[PHOTO] At the head of St. Peter's Bay (1)

The village of St. Peter's Bay, a bit more than fifty kilometres northeast of Charlottetown, changed quite a bit since last I saw it. Perhaps because of increased tourist traffic to the sand dunes of Greenwich, accessible from Charlottetown only via St. Peter's Bay, there was a lot of new construction. The St. Peter's Landing complex located at the head of the bay, where bay became tidal inlet, was a delight, not least because it houses the really quite good independent bookstore named The Turret Bell. The pedestrian bridge arcing over the inlet, green grass matted thickly and rather beautifully, was another plus. So was the ice cream.

It was a beautiful afternoon when I was there, warm and bright under a blue sky. It was beautiful, full stop.

[LINK] "Want To Know The Language Of The Future? The Data Suggests It Could Be...French"

Forbes' Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry argues that the French language is set to enjoy growing global prominence over the 21st century, largely as a consequence of growth--demographic, economic--in Francophone Africa.

French isn’t mostly spoken by French people, and hasn’t been for a long time now. The language is growing fast, and growing in the fastest-growing areas of the world, particularly sub-Saharan Africa. The latest projection is that French will be spoken by 750 million people by 2050.

A study by investment bank Natixis even suggests that by that time, French could be the most-spoken language in the world, ahead of English and even Mandarin.

The study’s methodology is somewhat questionable, since it counts as French-speakers all the inhabitants of countries where French is an official language, which probably won’t be the case. And almost certainly, as a second language, English will remain the lingua franca (pun intended).

But the point still stands: French is still a fast-growing, global language. The other mooted language of the future, Mandarin, despite being excruciatingly hard to learn for most Westerners, will probably not be that given China’s certain demographic slide. Meanwhile, French will be present on all continents, and particularly predominant in a continent that, by 2050, should be a fast-growing economic powerhouse–Africa.

To this, I'd add that France (and adjoining Francophone regions) are fairly rare in continental Europe in expecting continued population growth well into the 21st century. A relatively younger, growing population will make economic growth potentially easier to achieve. Germany, Italy, Poland, even Spain with its Latin American connections can't claim this advantage.

[URBAN NOTE] On the high Walkscore rating of mass transit in Toronto

Via blogTO and Yonge Street, I found out that American organization Walkscore has rated Toronto as being the Canadian city with the best mass transit system.

Following on our ranking of the best U.S. cities for public transit earlier this year, today we’re announcing our first ranking of the best Canadian cities for public transit.

We’ve calculated the Transit Score of 38 Canadian cities and almost 1,000 neighborhoods to help you find an apartment for rent or home for sale with a better commute and more transportation choices.

In comparison to the United States, Toronto and Montreal score better than any large U.S. city except New York and San Francisco. And Vancouver, with a Transit Score of 74, trounces nearby Seattle (our home town), with a Transit Score of 57.

Toronto scores 78, Montréal 77. In contrast, the next cities on the list rate substantially lower.

Commenters at blogTO have suggested that the Walkscore rating doesn't take proper account of reliability or the quality of the ride. This may be true. One thing also occurs to me: could it be that, despite all of Toronto mass transit's existential problems, it really is better than other Canadian cities' systems?

[URBAN NOTE] "Public Works: Finding New Uses for Old Infrastructure"

Torontoist's Peter Goffin has pointed to the Minsk Forest City project in the capital city of Belarus that might have interesting lessons for Toronto, specifically in the area of Downsview Park.

U.S.-based designers Sasaki Associates [. . .] have created an innovative master plan for the city of Minsk, Belarus, that, if implemented, would transform a disused airport into a a residential, commercial, cultural, and ecological hot spot.

Commissioned by a Russian consulting firm to conjure up a vision for what used to be Minsk-1 Airport, Sasaki has come up with “Forest City,” a 3.2-square km mixed-use district in the middle of the Belarusian capital, where museums, homes, businesses, and, yes, forests lie side by side. It’s still just the stuff of renderings and project descriptions, but whether or not the City of Minsk bites, Forest City is garnering a fair amount of buzz on architecture and urban design blogs from around the world.

