Toronto Ontario Place | ?m | ?s | Infrastructure ON

They should build the largest ferris wheel here and hotel!!!! Why use the port lands when they could transform Ontario Place!
 
Governments in Ontario have let the park decline for the last 20 years. When I went last summer, I was surprised how dirty and run down everything looked. There was lots of rust on the floating pavilions. A simple paint job would have costed very little, yet would have made a big difference. The drop in attendance, is the fault of the government and the people who run it. Look at Canada's Wonderland. Every year there are new major attractions and the park looks as good as it did the day it opened. So I'm not surprised that it has one of the highest attandance figures of any seasonal amusement park. Blame Mike Harris and Dalton McGuinty for decline in attandance. I will be VERY upset if they try to sell it off to the highest bidder.

Why is Tory the guy they picked to turn it around? When was the last time anyone has seen Tory come out with a bright, new idea? It just seems like governments always go to the same small group of people to lead everything. You never see anybody new with fresh, bold ideas. It's always people like John Tory, David Peterson and David Crombie.

I don't have a lot of faith that McGuinty (or any government) will do the right thing and rebuild Ontario Place into something amazing, which is something I think it has the potential to be. I am still enamoured of the floating pods and The Imax Theatre, like I was 30 years ago. I think it's a beautiful park that deserves some respect.
 
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Will miss the Cinesphere.

Cinesphere.jpg


Would still like to see a movie-based amusement exhibit of some sort. Would still like to see a sphere somewhere in Ontario Place as a replacement.

Would like to see a year-round amusement of some sort including an indoor water-park, including an indoor wave pool.

worldwaterpark.jpg


Did not like the chain restaurants. Would like to see independent restaurants and pubs. Maybe even overlooking the waters of the water-park.

Return to the free (or included in admission) concerts and shows, of various types.

Maybe a hotel and a small mall that connects Exhibition Place and Ontario Place as a bridge of some sort over Lake Shore Blvd.

And hide the parking lots. Its depressing to see the parking lots. Hide them behind buildings, forests, etc. short of dumping them into the lake (hhhmmm).
 
Torontovibe said:
Why is Tory the guy they picked to turn it around? When was the last time anyone has seen Tory come out with a bright, new idea?
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They don't actually expect or want Tory to come up with a "bright idea" that would revitalize Ontario Place. They want him to ratify a decision that has probably already been made to sell off all or part of it.

Tory suits this role because he is (a) respected (b) from Toronto and (c) a Tory. That way, whatever he recommends can be cast as non-partisan and in the city's interest.
 
Blovertis said:
They don't actually expect or want Tory to come up with a "bright idea" that would revitalize Ontario Place. They want him to ratify a decision that has probably already been made to sell off all or part of it.

Tory suits this role because he is (a) respected (b) from Toronto and (c) a Tory. That way, whatever he recommends can be cast as non-partisan and in the city's interest.
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The reason that John Tory was picked was because he has many contacts within all levels of government (Municipal, Provincial, and Federal) and is pretty well respected. The reason that OP has failed in the past is that the various levels of government could not work together.

Look to see Harbourfront Center (Federal), Ontario Place (Provincial) and the Exhibition (Municipal) somehow merged or move under one corp. You might even see the Metro Toronto Convention Center and The Exhibition conference facilities also become linked.

There is a ton of potential here, and it just requires someone to bring the various groups together.
 
I heard on CBC radio tonight that the 2017 date is because it's Canada's 150th birthday. I'm not sure that that is quite relevant to ONTARIO Place, but it's the excuse they're using.
 
Ah well, if money were no object, both Ontario Place and Exhibition Place could be fitted with:

Canadian Aerospace Museum
Museum of Astronomy and Cosmology
Major hotel and conference facilities (associated with exhibition)
Lake Ontario Ecology Centre
Indoor Water Park and Recreation Facilities
A wide, accessible landscaped pedestrian bridge linking the two sites
Cafes, shops and offices near the water
Revitalized outdoor concert and event space
Bike and pedestrian paths
Multilevel parking facilities to accommodate vehicle space lost to noted developments
 
Has anyone complaining about the closure of Ontario Place been within the past 20 or so years? I can remember thinking in 1994 that there was no coherent theme or particular attraction(s) to warrant a return visit. Is it a third rate amusement park, quasi-educational centre, or open space? All they had at the time was a log flume ride, mini putt, a hall of mirrors, and a laser show between screenings of a wildlife film. There was also a seemingly random-placed bell to commemorate 100 years of Japanese settlement in Canada.

