Sacred graves of Jewish war veterans flooded by Toronto condo development say caretakers

The graves of several Canadian Jewish war veterans have been flooded at a memorial site in north-end Toronto. The only one of its kind in Canada, the memorial houses the graves of more than three hundred Jewish veterans who fought for Canada during the First World War and Second World War.

“You opened a grave and it was dry,” said Allan Rubin who says prior to construction at Downsview Park there wasn’t a problem. Rubin is a Cold War and NATO veteran tasked with caring for the graves of fellow servicemen – people he knew personally.

“Sid Sears was a real estate agent,” Rubin recalled fondly. “When I was a kid, he supported our hockey team.”

“When you see something like that emotionally it’s very upsetting,” he said.

In January, Rubin said a pipe was left flowing for several days at the construction site in Downview Park by a contractor – it’s unclear which one. Water flowed into the cemetery and froze, according to Rubin.

He fears the expanding and contracting of the freezing and melting ice has cracked the foundation of the grave stones. At least one was toppled over on Tuesday.

“I believe when you have water on your property it’s your responsibility to ensure the water is diverted properly, and not onto the property adjoining.”

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The Canada Lands Company (CLC) is the developer in the area. They’re a federally-owned crown corporation and in a statement to Global News deny wrongdoing.

“There does not appear to be a geotechnical reason such a phenomenon would occur,” wrote Manon Lapensee, Director of Corporate Communication for the CLC.

“We know that groundwater levels have been an issue in this area for a number of years. In our discussions with cemetery officials they have indicated that they have had issues, and in fact, undertook work a number of years ago to try and manage the groundwater.”

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Local councillor Maria Augimeri says she was horrified when she learned of the damage.

Augimeri has written to two members of parliament and has even asked for the Canada Lands Company to be fired. She explains there’s little the city can do to stop development.

“The federal government has primacy over every other government in Canada – including provincial.”

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Rubin says he’s not thinking about a lawsuit; he just wants the problem fixed. “Once the buildings go up it’s much harder to find out the cause,” he said.

A detailed analysis is expected later in the spring which will provide greater clarity on the extent and cause of the damage.