Person skateboarding on half pipe

Outdoor recreation

Getting active, particularly outdoors, has so many benefits for our health and wellbeing. It connects people to their city, enabling them to drive the creation of inclusive, healthy public places.

Get active

Outdoor recreation is a way to engage your body, your community and the environment to create a sustainable lifestyle. Through our suite of outdoor recreation programs, we encourage visitors of all ages and abilities to connect with both natural and built worlds. Our diverse range of programming enables citizens to engage with their city in new ways, whether it be through skating, skateboarding, biking, or hiking in the Don Valley.

Person riding bike
People walking in the Don Valley.
Children skateboarding in Koerner Gardens.
Skating in Koerner Gardens

Empowering a healthy lifestyle

Our outdoor recreation objectives

When we create outdoor recreation programs, we do so with community needs in mind at all times. It’s our goal to deliver programming that you are excited about to get you moving, connected and outdoors!

To get active 

Our outdoor recreation programs are designed to help you get your body moving. Exercise has so many benefits, including enhancing mood, relieving stress and improving your overall health.

To connect communities 

Accessible programs like Free Public Skating and the Skateboarding Drop-In Program aim to bring people together in our city. It’s a chance for our community to connect, have fun and get moving!

To increase time spent outdoors

Outdoor recreation programming at Evergreen Brick Works takes place in beautiful, natural areas like Koerner Gardens and the Don Valley. Whether it’s winter or summer, our goal is to create opportunities for our community to connect with nature.

Outcomes & impact

  • 150 hours of free public skate programming over the course of the skating season in 2022-2023.
  • Approximately 300 people came to the skating rink each day that we offered free public skating. In total, 7500+ people participated in the program during the 2022-2023 skating season.
  • We provided approximately 110 free skates (thanks to the generous support of Interac®) each day that we offered free public skating. In total, approximately 2750 skates were borrowed during the 2022-2023 skating season.
  • Approximately 200 people attended the skateboarding drop-in program over six sessions in 2023.

“My favourite thing about the rink is the nature, because when you skate around you can see the trees and sometimes you can even hear birds in the trees, and it’s unique.

Abby
Age 9, Participant

Get Ready for the 2023-2024 skating season!

Start getting your skates sharpened! The skating season at Evergreen Brick Works is quickly approaching. We’ll have free public skating and skating lessons (for all ages) in the picturesque Koerner Gardens. Get ready for an action-packed season.

People skating on rink.
Free public skating during the Winter Market.
Evergreen Brick Works trail covered in snow with two individuals running.

Support outdoor recreation

Help us keep our outdoor recreation programs accessible to all.

Donate today

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