Province submits development application with City of Toronto for reimagined Ontario Place

The Ford government says it has submitted a development application with the City of Toronto to move forward with its plans to redevelop Ontario Place.

In a statement released late Friday afternoon, the Ministry of Infrastructure said it is seeking Planning Act approvals for its plan which includes “enhanced public spaces and parkland, increased access to waterfront, health and wellness services, as well as an indoor-outdoor live music and performance venue that will host events year-round.”

The 155-acre site opened in May of 1971. The province closed Ontario Place to the public in 2012 due to falling revenues and tight provincial finances. At that time, the government said attendance had fallen from 2.5 million when it opened more than 50 years ago to about 300,000.

In July 2021, the province first unveiled plans to redevelop the lakefront attraction with Premier Ford saying he wanted “an exciting, inclusive and family-friendly experience” that would serve as both as a tourism destination and as a display of Ontario’s strong cultural identity.

The province has been clear that any plan would not include proposals for residential developments or a casino.

Three companies were chosen to head up the redevelopment – Live Nation, which currently runs the on-site music venue, Quebec outdoor recreation firm Écorécréo, and an Austrian well-being resort firm Therme Group. However, in September Écorécréo Group pulled out of the project, saying the two sides could not agree on a long-term lease.

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Live Nation plans to revamp Budweiser Stage and transform the venue into a “modern, year-round indoor-outdoor live music and performance venue” while Therme Group, which describes itself as a global wellbeing organization, promises a year-round family-friendly experience “featuring unparalleled, affordable and accessible opportunities to experience fun, entertainment and wellness in an immersive destination.”

While its not yet clear what will happen to the land that Écorécréo had previously planned to use for the park, the government told CityNews at the time it didn’t anticipate any impacts to the project’s timeline.

Public access to the waterfront has been a major source of conflict to this point and the push to privatize a large portion of Ontario Place has those opposed sounding the alarm along the lake even louder.

“Where is the Ontario in Ontario Place now? With two foreign franchises putting their businesses on the island. They’re turning us into ATMs for the entertainment industry. How is that the future of Ontario?” says Cynthia Wilkey, the co-chair of Ontario Place For All.

“Most of Ontario Place is being leased to private interests. So you can’t get inside unless you pay. Right now it’s a park that’s open to everybody. It’s a beautiful park. It was established to democratize access to the waterfront and to celebrate Ontario. That is not happening.”

When asked about what could be done to address the concerns raised at this point Mayor John Tory suggested they will be looked at – in due time.

“Quite frankly there are higher priorities that I have right now and the city has in terms of things like Bill 23 and its impact on our finances, the COVID financial hangover that we have and these are things that I’ll be dealing with, but the application for Ontario Place I’m sure will get dealt with and we’ll deal with it at the earliest possible time,” said Tory.

The province says it recently concluded almost four weeks of online public consultations aimed at gathering input on design concepts for future public spaces and parkland at the site. The results of those consultations and previous public engagement events will be shared “in 2023.”

The all-season park is expected to be completed by 2024 and hopes to entertain over 500,000 visitors per year by 2030.

Mark McAllister contributed to this report