Under the Forest City plan, structures that once served the airport would be updated and integrated into what Sasaki calls “a 24/7 vibrant, diverse, and balanced mixed-use program.” In a nod to the area’s history of aviation, the original terminal would be transformed into an air museum. Meanwhile, the old airstrip has been reimagined as “Runway Park,” a long strip of green space, in which vegetation grows through holes cut into the tarmac.

In fact, Forest City would be veined with a whole connected system of parks, woodland, and waterways winding their way toward a natural tributary south of the district. With space earmarked for everything from canoeing, to ice skating, to art galleries and community centres, Forest City would be just what its name suggests: rural and urban, all at once.

To Torontonian ears, this Forest City thing sounds a lot like Downsview Park—a derelict airfield due to come back from the dead as a mixed-use community where urban housing abuts parkland. Could Toronto offer a real-world model for Sasaki’s master plan? Perhaps not. Downsview Park has been a divisive, ever-changing, sometimes ignored initiative since it was announced in 1999 by the Jean Chrétien government. Originally planned as a National Park in an urban setting, it was handed over in 2012 to Canada Lands Company, the guys who sell off government property for profit. Last November, builders Mattamy Homes struck a deal to construct 1,000 residential units on the park’s lands. In fact, you can already stake your claim to one. To some, the Mattamy deal is the first step in developing a planned community of city homes in pastoral surroundings right by the subway line. For others, it’s sparked worry that the National Park vision is dead and that Downsview will one day be a Mississauga-style housing development.

[URBAN NOTE] blogTO and Torontoist on the future of Ontario Place

blogTO and Torontoist each report on a planned park in the area of Ontario Place, one apparently designed to evoke Toronto's First Nations past.

From the first link:

The serpentine strip that's being turned into a new waterfront park runs from the foot of Ontario Place Blvd., down the back of Echo Beach, and out round the back of the old water slides. When the park was open the area was used for parking and equipment storage.

In January, the province and Waterfront Toronto, the two groups leading the development of the park, called for public feedback on their latest draft. The suggestions, gathered over the last three months, called for improved connections to the water and better recognition of local First Nations heritage.

Many of the people that provided input said they wanted the as yet unnamed park, which is made up of areas that sound like levels in a Sega Genesis video game, to include multi-use trails, space for food trucks and other public events, and forested areas. Facilities should be geared towards walking, cycling, and hiking, they said.

As it currently stands, visitors will enter the park through an artificial ravine, which was not included in the previous incarnation of the park. On the rocky walls, carvings will use patterns and textures from traditional First Nations moccasins; overhead, a part of the looping park trail crosses the ravine on a suspension bridge.

A looping, 980-metre multi-use trail will pass through the upper portion of the park, which contains high hills and forest, and a waterfront boardwalk with public seating and rocky outcrops that protrude from the beach into the water.

There are some nice touches: Some trees will be planted and grown in deliberately unusual shapes as visual landmarks and fire pits will be allowed - encouraged even - on a rocky section of beach with panoramic views of the city skyline. There's even a "romantic garden" for being romantic and a lookout for looking.

[BLOG] Some Saturday links

• Centauri Dreams examines a close-encounter solar probe.


• Writing at The Dragon's Tales, Will Baird has advice for Ukraine's future. (Integrate into the EU, get Western help, avoid conflict in Crimea.)


• The Dragon's Gaze notes that signs of oxygen in a planetary atmosphere alone aren't sure signs of life.


• Far Outliers notes that the dense jungle of Melanesia's island of New Britain was a great equalizer in combat.


• Geocurrents' Asya Perelstvaig has it with sloppy journalism in connections between Siberian and North American languages.


• Joe. My. God. notes that at least some evangelical Christians are accepting that Fred Phelps of the Westboro Baptist Church is dead since it might make their own homophobia seem better.


• Lawyers, Guns and Money corrects a hostile Crooked Timber post on Katy Perry.


• pollotenchegg maps population change in Ukraine by province since independence. The west and centre experienced stability, even growth; the rest of the country, well.


• Torontoist profiles an interesting-sounding mural commemorating Japanese history in Canada and Toronto on Queen Street West.


• The Volokh Conspiracy introduces readers to Erik Jager's Blood Royal, a reconstruction of a medieval murder investigation in Paris.


• Window on Eurasia argues that Russia now lacks the European option of Ukraine.