Ontario Place (theme park)
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| Slogan | Experience... Ontario Place kids just want to have fun It's more fun by the water – it just is! |
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| Location | Toronto, Canada |
| Coordinates | 43°37′44″N 79°24′54″W / 43.628993°N 79.415048°WCoordinates: 43°37′44″N 79°24′54″W / 43.628993°N 79.415048°W |
| Owner | Government of Ontario |
| Opened | May 22, 1971 |
| Closed | September 25, 2011 |
| Operating season | May through October (some venues open year round) |
| Website | www |
Ontario Place was an entertainment and exhibition complex located in Toronto, Ontario that operated annually during the summer months from 1971 until 2011. Owned by the Government of Ontario, it is located on the shore of Lake Ontario, just south of Exhibition Place, and south-west of downtown Toronto. Three artificially constructed, landscaped islands were built to house the facility as well as several 'Pod' buildings suspended over the water and the Cinesphere geodesic dome IMAX theatre, the first permanent IMAX theatre. One of the islands was dedicated to an open-air concert space, while the other two were used for amusements, restaurants, parkland and exhibits. Three old lake freighters were sunk to provide a breakwater for a public marina between the main islands.
Designed originally to promote the Province of Ontario through exhibits and entertainment, its focus changed over time to be that of a theme park for families with a water park, a children's play area, and amusement rides. Exhibits in the pods were discontinued and the building became a venue for private events. The concert stage was turned over to a private concert operator and rebuilt as the Amphitheatre. After a long period of declining attendance, the Government of Ontario closed the facility except for its music venue and marina. It plans to re-open the facility after redevelopment into a year-round multiple-use facility.
Built in 1926 the CNE Ontario Government Building displayed exhibits about Ontario at the annual Canadian National Exhibition (CNE). After the success of Expo 67 in Montreal, the Government of Ontario decided to replace the facility with a new state-of-the-art showcase.
a new focal point for our province.... a new attitude to our lakefronts.... a new showcase for our province and people.
The park itself was originally conceived as an onshore exhibit, but this idea was discarded in favour of five large, architecturally unique, three-level Pods. Each Pod would be approximately 8,000 square feet (743 m²) in area, and suspended by steel cables from four large central pylons driven deep into the lake bed. These Pods would initially house various Ontario-themed exhibits in an aquatic setting somewhat similar in concept to Montreal's Expo 67 grounds (which were in the middle of the Saint Lawrence River).
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Wikipedia