‘Make it live up to its potential:’ Stiles says Science Centre business case a shell game to justify Ford’s luxury spa

QUEEN’S PARK – Official Opposition NDP Leader Marit Stiles released the following statement on the business case for Ontario Science Centre’s relocation:

“This business case is nothing more than a 78-page shell game to justify the Conservatives’ scheme for a private luxury spa at Ontario Place.

It’s clear why this government fought so hard to keep this document hidden from the public: it shows that the one-time cost of relocating the Ontario Science Centre to Ontario Place would be twice the cost of completing the necessary repairs at the current site.

Ford’s Conservatives, and the Liberals before them, spent years ignoring the costs of maintaining the current facility, letting it languish.

Now, Ford is cynically using this opportunity to stop the Ontario Science Centre from realizing its full potential. He’s taking an important institution away from communities in Flemingdon Park and Thorncliffe Park, simply to justify his vanity mega-spa project.

Let’s invest in this important institution so it can live up to its fullest potential.”

QUICK FACTS:

• The report says the cost of completing “all capital repairs” at the current location is $164 million (p.g. 7) and the design and construction costs of a new Science Centre at Ontario Place will be $322 million (p.g. 37) — double the cost of repairing the existing facility.
• The total 50-year costs of deferred maintenance, ongoing maintenance and all capital costs are $709 million at the current site; costs of relocating and constructing are $659 million at Ontario Place – a difference of just $50 million – over 50 years.
• The CEO of Infrastructure Ontario confirmed that this business case does not include all the province’s expected capital costs for relocation.
• The report omits the investments required to refurbish the Ontario Place pods.
• The government’s purported operational savings come from lower operating expenses at the Ontario Place site based on the Conservatives’ plan to reduce the size of the facility by half and lay off staff.
• The business case expects the Science Centre to make $23 million more in revenue at the current location than it would at Ontario Place (p. 44).