Ontario's Premier Accountability Dashboard · Queen's Park Watch
RJ Steenstra
President and CEO of the Toronto Port Authority (TPA), which owns approximately 78% of the land at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport. Steenstra confirmed that the runway expansion would require approximately 900 metres of new landmass — including a 600-metre runway extension plus 150-metre safety buffers — to be infilled into Lake Ontario, enabling narrow-body jets (Airbus A220 and Embraer E195-E2). He stated that the seized Little Norway Park land was needed to "provide improved access to the airport in an effort to alleviate pinch-points and congestion."
Connected Scandals
Doug Ford's government introduced Bill 110 to seize all of Little Norway Park — a children's playground and waterfront green space beside two schools and a daycare — to expand Billy Bishop Airport into a jet hub, with no plan, no environmental assessment, and no guarantee the park won't become a parking lot.
As TPA president, Steenstra has actively supported and promoted the Billy Bishop jet expansion under Ford's plan. The TPA cited "access and congestion" as the reason for seizing Little Norway Park — language consistent with parking and road infrastructure — without publishing a design plan or committing to any specific use. The TPA stands to benefit directly from a 5x increase in passengers (current ~2 million to target 10 million annually).