Appropriate acts : catalyzing the reclamation of the no-man's-lands of crescent town

This thesis proposes an approach of appropriate actions to address the problem of

underuse in the vast spaces found within Toronto's aging apartment-tower neighbourhoods.

Rather than tearing down neighbourhoods, this project hypothesizes that urban renewal

can be achieved through small-scale, incremental, resident actions.

Jane Jacobs and Henri Lefebvre provide a theoretical framework that advocates the rich

social and cultural life that can grow from a public engaged both with and in the shared

spaces of their urban environment. The goal of reclaiming the no-man's-lands of tower

neighbourhoods includes engaging residents within their shared outdoor spaces; enabling

new ways of imagining, using, and adapting these spaces; and instigating a shift in the

management and maintenance of these spaces from the current top-down model, to one

where responsibility is shared informally between residents and property management.

Notions of spatial agency and DIY-urbanism explore the potential for resident contributions

to this urban richness.