Construction gets underway on planned Woodbine GO Station
Work is finally getting underway on the long-promised Woodbine GO Station in Etobicoke.
Premier Doug Ford said Thursday that construction is officially kicking off on the station, which was announced by the province back in 2019.
'This station will be a key part of our plan to provide two-way all-day GO service, and will connect travellers on the Kitchener Line to Pearson Airport and the UP Express to local transit and, of course, the Woodbine Racetrack,' Ford said.
While the original target for the station to open was 2023, Ford said it's taken six years to get started on construction because the province had to conduct environmental assessments and consult with the community.
Woodbine Entertainment will be contributing $170 million to support the construction of the new station, Ford said. The province did not list the total cost.
'This is going to be a game changer for North Etobicoke and for the people who rely on the Kitchener Line every day, with better connections, improved services and new jobs and growth in the community,' Ford said.
The new station will replace the nearby Etobicoke North GO Station, which the province says is unable to accommodate future growth.
The next stage of work will include deep sewer and underground utility works, realigning Entrance Road and preparing for a future track diversion to accommodate the platform at Woodbine Station.
When complete, Woodbine Station will be accessible and will include dedicated parking, a passenger pick-up and drop-off area, a bus loop and a passenger waiting area.
It will connect with the Union Pearson Express (UP Express), Kitchener GO train and local bus services from the TTC, MiWay, York Regional Transit and Brampton Transit.
Mayor Olivia Chow said the new station will help create a 'complete neighbourhood,' with hundreds of new homes.
'Now with Woodbine GO Station as an anchor, a transit-oriented community with thousands of new homes will spring up,' Chow said. 'It will be a complete neighborhood with new homes, parks, shops, libraries and community gathering spaces.'
She said it will also support thousands of construction jobs.
Metrolinx says it expects the new station to serve approximately 7,000 daily riders by 2041.
The province did not respond to an email asking for a completion date and total cost for the station.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
National Post
an hour ago
- National Post
Canada's economy is showing 'resilience' against U.S. tariffs. Why?
'Some resilience' — those were the two words Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem used last week to describe how the Canadian economy is holding up under the weight of U.S. tariffs. Article content Just a few days later, U.S. President Donald Trump added 35 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods to a running tally that includes hefty duties on steel, aluminum, automobiles and, more recently, semi-finished copper. Article content Article content With tariffs piling up over the past few months, economists say Canada's economy is starting to show cracks — but few signs of collapse. Article content Article content TD Bank economist Marc Ercolao conceded it's a 'bit of surprise' to see the economy holding up against a massive disruption from Canada's largest trading partner. Article content 'Many months ago, ourselves — as well as other economic forecasters — had an outlook for a much weaker Canadian economy. Obviously, that isn't manifesting now,' he said in an interview. On Thursday, Statistics Canada gave a glimpse at how the economy wrapped up the second quarter of the year when many of those tariffs came into full effect. Article content While the agency sees a couple of small contractions in real gross domestic product by industry in April and May, its flash estimates show the economy rebounding somewhat in June. Article content If those early readings pan out, StatCan said that would be good enough for flat growth overall on the quarter. Article content Article content Some of those results are distorted by volatility — businesses rushing to get ahead of tariffs boosted activity in the first quarter, and that's giving way to weakness in the second quarter, for example. Article content It's still hard to pinpoint exact impacts tied to tariffs, Ercolao said, but a broad trend is emerging. Article content 'What we can say over the last six months or so is that economic activity is somewhat flatlining,' he said. Article content Services sectors are holding up relatively well, but Ercolao said export-heavy industries such as manufacturing and transportation are bearing the brunt of the impact. Article content In an attempt to shore up some of that weakness, the federal government has announced various programs to support tariff-affected workers and broader plans to accelerate defence and infrastructure spending. Article content Macklem noted during his press conference Wednesday that business and consumer confidence are still low, but have improved according to the central bank's recent surveys.
