Plans in works to replace Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Ford says

An RCMP officer patrols outside the Metro Toronto Convention Centre in this Friday June 25, 2010 file photo. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn)

Toronto could soon be getting a modern new convention centre to replace its marquee convention space, Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Tuesday.

“We’re going to build a world class, two million square-foot, state-of-the-art convention centre and we will go from last to first,” Ford said at an unrelated announcement at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre Monday.

Ford took aim last week at the current convention space on Front Street, saying it’s difficult to navigate and too spread out, with multiple escalators and buildings on different blocks. He repeated that criticism Monday.

“I get told by the convention centre board that we rank as one of the worst in the world for conventions, 24th out of 25. That’s unacceptable,” Ford said.

He said “smaller, little cities” are winning conventions over Toronto because the city’s convention space is inadequate.

“That’s stopping,” Ford said. “We aren’t going to have the convention centre that goes up, that goes down, that goes up, that goes sideways, you cross the road; that’s not a convention centre. No wonder we’re 24.”

Ford would not say Monday where the new space will be located, but he said it will not be a rebuild of the current Metro Toronto Convention Centre, which is located in the heart of downtown Toronto.

“I can’t wait to announce the location, and when I say world class, it will be unlike any other location in the entire world, just like the Science Centre and Ontario Place,” Ford said.

Last week Ontario’s NDP and Liberals took aim at Ford’s pitch, saying the prospect of a new convention space is yet another “distraction” form his government’s failures in other areas.

Located blocks away from Union Station, the Metro Toronto Convention Centre features 442,000 square feet of exhibit space, 77 meeting rooms, multi-purpose ballrooms and a theatre.

The facility, which is a Crown corporation of the province, opened in 1984, with the South building opening in 1997.

Ford said more details about the new convention space will be coming “shortly.”

He confirmed later in the day it would not include a casino.