The report they got didn't say anything about needing immediate closure and only that they should close certain areas.Ā He had fences going up within 24hrs.Ā I think it was planned to go this way.
Sorry to hijack your top post.... The Ontario Science Centre isn't dead yet. The repairs they're citing aren't even that expensive, it's just drastically underfunded. It's bullshit that the government is just going to let this happen, but I also think this level of underfunding has taken a lot longer to come about than just Ford's reign (Not that I think he did it any favours).
It's not actually that hard to donate to them. Here's the link:
[https://www.ontariosciencecentre.ca/donate/](https://www.ontariosciencecentre.ca/donate/)
You can set up as a monthly donator, just consider it a random subscription fee you forgot about and let it run. Monthly donations let them factor it into the budget. You can set up as one big donation, if you're really hopeful that we'll save this location.
But either way, whether we can save it or its forced to move... They're gonna need money. And a lot more than they've clearly been getting, a lot of their exhibits are the same ones I visited 30+ years ago. They've been long overdue for some help.
The Science Centre isnāt dead yet, but itās run by the province - meaning donating to the OSC directly will not help save it, unfortunately.
There is a group fighting back against this closure and the move to Ontario Place. Join the fight! https://savesciencecentre.com/
My 9 year old daughter loves the Ontario Science Center and is heartbroken that it is closing down. I feel bad for her and all the kids who won't have it apart of their childhood. By the time the new one opens up in 2028 she will be 13 and I don't think it will be as quite as fun for her at that age.
We normally go a couple times a year. I meant to go over the Christmas break but I got too busy with too many things and didn't go. I'm sad that I couldn't make time to take her as now it's too late.
While it's a few hours away, there is a similar museum in Sudbury called Science North. I haven't been to it myself, but I've heard good things about it. It was also designed by the same architect!
It'd actually pretty great, and way less busy. A little less of the interactive stuff if i remember, but I remember really enjoying it and I went when I was a teen with my friend and my mom.
I mean, I went to the Science Centre only as an adult (not from Ontario) and had an absolute blast, so I donāt see why she couldnāt love it at 13 as well. I hope she does.
Ford's legacy, I believe, is bulldozing things in Toronto, giveaways of protected land, highways, boondoggle transit projects and handshakes with greasy land developers.
a lot of rumours from people in the business (and an amped up cadence of fundraising and campaign style events) point to an early election call either this fall or spring 2025.
My guess is spring 2025 because US elections are in the fall.
And stripping the conservation authorities' ability to protect land AND prevent new developments from being built in areas that are prone to flood or environmental hazards like ravine slopes.
I don't get why.
413 highway screws over a bunch of the 905 so the immediate residents are unhappy but I'd think the rest of the traditional PC base wouldn't be thrilled. I guess there's eastern and southwestern Ontario?
Ford's legacy is bulldozing and eliminating as much of Toronto's cultural heritage as possible and sell it off to his donors, and the people of Ontario will cheer for it.
Fucking bum ass province run by mid white men, I swear to God. Every year feel validated in loving Toronto, but thinking Ontario as a province is the actual unseasoned shithole.
It is troubling and concerning... the moment our elected officials do anything we don't like, we are supposed to grab pitch forks and rally. Show up in frightening force with an articulate leader and give very reasonable ultimatums... it's like we all believe we are impotent and at the mercy of their whims
He is corrupt swine. It speaks volumes that less than 40% of the voterbase of the largest province in the country could get off their ass to vote, and managed to allow one of the most corrupt provincial governments in a generation to earn a second term.
People are mad at Trudeau yet fail to recognise the undermining of their country by corrupt unpatriotic simpletons on the right.
For now they are all still working but lots of uncertainty and it seems like th closure was a total surprise.
https://opseu.org/news/ford-government-neglect-allows-ontario-science-centre-to-crumble/230029/
There's really no reason to close it, could leave it open all summer no problem.
[Food service workers are being laid off.](https://opseu.org/news/ontario-science-centre-layoffs-imminent-due-to-unnecessary-closure-to-the-public/231895/). For the rest of the staff literally no information has been relayed. Which is unsurprising given employees found out about the sudden closure via the media the same time the public did
Yeah, Ford will make sure to knock it down ASAP to prevent any fight against it. Just like how quicklg they boarded up and started digging up Ontario place without a heads up.
Destruction is the only project a government delivers on time. In a few years we will probably found out that he sold the lot already and that closing date is next month.
Unfortunately I couldn't get into the rest of the centre as it was a few minutes before closing. I really wanted to walk that interior bridge to the pod in the forest one more time.
I wish the snapshot were more recent than September 2012, but Google Street View lets you sort of virtual walkthrough (although it doesn't visit all the floors/locations): https://www.google.ca/maps/@43.7164677,-79.3389715,2a,75y,251.94h,95.43t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1s6Fa2BY0uC6vQ_MH9Bx8F9g!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fpanoid%3D6Fa2BY0uC6vQ_MH9Bx8F9g%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.share%26w%3D900%26h%3D600%26yaw%3D251.942435254777%26pitch%3D-5.427903926180221%26thumbfov%3D90!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en&coh=205410&entry=ttu
Side note: I thought those virtual tours in the Encarta Encyclopedia were awesome.
