The park is part of a global movement to build public spaces that connect neighbors and work with local elements to serve as key parts of a city’s green infrastructure.

A new park in Montreal sits atop a disused railway track and features ‘mini-forests’ planted to encourage the quick growth of native plants, reports Kelsey Rolfe in The Globe and Mail.
“The park’s design hearkens back to its previous life: after the tracks were abandoned in the 1990s, trees and vegetation grew wild on the site. It became an unofficial but beloved local park and community space for the part-industrial neighbourhood until a developer cut down the trees without permission in 2013.” Now, thanks to a decade of community advocacy, the city spent $10 million to acquire and redevelop the site.
Gorilla Park, as it’s known, hosts over 1,500 trees and shrubs and seeks to mimic the spontaneous forest that grew on the site previously. According to Rolfe, “It’s just one example of the transformation under way across Canada to make public spaces more sustainable and community focused.” In Toronto, a 1.75-kilometer linear park dubbed The Bentway nestled under the Gardiner Expressway doubles as a recreational space and stormwater infrastructure. “ It now draws hundreds of thousands of Torontonians every year for skating in the winter, free public events and art installations in the other seasons and cycling and walking on its trail network year-round.”
FULL STORY: Turning railway lands into parkland: How cities are reinventing public space

Trump Administration Could Effectively End Housing Voucher Program
Federal officials are eyeing major cuts to the Section 8 program that helps millions of low-income households pay rent.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Ken Jennings Launches Transit Web Series
The Jeopardy champ wants you to ride public transit.

Driving Equity and Clean Air: California Invests in Greener School Transportation
California has awarded $500 million to fund 1,000 zero-emission school buses and chargers for educational agencies as part of its effort to reduce pollution, improve student health, and accelerate the transition to clean transportation.

Congress Moves to End Reconnecting Communities and Related Grants
The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee moved to rescind funding for the Neighborhood Equity and Access program, which funds highway removals, freeway caps, transit projects, pedestrian infrastructure, and more.

From Throughway to Public Space: Taking Back the American Street
How the Covid-19 pandemic taught us new ways to reclaim city streets from cars.
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