It’s been nearly two weeks since the federal government halted Doug Ford’s proposed expansion of Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport. But recent comments from Prime Minister Mark Carney have reignited the conversation and added a layer of ambiguity to the contentious issue.
When Ottawa stepped in to halt the expansion, residents who opposed the province’s plan assumed they had won the fight. Now, they’re not so certain after the prime minister said “forever is a long time,” when asked on Wednesday if the recent decision was a permanent one.
Not exactly music to the ears of opponents of the plan, like Norm Di Pasquale, Chair of NoJetsToronto.
“Forever is what Torontonians expect,” he told CityNews on Thursday.
“We expect Prime Minister Carney to keep this promise, forever.”
That seems to be what Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow expects as well.
In a statement to CityNews, Chow’s office said: “Our understanding is that the island airport expansion is not moving forward. Further, the mayor has never seen a formal proposal for the expansion of the airport.”
Di Pasquale said people would be “kind of livid” if the issue stormed back to the forefront.
“I think Prime Minister Carney should think of his next moves very carefully.”
The provincial government, meanwhile, has said it will continue the work to expand the airport.
In a statement to CityNews, Ontario’s Minister of Transportation Prabmeet Singh Sarkaria said, “The benefits are clear: the project will contribute up to $8.5 billion to Canada’s economy every year, create thousands of jobs, and improve connectivity for millions of travellers and businesses across Ontario, North America and beyond.”
“As this work continues, we look forward to seeing and anticipate a plan that ensures the project protects public spaces, including the Toronto Islands, addresses potential noise and environmental impacts,” he added.
In Toronto’s Beaches neighbourhood, signs opposing the proposed expansion still pepper lawns weeks after the expansion plans were apparently nixed.
With a federal by-election for Beaches-East York taking place on August 31, the expansion remains a hot topic.
When CityNews asked several residents about it, many were emphatic that it was a key issue determining how they will vote.
“100 per cent,” one woman said.
“Oh yeah, for sure,” a man added. “I would rather not have larger planes at a relatively small airport that really doesn’t need to be expanded.”
“Definitely it would be (an election issue),” another woman stressed. “I wouldn’t vote for anyone who would be interested in expanding the airport.
“I don’t like people speaking from two sides of their mouth,” she added, referring to Carney’s recent comments that have muddled the issue. “I like straight forward answers and I think people at the beach have made their will known. We don’t want the airport here and it’s not just for the residents of the beach, it’s for the whole city.”
Despite the recent federal rejection of the expansion plan, the fact remains that the province has booted the city of Toronto out of the previous tripartite agreement that governed the land.
Mayor Chow has called on the province to return the city’s land.
CityNews reached out to the Minister of Transportation for comment, but did not hear back in time for broadcast.
Meanwhile, Toronto-St. Paul’s Councillor Josh Matlow says the lines of communication should be open and clear between all levels of government.
“Let’s put everything on the table. Both between partners and also for the public, let’s make it transparent, let’s make it accountable and if there’s a plan that can both support a viable working solution for Billy Bishop, while ensuring the protection of a vibrant and healthy waterfront for Toronto, that’s a conversation we can have.”
