All aboard the monorail to waterfront ruin

There’s no reason to doubt Councillor Doug Ford’s claim that “everyone’s jaw just dropped” when he revealed his vision for Toronto’s waterfront at a recent backroom meeting of 15 people. The question is, who were these favoured few treated to an early peek at Ford’s plan for a monorail, a giant Ferris wheel, a posh waterside hotel and, of course, a mega-mall?

If they were influential developers, their jaws surely dropped at the prospect of quickly harvesting a multi-million-dollar windfall. To realize Ford’s vision in just six years, according to his schedule, the city will have to sell hundreds of acres of prime waterfront land at bargain basement prices. That’s because the private sector doesn’t build monorails for free, and time is of the essence. To turn Ford’s dream into reality, much of this tract will inevitably be covered by crowded condo towers. Well-placed investors are sure to become richer, and the cash-strapped Ford administration will gain a timely infusion of capital.

On the other hand, if those attending the backroom meeting cared about building green, clean, innovative neighbourhoods on Toronto’s shoreline, their jaws surely dropped at Ford’s appalling Vegas North concept — contradicting all that Toronto’s waterfront vision was originally about.

A monorail? That was considered futuristic back at Expo 67. Ford’s fanciful line would run from Ontario Place to Union Station, then to the Pan Am Games athlete’s village and south to the Cherry Beach area. But he hasn’t revealed any study showing a detailed route, construction costs, projected operating expenses, or expected ridership. It’s hard to resist the feeling that no actual analysis exists or, if it does, it’s something pulled together by some pliable consultant, virtually on the back of a napkin.

Ford’s dubious desire to build the world’s largest Ferris wheel seems derived from the success of the London Eye, a symbol of that city in the new millennium. Of course, it stopped being biggest in 2006, when it was superseded by a giant wheel in China, and then another in Singapore. Never mind, Ford intends to top them all — giving Torontonians a fresh opportunity to go around in circles.

And then there’s his proposed 1.6 million-square–foot mega-mall. It’s needed, Ford said in a radio interview, because there aren’t enough stores downtown. “Really, there’s only one place to shop right now, that’s the Eaton Centre.” This must come as a surprise to Toronto’s thousands of downtown merchants.

In fact, Ford’s waterfront plan is no plan at all — it’s an excuse to hurriedly hand developers a vast tract of prime city-owned real estate in exchange for short-term financial gain. Several lucky developers will certainly emerge winners, and so might the Ford administration if it manages to sell enough of the city’s holdings to hide its financial incompetence in the absence of expected “gravy.”

The losers will be every Torontonian now, and for generations to come, interested in building a more livable city.

Origin
Source: Toronto Star