Ontario Green Party Pledges to Cancel Ontario Place Spa, Highway 413, and Bradford Bypass in Election Platform
The Ontario Green Party is making waves with its newly released election platform, vowing to cancel the controversial Ontario Place spa redevelopment and halt the construction of Highway 413 and the Bradford Bypass.
Under the leadership of Mike Schreiner, the Green Party is positioning itself as a champion of affordability, environmental sustainability, and social justice. The platform outlines ambitious plans, including tax cuts for low- and middle-income Ontarians, the construction of more affordable and green housing, an expansion of healthcare services, and greater financial autonomy for municipalities.
Schreiner, a long-time critic of Premier Doug Ford’s infrastructure projects, reaffirmed his commitment to scrapping Highway 413 and the Bradford Bypass—two major roadways central to Ford’s 2022 re-election bid. Early work on the Bradford Bypass has already begun, and construction on Highway 413 is set to start this year. However, if elected, the Green Party pledges to put an immediate stop to both projects and prohibit any highway construction in the Greenbelt.
Another contentious issue the Greens aim to reverse is the Ontario Place redevelopment deal. Under the Ford government, the province signed a 95-year lease with Therme Canada to build a massive spa complex on the historic waterfront site. Schreiner and his party argue that the land should be preserved as a public park and waterfront space rather than being handed over for private development.
The Ontario Liberal and NDP parties have also committed to overturning the Ontario Place deal, making it a key election battleground
One of the Green Party’s most significant promises is its plan to build two million homes over the next decade within urban boundaries. To help homeowners create additional rental housing, the Greens propose zero-interest loans of $25,000 for adding affordable rental units to primary residences.
Additional housing initiatives include:
- Eliminating development charges on homes, condos, and apartments under 2,000 square feet built within urban areas.
- Removing the land transfer tax for first-time home buyers.
- Legalizing fourplexes and four-story buildings as-of-right within urban areas, with sixplexes permitted in cities with populations over 500,000.
- Reinstating rent controls on all units to protect tenants from excessive rent hikes.
The party is also committed to reversing boundary expansions approved by the Ford government and requiring higher housing densities around transit corridors to maximize urban space.
With Ontario facing a worsening doctor shortage, the Green Party is pledging to recruit 3,500 more physicians by expanding medical school spaces and residency opportunities for international graduates. Their goal: to ensure every Ontarian has a primary care provider within four years.
Other healthcare promises include:
- Harmonizing healthcare worker wages across the system to ensure fair pay.
- Expanding fast-track credential approvals for internationally trained doctors and nurses.
- Reopening 10 supervised consumption sites shut down by the Ford government and adding new sites in high-risk areas, particularly in Northern Ontario.
- Investing in mobile crisis response teams and expanding mental health and addiction services under OHIP.
The Greens also plan to collaborate with Ottawa to implement universal pharmacare, ensuring that prescription medications are accessible and affordable for all Ontarians.
The Green Party’s economic platform focuses on cutting taxes for low- and middle-income earners while increasing taxes on wealthy individuals and large corporations. The plan includes:
- Tax cuts for individuals earning under $65,000 and households making under $100,000.
- Ending hydro rebate cheques for wealthy residents and redirecting those funds to help lower-income households.
- Implementing new anti-gouging laws to prevent grocery chains from unfairly inflating food prices.
If elected, the Greens promise to increase the minimum wage to $20 per hour, with annual adjustments based on inflation. Other worker protections include:
- Implementing 10 legislated paid sick days for all workers.
- Banning employers from requiring a doctor’s note for sick leave.
- Strengthening labor laws to classify gig workers as employees, giving them full employment rights and benefits.
- Allowing gig work to count toward permanent residency applications for immigrants seeking Canadian work experience.
The Green Party is taking a bold stance on transit and climate policy, with promises to:
- Expand GO train service, increasing frequency during peak and off-peak hours.
- Eliminate tolls for transport trucks on Highway 407 and create dedicated truck lanes to reduce congestion elsewhere.
- Offer rebates for electric vehicles (EVs) and expand the province’s EV charging infrastructure.
- Phase out fossil fuel plants by 2035 while maintaining nuclear power at Bruce and Darlington.
The Greens also plan to ban new highway construction in the Greenbelt, expand conservation protections, and implement strict rules to prevent developers from encroaching on environmentally sensitive land.
The Green Party plans to:
- Cap class sizes at 24 for Grades 4-8 and at 26 for kindergarten.
- Eliminate EQAO standardized testing to reduce stress on students and teachers.
- Raise wages for early childhood educators and expand access to $10-a-day childcare in collaboration with the federal government.
- Convert OSAP loans to grants for low- and middle-income students and eliminate interest charges on student debt.
Despite holding only two seats in the last provincial legislature, the Ontario Green Party is determined to expand its presence. The latest Nanos survey places the Greens in fourth place with around five percent support among decided voters, but Schreiner is hoping that the party’s ambitious platform will resonate with Ontarians frustrated by rising costs and environmental concerns.
“Many people feel like the system is rigged against them—and that’s because it is,” the Green Party platform states.
“Ontario Greens will fight for fairness so you can live in a province with a future you can believe in, with a government that puts you first. You deserve a chance.”
With the Ontario Liberals, NDP, and PCs still rolling out their election commitments, the Green Party has set the tone early—offering voters a stark contrast to Doug Ford’s vision for the province. The question remains: will Ontarians buy into Schreiner’s promise of a greener, fairer Ontario?