Does the Island Airport have a future? What Liberal MPs need to know
- Parks not Planes
- Jun 23
- 6 min read
Parks not Planes, June 2026
Part 5 of 8
Toronto’s Liberal Members of Parliament have been feeling the pressure from the many constituents who have been appalled by Doug Ford’s efforts to inflict jets on Toronto’s waterfront.
We’ve seen a number of lengthy responses from them, often quite similar to each other.
What is notable in those responses is the repetition of talking points that are based on incomplete or even wrong information.
It is surprising that they do seem to take Nieuport lobbyists’ word without ensuring what they are being told by the lobbyists can be relied upon.
Here’s our effort to ensure the jets debate is founded on fact: what those MPs need to know.
5: Does the Island Airport have a future?
With business dropping for a decade, while Pearson’s business is growing, the answer is likely no.
MP Karim Bardeesy recently wrote
We have had the island airport for a long time, and it’s not going away.
In fact, business at the Airport is in a steep decline.
See this graph, based on TPA data, from The Star’s Matt Elliott in his newsletter, City Hall Watcher:
The data reveals that the number of commercial flights has dropped from a peak of 59,469 (in 2016) to just 35,916 in 2025 – a drop of 40%.
And data from Toronto Port Authority indicates that total air traffic at BBTCA in April 2026 was down 28 percent compared to April 2025 .
Elliott commented:
The data makes it clear just how much the airport has been struggling lately. Since the early months of 2022 were clearly affected by the pandemic, 2025 stands as the worst non-COVID year for the airport since at least 2013.
A chunk of the decline is almost certainly due to U.S. President Donald Trump causing Canadian travellers to give the proverbial middle finger to American destinations, but even the pre-Trump trend was not great. I’ve been looking for a solid business case to justify the expansion talk, but it might also be interesting to know if there’s a medium-term business case for status quo operations.
A Parks not Planes report that predated the TPA’s release of those numbers, came to similar conclusions:
Porter’s success operating jets out of Pearson Airport (and its failure to obtain approval to operate jets out of the Island Airport) has led it to fundamentally change its business model – emphasizing flights out of Pearson and reducing its unprofitable use of the Island Airport: even before COVID, Porter, then operating solely out of the Island Airport, admitted losses of $18,910,000 in 2017, a projected $40M in 2018, when it reduced its daily movements by 30%, from 172 to 140, and $30M in 2019.
Could it be that the greater flight selection at Pearson and the popularity of the Union Pearson Express has caused this decline? Porter has stated these are key factors.
Given this drastic decline, it is not surprising that the Island Airport terminal owner J.P.Morgan/Nieuport Aviation, having paid Porter over $700M to acquire it, is desperately seeking a solution to its shrinking business – and calm its anxious banker. That payment essentially financed Porter’s expansion at Pearson.
Without jets, its unfortunate investment is essentially worthless.
But J.P.Morgan/Nieuport’s intensive lobbying for jets found a sympathetic ear in Doug Ford.
What we do know now is that the primary business of the Island Airport is flights to and from Montreal (542km) and Ottawa (450km); when the federal government’s high speed rail service (Alto) is built, based on the European experience, even the Airport’s current passenger demand would drop precipitously.
Before any decision is made on jets, the question “Does the Airport have a future?” needs to be answered. Based on the facts known today, the answer is likely to be “No”.
Our Ask
This debate needs to be based on facts, not lobbyists’ talking points.
We ask that those Liberal MPs confirm now that the federal government will
continue to honour its pledge in 2015 to reject jets at the Island Airport and
continue to ensure City’s participation as a full party to the Tripartite Agreement, notwithstanding Premier Ford’s efforts to usurp the City’s role.
More things Liberal MP's need to know
A list of some recent and proposed airport closures.
1. Tempelhof Airport: Tempelhofer Feld, Berlin, closed 2008
Tempelhof’s central location meant flight noise affected vast residential areas, and its short runways couldn’t accommodate modern aircraft. After closure it was transformed and reopened as a community park, garden, and nature reserve in 2010 — now a haven for skateboarders, cyclists, and picnickers who value the vast greenery in a dense city. On an average day around 10,000 Berliners use the space. (Medium, Berlin Beyond Borders)
2. Edmonton City Centre Airport, closed 2013
Redevelopment plans called for a community of approximately 30,000 people – described as a walkable, sustainable, holistic community with a retail sector. This one is Canadian and directly relevant as a precedent. (Global News).
3. Chicago Meigs Field
On the night of March 30, 2003, Daley ordered city crews to make the runway unusable by bulldozing large "X"-shaped gouges into the runway surface in the middle of the night. This resulted in several aircraft being stranded on the ground at the airport; these were later allowed to depart from Meigs' 3,000-foot (910 m) taxiway.
Daley stated during a news conference on March 31, "To do this any other way would have been needlessly contentious." Daley defended his actions by claiming it would save the city of Chicago the effort of further court battles before the airport could close. He also claimed the closure was due to safety concerns, particularly the post-9/11 risk of terrorist-controlled aircraft attacking the downtown waterfront near Meigs Field
Northerly Island is now a park that features prairie grasses, strolling paths and a giant pond. In 2005, the 7,500 seat Huntington Bank Pavilion, which hosts music concerts in the summer, opened on the site. The island also has a modest beach named 12th Street Beach (Wikipedia)
4. Santa Monica Municipal Airport
It has been one of the world's foremost general aviation airports (at one time, the busiest single-runway airport in the world). The airport is scheduled to close on December 31, 2028.
In 2009, with jet traffic increasing at SMO, studies by UCLA and the South Coast Air Quality Management District warned that SMO was a source of abnormally high air pollution in the area, particularly for ultrafine particles that threatened the health of children and the elderly, and those with respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. In neighbourhoods downwind of the airport, ultrafine particles were measured at 2.5 to 10 times the normal amount. The FAA attempted remediation by controlling the timing of engine run-ups and positioning of aircraft, but some residents complained that the measures failed to resolve the problem.
In 2017, the FAA agreed to let the city shorten the runway from 4,925 feet (1,501 m) to 3,500 feet (1,100 m) – effectively blocking most jets from using the airport – and allowing the city to completely close the airport by December 31, 2028 (Wikipedia)
5. International Airport Central Park neighbourhood, Denver, closed 1995
The project generated billions in economic impact and employed thousands in high-paying jobs. The land was redeveloped into a thriving urban community of 35,000 residents, now held up as a model for urban redevelopment initiatives. The redevelopment was built on three principles: economic opportunity, environmental responsibility, and social equity. (Denver Urban Renewal Authority – Stapleton Urban Land Institute Case Study)
6. Burke Lakefront Airport, Cleveland, proposed closure, 2024 study
A current, directly comparable case – downtown waterfront airport with jet service. A city-commissioned report found that redeveloping Burke with mixed uses – hotels, recreation, and open spaces – could generate up to $92 million per year in new economic activity, concluding that closure “would permit investment that would ultimately have greater economic activity than currently occurring” at the airport. (Cleveland Magazine, Sept. 2024)
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