Drama is in the air at Toronto’s Billy Bishop airport.
Driving the news: Ontario Premier Doug Ford said the province intends to commandeer the City of Toronto’s stake in Billy Bishop airport in order to push through a controversial expansion plan, which includes lifting a ban on jet landings at the downtown island airport.
“We will be taking over the airport,” Ford told reporters. “We will be compensating the city for it. Not compensating just for the value but also for any lost revenue.”
The expansion is backed by the Toronto Port Authority and, per Ford, the federal government — the other two groups that co-own Billy Bishop along with the city.
Mayor Olivia Chow, who isn’t against expansion but is against jets, said she hadn’t seen “concrete plans… so I don’t precisely know what the province might be doing.”
Catch-up: Plans to expand Billy Bishop’s runways to allow jet landings were nearly realized in 2013, but the plans were scuttled by Ottawa. The idea re-emerged earlier this year when Ford brought up the idea, citing internal polling that said 70% of Ontarians supported it.
Why it matters: The case for the expansion is simple: it would allow Air Canada and Porter to conduct more flights, to more routes, carrying more passengers, through a major Canadian flight hub.
Porter’s shelved expansion plans would have allowed it to fly directly from the island to destinations including Vancouver, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and the Caribbean.
Per the Toronto Port Authority CEO, Southwestern Ontario airports serve over 30% of air passengers, and modernizing Billy Bishop could add $4 billion to the GDP.
Yes, but: It’s still unclear what levers of power the Ontario government will use to take control, and when it does, the expansion will face fierce pushback from the residents of Toronto Island and downtown condo-dwellers rallying against jet noise pollution.—QH