Birch Cliff Jane’s Walk

Would you like to take a walk with your neighbours and explore 100 years of Birch Cliff history?

If so, mark Sunday May 5th on your calendar, as Birch Cliff is holding its very first “Jane’s Walk”, a conversational walking tour inspired by world-famous urban activist Jane Jacobs.

The walk is being organized by Karin Eaton of Mural Routes and Marie Belanger, who has worked at libraries in Scarborough for the last 20 years.

“I was on a Jane’s Walk last year and I really liked the idea,” said Belanger.  “I think it’s important that neighbours come out and walk.  Through a Jane’s Walk, neighbours get to know their street and you find out things about your neighbourhood you never knew.  It’s a beautiful day out, its relaxing, no stress.”

Meet at Taylor Library at 3pm

Jane’s Walk Birch Cliff will start at 3pm in front of Taylor Library at Warden Avenue and Kingston Road and head eastward, stopping at community landmarks that tell the story of our neighbourhood’s rich heritage.

The Scarborough Rifle Company marching to the Niagara Frontier to defend Canada against the Fenians on June 1, 1866. By John Hood.

Points of interest will include the former Scarborough Township Council Chamber, the radial car tracks, the site of the old Birchcliff Theatre as well as newer landmarks such as the birch tree murals that started popping up last summer.

The walk is expected to last two hours and will finish at Harrison Estates Park, just south of the Scarborough Arts building on Kingston Road.

Belanger says she and Eaton have organized a “skeleton” of a walk and are counting on current and former Birch Cliff residents to share their memories.

“The people who come to the walk are creating the experience of the walk.  We’re not leading it, we’re guiding it.  We provide the framework for conversation,” said Belanger.

About Jane Jacobs

The inaugural Jane’s Walk was held in Toronto in 2007 and has quickly grown to the point where last year people participated in more than 85 cities in 17 countries.

Jane Jacobs, New York, 1961

It was established to honour the legacy of Jacobs, who “authored The Death and Life of Great American Cities in 1961.

Jacobs rose to prominence in the 1950s and 60s while leading the fight to save parts of New York’s Greenwich Village, her own neighbourhood, from being razed to make way for high-rise towers and an expressway.

Jacobs’ influence in Toronto

In 1968, Jacobs moved to Toronto where she became a leading figure in the successful fight to stop the Spadina Expressway, lobbied against building a bridge to the Island Airport, and influenced the redevelopment of the St. Lawrence Market area.

Jacobs was named an officer of the Order of Canada in 1996.

New development at Birchmount and Kingston Road

Marie Belanger said she hopes the Birch Cliff Jane’s Walk will celebrate the walkable urban city, as envisioned by Jane Jacobs.

“I’m very excited about this walk because I think Birch Cliff is a very sustainable community.  It has a lot of long-time residents who are invested deeply in the community and I think this walk will be an invitation to those who may be newer in the community to come and celebrate not only the history of Birch Cliff but then consider a little bit what Birch Cliff can be as well.”