Ontario reveals design for new science centre at Toronto’s waterfront, says it could be ready in 3 years

Ontario Premier Doug Ford pulled revealed the province’s design for a new science centre at Toronto’s waterfront.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford pulled back the curtain Thursday on the province’s design for a new science centre at Toronto’s waterfront, calling it a “world-class” facility that will be “jaw-dropping.”

“I’m proud to announce our government has awarded the contract to design and build the new science centre,” Ford said. “The new science centre will be located in a state-of-the-art, fully accessible facility with more programming space than at the previous site.”

The building itself will be 400,000 square feet, with 120,000 square feet of exhibit space. That compares to 500,000 square feet at the old facility the province suddenly shuttered in 2024.

Tourism Minister Stan Cho said while the new facility will be smaller, there will be “a much more efficient use of the exhibit space.”

It will feature new interactive exhibits, renovated and enhanced pods and an upgraded Cinesphere.

A group called the Ontario Science Partners has been handed the contract to build the new facility. The province estimates the cost at $1.04 billion, though the auditor-general has said it will cost more. Cho said that price tag includes a 30-year maintenance contract for the facility.

Critics have questioned whether the old facility needed to be shuttered and have pointed out that the roof, which the government had said was near collapse, has withstood a particularly harsh and snowy winter.

Work on the new facility could be complete as soon as 2029, the province said.

The Harbourfront Centre will serve as a temporary home for the science centre until the new facility opens.

Critics say government spent nearly $2M to promote waterfront redevelopment

The new science centre is part of the Ford government’s major redevelopment of the Ontario Place site, which also includes a large waterpark and spa, the revamping of Budweiser Stage, and the construction of a massive parking garage.

Ford said Thursday there will also be an announcement at some point this year about a new convention facility, though it’s not clear if it will be connected to the city’s waterfront.

Critics have said the redevelopment plans have been rammed through with thin justification and little public consultation.

The Ontario NDP said in a news release Thursday that a Freedom of Information Request they filed shows the Ford government spent $1.74 million on ads to promote the Ontario Place redevelopment plans to the public between Jan. 1 and Nov. 13 last year.

“This is a callous use of taxpayer dollars,” Spadina-Fort York MPP Chris Glover said in a press release, adding “nobody asked for a multi-billion-dollar, taxpayer-funded luxury spa project in downtown Toronto.”