Ontario tables bill to allow provincial takeover of Toronto island airport
Written by The Canadian Press on April 23, 2026
TORONTO — Ontario Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria has introduced a bill that would allow the province to take over the City of Toronto’s role in the island airport.
It’s part of a government push for an expansion of Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport to include jets.
The bill allows the province to assume the City of Toronto’s spot in a tripartite agreement that governs the land, an agreement that is currently between the city, the federal government and the Toronto Port Authority, which is a federal agency.
The legislation could also see the province appropriate one-third of the waterfront Little Norway Park, though Sarkaria was not clear on the specific reason for that, other than supporting airport expansion.
He also could not say how much longer the airport runway will be extended to accommodate jets.
Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow is opposed to what she has called a “unilateral action to grab city land without consulting Torontonians.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 23, 2026.
Allison Jones, The Canadian Press