Globe and Mail
an hour ago
- Globe and Mail
Film producer Debbie Nightingale co-founded the documentary festival Hot Docs
Debbie Nightingale produced movies and television shows before a personal plot twist led her to become a goat farmer. Over time, her Ontario farm became a popular tourist attraction. Ms. Nightingale, who has died at 71, was a prominent member of the Canadian film and television industry whose many credits included co-founding a documentary festival now known as Hot Docs. In a career lasting more than three decades, she served as executive producer for the documentary Quality Balls: The David Steinberg Story, a 2013 documentary about the Winnipeg-born comedian, as well as for the 2010 series, Living in Your Car, a comedy about a high-flying executive convicted of fraud who tries to rebuild his life from his luxury car, for which she received a Gemini nomination. Some other notable projects include serving as producer for Chicks with Sticks, also titled Hockey Mom, a made-for-TV movie; Bailey's Billion$, about a talking golden retriever inheriting a fortune; and Lipstick & Dynamite: The First Ladies of Wrestling, a feature-length documentary about trailblazers in the choreographed sport. Hot Docs returns for 'exciting new chapter' after most tumultuous year in film festival's history The latter had its world premiere at Hot Docs in Toronto in 2004, by which time the showcase was a decade old. A group of documentary filmmakers had formed a Canadian Independent Film Caucus and one of them, Paul Jay, suggested starting a festival to finance their activities. He asked Ms. Nightingale to serve as an unpaid festival manager. 'The feeling was, 'Oh god, not another film festival.' But Paul made a compelling argument. The only thing, he told me, was that I had to raise the money,' she told Barry Hertz of The Globe and Mail in 2018. 'It took six months to get about $100,000, which in 1993 was a hefty chunk of change.' Ms. Nightingale's experience running industry events, including for the Toronto International Film Festival, proved invaluable, and Hot Docs grew to become North America's biggest documentary showcase. She became executive director of Hot Docs, while also sharing her expertise by serving on other boards, including Women in Film & TV Toronto. 'Every part of the Hot Docs we know today grew from what Debbie helped establish,' the organization said in a statement released on her death. 'She recognized the importance of documentary filmmaking and providing a place where filmmakers, funders and audiences could connect. Without her, we wouldn't be here.' Even as she succeeded in her entertainment career, she dreamed of raising animals in the countryside. In 2008, she and her husband, a soon-to-retire literary agent, purchased a 25-acre (10.1 hectare) hobby farm with a Victorian farmhouse in Campbellford, about 180 kilometres east of Toronto. The property, which cost $450,000, came with three horses and 20 chickens. While she enjoyed her weekend immersion into a more bucolic lifestyle, she also soon discovered she had a limited knowledge of animal husbandry. For Hot Docs, a new leader and new vision aim to steady a beleaguered film festival 'The chickens seemed easy enough at first: all I had to was feed them, collect their eggs and clean their coop,' she wrote for Toronto Life magazine. 'That was until I walked in one day to find one lying dead. The next day, I walked in to find another dead chicken, and another the following morning. It was like a scene from The Birds – and I was convinced that I was somewhat responsible. When I called the vet in a panic, he burst out laughing. 'The thing about chickens,' he said, 'is that they live, and then they die.' They weren't spring chickens, he told me. They'd died of old age.' She moved to the farm full-time after purchasing four Nigerian dwarf goats at $100 each, juggling her day job as a film executive by e-mail while tending to the farm from dawn until well past sunset. An education in hircine care was gained through YouTube videos and word-of-mouth instruction. The addition of a buck to the herd quickly led to four pregnant does. One morning, she was greeted by a shivering kid separated from the does in the barn. 'I freaked out: whose baby was it? What if it hadn't eaten or bonded with its mother?' she wrote in Toronto Life. 'I called our breeder. 'Just pick up the baby,' she said nonchalantly. 'The mother will start screaming once you do.' She was right: As soon as I grabbed the kid, Pearl bleated bloody murder.' The couple later moved to a 200-acre (80.1-hectare) farm outside Port Hope at Newtonville, about 100 km east of Toronto, adding sheep, pigs, alpacas, miniature Icelandic horses and a mule to the menagerie. Experience in marketing movies and television programs proved invaluable in gaining a following for the farm, named Haute Goat, on social media. The farm became a popular attraction, including such scheduled events as a 'shmurgle,' during which customers spend an hour hugging, cuddling, snuggling, scratching and otherwise enjoying the playfulness of a goat herd. The farm also hosts an annual event called Goatchella. The farm includes an 18-hole disc golf course, a café called the Screaming Goat, and a shop selling products made from goat milk such as cheeses, chocolates and fudge, as well as skin-care products, including soap, lip balm and face cleansers. Deborah Esther