From Landfill to Sanctuary: A Walk Through Tommy Thompson Park

If you’ve lived in Toronto long enough, you’ve probably heard of Tommy Thompson Park—a quiet, sprawling strip of nature that juts into Lake Ontario like an arm stretching away from the city. Known for birdwatching, cycling, and peaceful reflection, it feels like an escape, a rare place where the noise of the world fades into wind and water.

But not everyone knows its secret.

In a recent Anjology segment, Anjo peels back the layers of this natural haven to reveal a truth most would never guess: Tommy Thompson Park used to be a landfill.

Back in the 1950s, it was never meant to be a park. It was just a dumping ground—a holding bay for rubble, cement, and waste from downtown construction sites. Plans were drawn to turn it into an industrial port. But as the project stalled, something unexpected happened. Nature crept in. Grass pushed through gravel. Birds landed. Life returned.

Fast forward to today, and what was once discarded is now one of the best birdwatching spots in Toronto. Over 300 bird species call this place home—cormorants, owls, ospreys, and even the occasional bald eagle. This isn’t your usual city park. There are no playgrounds, no ice cream trucks—just wild trails, silent shores, and space to learn how to listen.

And it’s not alone. As Anjo points out, Tommy Thompson is just one of several Toronto green spaces reborn from trash:

• North Maple Regional Park used to be a dumping site.
• Beare Hill Park in Scarborough was a former landfill.
• Even parts of Riverdale Park East were once temporary waste zones.

Each of these was reclaimed through careful capping of soil, methane release systems, and the restoration of native plants. In these spaces, the city’s discarded past became its ecological future.

Anjo’s reflection is simple, but profound:

“Minsan yung mga iniwang walang silbi, sila pala yung nagiging pinakamahalagang space natin ngayon.”
“Tambakan noon, tahanan ngayon. Sa Toronto, kahit basura, pwedeng maging ginto.”

His story reminds us that healing is possible—not just for land, but for us too. That no matter what we’ve been through or what we’ve been made to feel, there’s still a chance to grow, to restore, to belong.

So next time you find yourself at Tommy Thompson Park, standing where rubble once lay, take a moment. Listen to the birds. Watch the waves. Remember:
Even what’s been thrown away can bloom again.