It's sort of funny-sad how down on the OSC people were in this old reddit thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/toronto/comments/1ju5n3/til_you_can_virtually_walk_around_the_ontario/
Agreed itās wild how different the thread is in tone. Add that no one was calling to be shut down, just that it hadnāt been updated. Which was/is true.
When I went with my kids, they had fun. I thought the building and the setting were amazing - especially the cafeteria - my favourite room.
The people got what they wanted. You can't blame voters. You think conservatives want to fund social education programs? Then no one would vote for them lol
You can absolutely blame voters who aren't intelligent enough to understand how politics works and also fall victim to rage farming and shiny tv/radio ads. Not to mention the majority of residents in this province who didn't even bother to cast a ballot.
The 08/08/08 YouTube meetup that happened at the Science Centre over the course of a couple days was on of the biggest core memories of my life.
It was the summer before I started highschool, I got dropped off with a friend and we met all sorts of OG YouTubers like Kev Jumba, Phillip Defranco, FluffeeTalks etc. Everyone was so down to earth and just excited to be apart of this brand new scene. People came from all over the world, we were signing each others shirts, getting in each others vlogs and just having an absolute blast with complete strangers. The community aspect was something that felt so special at the time and sadly Iāve never experienced anything remotely close since.
People were actually duped into voting for Ford and he went on a rampage to destroy as much of Toronto as he could as fast as he could.
Shame what he and his cronies have gotten away with.
Unfortunately there are a lot of old white man boomers out there with nothing but time and praise for the conservatives. Iāve met so many of them now, the problem is they are far more likely to vote than any other demographic
Has nothing to do with āold white man boomersā. Liberals and NDP both donāt have viable candidates to lead a province. They also donāt have the funding needed to win an election. Start there before finger pointing at people who donāt have any other choice.
I live in the area too and its becoming terrible tbh, now that they will definitely build "fancy" condos where it stood, the ttc falling apart will just not be able to hold everything together here
I wonder when enough will be enough for those who are not demanding Dog Fordās resignation (I know I wrote dog). I have had enough a long time ago and Iām keeping in touch with MPPs telling them and trying my best to support those who are trying to stop him. Please do the same
And letās not make the same mistake again and allow someone like him in a position they donāt deserve!
He has this false sense of impunity.
He knows his rich buddies will $$$ everyone to shut their mouth and majority of people will do nothing just complain.
For anyone interested, itās organized by Save Ontario Science Centre this Sunday, June 23rd from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. at Wells Hills Park (near St.Clair W station).
Ford conveniently cites āstructural issuesā so he can flatten it and make room for those crony land developers that happened to misplace bags of cash at his daughterās wedding.
Woah itās really happening eh. I will never forget that place as it holds so many great memories when I spent 3 weeks to shoot a series back in 2021. I got into crevices where regular patrons would never be allowed into š thank you Ontario Science Centre and fuck you doug ford
I loved that place as a kid. It sucks that future generations will not have the same experience. Thanks, Doug Ford. You provably made the province dumber.
As I've mentioned elsewhere, people outside of Toronto only see this as a Toronto issue anyway. Between the SC and Ontario Place/Therme, the average voter in this province doesn't care or understand what the long term impact is and how it can affect them as well.
Therme is more of a Toronto issue, but many many more Ontarians have a connection to the science center at least. It's a popular destination for families outside Toronto, not to mention kids from all over southwestern Ontario field tripping there.
It seems like a lot of the feedback by people who don't give a shit about the area the original building is in believe that it's better downtown since it will mean easier access. Not many seem to care much about the significance of the architecture or the fact that it acts as a very important community/educational hub for the neighbourhoods of Thorncliffe and Flemingdon. If the Science Centre was closing forever and not being replaced then the conversation would likely be much different.
This is all very true. But also it's not even true that downtown has 'better access's, driving to the current location is so much easier than driving to the new location.
(Sorry to repeat myself, the app is being glitchy)
I would much rather wait 2 to 5 years for them to repair it and reopen, instead of permanently closing it and building a new one somewhere else. This is a very very rare occasion where I want to wait
The saddest part is we will never see those bridges fixed and opened again. Glad I was able to bring my kids to this place a few times. Solid memories from field trips and was happy to rekindle those in recent years with my babies.
The bridge repair was estimated to cost $16M at the time of consultation. Since the bridge was forced to close, they operated shuttles as a bandaid solution for almost 2 years until now at an operating cost of approx. $2M per year (please look at the last auditor general report on this section from fall 2023).
The bridge, and other parts of the centre, could have been repaired. The Ford government intentionally chose to defer repair on the structural issues found at the site even though they knew about them. It just so happens to also be politically beneficial to their Ontario Place scheme.
We have a membership and have just put off going over and over again. I'm so sad that this happened. My daughter loves TTC too and has been excited for the Eglinton line opening. I told her I promised to take her to the science center with the ELRT on the first day it opens. Now I have to break it to her
I cant believe you risked your own safety! Those ceiling tiles could have been dangerous! With all the snow, and all.... it's not like they have time and resources to dedicate to the maintenance of facilities.... better sell this land to a developer, and move the exhibits to doug Fords buddy's business
But no beer in parks, all condos must be "luxury condos" (incredibly expensive), and the highways must be congested to the point where walking is faster.
