Othercluster ·Walkable Mid-Rise Neighbourhood Parks (enclosure-leaning)Yorkdale-Glen Park (31)confidence moderatereal Toronto data

Benner Park

Other, below average overall (score 28, rank ~23th percentile). Strongest: connectivity; weakest: edge activation.

Aerial — City of Toronto orthophoto, ~8 cm/px source · cached 5/9/2026

Benner Park scores 28.2 / 100. Strongest dimensions: enclosure / eyes on park and connectivity. Weakest: edge activation (0). Border-vacuum risk is elevated (96). This score is a transparent reading of Jane Jacobs-style vitality factors — not a definitive judgment.

Best for:varies — see metrics

Area · 1.00 ha

Vitality Score

28/100

Weighted across six dimensions · confidence 70%

Data Confidence

28.2 / 100

Citywide

23rd

of all 3,273 parks

Among Other

64th

same primary typology

Expected for similar parks

median in medium Other (n=60)

Performance gap

raw − expected · context confidence high

typical

Scores are not bell-curved. Percentiles and expected scores provide context without changing the underlying model.

Explain this score

Where did the 28 come from? Each weighted contribution against a neutral 50 baseline. Green = pushed up; red = pulled down.

Download JSON

What pushed this score up or down vs a neutral 50weight × score

Edge Activation0 · p27

-12.5

Amenity Diversity12 · p72

-7.6

Border Vacuum Risk96 (risk)

-4.6

Enclosure / Eyes on Park76 · p77

+2.6

Connectivity62 · p78

+2.5

Natural Comfort36 · p27

-2.1

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

Benner Park works because its connectivity score (62) is above average and its enclosure (76) is also top quartile (21 transit stops sit within a 400 m walk; 9 intersections fall within 100 m of the edge).

What limits this park

Benner Park is held back by edge activation (0, below-average)— the surrounding streets carry too few active uses to spill into the park; border-vacuum risk is also elevated (96).

Most distinctive characteristic

Most distinctive feature: exceptionally high connectivity (62, top quartile).

Jacobs reading

Benner Park sits between an urban social park and an ecological retreat — moderately useful for both, exceptionally suited to neither.

Tradeoffs

Connectivity (62) significantly outpaces natural comfort (36) — well placed in the city but offers little shade or ecological respite.
The park is enclosed by buildings (76) but the surrounding streets are quiet (edge activation 0) — frame without animation.
High connectivity coexists with high border-vacuum risk (96) — much of that connectivity is to highways, rail, or parking lots, not to neighbourhoods.

Performance in context

Although its citywide rank is low (23rd), it ranks highly among similar others (64th) — strong for what it is, even if the absolute score is moderate.

Typology classification

confidence 30%

Other

Classified as Other: does not meet any specific typology threshold (1.0 ha, 1 amenity types, frontage 8.3/100m)

Edge Activation

25% weightpartial 60%

0.0 / 100

Within 100 m of the park edge: 1 active uses (transit_stop) and 5 dead/hostile uses (rail, highway, parking_lot). Active edges keep "eyes on the park" through the day; parking lots, blank institutional walls, rail and highway frontages drain street life.

Source: OSM POIs (amenity/shop) + Toronto Building Footprints + land use

Connectivity

20% weightmeasured 85%

62.4 / 100

Connectivity blends paths, intersections, transit, entrances, and edge density. This park has 4 mapped paths/walkways and 9 sidewalk segments within 50 m; 9 street intersections within 100 m; 21 transit stops within a 400 m walk; 4 estimated access points across ~589 m of perimeter. edge density is healthy — no superblock penalty. Source coverage: centreline, pedestrian_network, transit_osm.

Streets within 25 m6

Intersections within 100 m9

Paths/walkways (50 m)4

Sidewalk segments (50 m)9

Transit stops (400 m)21

Estimated entrances4

Edge connections / 100 m perimeter1.02

Park perimeter589 m

Source: Toronto Centreline V2 + Pedestrian Network + OSM transit stops

Amenity Diversity

20% weightmeasured 75%

11.9 / 100

1 distinct amenity types in the park (playground). Diversity, not raw count, 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

Natural Comfort

15% weightpartial 60%

36.1 / 100

Natural-comfort components for this park: 2.9% estimated tree canopy; 2 city-mapped trees inside the polygon (2.0/ha). Reading: exposed. Source coverage: treed_area, street_trees. Impervious surface is approximated (Toronto's authoritative layer ships only as a raster GeoTIFF).

Canopy coverage2.9%

Canopy area0.03 ha

Inside ravine system0.0%

Water surface inside park0.0%

Nearest water (if outside park)1,500 m

Estimated green100.0%

City-mapped trees inside polygon2

Tree density2.0 / ha

Cover diversity (Shannon, 0–100)18.9

Sample points used69

Source: Toronto Treed Area + Ravine + Waterbodies + Street Tree Inventory

Enclosure / Eyes on Park

10% weightmeasured 80%

75.5 / 100

49 buildings within 25 m of the park edge (2 mid-rise, 43 low-rise, 4 tower); avg edge height 10.2 m (~3 floors); 8.3 buildings per 100 m of 589 m perimeter — strong frontage density; edges are at a Jacobs-scale walkable mid-rise (3–7 floors); 4 towers ≥ 40 m within 25 m of the edge. "Eyes on the park" come strongest from the 2 mid-rise edge buildings.

