Major decision coming for Toronto public school tracks

The Toronto District Scho0l Board (TDSB) put forward on argument to the Superior Court on Tuesday to be exempt from a zoning bylaw that is blocking the construction of a new track and turf facility at Central Technical School in downtown Toronto.

The zoning bylaw says that any construction on TDSB land must only be “for teaching or instructional purposes or purposes accessing thereto.” The project is backed by private Razor Management Inc. (RMI) which is why it is running into problems with the bylaw. The school would have access to the facility during school hours, but in the evening Razor Management would rent it out to other parties, very similar to another project by RMI in Toronto’s east end at Monarch Park.

The complex would cost an estimated $6 million, would see RMI be given a 21-year lease to the property and benefit from all revenues raised while the school does not have access to the field. It would also be covered in an inflatable dome during the winter months.

“If I rule in your favour, any school board can build these facilities without any approval from the city and without any community involvement,” Superior Court Justice David Corbett reportedly told RMI’s lawyer during a court hearing. The TDSB has already made a public-private partnership at Monarch Park with RMI and is planning more around the city.

The project has been running into hurdles since November, 2013 when the field was closed after preliminary tests uncovered that much of the soil contains dangerous contaminants.

Former Toronto city councillor of Ward 20 Adam Vaughan was a staunch opponent to the project. Vaughan stepped down as city councillor on May 13, only two weeks before the argument was put to the Superior Court, to run for election as an MP in the upcoming federal by-election in Trinity-Spadina.

The track at Central Tech is still the original cinder, is cracked and in need of repair. The TDSB says they don’t have enough money on their own to repair it. It will remain closed for another year if RMI is not able to begin construction soon.