Your options for food and drink were pretty much limited to a Pizza Pizza shack. I've gathered from people who've attended in the intervening years that not much has changed.

I hope that they come up with something that makes people want to visit. How about a world-class attraction and not the usual condo/conference centre/mall/midway or casino?
 
PinkLucy said:
I heard on CBC radio tonight that the 2017 date is because it's Canada's 150th birthday. I'm not sure that that is quite relevant to ONTARIO Place, but it's the excuse they're using.
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Canada's 150th birthday is also Ontario's 150th birthday.

I assume that because this is provincial land that the city has no authority to designate anything here heritage?
 
uptown said:
Has anyone complaining about the closure of Ontario Place been within the past 20 or so years? I can remember thinking in 1994 that there was no coherent theme or particular attraction(s) to warrant a return visit. Is it a third rate amusement park, quasi-educational centre, or open space? All they had at the time was a log flume ride, mini putt, a hall of mirrors, and a laser show between screenings of a wildlife film. There was also a seemingly random-placed bell to commemorate 100 years of Japanese settlement in Canada.

Your options for food and drink were pretty much limited to a Pizza Pizza shack. I've gathered from people who've attended in the intervening years that not much has changed.
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I went to Ontario Place as a kid in the 90s. It was fantastic. I loved the bumper boats on Lake Ontario, the paddle boats which you could take through that tunnel, the log ride which I went on countless times, the space travel motion simulator with a quirky robot doing the introduction, the mazes where you swiped that card and tried to find all the swiping points, that cool area where the bands played by the waterfall, and IMAX movies at the Cinesphere.

Of course, at that age I didn't know much about architecture, but the Lego room with every piece you could imagine with the massive pod windows looking high over the lagoon gave me a certain sense of enjoyment that I later rediscovered in a love of architecture. I was impressed by that space even though I couldn't yet describe that impression. You also got onto the Haida for the cost of admission, which was fantastic. I tried to hit that Japanese bell as hard as I could. Then there was that play area with rope climbing, challenging loose ladders, and slides. I never went to the water park, but those slides looked impressive.

Until I was old enough to go on the serious roller coasters of Canada's Wonderland, Ontario Place was awesome. There was nothing that compared. Now that I'm reminded of all those great times, I'm sadder to hear it close.

lesouris said:
I assume that because this is provincial land that the city has no authority to designate anything here heritage?
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It's within the city's jurisdiction to recognize any building or structure as a part of its heritage. For instance, the Ontario Legislative Building was recognized as heritage in 1973.
 
Torontovibe said:
Governments in Ontario have let the park decline for the last 20 years. When I went last summer, I was surprised how dirty and run down everything looked. There was lots of rust on the floating pavilions. A simple paint job would have costed very little, yet would have made a big difference. The drop in attendance, is the fault of the government and the people who run it. Look at Canada's Wonderland. Every year there are new major attractions and the park looks as good as it did the day it opened. So I'm not surprised that it has one of the highest attandance figures of any seasonal amusement park. Blame Mike Harris and Dalton McGuinty for decline in attandance. I will be VERY upset if they try to sell it off to the highest bidder.
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So let me get this straight: you are surprised that the privately-owned, profit-driven park is maintained in a top-notch, spic and span condition and the government-run, bureaucrat laden park is in disrepair?

And the worst thing for you that could possibly happen is that Ontario Place could find itself a privately-owned, profit-driven park?

I have but one word: sigh.
 
LOL, brockm has a point. Why are we so willing to look to government to provide all answers and solve all problems? Regulations, yes! Government ownership, no!

... and while we're at it let's get rid of the LCBO once and for all (just thought I'd throw it in).

... and just to raise other contentious issues imagine how an aquarium could have provided an amazing centrepiece for the revival of the whole site instead of the tacky tourist trap we're getting at the base of the tower. Instead, we are now struggling to find some desperate way to save the park: malls, casinos, museums celebrating the zebra mussel, really?? Given the voracious state of condo development in Toronto I think I know how this is going to play out.
 
Tewder:

Ripley don't want to be located at the Ex/OP - clearly the private sector has spoken with regards to its' choice, unless you are thinking of getting the government to provide the answer in that regard? And unfortunately, tacky tourist traps are often exactly a) what the public wants and b) what the private sector provides.

For the record, I don't really believe the government should be heavily involved in the amusement park aspects of OP/Ex - certainly it should set some standards around the general theme/look and feel, and that specific heritage aspects should be preserved (like P3 in the case of Cinesphere - partly for profit uses and party not for profit)...

AoD
 
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