Contentious rebuilt park staircase to open today
Cement steps replace senior’s controversial wooden version
What goes up must come down — until the city puts it up again.
A park staircase in Etobicoke that’s been embroiled in controversy for nearly two weeks is set to open Saturday afternoon.
The staircase at Tom Riley Park near the intersection of Bloor St. W. and Islington Ave. was built by city workers after they tore down a handmade version constructed by a local resident.
“If you have steps, that’s all I care about, safe steps for the people to use,” said Adi Astl, the 73-year-old man who became a local celebrity after building the makeshift wooden steps for $550 after he said he was told by the city that it could cost between $65,000 to $150,000.
“Mine were better looking, however that’s not the point.”
Astl said he built the steps with the help of a homeless man on June 22. They were dismantled by the city on July 21.
The parks and recreation department said work on the steps started Monday, and welders were putting the finishing touches on the metal handrail Friday afternoon.
“Within five days we got the steps, which is unheard of, for the government to do something from A to B in a week,” Astl said.
“Everybody says that they were not safe. They were safe,” he said, adding that a city official threatened to fine him $5,000 for building the stairs without a permit.
Nonetheless, he noted that if his stairs had been left untouched, they’d have to be replaced every two to three years.
The new stairs run between the park’s garden and the parking lot, where there was previously a steep grassy incline. That’s what motivated Astl to take action, as he said it was too difficult to climb.
He never thought he’d become a local celebrity, though, but since his feud with the city over the stairs made the news last week, Astl said he’s had an avalanche of media requests, including from international outlets such as the BBC.
He also said his $550 cost for the stairs was reimbursed by local radio station Newstalk 1010.