Amended Tripartite Agreement Completed Enabling RESA Compliance at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport

Toronto (January 28, 2025) – PortsToronto, in cooperation with its Tripartite Agreement partners Transport Canada and the City of Toronto, has successfully amended the Tripartite Agreement governing Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport. The amendment will enable important works required to achieve compliance with Transport Canada’s Runway End Safety Area (RESA) regulations designed to enhance safety at airports across the country and around the world.

In July 2024, Transport Canada officially notified PortsToronto that Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport had surpassed the passenger volume threshold outlined in the RESA regulations, and that compliance at the airport was to be achieved by July 2027.

To comply with RESA regulations, an extended landmass and a longer agreement term were required, which in turn necessitated amendments to the original 1983 Tripartite Agreement. The amendments consist of a minimal landmass extension to enable RESA, as well as a 12-year extension of the Tripartite Agreement to December 31, 2045, to enable financing of this large-scale project.

The amended Tripartite Agreement also recognizes that the parties will discuss a longer-term lease extension and renegotiation of the agreement to ensure ongoing and future operations of Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport.

The Amending Agreement has been added to the PortsToronto website together with the original 1983 Tripartite Agreement, here.

Quote:

RJ Steenstra
President & CEO, PortsToronto

“Coming out of Toronto City Council in October, the partners of Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport’s Tripartite Agreement – specifically PortsToronto, City of Toronto and Transport Canada – commenced efforts to develop an amendment to the agreement that would provide the conditions required to achieve compliance with Transport Canada-mandated Runway End Safety Area (RESA) regulations. These conditions included the extension of a landmass to accommodate the safety areas and an extension of the agreement term to secure financing for construction. I am pleased to confirm that through a cooperative and collaborative effort, we have achieved this goal, which is a critical step in the process of implementing RESA and ensuring compliance by the July 2027 deadline.”

About PortsToronto

For more than 100 years PortsToronto has worked with its partners at the federal, provincial and municipal levels to enhance the economic growth of the City of Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area. PortsToronto owns and operates Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, which welcomed approximately 2.8 million passengers in 2019; the Outer Harbour Marina, one of Canada’s largest freshwater marinas; and the marine Port of Toronto that includes businesses in a variety of sectors including marine shipping, cargo services, media production and passenger cruises. PortsToronto is committed to fostering strong, healthy and sustainable communities and has invested more than $28 million since 2009 in charitable initiatives and environmental programs that benefit communities along Toronto’s waterfront and beyond. PortsToronto operates in accordance with the Canada Marine Act and is guided by a board with representation from all three levels of government.

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