Province could take over Exhibition grounds for Ontario Place: NDP MPP

An excavator works in front of Ontario Place's Cinesphere dome, in Toronto, Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

NDP MPP Chris Glover says Premier Doug Ford’s government is planning to take over Toronto’s Exhibition Place to build Ontario Place in what he describes as an “unconscionable land grab,” but one minister says that’s not the case.

At a news conference on Friday, the representative for Spadina-Fort York said there’s a provision in the province’s fall economic statement, which he said was “buried” in the bill that was released last week, that allows the Progressive Conservative government to add properties to the Ontario Place project.

“So, if this bill passes, it means that Exhibition Place would fall under the same bill that’s governed Ontario Place, and it would allow the government, just like they did at Ontario Place, basically to break any provincial or municipal law that they want, including heritage laws and environmental laws.”

Glover is referring to Schedule 15 of the government’s Bill 68, a proposed amendment to the Rebuilding Ontario Place Act (ROPA) that identifies land by a Property Identification Number (PIN) for the project. The MPP says his staff asked Ontario’s legislative library for a list of those properties, one of which, he says, is Exhibition Place.

“The Rebuilding Ontario Place Act is the reason that the government was able to cut down 850 trees in the middle of the night without doing an environmental assessment…so the question is, why? What is the government’s plan?”

In a statement to CTV News Toronto, the office of Stan Cho, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Gaming, said: “To be clear, we are not taking over Exhibition Place. These legislative amendments are intended to be a back stop measure for all authorities in partnership to work together to rebuild Ontario Place in a timely manner.”

The office said earlier in the day that the amendment will make it easier to deal with construction obstacles as they arise, like turning off a water source or running a new power line, without running into red tape.

In 2019, the province first announced its plan to redevelop Ontario Place after it closed seven years earlier. The centrepiece of the $2.2-billion project will be a mega-spa and waterpark at the waterfront site, in addition to a multi-million dollar parking structure and surrounding public spaces.

The project has faced public criticism before and after shovels went into the ground.

Work was paused briefly in July 2024 after an environmental advocacy group challenged the ROPA, which gives the government special powers to expedite the redevelopment of the site, including an exemption from the Environmental Assessment Act. The challenge was dismissed, and some 850 trees have since been cut down on the property.

The province’s auditor general has also said that the process in choosing Austria-based Therme Group to spearhead the spa was “unfair.”

‘If it is what it looks like, that is not acceptable’: Toronto Deputy Mayor

Toronto Deputy Mayor and Councillor for Spadina–Fort York Ausma Malik was asked about the accusations levelled by Glover at an unrelated news conference Friday and said she and her staff are “looking closely to understand what the facts are.”

“The province has not shared those details with the city. But if it, if it is what it looks like, that is not acceptable,” Malik, who also serves as Chair of the Exhibition Place Board of Governors, said. “The Exhibition Place grounds are a key city asset, and they have to remain in city hands. And we will look at all the options that we have as a city to challenge that if it is what it appears to be, and we’ll leave it at.”

The City of Toronto operates the Exhibition grounds, which play host to the annual Canadian National Exhibition, the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair, and sporting events at BMO Field.

It’s unclear when exactly the revamped Ontario Place will open, but Ford has said he’s hoping for 2029.