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In the last issue of Fife & Drum (see July 2008, ‘The Best of Times’) it was reported the TTC was eyeing a route that would cut across Fort York for an LRT line serving the suburbs along the western Waterfront. Now it appears a better way may have been found, if we are not reading too much into a letter sent jointly by Deputy Mayor Joe Pantalone and TTC Chair Adam Giambrone on 2 September to Councillor Norm Kelly, chair of Council’s Planning & Growth Management committee. The letter asks the committee to defer considering the item until its January 2009 meeting. It continues: ‘Since the TTC considered the report, it has become clear that there may be alternative routes along the Fort York Neighbourhood that do not compromise the integrity of the Fort’s heritage. Both TTC and City staff members continue to pursue other alignments and opportunities to ensure excellent transit service without running through the site and negatively affecting its heritage value. The City of Toronto is pursuing plans for UNESCO World Heritage Site Designation [for the fort], establishing a Visitor Centre and preparing for the Bicentennial Commemoration of the War of 1812. An alignment that does not run directly through the site would maintain the integrity of Fort York and . . . be preferred to the current proposal – particularly if its impact on transit service can be minimized or eliminated.’ We applaud the good faith and efforts of all who’ve been involved in bringing this issue into better focus over the summer, particularly among our elected leaders, and hope that all ends well.
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