Nightingale was born in Toronto on Oct. 14, 1953, to Helen (née Coffer) and Bernard (Buddy) Nightingale. Her Polish-born paternal grandfather was an upholsterer who repaired cinema seats before starting an office furniture manufacturing company, which became the family business. Her father eventually sold the business before working in commercial real estate. Ms. Nightingale died of a rare form of lung cancer at Northumberland Hills Hospital in Coburg, Ont., on July 10. She leaves Shain Jaffe, her husband of 27 years. She also leaves children Sarah, Leland and Noah Nightingale-Forfar; stepchildren Gita Jaffe and Meave Forfar; four grandchildren; a sister, Caron Nightingale; a brother, Ben Nightingale; and her stepmother, Margaret Nightingale. For all the early hiccups in farming, Ms. Nightingale proved an adept agriculturalist. In 2015, she and her husband received a premier's award for their products made from goat milk. At a ceremony, two Ontario MPPs presented a plaque, as well as a certificate from the Premier and a cheque from the province for $5,000. Ms. Nightingale said success depended on their goats. 'They are our livelihood and our inspiration,' she told a reporter from the Brighton [Ont.] Independent newspaper at a ceremony in which she received the award. 'Time to get going. I've got goats to feed.' You can find more obituaries from The Globe and Mail here. To submit a memory about someone we have recently profiled on the Obituaries page, e-mail us at obit@
CBC
an hour ago
- CBC
Three Yukon First Nations lay out expectations for Gladiator Metals
The Kwanlin Dün First Nation and Ta'an Kwäch'än Council have proposed multiple conditions before Gladiator Metals is approved to expand drilling in the Whitehorse copper belt. The First Nations submitted public submissions to the Yukon Environmental and Socio-Economic Assessment Board (YESAB) on July 22. The public comment period for the project closed July 24. Gladiator Metals, a B.C.-based mineral exploration company, has been drilling in the Whitehorse copper belt since April 2023. The company is applying to increase its permit from class 1 to class 3, which would allow it to expand work over the next five years throughout its whole 35-kilometre Copper Belt project, most of which is within Whitehorse city limits. The First Nations are calling for specific mitigation measures against environmental damage in the area. In its submission, Kwanlin Dün First Nation recommended that Gladiator receive a "specific term of approval" restricting intensive drilling activities to the identified work areas, not the entire claim block. It made several specific recommendations for environmental mitigation, such as halting work whenever caribou pass within one kilometre of a work area. The First Nation is also asking that mineral claims be relinquished within the boundary of Chasàn Chùa, or McIntyre Creek, which was just established as a territorial park in June. It wants activities on current claims in the park to be restricted to non-ground disturbing activities. The Ta'an Kwäch'än Council said its primary concern is risk to the Chasàn Chùa corridor. It wants the distance between mining activities and headwaters in Chasàn Chùa to be doubled from 30 metres to 60 metres. Carcross/Tagish First Nation, which has some settlement land near the project, said in its submission it's opposed to the project being approved. The First Nation wants a heritage assessment in the area and a buffer established around anything with heritage value. It also says C/TFN personnel should be permitted to conduct a survey of medicinal plants in the area, and that a buffer should be established to protect those values from any mining activity. Public comment period attracts more than 100 submissions YESAB received 108 public submissions on the project proposal. Approximately 43 of them spoke in favour of Gladiator expanding its work. Six of those commenters identified themselves as being directly affiliated with Gladiator Metals. Another seven submissions represented local businesses that serve the mining and exploration industry. Some citizens in favour of the project praised mining as a pillar of Yukon's history and economy. Other comments said copper mining is important for the clean energy transition. A handful of people said they work in the industry and would like industry opportunities that allow them to work and live in the city. About 49 submissions were against the project. A handful of the negative comments came from people who live near the project, didn't want drilling so close to their home and are concerned about the potential impact on well water. Nearly all the negative submissions expressed concern about the environmental impact. Some said they didn't trust Gladiator Metals because of the company's previous infractions in the area. The remaining submissions were neutral or provided specific recommendations for environmental protection without taking a stance. YESAB has also put in a request for additional information from Gladiator Metals before the assessment process can proceed. Among other questions, it asked Gladiator to provide scientific evidence for its claims that exploration drilling doesn't typically affect residential wells beyond very short distances. It also asked Gladiator to clarify its intentions for claims in or near Chasàn Chùa Territorial Park. The deadline for Gladiator's response is Aug. 26.
