Let's Go To The Ex!
Join us December 9th at 7 pm on Zoom, as we welcome Don Boyle the CEO of Exhibition Place as he speaks to us about new plans and program ideas for our historic waterfront venue and fairground.
A big thank you to everyone who attended Speaker Series 10: The Changing Waterfront, updates from Waterfront Toronto & Ports Toronto on November 7.
We regret that some of you who RSVPd were not able to get in. We had an issue with our Zoom account that we were not able to resolve on the 7th. We are happy to report it's now fixed and you won't encounter that problem at our next event on December 12th.
We want to thank our guest speaker Chris Glaisek, Chief Planning and Design Officer Waterfront Toronto, who gave great summary of progress on the Villiers island and Quayside projects. We'll post his deck and a recording soon.
We regret that our other guest speaker, RJ Steemstra, the President and CEO of PortsToronto, declined to attend at the last minute. Please click here to read PortsToronto's withdrawal letter. We look forward to hosting Mr. Steenstra at a future meeting.
Instead, Chair Ed Hore outlined some concerns about the airport renewal issue, and in particular suggested that the City conduct robust public consultation on the future of the Island Airport (BBTCA) and study possible alternative options for the site including park land or housing. Although the existing agreement doesn't expire until 2033, a decision whether to extend the island airport's existence for 50 or more years is likely in the next year or eighteen months.
Please click here to read Ed Hore's paper: Does Toronto need two airports?
A City Staff Report outlining the city's proposed island airport consultation process was planned for the City of Toronto Executive Committee Meeting on December 5, 2023, but is delayed; it may go on the agenda of the January 30, 2024 meeting.
We will be providing updates on the airport and other key issues in the coming weeks and will share the City report once it is available.
We look forward to seeing you on December 12th for our AGM, for a discussion of this and other waterfront issues.
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Latest posts
Join us November 18th at 7 pm for Speaker Series 18: A Romance of Ferries: 200 Years of Getting People to the Islands. Presented by Ron Jenkins.
CLICK HERE TO RSVP
Toronto has always been a waterfront town, intimately connected to its spectacular Island retreat.
For nearly 200 years ferries have been integral to that connection. Ron will survey Toronto's fascinating story of ferries, past, present, and future, the romance of excursions across the harbour, and yes, also some frustrations, failures and small triumphs.
Tuesday November 18, 2025 • 7:00 PM on Zoom
Native seeds buried under eight metres of soil when the foot of the Don was a marsh long ago are coming back to life at Biidaasige Park. Excavation and construction for the new park exposed ancient seeds to water and sun; they woke up and started growing again.
We learned about this amazing rebirth of native plants at our October 26, 2025 Walk/Talk led by David Stonehouse of the Waterfront Secretariat, with special guests forestry expert Steve Smith of Urban Forest Associates and landscape architect Netami Stuart of Toronto Parks and Recreation. The weather was perfect. It was a great day. Many thanks to our expert speakers, and to the many people that joined us for a scenic Sunday stroll.
