With yesterday being such a beautiful day, it was a perfect day to explore. And I found two events that I was very excited to check out: The Homegrown Park Crawl that ended in Christie Pits Park (click on the link for the article on that event). The second was the Bloordale Laneway Crawl.
As part of The Laneway Project, the idea is to take bland, underused laneways and create “safe, vibrant, people-friendly spaces”. Bloordale is one of the first neighbourhoods to take on this challenge. While the Laneway Crawl is still in its infancy, it is a great concept and sparks a lot of ideas of how the laneways can be used as another way to bring the community closer and to create an inviting space to gather and play.
Led by local businesses and residents, and in conjuction with the STEPS Initiative and The Toronto School of Art and JR Artist’s Inside Out Project, the Bloordale Laneway Crawl offered a variety of things to do, see and buy. From aesthetic improvements through painted murals on garages to decorative baubles hanging from trees and on fences; to live musical performances and DJ dance parties; to yard sales, drum circles, kids play zones, and promotion of local businesses and residents; to petting live snakes, being part of a live art installation, and being offered by one laneway resident to come on over for some lemon water, conversation and to watch the Jays game!
It was a fun experience that brought many smiles. I’m looking forward to seeing how this event evolves and expands both in Bloordale and around the city.
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If you like this, see also:
Homegrown Park Crawl
100 in 1 Day — a fun new festival!
