Iconic attraction closes for good

Popular educational centre shuttered after engineers find the roof was in danger of collapsing

- ROBERT BENZIE ANDROB FERGUSON

Workers erect fencing around the Ontario Science Centre Friday after the province announced it was closing for safety reasons.

The Ontario Science Centre has been abruptly closed for good after a new engineering report found the roof is in danger of collapsing.

In a stunning move Friday afternoon — first reported by the Star — the Ministry of Infrastructure announced the iconic 1969 Don Mills building designed by the late Raymond Moriyama will no longer be structurally sound within a few months.

That meant Friday was the last day of operations for the once-popular tourist attraction that successive Progressive Conservative and Liberal governments have allowed to deteriorate for years.

“The actions taken today will protect the health and safety of visitors and staff at the Ontario Science Centre while supporting its eventual reopening in a new, state-of-theart facility,” said Infrastructure Minister Kinga Surma.

About 250 workers — including 200 members of the Ontario Public Service Employees’ Union — will be affected but they are not immediately losing their jobs.

Closure of the facility comes against the backdrop of Premier Doug Ford’s controversial decision to move the science museum to Ontario Place as part of the redevelopment of the lakeside park, which includes a privately owned Therme water spa.

Political opponents charged Ford wanted the 55-year-old building to become unusable so he could more easily relocate the science centre to the waterfront by 2028.

But the 52-page Rimkus Consulting Group engineering report found the air-filled concrete used in its construction — similar to that in more than 100 now-closed British schools built in the same era — is nearing the end of its life.

While the report said the building isn’t unsafe right now, the risk of rain or snow buildup could make it so sooner rather than later because it would corrode the reinforcing steel underneath.