What to know
- Premier Doug Ford reiterates plans to build a new two-million-square-foot “world-class” convention centre in Toronto.
- He criticizes the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, calling it one of the worst in the world and highlighting its outdated layout and limited size.
- The new centre will remain in Toronto, with the current facility continuing operations during construction.
- Ford says the project will likely cost several billion dollars, with designs and exact location to be announced later.
Premier Doug Ford is reiterating plans to build a new two-million-square-foot “world-class” convention centre, while criticizing the existing Metro Toronto Convention Centre in downtown Toronto.
Ford made the comments this morning at the annual Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada conference, speaking alongside First Nations leaders at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, located at 255 Front St. W.
He said his government is moving forward with plans for a new facility after being told by the convention centre’s board that the current centre ranks 24th out of 25 worldwide.
“That is unacceptable. When you have a world-class province, a world-class city, we’re going to build a world-class convention centre,” Ford said. “Smaller cities are getting international conventions over us, that’s stopping.”
Ford also criticized the layout of the existing centre.
“We aren’t going to have a convention centre that goes up, that goes down, that goes sideways, you cross the road, that’s not a convention centre. We’re going to build a world-class, 2 million-square-foot, state-of-the-art convention centre,” he said.
The premier confirmed the new centre will remain in Toronto and that the current Metro Toronto Convention Centre will continue operations during construction. He emphasized that the current facility’s size is causing the city to lose conventions.
“The reason it has to be 2 million [square feet] is that we’re losing so many conventions. I spent 20 years in Chicago; they have a few million square feet in the McCormick Centre, but we’re going to build something much better than the McCormick Centre,” Ford said.
Ford also drew attention last week at a Toronto Region Board of Trade dinner, where he first called the Metro Toronto Convention Centre one of the worst in the world.
He said details on the new centre’s design and exact location will be announced later, and while he expects the project to cost a few billion dollars, no specific price has been confirmed.
