Toronto Harbour Commission
Encyclopedia
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The agency managed Toronto Harbour
Toronto Harbour
Toronto Harbour or Toronto Bay is a bay on the north shore of Lake Ontario, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is a natural harbour, protected from Lake Ontario waves by the Toronto Islands. It is a commercial port on the Great Lakes as well as a recreational harbour...
as well as being responsible for major works along the Toronto waterfront. It built the Toronto Island Airport in 1939. The agency was founded in 1911 and operated until 1999, when the port operations were transferred to the new Toronto Port Authority
Toronto Port Authority
The Toronto Port Authority is a Canadian port authority responsible for management of the harbour of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, including the Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport...
(TPA).
History
The Harbour Commission was the third organization to manage the Port of Toronto, after the Commissioners of the Harbour of Toronto, known as the Harbour Trust, formed in 1850. Prior to 1850, the harbour had had three commissioners appointed by the province of Upper Canada to oversee harbour works, in conjunction with the building of the Queen's Wharf, at the foot of Bathurst Street in 1833. One of the commissioners, Hugh Richardson, was named Toronto's first Harbourmaster in 1837 and he imposed wharf fees to pay for the Wharf.The Harbour Trust was formed at the suggestion of the Toronto Board of Trade
Toronto Board of Trade
The Toronto Board of Trade is Toronto's chamber of commerce, the largest local chamber of commerce in Canada, representing more than 10,000 business and individual members with about 500,000 employees across Canada and annual revenues of more than $200 billion .It is a non-profit organization with...
. On behalf of port users, the Board expressed complaints in the operation of the provincial commission, which made no improvements in the harbour. The harbour was beset by silting problems which needed to be rectified. This second commission was governed by a five-man board, two from the City of Toronto, two from the Board of Trade and a fifth appointed by the province, nominated by the four other members.
The Harbour Trust was also given authority over the Esplanade plan. The original 1817 plan intended to build a public walk and garden along the waterfront, just south of Front Street. The province's plan was largely ignored and the City allowed the use of the shore line to be used for wharves and docking. In 1837, a new plan was developed for the Esplanade. In this plan, the Esplanade would be built just south of Front, and the waterfront extended south to the "Windmill Line", some 100 yards south. The new lands would be used for port uses. The Esplanade itself would become mostly railway lands.
The intrusion of the railways into the waterfront in the 1850s to 1890s period started to crowd out waterfront uses. In 1892, a legal agreement solidified the railways usage of the waterfront. In 1893, a new plan was developed to extend landfill another 600 feet (182.9 m) south, and a new Lake Street (today's Lakeshore Boulevard) established along the then current waterfront edge. The problem of silting, and the increasing amount of sewage being dumped in the harbour, required ongoing dredging efforts. Other works by the Harbour Trust including a breakwater at the Don River and a breakwater at the Queen's Wharf to protect the entrance to the harbour.
The wetlands of the Don River were becoming increasingly polluted. Plans were developed to convert the area (1,000 acres in size) into usable lands. A planning advocacy group, the Civic Guild unveiled a plan in 1909 which advocated industrial and recreational uses for the land. The Board of Trade advocated the reclamation and infilling of the wetlands for port and industrial uses. The existing port facilities were inadequate when a railway strike occurred in 1910, forcing vessels to wait days to dock.
A referendum was held on January 2, 1911 to approve a new 'Toronto Harbour Commission' to take over the harbour and waterfront. The Toronto Telegram newspaper exposed the decrepit condition of the old harbour facilities, and the City and Board of Trade wanted a new Commission set up, similar to the Montreal Harbour Commission of 1908, with much expanded powers over the Harbour Trust. The referendum was passed overwhelmingly.
The Toronto Harbour Commission was formed to manage Toronto harbour and waterfront lands in Toronto. Its initial plans included the cleanup of Sunnyside Beach, and a breakwater from the Humber River to Bathurst Street. In the central core, the Commission infilled lands south of Harbour Street to their current waterfront line. To the east, the Commission infilled the lands of the Don River marsh, for use as industrial and port lands. The bulk of these works were completed by 1925.
The Harbour Commission was the landlord for most of the Sunnyside Amusement Park
Sunnyside Amusement Park
Sunnyside is a lakefront district in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It includes a beach and park area along Lake Ontario's Humber Bay, to the west of the Exhibition grounds, at the foot of Roncesvalles Avenue where it meets King Street West and Queen Street West. In the 1910s, the area was the site of a...
at Sunnyside. After the Gardiner Expressway
Gardiner Expressway
The Frederick G. Gardiner Expressway, colloquially referred to as "the Gardiner", is a municipal expressway in the Canadian province of Ontario, connecting downtown Toronto with its western suburbs...
was built, the Harbour Commission transferred the Sunnyside lands to the City of Toronto.