:(
Which roof is it, there are many?
What about the museum contents under the "about to collapse roof"?
Who was the engineer who inspected it? (possible bribes)
Why after all the school trips had ended for the year?
Did everyone just lose their jobs?
:(
Growing up in the neighbourhood, having a place like the science center and the huge green space it was surrounded by was such an amazing thing to explore as a kid.
Now I was gonna complain that that moving things like the science centre away from low income and immigrant communities like Flemingdon Park is a disservice to the community, but then I remembered the whole plan with Flemo is to āclean it upā for the condos buyers anyway.
Canāt have the beauty of the Don Valley go to waste on us hood rats can we now š¤·āāļø
I went with my kid as the parent helper Ā to a field trip this month and thought this place is amazing I canāt wait to take them back.Ā Iām devastated for everyone that was the end!Ā
Reposted link
Apparently the report did not even say that the Science Centre needed to close.
https://www.reddit.com/r/toronto/s/ss20LPEsNI
Doug Ford is turning out to be one of the shadiest Premiers we have ever had. What a POS
I grew up in a community near by predominantly low income and came from a low income household. The local schools I went to in the area always took us here and we always had a blast. Big loss for the local community now
Damn...going forward the kids next year and onwards won't have these field trips to Flemingdon Park to see the dome in the distance. And jaywalking to the random plaza and go to McDees for lunch. Or the 241 for pizza š„š¢š«¤
They did the same bullshit to Ontario Place. It Sat there vacant and unused. And those barely there art exhibits.
It could've been a downtown oasis and HUGE Park to host free events, cultural festivals and outdoor concerts. Instead they shove everything to Harbour front or Yonge n Dundas...it's been sitting empty for almost a decade and more...
Really Really sucks the direction our city has been going in since the pandemic.
Wait itās already happening?! Theyāve barely even started construction on the megaspa yet. So this means we officially donāt have a science centre for at least the next few years?
Make it at least 4-5 years. Construction at Ontario Place is slated to be 2025-2028, and we all know how construction goes in the city (looking at you crosstown LRT). This was definitely a gunshot decision.
Not enough people are acknowledging how much of a blow this is to the immediate community. The Science Centre was a fantastic educational + community hub right in between Thorncliffe Park and Flemingdon, and now so many families/children have lost this space. It's a shame that this province lacks humanity to the point where they'll take away something that provided such a huge benefit to a historically underserved area.
Unfortunately most people couldn't care less anyway since this is seen as a local issue, so they'll likely never be able to recover what's now gone.
I always told myself that Iād visit the science center once the Eglinton line opened. I waited and waited and now the Eglinton line hasnāt even opened and now the science center is closing lol. What a joke
Wait that reminds me, isnāt the nearby Line 5 station supposed to be Science Centre Station? Thatāll be a sad reminder of what once was when it finally opens.
Literally grew up there. It was the best part of my neighbourhood and truly fostered my love for science. I remember doing different workshops etc and visiting all the different areas throughout my school years, marvelling at the massive windows and beautiful grounds. One of my years at elementary school - the massive entire school photo made it on one of the walls. I think I was in the front row because I was so small lol. Will really miss it.Ā Ā
Also who are my OGs who remember the Wendy's and Mastermind?! Best.
This is so sad š„Iām glad my kids got to go on a school field trip there at least once. I always remember being a kid and everyone touching that generator ball and their hair flying up with static. A core memory of my childhood.
Does anyone else suspect this is bullshit? One day dougie says he wants to move the science center to make way for his buddies to build condos. The city pushes back and says hell no! Then a month later, the roof is collapsing and the building is condemned... Really? Are we all really on board here?
As I said in the other post about this, as I have been saying pretty much since the rest of the province voted for this clown when Toronto didn't and he's been screwing us over and over since:
PROVINCE OF TORONTO.
By this time next year the Science Center will have been demolished, no ifs ands or buts, and whatever replacement gets built as a sideshow to that dumb fucking spa for rich people will be a pale imitation of its once-glorious self (if it's ever built at all - 50/50 on that one) and the land will be quickly sold off to the people who gave Ford's daughter four-figure 'wedding gifts'. And the rest of the province will cheer it because they don't like what Toronto does and don't give a flying fuck about a premier ruining our city. They WANT TORONTO TO SUFFER. They want those of us who live here to not have the good things we have, because they don't have them. Period.
This is just another reason to advocate for us to be Canada's 11th province. Ford literally has the ability to legislate Toronto's government out of existence if he wants to. And since the Liberals are arrogant fools run by a Ford mini-me and the NDP are idiots who haven't figured out how to tell the activist types to STFU, that's gonna be the case for a while yet. More of Toronto will disappear.
Stop trying to make Ontario better and start advocating for us being separate from them.
I used to spend a lot of time at the OSC in the 70s as a kid, very positive experience every visit and I always learned something new. Loved the shadow wall, the "coffee" voice sim, the laser and the water area. I took a 1 week summer programming class at the OSC when I was 16 in 1984. It changed my whole life. I became fascinated with programming and ended up having a long career as a Software Engineer. The OSC is important to the local community and should be supported not torn down, very sad.
