Mayor Chow demands province return Toronto Islands after feds kill airport expansion

Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow filed an urgent motion Monday demanding Ontario repeal Bill 110 and return expropriated waterfront land—including the Toronto Islands and Little Norway Park—to the city, after the federal government rejected the province's Billy Bishop airport expansion plan Friday.

Federal Transportation Minister Steven MacKinnon announced Friday the government would not support expanding the airport to accommodate larger jets, citing public consultations that drew 87,000+ responses, nearly 87 percent opposed to changes. He said the decision was final "at this stage."

Ontario had passed Bill 110 in June to seize control of city-owned airport lands and designate the area a "special economic zone" to bypass municipal law. The Toronto Port Authority, which operates the airport jointly with the city and Transport Canada, had stated an expansion would cost $4–5 billion and last approximately 25 years.

In her motion, seconded by Deputy Mayor Ausma Malik, Chow accused the Toronto Port Authority of hiding plans from residents and asking city officials to sign non-disclosure agreements. She also raised questions about whether Wall Street stood to profit, after media reports suggested a major U.S. bank could benefit from the expansion and mounted a lobbying campaign targeting officials at all government levels.

A Toronto Port Authority spokesperson said Monday they were "not sure" of the allegations and would revert with more details. The province and Premier Doug Ford's office did not immediately comment.

Chow said the city now has the chance to move forward on waterfront development residents actually want. "The Island Airport expansion is no longer moving forward," she said in the motion. "The Province must return the City's land so we can get on with the work of building the waterfront Torontonians deserve."