Neil Mclellan Park
Urban Plaza, middle of the pack overall (score 35, rank ~52th percentile). Strongest: enclosure; weakest: natural comfort.
No photograph yet. If you have one of Neil Mclellan Park, we would like to use it.
Submit a photoAerial, City of Toronto orthophoto, ~8 cm/px source · cached 5/9/2026
Data updated
Neil Mclellan Park scores 35.1 / 100. Strongest dimensions: enclosure / eyes on park and connectivity. Weakest: edge activation (12.1). Border-vacuum risk is elevated (100). This score is a transparent reading of Jane Jacobs-style vitality factors, not a definitive judgment.
Area · 0.31 ha
What's here
Getting around
90 m of mapped path. Too little surface tagging to say how much is paved.
Too little path mapped to check for steps.
Typically 6 m to the nearest bench, and 12 m at the far end.
Nearest parking 66 m away. None of the 4 nearby lots records whether it has accessible spaces.
Path, seating and parking data comes from OpenStreetMap and reflects what volunteers have mapped, not a survey. Absence here means nobody has recorded it. This section does not assess wheelchair access: the relevant OpenStreetMap tag is present on well under 1% of Toronto paths.
Weighted across six dimensions · confidence 66%
Data confidence: moderate
Scores are not bell-curved. Percentiles and expected scores provide context without changing the underlying model.
Loading map…
The parks map is loading.Boundary: OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
Explain this score
Where did the 35 come from? Each weighted contribution against a neutral 50 baseline. Green = pushed up; red = pulled down.
Sum of contributions = the headline score. A negative bar means that dimension dragged the park below the city-wide neutral baseline.
Why this park works
Neil Mclellan Park works because its enclosure score (81) is in the top tier and its connectivity (66) is also top quartile (9 mid-rise buildings frame the edge with passive surveillance).
What limits this park
Neil Mclellan Park's edges are fronted by border-vacuum land uses (highways, rail, parking, blank institutional), risk score 100.
Most distinctive characteristic
Most distinctive feature: exceptionally high enclosure (81, top quartile).
Jacobs reading
Neil Mclellan Park sits between an urban social park and an ecological retreat: moderately useful for both, exceptionally suited to neither.
Tradeoffs
- The park is enclosed by buildings (81) but the surrounding streets are quiet (edge activation 12): frame without animation.
- High connectivity coexists with high border-vacuum risk (100): much of that connectivity is to highways, rail, or parking lots, not to neighbourhoods.
Performance in context
- Reads as a modest underperformer relative to comparable parks (gap -6; cohort: small Urban Plaza).
- Citywide rank is high (52nd) but typology rank is more modest (31st): the strength likely comes from the dataset average pulling lower than this typology’s baseline.
Typology classification
Classified as Urban Plaza: 3145 m², paved (0% canopy), 31.1 buildings/100 m
Edge Activation
Within 100 m of the park edge: 70 active uses (restaurant, transit_stop, retail, cafe) and 10 dead/hostile uses (parking_lot, highway, rail). Active edges keep "eyes on the park" through the day; parking lots, blank institutional walls, rail and highway frontages drain street life.
Source: OpenStreetMap: cafes, restaurants, shops, schools, community centres, transit, parking, highways, rail. All data sources.
Connectivity
Connectivity blends paths, intersections, transit, entrances, and edge density. This park has 5 mapped paths/walkways and 12 sidewalk segments within 50 m; 9 street intersections within 100 m; 1 subway or GO station, 6 bus stops within a 400 m walk; 4 estimated access points across ~264 m of perimeter. edge density is healthy, no superblock penalty. Source coverage: centreline, pedestrian_network, transit_osm.
Source: Toronto Centreline V2 + Pedestrian Network + OSM transit stops. All data sources.
Amenity Diversity
2 distinct amenity types in the park (playground, bench). Diversity drives the score, so a park with many distinct activity types can outrank a larger park that repeats the same use.
Source: Toronto Parks & Recreation Facilities + OSM amenity tags. All data sources.
