The Toronto Region Conservation Authority is set to have a face-to-face meeting with the Ford government and the City of Toronto over the future of the Ontario Science Centre lands, after the premier said the provincially owned tourist attraction would be torn down and could be replaced with housing.
Casting the science centre as “old and rundown,” Premier Doug Ford revealed he hoped to demolish the structure and move the science programming to a new 275,000 sq. ft facility at Ontario Place.
“It’s just a mess,” Ford said of the current Ontario Science Centre, located at Don Mills and Eglinton in Toronto.
“If the province is saying we’re going to help you out with a new community centre, we’re going to help with a new school … by all means, let’s help out,” he continued.
The plan blindsided many, leading to an emerging battle over the current land that houses the science centre.
The land is currently owned by the City of Toronto and the local conservation authority and leased to the province for a period of 99 years. The Toronto Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) released a map of the massive plot of land, asserting it owns and oversees 81 acres of the property.
After expressing surprise about the provincial plans, TRCA’s chief financial officer, Michael Tolensky, told Global News the Ministry of Infrastructure had reached out to set up a meeting about the future of the property.
“We had reached out to the province for communication or clarification on the matter. We had received a response as of (Thursday) night and they are looking to set up a meeting with TRCA and the City of Toronto,” Tolensky told Global News.
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He said a date had not been set for the meeting.
While the City of Toronto has already approved some land — currently being used as parking lots — for housing development, Ford insisted there were 90 acres available for development.
On April 18, Ford said his government would work with the conservation authority and the City of Toronto to “build density” on the available, buildable lands at the old site.
The premier said he was expecting “thousands” of new housing options, including non-profit, attainable, affordable units, will be built at Don Mills.
Previously, musing about the move, he said: “I think there’s 90 acres — now I don’t know if it’s all buildable, but even if it’s half of that, that would be a great opportunity.”
According to the TRCA, the land is off-limits for any kind of housing owing to its proximity to a ravine and the wildlife that use the area for nesting.
“It is not buildable,” Tolensky said.
He referenced the Don River, ravine lands and sensitive habitats that abound around the Ontario Science Centre’s current location. A floodplain designation, watercourses and steep ravines make it impractical and potentially inadvisable for construction, while building work could also put species at risk.
“It’s built in a mature deciduous forest. There’s a large marsh there and it’s home to multiple birds and mammal species, turtles, amphibians,” Tolensky said.
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