{"id":16300,"date":"2023-04-29T10:12:35","date_gmt":"2023-04-29T17:12:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/ford-cites-huge-drop-in-science-centre-attendance-but-documents-tell-a-fuller-tale\/"},"modified":"2023-04-29T10:12:36","modified_gmt":"2023-04-29T17:12:36","slug":"ford-cites-huge-drop-in-science-centre-attendance-but-documents-tell-a-fuller-tale","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/essential.construction\/news\/ford-cites-huge-drop-in-science-centre-attendance-but-documents-tell-a-fuller-tale\/","title":{"rendered":"Ford cites huge drop in science centre attendance but documents tell a fuller tale"},"content":{"rendered":"

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TORONTO \u2014 Ontario Premier Doug Ford has cited a huge drop in attendance and \u201crun down\u201d infrastructure at the Ontario Science Centre as part of his justification for moving the attraction from east Toronto to a redeveloped Ontario Place, but certain documents present a fuller picture.<\/p>\n

Reports from the science centre itself show attendance has been rebounding post-pandemic lockdowns, and small annual decreases in attendance in the years before COVID-19 are attributed to nearby construction of a provincial transit project and not having enough money for marketing.<\/p>\n

The size of the science centre\u2019s operating grant from the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport appears to have been frozen for the past 10 years, based on government expenditure estimates. Minister Neil Lumsden\u2019s office did not provide an explanation for not increasing the funding, but noted the attraction \u201cbenefits from other provincial supports\u201d such as a capital repair and rehabilitation program.<\/p>\n

Infrastructure Minister Kinga Surma has said a business case showed it will be more cost effective to move the science centre to Ontario Place rather than keeping it in the current location but has so far refused to make that business case public.<\/p>\n

Ford has been citing a desire to modernize the facility and attract more people as reasons for the move, suggesting the centre is aging and fading from popularity.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re in this old, run-down building (where) the attendance is down 40 per cent,\u201d he said at a news conference recently.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can look around this room and ask how many people have gone to the science centre in the last, I don\u2019t know, year, two years. One? I don\u2019t see anyone.\u201d<\/p>\n

Those comments were uncalled for, said NDP infrastructure critic Jennifer French.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince COVID I know people are eager to get out and into their public spaces and give their kids something to do and the science centre has always been a favourite, so painting it in a negative light is kind of mean-spirited and unfounded,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Ford later clarified the attendance drop was 30 per cent, and his office said that figure comes from comparing 2012-13 figures to 2022-23. The decrease, however, is about 10 per cent when comparing 2012-13 to 2018-19, the last year unaffected by the pandemic.<\/p>\n

Coming out of most of the pandemic lockdowns, onsite attendance for 2021-22 was 255,347 \u2013 well exceeding the centre\u2019s target of 142,078 for that year, according to its annual report for that year, the most recent one available.<\/p>\n

Attendance on Family Day weekend and March Break last year exceeded numbers for those dates in 2019 by seven per cent and 15 per cent, respectively.<\/p>\n

According to science centre annual reports, attendance went up and down between 2012-13 and 2016-17, when it was 941,006. It then declined by four per cent, then another two per cent to 884,837 in 2018-19, the last year unaffected by COVID-19 restrictions.<\/p>\n

The annual reports blame the drops on \u201cinsufficient funds for marketing\u201d and construction at nearby Eglinton Avenue and Don Mills Road, where the Eglinton Crosstown LRT has been under construction for 10 years. It includes a \u201cScience Centre\u201d stop that would increase transit accessibility to the attraction.<\/p>\n

The 2017-18 business plan also notes global factors.<\/p>\n

\u201cVisitor attendance at science centres, natural history museums and art galleries has been on a decreasing trend to varying degrees in recent years,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are many explanations for the decline \u2013 changing demographics, impact of technology, uncertain economic climate, busy lives, and increased competition \u2013 but there are no quick or easy solutions.\u201d<\/p>\n

The science centre\u2019s 2017-18 business plan does note \u201cthe centre has had challenges in attracting the tourism market primarily as a result of location,\u201d saying studies show visitors from outside the region come to the centre if they\u2019re in Toronto for more than three nights.<\/p>\n

Visits from Greater Toronto Area residents make up 68 per cent of attendance, with 16 per cent from elsewhere in Ontario and another 16 per cent from everywhere else.<\/p>\n

Ford has said the science centre in its new location on Toronto\u2019s waterfront will attract 115,000 more visitors per year.<\/p>\n

The premier\u2019s office said that number comes from an analysis that factored in a more accessible downtown location, being close to major transit and highway corridors, and having more space for exhibitions \u2013 despite the new location being in a smaller building. Ford\u2019s office said exhibitions take up 25 per cent of the current centre\u2019s space.<\/p>\n

The government declined to provide a copy of that analysis.<\/p>\n

When it comes to the state of repair, the government has not provided documentation to illustrate the maintenance needs on which it is basing its \u201crun down\u201d assessment.<\/p>\n

The science centre\u2019s 2017-18 business plan says 10-year deferred maintenance needs are $147.5 million, and that upgrades and asbestos mitigation are required.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe bigger issue for the building conditions is the areas that Infrastructure Ontario is responsible for and the degree to which the centre is able to influence decisions related to building improvements,\u201d it wrote.<\/p>\n

That doesn\u2019t mean the building is \u201crun down,\u201d French said, but if it is, the fault lies at the feet of Infrastructure Ontario \u2013 the science centre\u2019s landlord \u2013 for not keeping up with maintenance needs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Ontario Science Centre is doing their darndest to fundraise and bring in additional funds to cover anything that they\u2019re allowed,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat doesn\u2019t set them up for the kind of success that we would expect from a beloved public institution.\u201d<\/p>\n

The science centre said specific questions about building repairs should be directed to the Ministry of Infrastructure, but the building, opened in 1969, is in need of \u201cregular repairs due to its age.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe do regular maintenance and inspections to ensure our building is a safe place to work and visit,\u201d a spokesperson wrote.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are looking forward to working with our staff, visitors and communities over the coming years to imagine what the new Ontario Science Centre will become.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a9 2023 The Canadian Press<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n