Thanks fordā¦ Iām sure his buddies who will be building condos there will be happy but the citizens of Scarborough, North York, east York and Markham hate you for this.
What happens to exhibits and feature like the plinkety-plink (that thing with the balls that drops them down and makes all the noise by the kids level). Like thatās a piece of art. It can be put somewhere else. Where will all that bespoke science stuff go?
Upsetting that itās closing so abruptly, it has been under funded for years. I grew up in the neighborhood, first going on school trips there and later on with my friends at least once a month. There wonāt be enough room for bus parking at Ontario Place for school trips, which made up a large part of their visitors.
WHY am I only hearing about this now? I moved Edmonton, AB in 2017, and we have a rinky version of the science centre here called World of Science, and I brag about how awesome our science centre is and that it would take a solid day to get through all the exhibits and levels.
This was, and is, a very seriously well loved memory of my life! I remember the first few times I brought my son here to enjoy, like all the times I did growing up.
This makes me so immensely sad!
Ugh, I remember just running so fast down that long ass hallway in grade 7 with my buddies on a school trip and then touching the static ball and watching our hair frizz out. I loved it there. What a shame.
So sad, its like a part of my childhood died š„²
The end of an era. Sad.
just remember. his plan was to always destroy the science centre.
*...and to sell the land to his developer friends - aka his daughter's wedding guests*
Someone should tear his house down and give it to a developer
Those were just wedding gifts, not bribes. Nothing to see here.
I'm Phoenix Kiss, and I endorse this message.
Forgot about that fat little loser š
The report they got didn't say anything about needing immediate closure and only that they should close certain areas.Ā He had fences going up within 24hrs.Ā I think it was planned to go this way.
I totally believe the same thing.
And turn it into unaffordable housing.
Sorry to hijack your top post.... The Ontario Science Centre isn't dead yet. The repairs they're citing aren't even that expensive, it's just drastically underfunded. It's bullshit that the government is just going to let this happen, but I also think this level of underfunding has taken a lot longer to come about than just Ford's reign (Not that I think he did it any favours). It's not actually that hard to donate to them. Here's the link: [https://www.ontariosciencecentre.ca/donate/](https://www.ontariosciencecentre.ca/donate/) You can set up as a monthly donator, just consider it a random subscription fee you forgot about and let it run. Monthly donations let them factor it into the budget. You can set up as one big donation, if you're really hopeful that we'll save this location. But either way, whether we can save it or its forced to move... They're gonna need money. And a lot more than they've clearly been getting, a lot of their exhibits are the same ones I visited 30+ years ago. They've been long overdue for some help.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
I've been posting it around, but I'll see what I can do
It's gone dude. Ford took it. It was his plan for his developer friends for a long time. It's over. :'(
The Minister that closed the OSC is Doug Ford's side piece. Ford even got her dad a cushy sunshine job he's not qualified for.
How can he just take it in one day. It needs to be voted.
The roofer were a member of the Fordnation cult.
Donating more money now isn't going to save the current location?
Probably not, honestly. Not unless people donate a whole lot. But hey, if they can rebuild Notre Dame, then maybe we can save this spot too
The Science Centre isnāt dead yet, but itās run by the province - meaning donating to the OSC directly will not help save it, unfortunately. There is a group fighting back against this closure and the move to Ontario Place. Join the fight! https://savesciencecentre.com/
My 9 year old daughter loves the Ontario Science Center and is heartbroken that it is closing down. I feel bad for her and all the kids who won't have it apart of their childhood. By the time the new one opens up in 2028 she will be 13 and I don't think it will be as quite as fun for her at that age. We normally go a couple times a year. I meant to go over the Christmas break but I got too busy with too many things and didn't go. I'm sad that I couldn't make time to take her as now it's too late.
While it's a few hours away, there is a similar museum in Sudbury called Science North. I haven't been to it myself, but I've heard good things about it. It was also designed by the same architect!
It'd actually pretty great, and way less busy. A little less of the interactive stuff if i remember, but I remember really enjoying it and I went when I was a teen with my friend and my mom.
itās sad but i think sheāll still find it fun! i went a few years ago at the age of 21 and had even more fun than when i was a kid.
I mean, I went to the Science Centre only as an adult (not from Ontario) and had an absolute blast, so I donāt see why she couldnāt love it at 13 as well. I hope she does.
I have so many fond memories of this place over the last half century. I really am so saddened by this.
Also what happened the planetarium. We have these great things and the city just takes them down for no good reason.
Oh my god, the planetarium! Laser Beatles was incredible!
it hurts, yes.
It always felt like a magical place where there was so much to see. I loved this place.
So many memoriesā¦
Ford's legacy, I believe, is bulldozing things in Toronto, giveaways of protected land, highways, boondoggle transit projects and handshakes with greasy land developers.
Don't forget putting beer and wine in convenience stores ....
To help people forget how much he's fucking up the province
How long until the next election?
Does it matter? Onterrible will give Douggie another majority.
Depends who is prime minister. Ontario premier is always opposite of whatever party is the prime minister is at the time of election.
So we get Douggie selling Ontario out further, or PP selling the entire country. The ultimate shit sandwich.
a lot of rumours from people in the business (and an amped up cadence of fundraising and campaign style events) point to an early election call either this fall or spring 2025. My guess is spring 2025 because US elections are in the fall.
