WHEREAS TRCA is committed to an ongoing strategy of assessing and leveraging its extensive real estate portfolio for opportunities to further shared goals with its municipal, provincial, and federal partners;
AND WHEREAS Black Creek Pioneer Village has been undergoing a process of revitalization and re-imagining as a museum and tourism attraction to restore its prominence in place in the cultural eco-system of Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area, including renaming to The Village at Black Creek in Q1 2024;
AND WHEREAS Black Creek Pioneer Village is of significant importance to TRCA and the residents of Ontario and the Greater Toronto Area as a museum that showcases and encourages visitors to explore the past while reflecting on the present;
AND WHEREAS Black Creek Pioneer Village is located in both the Black Creek Neighbourhood Improvement Area and the University Heights Neighbourhood Improvement Area;
AND WHEREAS context sensitive development of the Black Creek Pioneer Village parking lot can serve as a catalyst for, and contributor to, ongoing revitalization of the Black Creek and University Heights Neighborhood Improvement Areas, including providing both economic, social and community benefits;
THEREFORE LET IT BE RESOLVED THAT TRCA enlist the expertise of CreateTO to conduct a developmental feasibility analysis for the Black Creek Pioneer Village parking lot to examine additional community and economic benefits;
THAT the development analysis benefit from stakeholder input and consider a variety of future uses with a focus on transforming the parking facility into a more livable, sustainable, and inclusive space that better integrates and connects the existing historical fabric, and the new Head Office, with the surrounding community;
THAT the development analysis ensures that it retains a portion of the site for staff parking, and significantly contributes to a revitalized Visitor Centre and Museum at Black Creek Pioneer Village;
AND THAT once draft development options are completed, that staff report back to the Executive Committee for approval of the concept which would inform subsequent planning, funding and development applications, due diligence, and value enhancement strategies which may require future agreements and approvals.