Ontario Construction News staff writer
A City of Toronto staff report going to executive committee June 1 recommends entering into a “Province of Ontario – City of Toronto Engagement on the Future of Ontario Place and Exhibition Place Terms of Reference”.
The agreement would set up a structured engagement process for the city to work with the province in a cooperative and coordinated manner on the next phases of the Ontario Place redevelopment, “to optimize the potential of the provincially-owned Ontario Place and city-owned Exhibition Place sites.”
To date, approximately $300,000 has been spent to support the Exhibition Place Master Plan process, including identifying opportunities to connect to Ontario Place. Additional costs will be identified and reported through the 2022 budget process.
“The City of Toronto has a long-standing interest in the future of Ontario Place given it is an important location on our waterfront and looks forward to engaging with the province on the redevelopment of the site to create a space that is a world-class, year-round destination,” said Mayor John Tory.
“We know many of our residents care passionately about the future of this waterfront site and that we all want to get this right for the future of this entire area, including Ontario Place and Exhibition Place.”
If approved, the agreement will support the achievement of shared objectives during the multi-year redevelopment process.
Toronto “is working towards the achievement of outcomes that are consistent with the City’s legacy of careful waterfront planning, including consideration for the guiding principles for the revitalization of Ontario Place that council adopted on May 14, 2019.”
Some key elements of the Guiding Principles include:
- finding synergies between Ontario Place and Exhibition Place
- preserving existing parkland and natural heritage resources
- securing and enhancing public access to the water’s edge
- consulting with Indigenous peoples on opportunities for Indigenous placemaking
- making decisions through a transparent public process.
On January 18, 2019, the Province, led by the Ontario Ministry of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries (MHSTCI) and supported by Infrastructure Ontario (IO), declared its intention to identify potential private sector partners to support the comprehensive redevelopment of Ontario Place.
Also in 2019, the province launched a request for development concepts, the “Call for Development”, requesting ideas from a potential partner (or partners) to deliver transformational change aligned with the vision for the site as a “world-class, year-round destination with global appeal that would attract local, provincial and international visitors”.
Provincial officials have said the Call for Development process has ended and will soon be announcing the outcome.
Staff report: Ontario Place Redevelopment Update