Dear Ontario Government,…

Dear Ontario Government,

Please protect our environment. We are facing local and global health and economic emergencies due to pollution, environmental destruction threatening our water and air, and climate change. We cannot get our environment back in our life times once damaged. We are so unusually lucky in Canada to have our natural resources and we must value them and keep them in tact for the sake of our collective health. There is no price one can put on our health.

Also, please do not change the original public goals of our precious Ontario Place. It must be accessible and represent a clean, educational, outdoors experience for all of us, no matter our level of wealth. In fact, the Ontario Place I knew growing up was one of our unique icons. I have travelled around the world, and no one could claim to such a wonderful experiential exhibit. We must invest in our uniqueness as this represents our tremendous culture that values nature and our place in it. Please, instead of consulting with private industry that only has profit interests, instead, consult with citizens and Indigenous people who understand what I mean by this message.

Our uniqueness sets us apart. For example, look at France and its wonderful emphasis on cultural goods. They seek the highest quality, not just functionality or profitability. In the end, their unique high-quality ways (and culture) set them apart and their offerings are valued worldwide for beauty, artistic appeal, and special experiences others cannot offer. Please recognize and value our Canadian environmental culture that sets us apart. We are not greedy Americans. We care about more than money. We care about each other and know that investments in our public spaces benefit all of us and our future generations. One cannot put a price tag on collective happiness and health.

Please redirect your efforts to supporting and representing our Canadian culture.

In addition, please put the Ontario Science Centre back as it was in North York. Please invest in that wonderful icon, also part of our culture heritage, representing values of logic and science. Science supports the logic of our strong institutions. Without a strong science center in it's original location, Don Mills has nothing. This part of North York - Don Mills - is turning into a wasteland of condos by removing the Ontario Science Centre. Please put it back in place and make it greater than ever. Also, putting all of our Toronto attractions downtown only makes them less accessible. Instead, we have to distribute activity and develop city hubs outside of the core so that each hub, including Don Mills, has something special to offer. Now, Don Mills has nothing without the Science Centre, meanwhile traffic toward the core is made even worse by putting everything there. What a city planning disaster!

Why is our Ontario government not listening to our Toronto government and citizenry? What is happening is the development of an Ontario dictatorship ignoring the interests of of the largest city in the country. This is a disaster for Toronto, Ontario and Canada.