Landslide Update - Ontario Place: From Icon to Wasteland
The worst has happened at Ontario Place, the iconic Modernist waterfront park designed by architect Eberhard Zeidler and landscape architect Michael Hough and built on two man-made islands (East and West Islands) just off the shore of Lake Ontario. Ontario Premier Doug Ford's plan to redevelop West Island into a private spa led to the clear cutting of some 850 mature trees and the razing of signature structures. The project, called Therme Canada, is being led by the Toronto office of the Vienna-based Therme Group. This is all happening despite widespread public opposition, relentless bad press, and scathing social media commentary. Now, as photos and video postings on Twitter, Reddit, and Facebook show, West Island has been denuded of trees and the silos are being torn down.
The Cultural Landscape Foundation’s (TCLF) Landslide program in July 2019 when plans to “comprehensively develop and reinvent the site” were announced by the Ontario government. The grassroots group Ontario Place for All formed in 2019 as a response to the privatization and lack of transparency around the Ontario Place redevelopment, informing and engaging the public in an ongoing advocacy campaign. Rallies were organized at Ontario Place, City Hall, and the provincial legislature, encouraging participation in specific motions and legislation related to the redevelopment. Diverse groups and individuals have been involved with this effort: SwimOP (a swimming community advocating for safe, clean, and accessible water); the environmental organizations Toronto Field Naturalists and FLAP Canada regularly highlighted the negative impact on habitat and wildlife; Progress Toronto launched a targeted door-to-door awareness campaign; West End Phoenix hosted panel discussions; and UrbanSpace Gallery/401 Richmond has facilitated events. The photography-based project Save the Forest at Ontario Place invited the public to participate by commemorating the historic trees within the designed landscape that are at risk, and the 2023 publication As It Is: A precarious moment in the life of Ontario Place by photographer Steven Evans illustrated the indivisibility of the landscape architecture and architecture at Ontario Place.
Ontario Place's man-made islands are part of an integrated landscape architecture vision that was part of Hough’s idea to integrate native Ontario trees into a site that reflected the diversity of Ontario's natural heritage. Since Ontario Place opened in 1971, the landscape has matured, realizing Hough’s design intent, and providing habitat for nesting birds and other animals and supporting international bird migratory routes. Unfortunately, the destruction was able to occur because while Ontario Place is located in the City of Toronto, it is owned by the Province of Ontario, which is not bound by city by-laws or City Council decisions.
Now, according to some recent press reports, including Toronto City News, a "complaint [has been filed] with the province’s integrity commissioner, calling for an investigation into the Therme Canada deal at Ontario Place.
"The complaint suggests that the Austrian-based luxury spa company received preferential treatment from the Ford government when it was handed a 95-year lease to operate the mega spa at the redeveloped waterfront attraction."
Will we find out that the destruction at West Island was avoidable?
