Momentum is gathering to save the so-called “Oppenheimer tunnel” to Upper Canada Mall. Built by former Newmarket resident, Duane Oppenheimer in 2011, the 200-metre subterranean passageway is said to extend under the mall’s south parking lot and continues below Davis Drive into an adjacent subdivision where it emerges inside a two-car garage at 9 & 3/4 McConnell Drive.

Although Oppenheimer moved away, shortly after being charged with unlawful excavation and mischief, area residents continued to use the tunnel for months. Partly fueled by social media, some say the Oppenheimer tunnel has taken on the status of legend for Newmarket-area high school students. “We were catching at least one kid a week trying to sneak into the tunnel through a utility closet,” said an unidentified mall security officer.

Ironically, Newmarket’s worst kept secret was a complete surprise to Sam and Anna Chung, the young couple that bought the Oppenheimer home. “We had no idea about any tunnel, but we could sometimes hear strange sounds like rattling carts and squeaky wheels from the north wall of our basement” said Sam. “It went on for months, before we figured it out.” That day came last April, when Sam heard Anna screaming loudly from the garage. He ran out to find her wielding a golf club over a frightened middle-aged couple. “They were cowering behind their cart and kept yelling ‘We’re sorry. We’re sorry!'” Sam recalled.

“We totally freaked when they showed us the tunnel hatch.”

The Chungs immediately sealed up their end of the passageway, but also unleashed a torrent of controversy within the community. Thousands of residents have called for the tunnel to remain open so people can walk to the mall in safety and comfort. With more subdivisions planned, road congestion is only going to get worse, tunnel supporters argue. “If you are going to build insanely-wide streets to accommodate thousands of cars and trucks, then you need these tunnels for actual people” says area resident, Andrea Smyrna.

After the illicit tunnel’s discovery by mall staff in 2011, Oppenheimer was at first locked in a glacially-paced battle with mall management and the town. The Town dropped a mischief charge after public outcry in the spring of 2013, but they are still considering whether such a tunnel contravenes local zoning rules.

An official in the town’s planning department explained, “Using a residential property as a public walkway is a huge safety and liability issue.” However, others note that Newmarket’s zoning bylaws don’t address underground tunnels and it isn’t certain how the Ontario Municipal Board would rule if the case is appealed. Planners have been debating the issue in heated lunch hour conversations for at least two years and have yet to reach a conclusion.

Despite official disapproval, the tunnel continues to gain public favour, and has helped spark a town-wide debate over growth and the need for walkable urban spaces. Recently a Change.Org pettion to save the Oppenheimer tunnel was started to create “a safe crossing for the elderly and disabled without timed crosswalks, Ma/Pa with tots, school kids and cyclists.”

As the 2014 municipal election gets closer, Newmarket residents will almost certainly be asking councilors where they stand on the Oppenheimer tunnel issue.