Comment
I am strongly opposed to the government's costly, ill-considered and environmentally destructive redevelopment of Ontario Place. Bill 5 would make this debacle even worse by removing the right of Ontarians to be advised of, or to comment on, any required permits at Ontario Place --- on or off site, to support the project.
I have long been disappointed with what I believe to be a lack of public consultation on the redevelopment, involving destruction of trees and wildlife habitat and an expensive and unnecessary luxury spa that should be located in an urban area well away from the fragile waterfront ecosystem. Schedule 8 of Bill 5 would once again sideline the public, by exempting every project tied to the Ontario Place redevelopment from Part II of the Environmental Bill of Rights, 1993. It is inexcusable to completely eliminate public participation and eliminate informing the public about environmentally significant activities specifically with regard to Ontario Place.
I fully support the thousands of concerned Ontarians who have provided well-informed, intelligent commentary along with realistic and much-improved, attractive "green" proposals for an environmentally sustainable Ontario Place.
As conservation and environmental organizations have noted, the proposed exemptions from the Bill of Rights are not in the public interest and will only expedite a redevelopment serving the private interests of foreign companies.
It's time for the government to shelve Bill 5 and Schedule 8, cancel the redevelopment or at least put it on hold, and launch a comprehensive public consultation on an environmentally responsible Ontario Place plan that we can be proud of.
Submitted May 17, 2025 8:21 PM
Comment on
Protect Ontario by Unleashing Our Economy Act, 2025.
ERO number
025-0416
Comment ID
148505
Commenting on behalf of
Comment status