August 14, 2017
Green Street Challenge coming to Toronto

Bloor Street at Yonge Street to be transformed Aug. 20, 2017

This summer will be a “summer of play” for many communities across North America. Come Alive Outside, a North American non-profit, is working with communities in the U.S. and Canada to celebrate the importance of outdoor, unstructured play by laying down sod and transforming prominent streets into temporary parks for a day.

Urban Garden, Visser’s Sod, Open Streets TO and Come Alive Outside will bring this incredible event to Toronto on Aug. 20, 2017. The Green Street Challenge will be open for play from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Bloor Street at Bloor and Yonge. Come out and join us for the day, as we celebrate the importance of play and green space in our community.

Come Alive Outside is excited to be a part of Open Streets’ annual initiative. Open Streets TO creates a “paved park” across the city to connect diverse neighbourhoods, promote physical activity and allows for exploring the city in healthy and fun ways.

The Green Street Challenge creates an opportunity for children and families to play outside and enjoy all the benefits that community green spaces have to offer. With childhood obesity and mental illness on the rise, time spent outside getting active and connecting to nature has never been so important. The Green Street challenge is a way for communities to make a statement and celebrate outdoor play and green spaces as essential ingredients to the well-being of society.

Come Alive Outside is an incorporated nonprofit in Canada and a 501c3 registered charity in the U.S. that works closely with partners in the landscape profession in order to get people off the couch and back outside in communities across North America. Their mission is to inspire collaborative community systems that create the awareness, intention and opportunity for people to live healthier lives outside.

For more information about the Green Street Challenge or Come Alive Outside, visit the Come Alive Outside website.

Child playing on grass in a downtown area