RE: “Have you read the discussion so far? Closing Toronto City Centre Airport would not move air traffic away from residential neighbourhoods or parks … blah blah) On the size of the Island Airport 12Apr09)

The origin of this discussion thread centred on the Toronto islands before it was corrupted by this kind of frivolous elaborate equivocation. The essential point being made at the outset was that these waterfront islands constitute Toronto’s main city park just like New York’s Central Park or Vancouver's Stanley Park or London's Richmond Park or Los Angeles's Griffith Park … all within a few minutes for the enjoyment of citizen’s and visitors living in the central part of their cities. Only Toronto puts a growing commercial airport right smack dab in the park which promises to spoil its natural tranquility and robbing Torontonians of one of their most equisite natural downtown sanctuaries.

The essential problem and the challenge here and now is complacency. The people who are currently being seriously affected by airport noise and pollution on the waterfront are certainly saying so, but they’re not heard, or if heard, not heeded. But they are the canaries in the mine shaft. Then when there’s talk that things can get worse … a lot worse … as the airport grows, the equivocators emerge bellowing it’s “fear mongering”.

Talk with locals near London City Airport or around the airport in San Diego about whether this is “fear mongering”. Typically they’ll express great regret that they didn’t heed the warnings and galvanize the political will to stop what eventually happened. They accepted assurances that growth would be contained, and certain things like jets wouldn’t happen … but they did. Now it’s too late. The airports are entrenched.

David Wilson