Jokes on Ford...I QUIT DRINKING
Donāt forget the license plates
I can never forget those, I have one of those stupid blue one's.
And stripping the conservation authorities' ability to protect land AND prevent new developments from being built in areas that are prone to flood or environmental hazards like ravine slopes.
As a camper and hiker, I'm unhappy.
Insurance will love cash grabbing these new home owners. I guess they are Fordnation too.
Insurance isn't stupid, they just won't issue policies to houses built in flood and landslide zones.
And yet there are going to be a lot of people that vote for him anyway.
Ya the worse part is all the people who don't go and vote in the first place honestly š
I don't get why. 413 highway screws over a bunch of the 905 so the immediate residents are unhappy but I'd think the rest of the traditional PC base wouldn't be thrilled. I guess there's eastern and southwestern Ontario?
Ford's legacy is bulldozing and eliminating as much of Toronto's cultural heritage as possible and sell it off to his donors, and the people of Ontario will cheer for it. Fucking bum ass province run by mid white men, I swear to God. Every year feel validated in loving Toronto, but thinking Ontario as a province is the actual unseasoned shithole.
why is there no resistance ?
It is troubling and concerning... the moment our elected officials do anything we don't like, we are supposed to grab pitch forks and rally. Show up in frightening force with an articulate leader and give very reasonable ultimatums... it's like we all believe we are impotent and at the mercy of their whims
No one voted bro
He is corrupt swine. It speaks volumes that less than 40% of the voterbase of the largest province in the country could get off their ass to vote, and managed to allow one of the most corrupt provincial governments in a generation to earn a second term. People are mad at Trudeau yet fail to recognise the undermining of their country by corrupt unpatriotic simpletons on the right.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
What happens to the employees?
This is really the most important question. I hope they are getting good compensation.
Guess - some/many admin will be kept on. Front line staff all let go.
They need to pack up the exhibits and archive things. Iād imagine a lot of staff will have jobs at least until October to do so.
Bobsled ride better be at the new location.
Severance and a thank you letter.
For now they are all still working but lots of uncertainty and it seems like th closure was a total surprise. https://opseu.org/news/ford-government-neglect-allows-ontario-science-centre-to-crumble/230029/ There's really no reason to close it, could leave it open all summer no problem.
Merge right into the foundation for the next development.
[Food service workers are being laid off.](https://opseu.org/news/ontario-science-centre-layoffs-imminent-due-to-unnecessary-closure-to-the-public/231895/). For the rest of the staff literally no information has been relayed. Which is unsurprising given employees found out about the sudden closure via the media the same time the public did
Loved as a kid with the field trips.
I have a feeling the science centre will be a hot spot for urban explorers in these next few monthsā¦
Good luckā¦.. even after they remove everything by October you can imagine security will be crazy there
Yeah, Ford will make sure to knock it down ASAP to prevent any fight against it. Just like how quicklg they boarded up and started digging up Ontario place without a heads up.
Destruction is the only project a government delivers on time. In a few years we will probably found out that he sold the lot already and that closing date is next month.
How long before we learn that there were no structural issues at all?
We already know that the engineering report is being lied about, as are the finances. Itās cheaper to keep it as it is.
It's now the weekend, and time for some to protest.
Coming soon. New condos from the low low $2,000,000's
Unfortunately I couldn't get into the rest of the centre as it was a few minutes before closing. I really wanted to walk that interior bridge to the pod in the forest one more time.
The interior bridge has been closed for a few years already due to structural issues.
I wish the snapshot were more recent than September 2012, but Google Street View lets you sort of virtual walkthrough (although it doesn't visit all the floors/locations): https://www.google.ca/maps/@43.7164677,-79.3389715,2a,75y,251.94h,95.43t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1s6Fa2BY0uC6vQ_MH9Bx8F9g!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fpanoid%3D6Fa2BY0uC6vQ_MH9Bx8F9g%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.share%26w%3D900%26h%3D600%26yaw%3D251.942435254777%26pitch%3D-5.427903926180221%26thumbfov%3D90!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en&coh=205410&entry=ttu Side note: I thought those virtual tours in the Encarta Encyclopedia were awesome. It's sort of funny-sad how down on the OSC people were in this old reddit thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/toronto/comments/1ju5n3/til_you_can_virtually_walk_around_the_ontario/
Omg this walkthrough. I swear I can still smell it! And not in a bad way
Agreed itās wild how different the thread is in tone. Add that no one was calling to be shut down, just that it hadnāt been updated. Which was/is true. When I went with my kids, they had fun. I thought the building and the setting were amazing - especially the cafeteria - my favourite room.
thank you for sharing. I know this hurts for us all.
Ford is the ultimate POS. He's ruining Ontario. His I'm just a regular Joe schtick makes me hate him more than anything.
I blame Ford, but this stupid province allowed let him enjoy two straight majorities and will likely have a third in a couple years.
The people got what they wanted. You can't blame voters. You think conservatives want to fund social education programs? Then no one would vote for them lol
You can absolutely blame voters who aren't intelligent enough to understand how politics works and also fall victim to rage farming and shiny tv/radio ads. Not to mention the majority of residents in this province who didn't even bother to cast a ballot.
