Toronto City Hall

100 Queen Street West

Toronto, Ontario

Canada M5H 2N2

www.city.toronto.on.ca

Tel: 416-392-7191

Fax: 416-392-1330

June 5, 1998

 To:Urban Environment and Development Committee

 From:Commissioner of Urban Planning and Development Services

 Subject:Toronto City Centre Airport (Downtown)

  Purpose:

 To inform your Committee as to whether plans are being considered by the Toronto Harbour Commissioners to substantially lengthen the City Centre Airport runway and grant landing rights to DC-9=s.

 Funding Sources, Financial Implications and Impact Statement:

 There are no funding requirements arising from the recommendations of this report.

 Recommendation:

 That this report be received for information.

 Comments:

 At its meeting held on April 29 and 30, 1998, City Council, in approving the Toronto Harbour Commissioners= 1998 Capital Budget, recommended that the Commissioner of Urban Planning and Development Services be requested to submit a report to the next meeting of Urban Environment and Development Committee on whether plans are being considered by the Toronto Harbour Commissioners to substantially lengthen the City Centre Airport runway and grant landing rights to DC-9=s.

 The Toronto Harbour Commissioners (THC) have been contacted and they advise that there are no plans to lengthen the runways nor grant landing rights to DC-9=s. However, your Committee should be aware that the lengthening of the runways and the introduction of jets could occur only if the Tripartite Agreement is amended and federal environmental assessments completed, owing to the federal approvals required for such projects.

 The Tripartite Agreement is a lease agreement between the three owners of the airport lands, the City, the THC and the federal government. The Tripartite Agreement contains terms and conditions which prohibit:

 -constructing a bridge or vehicular tunnel

-constructing additional runways and/or extension to existing ones

-expanding the airport lands

-operating jet aircraft at the airport

-generating excessive noise from aircraft

 City Council, together with the federal government, would be required to authorize amendments to the Tripartite Agreement in order for the THC to construct a longer runway and/or permit DC-9=s or any jet to land at the airport.

 In addition, construction of a longer runway would necessitate lakefilling since the airport lands could only accommodate a 4,000 foot runway, the current length of the main runway. Approvals under the Fisheries Act and the Navigable Waters Act would be needed in order to create land either in the Inner Harbour area or in Lake Ontario. Approvals under these federal Acts would trigger the need for a federal environmental assessment.

 Contact Name:Joe D=Abramo

Telephone (416) 392-7616

Fax (416) 392-1330

e-mail: jdabramo@city.toronto.on.ca

 Reviewed by:

 Paul J. BedfordVirginia M. West

Executive Director and Chief PlannerCommissioner of

City Planning DivisionUrban Planning and Development Services