History – North Toronto Sewage System
When the Town of North Toronto was annexed to the City of Toronto in 1912, it had a primitive sewer system which was not compatible with the City of Toronto.
In September 1925, the City of Toronto passed a bylaw authorizing the construction of local sewers, trunk sewers and outlets at an estimated cost of $10,022,960. This was a system of combined sewers designed to carry both sewage and storm run-off. Storm run-off was a major problem in North Toronto as so many of the streets were not paved. A large percentage of the cost of the local sewers was charged to local residents through their tax bills; the City of Toronto paid for the trunk sewers and outlets.
A year later, City Council passed a second bylaw authorizing the construction of sewage disposal plant to serve North Toronto, at an estimated cost of $1 million. This plant would serve all of North Toronto as well as the municipalities of Leaside and Forest Hill.
Construction of the system began in 1926, and the North Toronto plant was put in operation on August 1, 1929. The plant was transferred to Metropolitan Toronto on January 1, 1954 when the new level of government assumed responsibility for sewage treatment. As of 1998, it belongs to the City of Toronto.