Torontonians overwhelmingly want easy public access to the Ontario Place waterfront, something not guaranteed in the Doug Ford government’s redevelopment plan.

And, according to a Forum Research poll conducted Jan. 15 to 17, most Torontonians don’t want a casino at Ontario Place and are unlikely to visit one if it’s built, but they would support a landmark Ferris wheel on the site.

Forum asked 1,427 Torontonians several questions about Ontario Place, including: “How important is it that members of the public can easily access the waterfront at Ontario Place?”

An overwhelming 87 per cent said public waterfront access is important, with a clear majority 60 per cent saying it’s very important. Thirteen per cent said that issue is not important. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points 19 times out of 20.

Ontario Tourism Minister Michael Tibollo recently released guidelines for redevelopment proposals “with potential landmarks such as sports and entertainment attractions, and retail.” Premier Doug Ford and his ministers say they don’t want to take anything off the table, including a casino, although the guidelines say there will be no residential development.

The site, except for the Budweiser Amphitheatre, is open for redevelopment and long-term lease by private corporations with no financial cost to the province.

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The guidelines do not include any requirement for corporations to keep the scenic shoreline west of downtown open to all visitors. More details are expected when the province solicits expressions of interest this spring.

Other findings of the Forum poll include:

Some 56 per cent of people said they disapprove of a casino at Ontario Place, with 30 per cent approving. Seventy-one per cent said they would be unlikely to visit a casino if one is built there.

A majority, 54 per cent, would approve of construction of a Ferris wheel “like the London Eye” at Ontario Place, with 25 per cent disapproving. Officials say, however, that proximity to the flight path of Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport means the tallest Ferris wheel possible there is 45 metres, compared to the 135-metre “Eye” in the British capital.

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Councillor Joe Cressy, whose ward includes Ontario Place, said the survey proves the Ontario government is screwing up an opportunity to breathe new life into the once-beloved educational theme park that closed in 2012, with parts redeveloped and opened in 2017.

“Rather than starting with principles and a vision for a publicly accessible waterfront destination, the province has instead outlined a set of criteria that could create a wall across the waterfront,” the Ward 10 councillor said in an interview.

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“The guidelines are an open call to developers to make money off Ontario Place while closing off the waterfront to the people who live here.”

Cindy Wilkey, a waterfront activist and leader of a group formed to protect Ontario Place, including the Cinesphere pods and waterfront, Trillium Park and William G. Davis Trail, predicted people will fight to keep access to Lake Ontario lost to development elsewhere.

“I’m very happy to hear that waterfront access is on people’s radar,” Wilkey said. “That is one of our principles for waterfront development, and also for Waterfront Toronto” — the city-provincial-federal agency overseeing shoreline development near downtown.

“People are really wanting to take back their waterfront wherever possible — not privatize it.”

The previous government opened the $30-million Trillium Park to rave reviews in 2017. The new redevelopment guidelines state developers can move the lakeside park as long as is replaced with another 7.5 acres of parkland elsewhere on the 155-acre site.

Asked about the poll and the public desire for an open waterfront Brett Weltman, Tibollo’s press secretary, said the province is encouraging “potential partners from around the world to take a fresh look at Ontario Place and help make Ontario Place become a spectacular world-class destination ...

“No decisions have been made at this time. We look forward to receiving new and innovative ideas as a part of this process. We believe in, and support, the power and ingenuity of the private sector. That is why we are going to look for the best partners from around the world to work with us on this unique opportunity.”

Meanwhile, a former Ontario Place board chair is speaking out to say Ford ministers’ assertions that buildings at Ontario Place are falling apart and ripe for demolition are bogus.

Penny Lipsett, a Liberal appointee to the board in 2005 and chair from 2013 to 2018, said in an email: “Ontario Place is not in ruins, in fact we had programming over the past two years that attest to its viability. The Cinesphere has been restored and has been operating for over a year and the Trillium Park and Trail, open since June 2017, has been heralded as a gem.”

Programming including music, yoga, recreation and cultural events drew 1.4 million visitors to the site in 2018, not including concertgoers at the Budweiser Stage or Echo Beach, said Lipsett, who favours redevelopment as a “year-round destination for cultural, educational and recreational activity,” with lots of green space and possibly a new home for the Ontario Science Centre.

Queen’s Park Briefing reported Friday that Tibollo, in a private audience with tourism stakeholders, called the state of Ontario Place “shameful”, citing peeling paint and other signs of neglect. He also suggested the province would work with more than one developer, might look at a joint redevelopment with adjacent city-owned Exhibition Place, and that the Cinesphere and pods could come down.

Tibollo told the gathering that he recently met with some wealthy Chinese entrepreneurs who “perked up” when he mentioned the Ontario Place opportunity, Queen’s Park Briefing reported.

David Rider is the Star’s City Hall bureau chief and a reporter covering Toronto politics. Follow him on Twitter: @dmrider

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