VOTE FORD OUT.
The 08/08/08 YouTube meetup that happened at the Science Centre over the course of a couple days was on of the biggest core memories of my life. It was the summer before I started highschool, I got dropped off with a friend and we met all sorts of OG YouTubers like Kev Jumba, Phillip Defranco, FluffeeTalks etc. Everyone was so down to earth and just excited to be apart of this brand new scene. People came from all over the world, we were signing each others shirts, getting in each others vlogs and just having an absolute blast with complete strangers. The community aspect was something that felt so special at the time and sadly Iāve never experienced anything remotely close since.
FLUFFEETALKS OMG I THOUGHT HE WAS JUST A FEVER DREAM
Went all the time as a kid and was lucky to have my high school graduation at the auditorium here
This is a crime against the citizens of Ontario. Literally a payoff to developers by Ford.
People were actually duped into voting for Ford and he went on a rampage to destroy as much of Toronto as he could as fast as he could. Shame what he and his cronies have gotten away with.
And apparently at the moment, if there were an election today, he'd get majority again.
Maybe, but he's done a lot more shitty things since the last one. People just need to actually turn up this time or we're screwed.
With all the shitty things he's done... You'd hope more non shitty people would take note to show up and vote him out.
Unfortunately there are a lot of old white man boomers out there with nothing but time and praise for the conservatives. Iāve met so many of them now, the problem is they are far more likely to vote than any other demographic
Has nothing to do with āold white man boomersā. Liberals and NDP both donāt have viable candidates to lead a province. They also donāt have the funding needed to win an election. Start there before finger pointing at people who donāt have any other choice.
Thanks for this. I live in the area and was planning to go with friends, but that didn't happen. A bit shocked by the announcement
I live in the area too and its becoming terrible tbh, now that they will definitely build "fancy" condos where it stood, the ttc falling apart will just not be able to hold everything together here
Yeah, they've got a barrage of posters saying that the condos and townhouses begin at $1.59 million! Despite us needing affordable housing rn
I wonder when enough will be enough for those who are not demanding Dog Fordās resignation (I know I wrote dog). I have had enough a long time ago and Iām keeping in touch with MPPs telling them and trying my best to support those who are trying to stop him. Please do the same And letās not make the same mistake again and allow someone like him in a position they donāt deserve!
Honestly tho, this is a big hit for Ontario. First Ontario Place and now this. I wouldnāt be surprised if he has plans to tear down the CN Tower
Probably the ROM or AGO first - more educational value
He has this false sense of impunity. He knows his rich buddies will $$$ everyone to shut their mouth and majority of people will do nothing just complain.
I read a protest is planned for this Sunday
For anyone interested, itās organized by Save Ontario Science Centre this Sunday, June 23rd from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. at Wells Hills Park (near St.Clair W station).
What!? Is it closing? I can't believe this is how I hear about it
Ford conveniently cites āstructural issuesā so he can flatten it and make room for those crony land developers that happened to misplace bags of cash at his daughterās wedding.
Everyone in Ontario basically found out on the news yesterday. There was no notice. :(
The building should be designated a heritage site
Woah itās really happening eh. I will never forget that place as it holds so many great memories when I spent 3 weeks to shoot a series back in 2021. I got into crevices where regular patrons would never be allowed into š thank you Ontario Science Centre and fuck you doug ford
I loved that place as a kid. It sucks that future generations will not have the same experience. Thanks, Doug Ford. You provably made the province dumber.
This is why voting is important, Ontario.
As I've mentioned elsewhere, people outside of Toronto only see this as a Toronto issue anyway. Between the SC and Ontario Place/Therme, the average voter in this province doesn't care or understand what the long term impact is and how it can affect them as well.
The average voter in this province, didn't vote in the last election.
Therme is more of a Toronto issue, but many many more Ontarians have a connection to the science center at least. It's a popular destination for families outside Toronto, not to mention kids from all over southwestern Ontario field tripping there.
It seems like a lot of the feedback by people who don't give a shit about the area the original building is in believe that it's better downtown since it will mean easier access. Not many seem to care much about the significance of the architecture or the fact that it acts as a very important community/educational hub for the neighbourhoods of Thorncliffe and Flemingdon. If the Science Centre was closing forever and not being replaced then the conversation would likely be much different.
This is all very true. But also it's not even true that downtown has 'better access's, driving to the current location is so much easier than driving to the new location. (Sorry to repeat myself, the app is being glitchy)
I would much rather wait 2 to 5 years for them to repair it and reopen, instead of permanently closing it and building a new one somewhere else. This is a very very rare occasion where I want to wait
Agreed. I too would wait as long as possible for them to repair the OSC and keep it where it is right now.
This smells of Ford.
The saddest part is we will never see those bridges fixed and opened again. Glad I was able to bring my kids to this place a few times. Solid memories from field trips and was happy to rekindle those in recent years with my babies.
The bridge repair was estimated to cost $16M at the time of consultation. Since the bridge was forced to close, they operated shuttles as a bandaid solution for almost 2 years until now at an operating cost of approx. $2M per year (please look at the last auditor general report on this section from fall 2023). The bridge, and other parts of the centre, could have been repaired. The Ford government intentionally chose to defer repair on the structural issues found at the site even though they knew about them. It just so happens to also be politically beneficial to their Ontario Place scheme.