Natural Comfort
Natural-comfort components for this park: ~8.4% effective canopy (0.0% from contiguous tree polygons + scattered tree density); nearest waterbody ~570 m; 12 city-mapped trees inside the polygon (12.0/ha). Reading: exposed. Source coverage: waterbodies, street_trees. Impervious surface is approximated (Toronto's authoritative layer ships only as a raster GeoTIFF).
Source: Toronto Treed Area + Ravine + Waterbodies + Street Tree Inventory. All data sources.
Enclosure / Eyes on Park
82 buildings within 25 m of the park edge (9 mid-rise, 73 low-rise, 0 tower); avg edge height 6.9 m (~2 floors); 31.1 buildings per 100 m of 264 m perimeter (strong frontage density); edges are low-rise (mostly 2 to 3 floors); no towers immediately adjacent. "Eyes on the park" come strongest from the 9 mid-rise edge buildings.
Source: Toronto 3D Massing (building footprints + heights). All data sources.
Border Vacuum Risk
Border-vacuum factors within 50 m of the park: Bloor Street West, Bloor Street West, Bloor Street West, Line 2 Bloor-Danforth, Line 2 Bloor-Danforth, Bloor Street West. Jacobs warned that highways, rail, parking lots and blank institutional edges act as "vacuums" that suppress foot traffic and isolate the park from its neighbourhood.
Source: OpenStreetMap: highways, rail, parking. All data sources.
Equity Context
Equity Context requires inputs not yet loaded for this park (Toronto Neighbourhood Profiles). Score is held at a neutral 50 with low confidence. Read with caution.
Source: Not loaded yet: Toronto Neighbourhood Profiles. All data sources.
Amenities (2 types · 12 records)
- playground
- bench
Nearby active-edge features (80)
- rail: Line 2 Bloor-Danforth0 m
- rail: Line 2 Bloor-Danforth0 m
- transit stop16 m
- retail: Gibson's Cleaners18 m
- transit stop: Runnymeade Road20 m
- retail: Rowe Farms27 m
- retail: Capucci Salon27 m
- retail: Bread & Roses27 m
- restaurant: Village Juicery28 m
- retail: Circle K28 m
- retail: Rogers/Fido29 m
- retail: Cora Cuture29 m
- retail: Perfect Nail & Waxing29 m
- retail: Hot Oven Bakery29 m
- retail: Buck's Hard Goods29 m
- restaurant: Ali Baba's30 m
- retail: New Balance30 m
- retail: Her's Fine Lingerie31 m
- retail: Gateway Newstands32 m
- transit stop32 m
- retail: Freedom Mobile32 m
- restaurant: Wingstop35 m
- retail: Telus / Koodo38 m
- restaurant: Kinton Ramen38 m
- retail: Racer Sportif42 m
- transit stop43 m
- highway: Bloor Street West43 m
- highway: Bloor Street West43 m
- retail: Janina’s Esthetics43 m
- highway: Bloor Street West43 m
- retail: Dollar+46 m
- retail: Bell47 m
- highway: Bloor Street West49 m
- highway: Bloor Street West51 m
- cafe: Starbucks51 m
- transit stop: Runnymede Station52 m
- retail: Specsavers52 m
- transit stop53 m
- retail: Bloor Village Flowers56 m
- retail: Green Thumb Fruit Market58 m
- retail: Nexus Printing58 m
- retail: Bloor Optical58 m
- retail: Craig's Cookies58 m
- restaurant: Bukhara Grill58 m
- restaurant: Lettuce Love Cafe59 m
- retail: Peachtree Health Foods59 m
- retail: The Works59 m
- retail: Hakim Optical60 m
- restaurant: Simply Thai Cuisine60 m
- retail: D2E Hair Boutique60 m
- restaurant: Shakey's60 m
- restaurant: Popeyes60 m
- retail: Red Label61 m
- retail: WaxOn61 m
- retail: The Ten Spot63 m
- parking lot66 m
- transit stop: Runnymede Rd at Bloor St W66 m
- retail: COBS Bread66 m
- restaurant: Queen's Pasta Café69 m
- cafe: Lermer70 m
- restaurant: Shelby’s Legendary Shawarma71 m
- retail: Runnymede Barber Shop71 m
- restaurant: Shadi Shawarma72 m
- restaurant: Sunshine Village Grill76 m
- restaurant: The Swan79 m
- retail: California Sun Spa81 m
- retail: Northern Reflections82 m
- highway: Bloor Street West83 m
- transit stop: Runnymede Station83 m
- restaurant: Yogurty's84 m
- cafe: Lyla's House86 m
- transit stop: Kennedy Avenue88 m
- retail: Fig Tree89 m
- retail: New Star Cleaners89 m
- retail: Bloor & Kennedy Flowers90 m
- transit stop: Runnymede91 m
- transit stop: Runnymede91 m
- retail: Karpaty Travel91 m
- highway: Bloor Street West97 m
- retail: Meaty Eats98 m
Park profile
Five-axis radar across the structural dimensions.
