The people of Toronto have made it quite clear that they're not at all keen on Premier Doug Ford handing a chunk of Ontario Place to an Austria-based private spa brand, but it's the parking garage required for said spa that has become the cherry on top of the sh** cake.

It was only in October that we first found out about the forthcoming lot, when the NDP shared a 2.5-year-old Infrastructure Ontario deck with some damning details — among them, the proposed size of more than a whopping 3,000 spaces, to be funded by taxpayers rather than Therme.

Though anger about the spa itself had been brewing for over a year at that point, the fact that such crucial aspects of the project were concealed from the public made things far, far worse for Ford and other stakeholders. 

Since that initial info was shared, more tidbits keep emerging, with some new revelations this last week that have people seemingly more up in arms than ever.

Can we just take a sec to think about what that $800 Million could do for the majority of Ontarians that probably wouldn't be able to afford going to the Therme Spa?

I'm f.ucking sick of Ford taking our money and pissing it away.

FUCK HIM. https://t.co/Hc65NRr4Vy

— Julie (@jv_carter) July 27, 2024

Doug Ford admitted last Monday that the parking structure would potentially now be going above ground rather than below its, largely due to costs — costs that, at this point, have somehow ballooned up to an estimated $800 million, again out of the public's pockets despite Ford earlier promising no public money was involved in the deal.

"We haven't confirmed the three underground parking (levels) because it costs so much to build underground," he told reporters.

Unfortunately, this would not have been our issue if the Province hadn't contractually obligated itself to provide parking for Therme within 650 m of the site, which it seems that Ford is now using the Science Centre relocation to bolster since ÉcoRécréo Group backed out of the revitalization early on, leaving only the spa and the revamped Budweiser Stage to justify the large parkade.

Of course, people are balking at this figure.

$800 million that we know of 😢
FOFI requests are denied
The cost of Therme’s secret lease of public park land is immeasurable — loss of nature trails, beaches, wild life, irreplaceable natural habitats

— Kathleen Aldridge (@KathleenAldrid9) July 27, 2024

Ford also mentioned last week that the lot may be moved to the Exhibition grounds, which the Province actually agreed to do under its new deal with Toronto anyways, but which the Canadian National Exhibition Association (CNEA) has its own concerns about, if it is above ground.

The terms of that deal specify that provincial leaders must "work with the City to establish an alternative parking solution at Exhibition Place that will improve public access to the shoreline at Ontario Place and could reduce the overall area needed for parking."

Mayor Olivia Chow confirmed to the Star last week that "there are many options and outcomes for the Ontario Place garage. Talks are ongoing between city staff, the province and our office."