Toronto Islands to reopen after floods
TORONTO — The Toronto Islands, a popular summer destination for both city residents and tourists, are set to reopen to the public on Monday after a nearly three-month closure due to historic flooding.
Heavy rains in the spring caused water levels in Lake Ontario to rise to record highs, closing the cluster of islands to visitors as trees fell over, roads were washed out and carp spawned in large, muddy puddles.
Island businesses — which rely on the busy summer season for a large portion of their revenue — suffered losses as their flow of customers slowed to a trickle. Residents who lived on the islands stacked sandbags in an effort to keep their homes dry and industrial pumps worked to remove water from waterlogged areas of the community.
The islands were supposed to reopen on June 30, but persistent rain and high water levels kept them closed.
With Monday’s opening date now in sight, island residents and business owners said they were happy the community will be able to benefit from tourism again.
But many residents say they’ll also miss having the island all to themselves. “It was, at points, surreal,” said Shane Kearney, an island resident, who said that an entire generation of islanders have never had the island to themselves like this.
“It was beautiful. You could go for bike rides and not see one person in the middle of a sunny afternoon on a Saturday.”
As of Thursday morning, the island already had more of a buzz in the air as crews started to prepare for next week’s visitors. Pumps were still flushing out water in some closed-off areas, but many of the spots that had been submerged had only small puddles.
At the Island Café, a restaurant a short walk from the island’s eastern ferry terminal, co-owner Zorah Freeman-McIntyre said businesses on the island have been ready to receive guests for a while.
“As soon as word gets out, I think the boats will be quite packed,” he said. “We’re excited for people to come and for our businesses to thrive again.”