Citywide percentile ranks
Across all Toronto parks in the dataset.
- Overall vitality52th
- Edge activation70th
- Connectivity86th
- Amenity diversity70th
- Natural comfort41th
- Enclosure86th
Most similar parks
Closest in metric space across the five structural dimensions.
- Skeens Lane ParketteUrban Plaza45
- Everett ParkUrban Plaza43
- Cy Townsend ParkUrban Plaza45
- Marian Engel ParkUrban Plaza46
- Jordon Carter Memorial ParkCivic Square44
Most opposite parks
Furthest in metric space. Useful for recognising what kind of park this isn’t.
- Trca Lands ( 26)Ravine / Naturalized Park27
- Toronto Islands - Muggs Island ParkRavine / Naturalized Park26
- Rouge ParkRavine / Naturalized Park28
- Rouge ParkRavine / Naturalized Park26
- Rouge ParkRavine / Naturalized Park21
Human activity signals: not available
No activity signals have landed for this park yet. The model has scored its physical form but it can’t yet say how often it’s programmed, photographed, or walked through. See /data-ethics for what we will and will not collect.
Does this score feel accurate?
Your read of Neil Mclellan Park matters. We’re testing whether the model lines up with how people actually use the park. Submissions are stored locally; no account needed.
Tell us how this park feels
We measure structure (canopy, edges, connectivity). You measure feeling. Both matter, and disagreement is itself useful civic data.
What would improve this park?
Generated from the weakest measured dimensions: a starting point, not a prescription.
- Activate the edges: encourage cafés, retail or community uses on the streets that face the park; replace blank or parking-lot edges where possible.
- Diversify what people can do in the park (playground, washroom, water, shade, performance, sport, garden): even small additions raise this score.
- Increase canopy and reduce paved area. Shade and water features extend usable hours and seasons.
- Mitigate border vacuums (highways, rail, parking) with active programming on the still-permeable edges and treat the hostile edge as a design challenge.
Data sources
- City of Toronto Open Data: Green SpacesPolygon boundaries, official names, land classes. Boundaries are reconciled against OpenStreetMap (ODbL) for new and updated parks.
- Parks & Recreation FacilitiesInventory of in-park amenities (washrooms, fields, rinks…).
- Toronto Pedestrian NetworkSidewalk segments around and through parks; estimated park entrances.
- Toronto Centreline V2Street segments + intersection nodes near park edges; trails and walkways.
- Toronto 3D MassingBuilding footprints + heights for edge-building counts, frontage density, and tower-in-the-park risk.
- Toronto Treed AreaTree canopy share inside park polygons via stratified-grid sampling.
- Toronto Waterbodies & RiversWater surface inside parks + nearest-water distance for cooling.
- Ravine & Natural Feature ProtectionRavine overlap as a cooling / natural-comfort signal.
- Toronto Street Tree InventoryTree count + density inside park polygons.
- OpenStreetMap (Overpass API)Cafés, restaurants, retail, transit stops, parking, highways, rail.