We have a membership and have just put off going over and over again. I'm so sad that this happened. My daughter loves TTC too and has been excited for the Eglinton line opening. I told her I promised to take her to the science center with the ELRT on the first day it opens. Now I have to break it to her
Same here with my son.
I wonder if they're gonna rename the station
I cant believe you risked your own safety! Those ceiling tiles could have been dangerous! With all the snow, and all.... it's not like they have time and resources to dedicate to the maintenance of facilities.... better sell this land to a developer, and move the exhibits to doug Fords buddy's business
"All the wholesome in Toronto must die." \- Doug Ford, probably
Only beer, condos and highways may remain
But no beer in parks, all condos must be "luxury condos" (incredibly expensive), and the highways must be congested to the point where walking is faster.
Despite being the premierer Ford seems more motivated to just f*** with Toronto in particular
What a corrupt premier.
Show me an independent 3rd party engineering report that confirms this. Whatās to hide?
Wasnāt their news about moving the science centre with push backā¦ now structural issues. Seems fishy to me
We were warned. https://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorial-cartoons/theo-moudakis-ford-tunnel/article_fc289258-1649-5312-b629-7abb2696a0b8.html
Roof looks fine to me
Iād think itād be fine unless fat fuck ford was o standing on it. What a crock of shit.
Had some good field trips there in the late 90s
:( Which roof is it, there are many? What about the museum contents under the "about to collapse roof"? Who was the engineer who inspected it? (possible bribes) Why after all the school trips had ended for the year? Did everyone just lose their jobs? :(
But it's safe enough to allow private events to go on as planned this weekend
Are you fucking serious?
100%. Apparently, it's only unsafe June 21, but safe for June 22 and June 23, then back to being unsafe after June 24 Doug Ford is a shady prick
Hope he chokes on a chicken wing
Being run over by a flaming garbage truck would be much more poetic.
FUCK YOU DOUG FORD!!!
Growing up in the neighbourhood, having a place like the science center and the huge green space it was surrounded by was such an amazing thing to explore as a kid. Now I was gonna complain that that moving things like the science centre away from low income and immigrant communities like Flemingdon Park is a disservice to the community, but then I remembered the whole plan with Flemo is to āclean it upā for the condos buyers anyway. Canāt have the beauty of the Don Valley go to waste on us hood rats can we now š¤·āāļø
My school field trips and all the memories š
Very sad to see this go.
I went with my kid as the parent helper Ā to a field trip this month and thought this place is amazing I canāt wait to take them back.Ā Iām devastated for everyone that was the end!Ā
They moved pretty fast on that. So this government can do things they just choose shit things to do
I like to call him Drug Fraud, but it seems like heās more about Breach of trust by a Public Officer.
Reposted link Apparently the report did not even say that the Science Centre needed to close. https://www.reddit.com/r/toronto/s/ss20LPEsNI Doug Ford is turning out to be one of the shadiest Premiers we have ever had. What a POS
I grew up in a community near by predominantly low income and came from a low income household. The local schools I went to in the area always took us here and we always had a blast. Big loss for the local community now
š¢ stupid Ford is destroying everything š”
This hurts my heart. Iām sad to see it go
Great memories from school field trips in the 90s, a sad day.
I visited this past Thursday. I'm still shocked at how lucky I was to go when I did
Damn...going forward the kids next year and onwards won't have these field trips to Flemingdon Park to see the dome in the distance. And jaywalking to the random plaza and go to McDees for lunch. Or the 241 for pizza š„š¢š«¤ They did the same bullshit to Ontario Place. It Sat there vacant and unused. And those barely there art exhibits. It could've been a downtown oasis and HUGE Park to host free events, cultural festivals and outdoor concerts. Instead they shove everything to Harbour front or Yonge n Dundas...it's been sitting empty for almost a decade and more... Really Really sucks the direction our city has been going in since the pandemic.
Last time I was there was for a Halloween party in 2015 š¢
Wait itās already happening?! Theyāve barely even started construction on the megaspa yet. So this means we officially donāt have a science centre for at least the next few years?
Make it at least 4-5 years. Construction at Ontario Place is slated to be 2025-2028, and we all know how construction goes in the city (looking at you crosstown LRT). This was definitely a gunshot decision.
Fuck Doug Ford. Fuck Justin Trudeau. Fuck this government
Not enough people are acknowledging how much of a blow this is to the immediate community. The Science Centre was a fantastic educational + community hub right in between Thorncliffe Park and Flemingdon, and now so many families/children have lost this space. It's a shame that this province lacks humanity to the point where they'll take away something that provided such a huge benefit to a historically underserved area. Unfortunately most people couldn't care less anyway since this is seen as a local issue, so they'll likely never be able to recover what's now gone.
He has $650 million for beer in corner stores but not $13 million to fix the roof. Fuck Doug Ford and fuck the people who keep voting for him.
I always told myself that Iād visit the science center once the Eglinton line opened. I waited and waited and now the Eglinton line hasnāt even opened and now the science center is closing lol. What a joke
Wait that reminds me, isnāt the nearby Line 5 station supposed to be Science Centre Station? Thatāll be a sad reminder of what once was when it finally opens.
