Let’s see Sidewalk Labs’ plans first, new chair says

City picks developer for three-year term as head of embattled firm’s board

Waterfront Toronto isn’t compelled to go along with Sidewalk Labs’ expanded vision for the Port Lands, says the man city council has chosen to chair the board of the corporation.

In a unanimous 26-0 vote Tuesday, Toronto city council picked prominent developer Steve Diamond to head the 12member Waterfront Toronto board.

His three-year term on the trigovernment board is expected to begin once the provincial cabinet signs off.

Diamond says the province has already called to ask him to chair and that Ottawa has already said yes to his moving into the position.

The appointment comes at a highly controversial time for Waterfront Toronto, which is in a partnership with Sidewalk Labs to develop a proposal for a data-driven smart-city housing development on the waterfront.

Leaked documents recently obtained by the Star showed that rather than only developing a 12-acre parcel on the waterfront and turning that into a smart city, Sidewalks hopes to develop far beyond that scope and include 350 acres on the Port Lands, an idea that surprised and upset many, including several politicians at the local, provincial and federal levels.

But Diamond, 66, president and CEO of DiamondCorp, a large real-estate development firm, says Sidewalk Labs’ proposal is by no means a given.

“Sidewalk (Labs) has the opportunity to put forward a vision for a larger parcel of land — anyone can do that as part of a proposal. But in assessing whether this is in the public interest, Waterfront Toronto and (other levels of ) government have no obligation whatsoever to accept what they propose. That’s a fundamental point that’s been missing from the de-

STEVE DIAMOND

bate,” Diamond told the Star after the council vote.

Diamond said he can’t say too much about the Sidewalk project because there is no final proposal yet. Sidewalk, a sister of tech giant Google, must first put forward a draft and then final master plans, expected in the coming weeks and months.

But he did say he believes it’s important for Waterfront Toronto to “establish leadership” on the Sidewalk Labs file.

Critics have complained that Waterfront Toronto has failed to take charge of the Sidewalk project on issues such as data governance, privacy and now the Port Lands issue.

“It’s difficult to comment on (Sidewalk Labs’) proposals until we understand the important business terms around these proposals. We want to evaluate them and go to a public and transparent process in coming to any particular conclusions,” Diamond added.

But on the issue of data security, privacy and governance, Diamond says the public debate around Sidewalk Labs’ proposal has sparked an important dialogue on the topic. He added that government will play a key role in resolving a lot of these concerns.

Diamond says Waterfront Toronto has made progress, including steering forward a multi-level, government-funded, $1.25-billion flood protection project in the Port Lands and he wants to see more waterfront revitalization initiatives come forward.

Diamond’s pick by city council also comes at a time of controversy on the board itself. Developer Julie Di Lorenzo resigned this past summer from the board over Waterfront Toronto’s handling of the Sidewalk Labs file.

In December, provincial Infrastructure Minister Monte McNaughton sacked three members, including the chair, after Bonnie Lysyk, Ontario’s auditor general, released a report slamming Waterfront Toronto.

Among her many complaints, Lysyk said Waterfront Toronto didn’t adequately consult with governments concerning the Sidewalk Labs project, an accusation Waterfront Toronto has disputed.

Diamond had planned to quit the board last year given the large time commitment. But the mayor persuaded him to remain on board until next month for stability reasons.

“We want to evaluate (proposals) and go to a public and transparent process in coming to any particular conclusions.” WATERFRONT TORONTO CHAIR