Toronto's looking at how to keep Ontario Science Centre where it is — and could run its own

Toronto will investigate how to keep the Ontario Science Centre where it is, with councillors asking staff to look into a number of possible options including setting up the tourist attraction under city ownership.

On Thursday, city council voted 21-3 in favour of exploring the feasibility of keeping the centre in its current location, including any potential cash that can be raised from event rentals. Coun. Josh Matlow brought the motion to council to push back against Premier Doug Ford's plan to relocate the centre downtown on the site of Ontario Place. 

Matlow said if the provincial plan moves forward, it will rob nearby communities of a valuable community resource.

"The Science Centre has provided jobs and educational opportunities to the Thorncliffe Park and Flemington Park neighbourhoods for many, many years," he said. "We have a responsibility to do our due diligence to see if there's a way to keep it where it belongs." 

In April, Ford announced his plan to move the Ontario Science Centre and combine it with his government's controversial plan to revamp Ontario Place. The province plans to demolish the centre in Don Mills and building housing in its place.

Construction on the new centre is set to begin in 2025 with its opening expected in 2028. The current science centre will remain open in the interim. 

The centre is run by the province on land owned by the city.

Matlow said staff will dig into the lease the province currently has with the city for use of the land. He wants to understand what the province's responsibilities are when it comes to the centre's operations on the site. 

Staff will also look at the city's options if province moves the science centre, including studying if there is a business case to be made for creating a Toronto Science Centre on the site. 

The request comes at a time when the city is cash-strapped and facing a billion-dollar budget deficit. Matlow said the business model would need to be sustainable and it's not unusual for the city to run attractions like the science centre.

"The City of Toronto runs theatres, it runs an entire zoo, it runs all sorts of agencies and has done so successfully," he said. "So, if there is a realistic way, with a feasible financial model to be able to operate a science centre … then I think the City of Toronto has a responsibility to explore options."

City staff say in a report that they may need to hire a consultant to complete the study and that it will take between nine months to a year to complete.

A number of community groups spoke up in support of the feasibility study ahead of last week's council meeting. Most would like to see science centre to remain in its current location.

"Most of the exhibits all of us love will be thrown in the garbage. The cost to close the science centre is simply too high, for Flemingdon and Thorncliffe, for Toronto, and for Ontario."