Court challenge to stop Ontario Place redevelopment dismissed by judge

A judge has dismissed a legal challenge by Ontario Place Protectors that would have stopped the redevelopment of Ontario Place.

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A court challenge by Ontario Place Protectors to stop the Ontario Place redevelopment has been dismissed by Justice Lisa Brownstone.

The Ontario Superior Court of Justice has upheld the Rebuilding Ontario Place Act, 2023, including provisions that eliminate any court or tribunal’s ability to grant remedy under all Ontario statutes.

The Act also eliminates any ability to claim compensation or damages from the Government or on its face for a court to grant any remedy related to judicial review.

According to Ontario Place Protectors (OPP), the decision acknowledges that government action can go too far but finds it has not in this case. OPP also said in a release that it found the decision “surprising and disturbing.”

“The difficulty many people will likely have with this ruling is that the government could not possibly have gone further than eliminating all remedies under all Ontario statutes,” said Eric Gillespie, legal counsel for the applicant OPP.

According to OPP, the decision also does not appear to address the precedent set by Ontario’s actions.

“People may not be aware of how far this legislation has gone and what it means for the future. The overarching issue is this. If you can essentially eliminate all laws for Ontario Place there is now nothing preventing the Government from doing this for anything, including new expressways, airports, eliminating the Greenbelt or any other government project. One would think almost every resident of Ontario should be very concerned about this prospect,” said Gillespie.

The Ontario Government previously agreed to stop demolition at Ontario Place, pending the hearing of OPP’s Application to the Superior Court of Ontario on July 19, 2024. The Ontario government had begun demolition at the West Island on Saturday, June 23, 2024, beginning early preparations for the recreational facility by private developer Therme.

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