The Vocal Saviour Of The Waterfront.......

......is just that..... Vocal. The reality is Miller is a failure and still living on the glory of stopping a bridge to the island.

Who'll save the waterfront? Not Miller, not Ottawa
June 04, 2007
Christopher Hume

What makes the fate of the most important site on the Toronto waterfront so terribly sad is that it didn't have to end up this way.

The 5-hectare property, officially known as MT27, sits at the foot of Yonge St. It has long been designated for some special public purpose such as an opera house, a United Nations institute, a square, park, whatever...

But last week when developers who own the land, Fernbrook Homes and Cityzen, announced their plans, it became painfully clear that the public has been largely shut out of what will be a private condo complex.

True, a 25-metre promenade will run along the west and south edges of the site, and there may be more public amenities further east, perhaps an extension of Freeland St.

But this is a far cry from the days when the Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Corp. was talking about a major public cultural facility for MT27.

Where did its plans fall apart?

The story goes back to the summer before last when the TWRC, the city and federal government were involved in negotiations with the then-owners of MT27, Avro Quay Ltd., to buy the site. A deal was agreed to and the Liberal minister for the waterfront, Joe Volpe, managed to get the go-ahead from Treasury Board when a federal election was called.

Needless to say, voters tossed out the Liberals and Volpe's successor, John Baird, the man who now spends his time promoting the global embarrassment that is Canada's national environmental policy, pulled the plug on the deal.

In the meantime, Fernbrook and Cityzen appeared on the scene and bought the property. Still, discussions continued, this time, however, the intention was to purchase just the western half of the site. Though this wasn't the ideal scenario, it gave the TWRC an opportunity to do something truly public and spectacular on the most significant portion of the land, the part closest to Yonge.

But that would have meant taller buildings on the eastern half of the property, an idea Cityzen and Fernbrook could have lived with.

But not Mayor David Miller. He objected to extra height, and again, the deal died.