What will London look like in 2028?

London's city planners are figuring out how they want the city to look in the future and how they want Londoners to use their city.

If you moved away from London today and came back in a decade, what changes would you notice?

Kate Dubinski · CBC News · Posted: May 28, 2018 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: May 28, 2018

Photo of the London, Ont., skyline taken June 1, 2017. — London, Ont., skyline photo taken on June 1, 2017. (David Donnelly/CBC)

If you moved away from London today and came back in a decade, what changes would you notice?

We asked London's top city planner about the projects that will transform London. Here's what John Fleming told us:

Urban Design

When planning major projects, approving developments and thinking about neighbourhoods, Fleming said his team focuses on designing the urban landscape with people in mind.

"All of our public realm spaces need to be beautiful, and we need to make a city that people want to live in, to enhance our quality of life," Fleming said.

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"It doesn't mean that we have the same street treatment, the same tree treatment, in all of our spaces, it means we have flexibility to create the type of city people want to live in and that can attract talent."

The River

The forks of the Thames River are the starting point for London, and will be transformed by the Back to the River project, a partnership between the city and the London Community Foundation.

The ambitious project will see five kilometres along the river downtown redeveloped and turned into destination for Londoners.

A 5 km stretch at the Forks of the Thames could undergo a major redesing (provided: City of London )

"We're lucky we have a river running through our urban core," Fleming said.

The $5 million project will include a giant ribbon-shaped boardwalk built atop the Thames downtown.

"We're trying to create more excitement and a more dynamic space for the community to consider as a prime gathering place," Fleming said.

The SoHo (South of Horton) neighbourhood is also included in the plans and will completely transform the current grounds of the former South Street hospital.

"We're planting the seeds of a new urban neighbourhood, with a promenade along the river, and possibly a link from the foot of Colborne Street across the river to Watson Park."

Downtown

The Dundas Place flex street will turn London's major core street into an attraction, Fleming predicted, attracting people to not only visit downtown but to also move there.

A rendering of the flex street planned for Dundas (City of London )

"Downtown is our image. As with the river, what we really need to think about is our economic labour force and attracting workers. They're looking for great cities to work in and live in and the flex street will be a wonderful addition to making the downtown more attractive," Fleming said.

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Students will fill the downtown as the former Kingsmill building fills up with classes, he said, and the flex street will see restaurants and cafes "spill out on to the sidewalk" when on-street parking is removed at certain hours.

"We hope it will be a new living room for London," Fleming said. "The programing for the flex street will be crucial, the concerts and the entertainment will draw people."

Transportation

Let's assume the bus rapid transit plan doesn't get tossed out the window after the municipal election.

The new transit plan will get people downtown faster, but it's more than just a way to move people, Fleming said.

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"It also helps us to grow inward and upward, makes us think about agricultural land and environmental areas and not always hopping into the car," he said.

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"It's a way to encourage those mid-rise and high-rise forms of development that might not occur otherwise."

The plan is expected to be fully operational by 2028.

But the city is also working on connecting parts of the Thames Valley Parkway, the city's multi-use pathway system, to allow for easier commuting for cyclists, Fleming said. Current gaps north of the Western University gates, in the south end by Kiwanis Park and Pottersburg Creek, and in the west end are also expected to be filled.

"We're also working to put up protected bike lanes to get a safer context for biking on the roads, to make commuting another way of getting around that is a viable option," Fleming said.

Smart City

Politicians have asked city planners to look at how London could become a "smart city."

That could mean anything from taking our data and using it to improve the morning commute or when recycling is being picked up.

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"We have to be collaborative. The city has to work with institutions, with businesses, with NGOs, to provide an environment for innovation to occur," Fleming said. "It will be a big part of the city of the future. All cities are starting to think about this."

Stratford, for example, has become a testing ground for autonomous vehicles. A Toronto neighbourhood might become a testing ground for Google, a new community where technology will be impeded into daily life.

"It's something to keep an eye on," Fleming said.

London 2028

Those coming back to the city in a decade will see a vibrant downtown, a community using its core for commercial purposes and more residents downtown.

"I hope that people would see a transportation system that is significantly evolved and a really progressive, smart city, with technology integrated into everything we do, with a great pulse of economic activity going on," Fleming said.