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These downer signs, many of them placed at the behest of local councillors anxious to
appease cranky residents, remind us that playfulness is a restricted quantity and open spaces merely annoying in a city where the Protestant ethic rules.
In the industrial wasteland of York where parks are few and far between, city czars thought they had the luxury of banning ball playing in this one at Winona and Belvidere.
No smooching after dark. It’s apparently a crime to be in any city park after dark. Scary.
This was posted at Swanwick and Malvern after residents squawked about boarders riding speed bumps. Crazy kids.
Isn’t Gerrard and Carlaw dreary enough without having our fine feathered friends chased away – in five languages no less?
The city’s been handing out these babies like lollipops to pols eager to score points with residents – even though they’re only supposed to be allowed on hilly streets where a motorist’s line of sight is obstructed. Canada, eh?
Wanna play fetch with Fido? You’ll have to do it in your living room in some parts of York, where dogs get the short end of the leash.
With so few perfect surfaces for ball hockey, why not make tennis courts, like this one at Moorevale Park, multi-use in off-seasons?
There is a school field across the street from this chunk of parkland on Dunstan in the Victoria Park-Danforth area. But is there such a thing as too much green to play in?
No one needs a golf ball in the head, but surely there’s enough room at spacious Balmoral Park for a few harmless putts.
Put up outside coffee shops at Church and Wellesley to discourage kids from hanging out in the gay village. There goes the hood.
This hoop in Cawthra Park must be a little too close for the effete types living in the Victorians nearby. Forget about a late-night shootaround.
So much for pedal power, this sign on north Dufferin shows up on major roads thoughout the city.
We’re not sure if this sign at Cawthra Park is supposed to keep out weirdos or homeless people. Either way, it’s freaky.
This beauty on Rosedale Valley Road seems to pop out of nowhere. There are no residences for 200 metres in any direction – unless you count the cemetery across the street.