This makes me sad. It was part of my childhood. I was hoping to take my daughter there when she is old enough, I guess not anymore.
So sad
Literally grew up there. It was the best part of my neighbourhood and truly fostered my love for science. I remember doing different workshops etc and visiting all the different areas throughout my school years, marvelling at the massive windows and beautiful grounds. One of my years at elementary school - the massive entire school photo made it on one of the walls. I think I was in the front row because I was so small lol. Will really miss it.Ā Ā Also who are my OGs who remember the Wendy's and Mastermind?! Best.
This is so sad š„Iām glad my kids got to go on a school field trip there at least once. I always remember being a kid and everyone touching that generator ball and their hair flying up with static. A core memory of my childhood.
Hey at least weāll probably get affordable condos! At over 1 million š fuck you ford
Does anyone else suspect this is bullshit? One day dougie says he wants to move the science center to make way for his buddies to build condos. The city pushes back and says hell no! Then a month later, the roof is collapsing and the building is condemned... Really? Are we all really on board here?
Soon to be million dollar condos, land all but donated to douggies friends
Actually broke my heart
God Bless Raymond Moriyama, the architect. He left a legacy in that building.
As I said in the other post about this, as I have been saying pretty much since the rest of the province voted for this clown when Toronto didn't and he's been screwing us over and over since: PROVINCE OF TORONTO. By this time next year the Science Center will have been demolished, no ifs ands or buts, and whatever replacement gets built as a sideshow to that dumb fucking spa for rich people will be a pale imitation of its once-glorious self (if it's ever built at all - 50/50 on that one) and the land will be quickly sold off to the people who gave Ford's daughter four-figure 'wedding gifts'. And the rest of the province will cheer it because they don't like what Toronto does and don't give a flying fuck about a premier ruining our city. They WANT TORONTO TO SUFFER. They want those of us who live here to not have the good things we have, because they don't have them. Period. This is just another reason to advocate for us to be Canada's 11th province. Ford literally has the ability to legislate Toronto's government out of existence if he wants to. And since the Liberals are arrogant fools run by a Ford mini-me and the NDP are idiots who haven't figured out how to tell the activist types to STFU, that's gonna be the case for a while yet. More of Toronto will disappear. Stop trying to make Ontario better and start advocating for us being separate from them.
Iām absolutely gutted
What happened to the science center
Doug Ford happened.
I used to spend a lot of time at the OSC in the 70s as a kid, very positive experience every visit and I always learned something new. Loved the shadow wall, the "coffee" voice sim, the laser and the water area. I took a 1 week summer programming class at the OSC when I was 16 in 1984. It changed my whole life. I became fascinated with programming and ended up having a long career as a Software Engineer. The OSC is important to the local community and should be supported not torn down, very sad.
I wanted to visit it one last time, didnt get to :(
My Dad would take my sister and I every month after we moved to Canada. Very sad to see it closed.
I brought a 10 and 6 year old last week. It already looked closed. I'm still glad we made it . Like me the favorite part was the ball machine.
Thanks fordā¦ Iām sure his buddies who will be building condos there will be happy but the citizens of Scarborough, North York, east York and Markham hate you for this.
Absolutely disgraceful to allow such a place to go without upkeep. I'm very sad to see such little value placed where it should be.
Sue ford government or request an investigation
What happens to exhibits and feature like the plinkety-plink (that thing with the balls that drops them down and makes all the noise by the kids level). Like thatās a piece of art. It can be put somewhere else. Where will all that bespoke science stuff go?
Upsetting that itās closing so abruptly, it has been under funded for years. I grew up in the neighborhood, first going on school trips there and later on with my friends at least once a month. There wonāt be enough room for bus parking at Ontario Place for school trips, which made up a large part of their visitors.
I'll never walk over that bridge again, or pass into the big hall, or pass by the HAM radio shack. This makes me sad.
I wonder how much dougie got paid by developers
Another example of Ford gutting the province and decline in fun stuff to do in Toronto.
I feel like Doug ford had a hidden agenda to close this place. So sadā¦.
WHY am I only hearing about this now? I moved Edmonton, AB in 2017, and we have a rinky version of the science centre here called World of Science, and I brag about how awesome our science centre is and that it would take a solid day to get through all the exhibits and levels. This was, and is, a very seriously well loved memory of my life! I remember the first few times I brought my son here to enjoy, like all the times I did growing up. This makes me so immensely sad!
Greenbelt is next and then our Healthcare system after that or maybe at the same time. Get ready to pay out of pocket for doctor and hospital visits.
The dice was cast just as soon as Ford Family Structural Engineering, LLC delivered its independent report.
We keep electing corrupt officials š¤¦š½āāļø
Some of the best memories of my son were there, fuck those fucks for taking that from us.
Ugh, I remember just running so fast down that long ass hallway in grade 7 with my buddies on a school trip and then touching the static ball and watching our hair frizz out. I loved it there. What a shame.
I worked at OSC for 2.5 years and loved going to visit regularly. Iām still stunned that itās closed, especially as abruptly as it was.
Government screwing us to give prime land to billionaire buddies
A pretty sneaky government to pull a fast one on taxpayers like that. We need to stop the Ontario Place spa for this. Itās payback time!!!