FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
TORONTO, JUNE 24, 2024 Ontario Place Protectors (OPP) is seeking an injunction in Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice to halt demolition at Ontario Place. The work began over the weekend, under the authority of the “Rebuilding Ontario Place Act” (ROPA) even though the Act is being challenged in court by OPP, and is awaiting a trial date.
“In spite of the matter being before the courts, the Ontario government is thumbing its nose at the courts and the public, and continuing with its “bull headed destruction,” says Catherine Nasmith, the OPP director who is signator to the injunction. “The premature destruction is a further betrayal of the public trust.”
The grounds for the challenge are that the Act is unlawful, a breach of public trust, and unconstitutional. Among other travesties, ROPA exempts the government from adhering to the Ontario Heritage Act and the Environmental Protection Act. It allows the government to ignore Ontario’s Growth Plan, the Environmental Bill of Rights, and the Provincial Policy Statement.
ROPA allows the government to destroy an internationally lauded cultural landscape – that is, both the buildings at Ontario Place and its carefully integrated landscape.
In addition, ROPA exempts Ford and his government from any liability for acts of bad faith, misfeasance, or failure to meet any fiduciary obligations.
All this is being done to construct a giant spa that no one asked for being built by a private company. There has been little public consultation – just the occasional announcement of one fait accompli or another – and no transparency. We know there is a 95-year lease, but nothing of its terms, costs, or obligations.
For more information contact
Ontario Place Protectors
c/o Eric K Gillespie K.
416 703 6362
