Well… looks like this is the final nail in the coffin for the Buttonville Airport.
Armadale Co. Limited and The Cadillac Fairview Corporation Limited have announced that they will be closing the airport and redeveloping the lands.
Looks like the Siftons will remain part of this re-development as they own Armadale Co. and are using Cadillac Fairview to help develop the lands into mix-use.
The full press release can be found on the Cadillac Fairview website.
Shame.
It will be interesting to see what the next few years holds for Toronto Airways. Will they move to Markham airport? Or will the Siftons just shut ‘er down? What about all the pilots who have aircraft at YKZ?
(thanks @Rammsies for the tip!)
CYOO is about to get a lot busier, I suspect.
Yeah.. I also suspect that CNU8 will get a huge overhaul.
Agreed, although a single 2000′ runway limits is usefulness for some of the multi/fast/big GA crowd.
CYLS just went through a huge overall too – longer runway, parallel taxiways, bigger terminal building, paved GA tie-down area. I think they also just developed a lot of land for hangar developments…
Mr. X: Not to mention a name change!
I read someplace that there has been some “activity” at Markham Airport, bulldozers, etc.. From what I remember, there is enough land to support (600 acres or so) at least a 8000′ runway.
So it is possible that they will upgrade the airport to replace Buttonville.
I guess it all depends on what the Thompson family (who owns the Markham Airport) wants to do.
Sorry Blake – Mr. X was in an attempt to not sound biased towards the LSRA. As a Barrie resident and airport user, I see great things for this facility and with the new expansion, CYLS is certainly a player and a viable option for CYKZ users that live in the York Region area – CYOO is too far east for this segment. Like you said, I guess it ultimately depends on what the Thompson family decides to do with CNU8.
Mike
Mr. X: No worries..
I know a lot of people fly out of YKZ and head up to cottage country and avoid the traffic. I do see some users moving their aircraft up to YLS, but it’s still a 45 min drive or so from Markham.
You’re right, YOO is way out of the way, however, it may provide the facilities that some of the current tenants at YKZ require.
There is also CNC3 too. I’m not too familiar with that airport, however it’s just as close to the city as YKZ was, but on the west side.
Only time will tell…
I wonder how the closure will affect hangar/tie-down prices at these other airports. Going to go up? Or will they go down, because demand will increase.
I’m also curious to see what COPA says about all this too. Not that they can do very much…
I’ve flown into CNC3 3 or 4 times. It’s a great airport, but already very crowded, and also pretty far north (IIRC, it’s almost halfway between Brampton and Orangeville_. I can’t imagine Brampton being able to free up enough hangar space to accomodate a lot of planes from Buttonville.
I just heard Derek Siton on another radio station trying to rally support again for his private airport. He now wants us all to build him the Pickering Airport… which will be another Mirabel!
Note there is another airport in Markham, that is privately run, does not and has not asked for the 100 of millions in public funding (towers, localizer, beacon, runway expansion, etc, and grants) that the Siftons have asked for and got through their political friends. The Markham Airport will expand to take on the small plane needs of the GTA if allowed and will fund it all privately, as it should be. Heather Sifton wants Buttonville to stay open so I am sure Derek is trying to keep it operational as the plan with Cadillac/Fairview allows. If the Siftons want to keep their airport, they with their other Billionaire friends can pay for it themselves, as the Markham Airport does. No public funds should have ever gone to this airport, and no tax breaks should be allowed in their redevelopment plans… that alone is another form of public subsidy in the tune of 100s of millions.
Using and allowing the expansion of the Markham Airport just makes more sense in the short term – maybe the long term if development of Pickering never becomes fiscally feasible. Let us spend our tax dollars on the public needs (even a few million is desperately needed), and allow the Markham Airport to develop privately to meet the needs of the pilots and small planes (including corporate jets) in the GTA. BTW Buttonville is not a heavily used airport, the Siftons inflate this number (aircraft movements) by calculating every aircraft that talks to the Buttonville Tower, all GTA plane traffic when flying through or near the Buttonville Control Zone contacts them – also training pilots doing endless circuits does not make for a “busy” airport.