An enormous mural below the Gardiner will soon connect the Bentway to Liberty Village
The art-walk extension will bring connections to the Ontario Line and a pop of colour to the Ex
The Bentway just announced that it’s about to get longer, extending farther into Exhibition Place. Currently, the park and art walk snakes below the Gardiner Expressway from Strachan to Bathurst, entering the Ex via Manitoba Drive. The intention now is to connect the Bentway with the future Ontario Line’s Exhibition station, creating a walkable connection into the heart of downtown.
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The city approved $273,000 in initial funding back in October, and the Bentway will appoint a design team in early 2026, with initial concepts for the extension planned for later in the year. The project will begin in earnest once Ontario Line construction is completed, which is forecasted for 2031, but given Metrolinx’s record of missing deadlines, Torontonians may want to temper expectations.
“We are thrilled to continue to build upon our valued partnership with Exhibition Place,” says Ilana Altman, the Bentway’s co–executive director, “to improve connectivity across the Gardiner and strengthen the ties between our two sites.”
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Kicking off the extension is Petal and Stone, a massive new 10,000-square-foot mural by Rebecca Munce that will extend below the Gardiner, facing Liberty Village and the GO rail corridor.
Long-term, the Bentway also plans to expand eastward (designs for a section at Spadina are already in the works), with the hope of eventually reaching the DVP.
