Ontario Premier Doug Ford pulled back the curtain Thursday on the province’s design for a new science centre at Toronto’s waterfront, calling it a “world-class” facility that will be “jaw-dropping.”
“I’m proud to announce our government has awarded the contract to design and build the new science centre,” Ford said. “The new science centre will be located in a state-of-the-art, fully accessible facility with more programming space than at the previous site.”
The building itself will be 400,000 square feet, with 120,000 square feet of exhibit space. That compares to 500,000 square feet at the old facility the province suddenly shuttered in 2024.
Science Centre An artist’s rendering of the new Ontario Science Centre building is pictured. (Handout)
Tourism Minister Stan Cho said while the new facility will be smaller, there will be “a much more efficient use of the exhibit space.”
It will feature new interactive exhibits, renovated and enhanced pods and an upgraded Cinesphere.
A group called the Ontario Science Partners has been handed the contract to build the new facility. The province estimates the cost at $1.04 billion, though the auditor-general has said it will cost more. Cho said that price tag includes a 30-year maintenance contract for the facility.
Critics have questioned whether the old facility needed to be shuttered and have pointed out that the roof, which the government had said was near collapse, has withstood a particularly harsh and snowy winter.
Work on the new facility could be complete as soon as 2029, the province said.
The Harbourfront Centre will serve as a temporary home for the science centre until the new facility opens.
Science Centre An artist’s rendering of the new Ontario Science Centre building is pictured. (Handout)