What to know
- Ford says the province wants to expand the island airport to accommodate larger planes, claiming it will reduce congestion at Pearson and create thousands of high-paying jobs.
- The premier dismissed opposition from Toronto Islands residents by calling them “squatters” and “one-percenters,” and insisted the project will proceed regardless of local pushback.
- Waterfront advocacy group NoJetsTO says expanding the airport could harm the environment, worsen traffic, and disrupt recreation along Toronto’s waterfront.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is insisting on expanding the Billy Bishop airport, and says the plan will move forward despite disapproval from local residents, but one local group is calling for the premier to rethink the project.
Ford first revealed plans to expand the Toronto airport during a Toronto Region Board of Trade dinner on Feb. 26, saying that he had seen surveys that show support for an expansion that would allow for larger planes to come to the island.
On Monday, the premier doubled down on the plans, saying he has support from the federal government to move on with the expansion, which he says will take off load from the Toronto Pearson Airport and create more jobs.
“That’s a crown jewel. And we’re gonna be taking load off Pearson [Airport], being competitive with Pearson, lowering costs, and more convenient for people. Not to mention a couple of thousand additional, high-paying, great-paying jobs that are going to go with it,” Ford said.
When questioned about the lack of support from Toronto Islands’ residents for the plan, the premier said he isn’t concerned about the opinions of “one-percenters” and reaffirmed the plan would be moving forward “one way or another.”
The premier also took a jab at the residents for being privy to the Toronto Islands Residential Community Stewardship Act, which allows island homeowners to purchase properties for special rates while leasing them in addition to a one-time lease cost.
According to the Toronto Islands Residential Community Trust Corporation, the current one-time lease cost is $60,000 on Ward’s Island and $78,000 on Algonquin Island. In addition, the average prices of properties in the area currently sits between $150,000 and $400,000.
“There’s 260 squatters on the Island that are paying $1 a year for 99 years. Wouldn’t everyone in this room, wouldn’t those hardworking nurses that burst their backs off, want a dollar a year for their own little, personal island that no one touches?” Ford suggested.
“Folks, [the] game’s over…I guess it’s in the contract, so you’re getting a dollar a year, but guess what? We aren’t going to worry about the one-percenters that are affecting 99 per cent of the rest of the population. We’re gonna move forward with the island airport, with cooperation with the federal government.”
Ford also said an internal government poll conducted last year showed that 70 per cent of surveyed residents are in favour of expanding the airport.
In addition, the premier suggested Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow is also supportive of the move, although she might “disagree with the jets.”
“I know mayor Chow wants to expand it; she may disagree with the jets, but those jets are coming in there one way or another. You know, we did a poll, 70 per cent of the people want that island airport expanded. Simple as that, we’re listening to the people,” he stated.
Local group raises concerns
This is not the first time that an expansion of the local airport has been up for debate. In 2013, Toronto City Council explored an expansion of the airport’s runaway, but the project was killed after extensive public disapproval.
At the time, a group of residents formed NoJetsTO, an organization that advocates against the introduction of jet-engine planes along the waterfront.
With the premier now bringing back conversations of an expansion, the group is once more raising concerns over the project.
NOJetsTO Chair Norman Di Pasquale told Now Toronto a bigger airport would affect overall residents and visitors’ enjoyment of the area, taking away space from swimmers, boaters, kayakers and others trying to enjoy the islands.
“When they pave the lake for this expanded runway, it’s going to go on pretty well to Ontario Place on the west side and through the central Harbourfront on the right side, taking away space from people who want to enjoy Hanlan’s Point, people who want to enjoy the Toronto Islands, people who want to enjoy the central waterfront on a party boat. I mean, it’s taking away from all the other uses and sort of dominating the waterfront,” he said on Tuesday.
Di Pasquale also said taking off load from the Pearson Airport and bringing more flights to the waterfront could also bump up local traffic, which he believes will already worsen as the new Ontario Place and Science Centre are unveiled.
In addition, the advocate said the government needs to consider environmental implications of bringing jets to the area, as fuel trucks could affect local fauna, including fish and migratory birds.
“We’re sending 10 more fuel trucks down to the island airport and dumping some of that fuel into the water, affecting the fish. And it’s also a migratory bird runway in Lake Ontario. And jets are very well known for sucking in birds,” he pointed out.
Group calls for consultation
Although Ford says 70 per cent of survey respondents would support a Billy Bishop expansion, Di Pasquale recalled that during the first project discussions in 2013, the group gathered over 17,000 signatures from concerned residents urging the government not to move ahead with the project.
“Polls are polls. That was an online poll where people have to sign in to the place to fill out surveys. I wonder if it attracts a certain type of person based on who’s running those polls, like it’s somebody very close to the Ford government. So, I look forward to seeing, perhaps other polls,” he said.
Responding to Ford’s point about island residents being “one-percenters” who affect 99 per cent of the population, the group’s chair pointed out that the project wouldn’t just impact local residents, but also millions that visit the area from across the province.
Di Pasquale also said he expects Ford to unveil more details about the project and hold “a robust public consultation” before moving forward.
“There are millions of Torontonians and even Ontarians [who] go to visit the Toronto Islands and enjoy the serene sort of park land that is there, and that experience is going to be wrecked by Boeing-737-size jets flying across our waterfront,” he said.
“It’s more about our revitalised waterfront in our Toronto islands that are visited by and loved by so many Ontarians. That is the crown jewel. That is a crown-jewel park that should not be wrecked by Boeing-737-size jets.”
The premier’s revealed plans for the Billy Bishop airport come days after he criticized the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, and said he wishes to build a two-million-square-foot “world-class” facility to replace the existing building.
In order to carry the plans, Ford also said he is considering filling in part of Lake Ontario with silica sand, recycled tire parts, sand, cork, and/or coconut fibers to build the new centre.
