Global professional services company, GHD, and Danish nature-based design studio, SLA, have been awarded the role of prime consultant by Waterfront Toronto for phase one of infrastructure and streetscape design for a new island community.

Formerly known as Villiers Island, Ookwemin Minising is a new island born from an ambitious flood protection and river restoration project. The Don River, a historic gathering place, will be at the heart of this future community.

The island, which is planned to be home to more than 15,000 people, will also be a destination where people will visit to relax and explore. The first new residents of this island community are expected to move in by 2031.

For the project, GHD, the prime consultant and technical lead, and SLA, design lead for urban realm and landscape, will deliver a new urban environment that aims to honour the legacy of the Don River through an approach rooted in resilient infrastructure, cultural memory and deep ecological integration.

Drawing inspiration from global precedents and local Indigenous knowledge, the team’s “Growing Streets” concept proposes streetscapes that evolve like living ecosystems.