The federal government is taking the future of Billy Bishop airport to the public realm, announcing Monday that it will open consultations until the end of July.
In a news release, Transport Canada said it pledges to work with various stakeholders, including Toronto residents, the province, Indigenous Peoples, Toronto Port Authority and experts to help inform its decisions on the “safe, efficient and sustainable airport operations for the benefit of all community members.”
People can participate through an online survey and engagement sessions until July 24. The release noted that environmental, economic and quality-of-life issues for people who live near the airport are on the radar.
“These consultations will provide communities and residents with an opportunity to share their perspectives on the future of the airport,” Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon said in the release. “Feedback gathered through this process will play a key role in guiding any future decisions.”
Last week, Prime Minister Mark Carney said he hadn’t “formed an opinion” on Premier Doug Ford’s expansion plan for the airport and promised a consultation process.
Carney said that issues still need to be ironed out before Ford’s plan gets the necessary go-ahead from his government.
“There’s many, many issues. There’s issues of transportation, there’s issues of economics, but there’s issues of neighbourhoods, quality of life, environmental concerns, or issues (of) parks and other elements, and so we’ll use the process,” Carney said.
In June, the Ontario government passed legislation that lets it acquire the City of Toronto’s 20 per cent stake in the island airport to potentially extend the runway by the height of the CN Tower.
