Study Briefs, a database of over 200 exemplary built projects with quantified environmental, economic and social benefits.