Downtown aquarium planned for Toronto

Canada Lands Company enters into lease agreement with Ripley Entertainment, Inc. to build 150,000-square foot facility at the foot of CN Tower

A new 150,000-square foot aquarium could be coming to the foot of the CN Tower.

If approved by city planners, the aquarium would be a major addition to Toronto’s waterfront and the first brand new tourism attraction to open in the city in years, said Gordon McIvor, the vice-president of the Canada Lands Company, the Crown corporation which owns the CN Tower and the five-acre plot on which the aquarium would be located.

Canada Lands has entered into a long-term lease agreement with Ripley Entertainment, Inc. to build and operate the aquarium.

“The site is great, it’s right in the tourism hub,” said Tim O’Brien, the vice-president of communications for Ripley, famous for its “Believe-It-Or-Not” franchise but also the operators of two major U.S. aquariums. “The location is magnificent for us.”

Mr. O’Brien said it’s too early to say what species of sea life the aquarium would feature. The company and Canada Lands are waiting to see how much of their proposal survives the city re-zoning process that is about to get officially under way at a community council meeting next Tuesday.

However, Mr. O’Brien said he is “comfortable” the project will go ahead. Mr. McIvor and Mr. O’Brien said they would like to see the first phase of the aquarium open in three years.

According to a report to the Toronto and East York Community Council, the proposed development would include the aquarium on the lands west of the CN Tower, next to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, and a 47,000-square-foot retail and restaurant complex on the east side of the tower.

The aquarium would open in two phases: A first phase of approximately 96,000 square feet and a second phase of about 54,000 square feet.

Mr. McIvor praised the project a potential boon for Toronto’s shoreline. “This will enhance all of the businesses in the waterfront area,” he said.