In later years, the agency was responsible for the infill of Hanlan's Point on the Toronto Islands
Toronto Islands
The Toronto Islands are a chain of small islands in the city of Toronto, Ontario. Comprising the only group of islands in the western part of Lake Ontario, the Toronto Islands are located just offshore from the city centre, and provide shelter for Toronto Harbour...
to build the Island airport
Toronto City Centre Airport
Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport , commonly known as the Toronto Island Airport is an airport located on the Toronto Islands in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is named after Air Marshal Billy Bishop, a Canadian First World War flying ace...
. The agency also infilled the lands south of Lake Shore Boulevard south of the Canadian National Exhibition
Canadian National Exhibition
Canadian National Exhibition , also known as The Ex, is an annual event that takes place at Exhibition Place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada during the 18 days leading up to and including Labour Day Monday. With an attendance of approximately 1.3 million visitors each season, it is Canada’s largest...
.
In the 1990s, the agency was requiring annual subsidies to manage the Island airport and the port lands. There were a number of harbour commissions in Canada and the federal government reformed the laws under which harbours were managed. Most ports were put under the authority of local governments and several were put under the authority of new 'Port Authority' agencies which would manage their affairs on a break-even basis. Toronto's was added to the Port Authority program, largely at the insistence of local Liberal MP Dennis Mills
Dennis Mills
Dennis Joseph Mills is a Canadian businessman and former politician. He was a Liberal Member of Parliament for the riding of Toronto-Danforth in the east-end of downtown Toronto. He now sits on the board of directors of Magna International....
. In 2001, the new Toronto Port Authority
Toronto Port Authority
The Toronto Port Authority is a Canadian port authority responsible for management of the harbour of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, including the Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport...
was formed to manage the Port of Toronto, including the Island airport.
Also in the 1990s, the Harbour Commission transferred the Don River infill lands
Port Lands
The Port Lands of Toronto, Ontario, Canada are an industrial and recreational neighbourhood located about 5 kilometres south-east of downtown, located on the former Don River delta and most of Ashbridge's Bay....
to the City of Toronto Economic Development Commission in exchange for an annual subsidy. In the 2000s, the Port Authority later sued the City of Toronto for $1 billion dollars over the lands, claiming that the lands were transferred illegally. The Authority and the City settled out of court in exchange for a promised bridge to the Island Airport and approximately $50 million.
Milestones
- 1911 - Toronto Harbour Commission established
- 1912 - $19 million dollar waterfront plan
- 1919 - Harbour Commission takes over lifesaving service for harbour
- 1922 - Sunnyside Beach and amusement park opens
- 1928 - Terminal Warehouse opens at York Quay.
- 1929 - Central waterfront air harbour opens at foot of Scott Street.
- 1935 - Toronto approves of island airport and tunnel.
- 1935 - Federal government stops building of tunnel.
- 1937 - Construction starts at Island Airport and Malton Airport.
- 1938 - American Airlines DC3 makes the first official landing at Malton.
- 1939 - First plane lands at Island Airport. Cable ferry established to airport.
- 1940 - Norwegian air force starts training at Island Airport. First housed at Centre Island, but set up "Little Norway" camp at foot of Bathurst street.
- 1943 - RCAF takes over Island Airport and Norwegians move to Muskoka facilities.
- 1953 - Air traffic control established at Island Airport.
- 1955 - Building of new Marine Terminal II in anticipation of St. Lawrence Seaway.
- 1955 - Demolition of Sunnyside Amusement Park.
- 1959 - St. Lawrence Seaway opens and first vessel to reach Toronto is the Prins Willem George Frederik.
- 1959 - Queen Elizabeth II opens new Queen Elizabeth Docks (later renamed Marine Terminal 27 and 28).
- 1959 - Redpath Sugar factory opens on reclaimed land at foot of Jarvis Street.
- 1961 - New 4000 feet (1,219.2 m) runway at Island Airport.
- 1962 - Opening of E. L. Cousins Docks.
- 1962 - Harbour Commission takes over Island Airport.
- 1963 - Leslie Street Slip (Ship Channel extension) opens.
- 1965 - Maple City island airport ferry replaces cable ferry.
- 1968 - Harbour Commission unveils "Harbour City" concept.
- 1970 - Container Distribution Centre opened.
- 1972 - Harbourfront established in West Bayfront lands from Bathurst to York Street.
- 1975 - East Gap becomes main shipping channel and is dredged to a depth of 27 feet (8.2 m).
- 1979 - World Trade Centre Toronto established in THC building.
- 1983 - Tripartite agreement established for passenger airlines at Island Airport.
- 1984 - City Express starts regular service from Island Airport to Ottawa.
- 1988-1991 - Royal Commission on Future of the Toronto Waterfront.
- 1989 - Outer Harbour Marina opens.
- 1994 - Transfer of THC waterfront lands to City.
- 1994 - Renaming of Island Airport to City Centre Airport.
- 1999 - Canada Marine Act passed; Toronto Port Authority established to take over from THC.
Source: Wickson(2002)