Buildings within 25 m49

Buildings within 50 m49

Avg edge height10.2 m (~3 floors)

Tallest edge building68.1 m

Mid-rise (3–7 floors)2

Low-rise (< 3 floors)43

Towers (≥ 13 floors)4

Frontage density8.32 per 100 m perimeter

Mid-rise share of edge4%

Tower share of edge8%

Blank-edge share (proxy)0%

Park perimeter589 m

Source: Toronto 3D Massing (building footprints + heights)

Border Vacuum Risk

10% weightpartial 60%

96.0 risk

Border-vacuum factors within 50 m of the park: Line 1 Yonge-University, Line 1 Yonge-University, Allen Road, Allen Road. Jacobs warned that highways, rail, parking lots and blank institutional edges act as "vacuums" — they suppress foot traffic and isolate the park from its neighbourhood.

Source: Toronto Street Centreline (highways) + rail layer + OSM landuse + building footprints

Equity Context

contextinferred 15%

50.0 / 100

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: Toronto Neighbourhood Profiles

Amenities (1 types · 1 records)

playground

Nearby active-edge features (34)

highway — Allen Road7 m
rail — Line 1 Yonge-University18 m
highway — Allen Road26 m
rail — Line 1 Yonge-University27 m
transit stop — Viewmount Avenue42 m
parking lot75 m
transit stop — Glencairn117 m
transit stop — Glencairn120 m
parking lot127 m
parking lot138 m
retail — Yes! Convenience140 m
retail — Natural Care Spa141 m
retail — Cards, Gifts & Stationary141 m
restaurant — Domino's141 m
cafe — In Tre Cafe141 m
retail — Marlee Coin Laundry143 m
parking lot149 m
restaurant — Lechon Republik154 m
parking lot159 m
parking lot161 m
cafe — Club 285161 m
transit stop — Marlee Ave at Viewmount Ave165 m
restaurant — Pizza Nova167 m
transit stop — Marlee Ave at Viewmount Ave179 m
transit stop — Marlee Ave at Stayner Ave184 m
transit stop — Marlee Ave at Stayner Ave186 m
retail — Kirsch Cosmetic Studio191 m
parking lot193 m
retail — Fred's Here - Casual Clothing for Women194 m
retail — George Tracey Custom Made Couches196 m
restaurant — Burrito Boss197 m
retail — Forest Hill Beauty Supply197 m
retail — Marklee Computer197 m
restaurant — Odessa Deli & Desserts197 m

Park profile

Five-axis radar across the structural dimensions.

Citywide percentile ranks

Across all Toronto parks in the dataset.

Overall vitality
23th
Edge activation
27th
Connectivity
78th
Amenity diversity
72th
Natural comfort
27th
Enclosure
77th

Most similar parks

Closest in metric space across the five structural dimensions.

Gamble ParkUrban Plaza38
THE NEW GENERATION YOUTH RECREATION CENTRE - Building GroundsNeighbourhood Park29
Mimico Waterfront ParkWaterfront Park27
Burnhamill ParkUrban Plaza38
Holley ParkUrban Plaza34

Most opposite parks

Furthest in metric space — useful for recognising what kind of park this isn’t.

Trca Lands ( 26)Ravine / Naturalized Park27
Mclevin Woods ParkRavine / Naturalized Park49
Toronto Islands - Muggs Island ParkRavine / Naturalized Park25
Simcoe ParkTower-Community Green Space51
Rouge ParkRavine / Naturalized Park28

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 Benner Parkmatters. 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 — Parks (Green Space)
Polygon boundaries, official names, types.
Parks & Recreation Facilities
Inventory of in-park amenities (washrooms, fields, rinks…).
Toronto Pedestrian Network
Sidewalk segments around and through parks; estimated park entrances.
Toronto Centreline V2
Street segments + intersection nodes near park edges; trails and walkways.
Toronto 3D Massing
Building footprints + heights for edge-building counts, frontage density, and tower-in-the-park risk.
Toronto Treed Area
Tree canopy share inside park polygons via stratified-grid sampling.
Toronto Waterbodies & Rivers
Water surface inside parks + nearest-water distance for cooling.
Ravine & Natural Feature Protection
Ravine overlap as a cooling / natural-comfort signal.
Toronto Street Tree Inventory
Tree count + density inside park polygons.
Neighbourhood Profiles
(Pending) Equity context proxy.
OpenStreetMap (Overpass API)
Cafés, restaurants, retail, transit stops, parking, highways, rail.