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Public Engagement at City of New Westminster Home

Simcoe Park and Toronto Place Park Master Plan

Project update - April 14, 2026:

Thank you so much for taking the time to share your thoughts on Simcoe Park and Toronto Place Park! An Engagement Summary Report will be posted on this page where you can read community input shared through the engagement. Staff are working to incorporate your feedback into the draft Master Plan, and will present the draft Plan to Council for their review and endorsement.

In the meantime, check out the top three Park features and amenities the community values the most! ⏬

What features or amenities do you value in Simcoe Park? Select up to two options.

What features or amenities do you value in Toronto Place Park? Select up to two options.

What's Happening?

The City is developing a Master Plan to guide the future of Simcoe Park and Toronto Place Park. This plan will serve as a roadmap for improvements in these parks over the next 10+ years, and we want your input to get it right!

What is a Master Plan?

A park Master Plan is a document that establishes the long-term vision for a park’s design, development, and management. It ensures that any changes made are intentional, sustainable, and reflective of the community’s needs.

The Simcoe Park and Toronto Place Park Master Plan will guide the Parks and Recreation Department for the next 10+ years, focusing on:

  • Park Improvements - Evaluating and improving existing features such as the sports field, tennis courts, the off-leash dog area, and other existing amenities.
  • Future Amenities - Identifying new opportunities for recreational activities and community spaces.
  • Long-term Management - Ensuring both parks remain well-maintained and inviting as the neighbourhood grows.

Simcoe Park is classified as a community park and Toronto Place Park as a neighbourhood park, providing play and recreation opportunities to their surrounding community. Simcoe Park (125 McInnes Street) and Toronto Place Park (105 Eighth Street) serve the Brow of the Hill and Downtown neighbourhoods.

Since they were established -- Toronto Place Park in the 1910s and Simcoe Park in the 1970s -- changes in the parks have largely been made on an as-needed basis, such as the addition of swings to Toronto Place Park and the community garden and dog off-leash area to Simcoe Park.

The Master Plan will provide a clear, forward-looking, long-term vision to navigate decisions on how to allocate resources and improve the parks, including how the City can balance the parks’ aging infrastructure with the needs of a growing population. Specifically, the plan will help the Parks and Recreation Department:

  • Respond to current and future social and recreational needs of the diverse community;
  • Ensure efficient, best use of space within the parks;


  • Proactively plan for population growth and shifting neighbourhood demographics; and
  • Coordinate with other parks in New Westminster to fill service gaps, ensuring residents in Brow of the Hill and Downtown have access to a range of park amenities.

Who's Listening?

Nell Gasiewicz

Parks/Open Space Planner

active@newwestcity.ca

Proposed Guiding Principles

The following guiding principles were developed through an analysis of the City’s strategic goals and an evaluation of the unique needs of this growing neighbourhood. They will serve as the foundation for the Master Plan.

  1. The Social Centre – Simcoe Park and Toronto Place Park will serve as a community social space in the neighbourhood, inclusive of people of all ages, abilities and identities.
  2. A Back Yard for an Evolving Neighbourhood – The parks will provide amenities that accommodate a diversity of uses that meet the needs of residents living in a high-density housing neighbourhood.
  3. Connected to the City – Access to and within the parks will be improved to create a seamless, safe, and universally accessible environment that connects park users to the broader city-wide transportation network.
  4. Access to Nature - The existing trees and natural elements in the parks will be protected and enhanced, providing access to cool, comfortable spaces, and improving resilience to climate change.

What decisions have already been made?

Through technical review, previous engagement, and consultation with interdepartmental City staff, the following decisions about key amenities have already been made and are planned to be implemented:

What is open for influence?

While certain elements have already been established as project requirements, community input is important in shaping the specific amenities and configuration. We want to hear from you on the following:

  • Validating the Guiding Principles- Confirm that the vision for these parks aligns with your values.
  • Identifying Park Amenity Preferences- While the Master Plan will keep some existing features of the park, we need your help to guide improvements and prioritize additional amenities to replace those that are coming to the end of their service life.
  • Refining Park Layout and Character- Help us arrange active amenities (such as play, sports, gardening, and social areas) around the core of the park (“Active Heart”) and ensure the park is designed to feel welcoming.
  • Informing Future Programming- Share your ideas on the types of programs and activities you would like to see in these park spaces.

How will my input be used?

Once the engagement closes, the project team will review and summarize all community input into an Engagement Summary Report, which will be posted here.

Your feedback will help shape the Master Plan in the following ways:

  1. Refine Design Options- Adjust the layout and features of Simcoe and Toronto Place Parks based on community priorities.
  2. Finalize the Recommendations- Ensure the final plan reflects the values and needs of the community.

The final layout for the parks will be shared on this project page for information once the Master Plan report has been endorsed by Council.

Check back here for updates as work progresses.

Phases

Phases overview
Phase 1: Site inventory and analysis
Site inventory and analysis
Phase 2: Park programming options
Park programming options
Phase 3: Public engagement and interest group consultation
Public engagement and interest group consultation
Phase 4: What We Heard report from engagement
What We Heard report from engagement
Phase 5: Illustrative Master Plan and Council Presentation
Illustrative Master Plan and Council Presentation

Park programming options

December 23, 2025 8:00 a.m. - March 23, 2026 7:00 a.m.

Park Layout

The project team evaluated what uses and amenities that are feasible in the parks and establishing the routing of the multi-use pathway through Simcoe Park. The image below maps out the proposed park layout:

Click here to expand the image

Active Heart

The Master Plan also proposes that a central active play and social space be added to Simcoe Park, called the 'Active Heart'. Below are three conceptual options have been developed for the Active Heart.


Multi-sport Court

With a growing population and limited space for multiple amenities, the tennis courts will be redeveloped at their current location into an accessible multi-use sports court to accommodate a variety of sports. The area will be reduced to accommodate the Active Transportation Network multi-use pathway, opening up space for a transition area between the courts and Queens Avenue.


Court 1: 1 tennis/pickleball court and 4 pickleball courts (overlaid)

Court 2: 1 basketball full-court with additional practice nets and 1 non-regulation size ball hockey court (overlaid)


Sports Field

The current grass soccer field is below regulation size and is closed every summer for repairs from heavy use. Due to its size and required maintenance, this field remains underutilized at many times of the year. As the neighbourhood grows, the need for sports fields is expected to increase. The Master Plan proposes increasing the field size to Canada Soccer U11 or U12 regulation size (64m x 42m) to allow for more use.

Additionally, a resilient surface is required to keep the field open and in use year-round. A year-round resilient field surface could be:



Toronto Place Park

Toronto Place Park is currently underutilized, primarily due to its slope and proximity to traffic. The Master Plan will propose the removal or relocation of the swings in the park. Additionally, it will suggest features and amenities that could enhance the use of this space, better serving the neighbourhood.

The existing, healthy trees in the park will be protected, which makes it difficult to create new flat areas required for many typical park amenities. A new community garden is one of the amenities possible within the constraints. It would take advantage of the consistent sun exposure and help meet the existing demand for community garden space in this dense area of the City. Potential amenities considered include:

  • Community Garden
  • Pollinator meadow
  • A meadow of grasses and flowering plants, mowed infrequently, that increases biodiversity and provides food and shelter to local pollinators such as bees, birds and butterflies.
  • Pocket forest with mature trees
  • A shaded passive space similar to the Simcoe Park pocket forest.
  • Seating areas and places to rest
  • Benches along the park paths

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