A majority of Torontonians still supports Sidewalk Labs’ plans to create a controversial data-driven smart city on the waterfront, a new poll finds.

An online Environics Research survey conducted between April 23 and May 11 for Toronto Region Board of Trade, found that 54 per cent of Torontonians either strongly support or somewhat support the project. A total of 17 per cent of respondents are somewhat or strongly opposed to the project, while 29 per cent don’t know how they feel or have no opinion.

Those findings are similar to a poll the firm did in February, which also showed majority support for the project, at 55 per cent.

The February poll questioned 600 Toronto residents, while the latest poll surveyed 426 in the city among 1,000 total respondents from across the GTA, including residents of Halton, Peel, York and Durham.

Across the GTA, there was 47 per cent support for the Quayside project, while 13 per cent were opposed or strongly opposed. More GTA residents — 40 per cent — replied they don’t know how they feel about the project or have no opinion.

The February survey was conducted before the Star obtained leaked documents showing Quayside is only the first part of Sidewalk Labs’ grander vision to expand into the Port Lands and help finance projects such as a new LRT up front, getting paid back later through property taxes and development charges that normally go to municipal coffers.

The latest survey was conducted after the leak.

“International headlines imply that Quayside plans are facing a wave of protests in Toronto, but that simply isn’t true,” Jan De Silva, president and CEO of Toronto Region Board of Trade said in a statement Thursday.

“In fact, a majority of Torontonians remain open to Sidewalk Labs getting a fair hearing in the many government approvals to come, even if there are still important policy issues which need to be resolved along the way,” De Silva added.

Thorben Wieditz, a member of the #Blocksidewalk group opposed to the project, said it is noteworthy that despite allocating nearly $12 million towards communications, external affairs and engagement for its project, support for Sidewalk Labs’ endeavour is “still only hovering” around 54 per cent.

Sidewalk Labs “are not succeeding in convincing the public in a much more dramatic way,” Wieditz said in an interview.

In a statement, Sidewalk Labs spokesperson Keerthana Rang said “we are putting the finishing touches on a proposal, developed together with Toronto residents, to create thousands of new jobs and achieve new levels of affordability and sustainability on the waterfront.

“We are happy to see that Torontonians are excited as we are about these ideas, and we look forward to continuing these important conversations in the weeks to come,” she added.

Sidewalk Labs’ final master plan for its smart city project in Toronto will be released next month, says the firm’s CEO.

Speaking at the Collision technology conference in Toronto Wednesday, Dan Doctoroff told a packed room that the master plan for the Quayside project will be done “literally next month.”

Doctoroff said when that happens another set of public reviews of the proposal will begin.

Sidewalk Labs’ plan for the 12-acre beta-site on the city’s eastern waterfront calls for a mixed-use development consisting mostly of residential units. Once delivered, the tri-government corporation Waterfront Toronto must approve the master plan and likely senior levels of government before it can go ahead.

Asked about criticisms from groups opposed to Quayside that suggested Sidewalk Labs hasn’t been transparent about the project, Doctoroff told the audience, “I think, to be honest, we have been more transparent than any other project I’ve seen.”

“We set up an office, exhibition space, down at the waterfront and had more than 10,000 people come down and see what we’re doing,” he told BNN Bloomberg host Jon Erlichman, who interviewed Doctoroff for the fireside chat-type address at the conference.

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He added that Sidewalk has held numerous public forums and meetings during the planning process for the project and met with more than 20,000 people in person.

The Sidewalk project has come under fire from various groups including the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, which wants the project halted until all three levels of government have established digital data governance polices related to the collection, ownership, use and storage of the personal information that would be obtained in the smart city. Citizens’ group #Blocksidewalk has also called for a “reset” of the project, arguing for a more transparent process.

On Wednesday evening, Waterfront Toronto and the Toronto Public Library co-hosted a public discussion on the future of digital neighbourhoods and digital literacy. About 100 people attended the event, which was not specifically about Sidewalk Labs’ Quayside Project, although it addressed many of the underlying anxieties the project has raised.

Without mentioning Sidewalk Labs by name, Waterfront Toronto Vice-President Kristina Verner said the organization has heard the public’s concerns “loud and clear.”

“Risks, ethical considerations, including privacy, data ownership and data sharing, are being discussed in a more balanced way than ever before,” she said.

Verner also unveiled Waterfront Toronto’s recently drafted digital principles, which include inclusivity, accessibility, transparency, privacy and data protection.

Michael Geist, the Canada Research Chair in internet and E-commerce law and the chair of Waterfront Toronto’s Digital Strategy Advisory Panel, spoke about how cities need to first determine what they value before figuring out how to make the most of the new technologies available to them.

Representatives of the Toronto Public Library spoke about their ongoing digital literacy initiatives and the importance of equitable access to online services and networks.

Participants then split into smaller discussion groups on the subjects of digital literacy, digital principles, digital neighbourhoods, digital justice and digital equity.

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