[URBAN NOTE] "Popular woodlot threatened by Scarborough subway plans"

[rfmcdonald]

The Toronto Star's Ben Spurr notes another potential casualty of the Scarborough subway extension.

It’s survived seven decades, suburban sprawl and encroaching condominiums, but it may not survive the Scarborough subway.

A section of historic woodlot near the Scarborough Civic Centre may need to be cut down to make way for the transit project, according to TTC staff who have identified the parkland as a potential location for the subway’s tunnel mobilization site.

The idea of leveling the stand of old trees is not going down well with nearby residents or the local councillor, who consider the Frank Faubert Woodlot a key community asset.

“I think it’s really unforgivable to even consider going through there,” said Iain McLeod, president of the Glen Andrew Community Association.

McLeod was also the president of the association in the late 1980s, when community pushback prevented the grove from being flattened by a condo developer. He recalls that at the time, “the one thing the community insisted on was: Don’t touch the wood lot.”