Securing a Dedicated School Location to Support Toronto’s Film Industry - by Councillor Rachel Chernos Lin, seconded by Councillor Paula Fletcher

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The decision

2025-05-21 · Toronto City Council · deferred

As filed

City Council on May 21 and 22, 2025, deferred Item MM30.19 to the June 25, 26 and 27, 2025, meeting of City Council.

The vote

Defer Item · Carried, 10-5

For (10)Anthony Perruzza, Ausma Malik, Frances Nunziata, Gord Perks, Jon Burnside, Nick Mantas, Olivia Chow, Paul Ainslie, Paula Fletcher, Vincent Crisanti

Against (5)Amber Morley, Chris Moise, Lily Cheng, Parthi Kandavel, Stephen Holyday

Absent (10)Alejandra Bravo, Brad Bradford, Dianne Saxe, Jamaal Myers, James Pasternak, Josh Matlow, Michael Thompson, Mike Colle, Rachel Chernos Lin, Shelley Carroll

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On the agenda

As the city filed it

Toronto is one of the top five screen-based industry hubs in North America and was named the "Best Place to Live and Work as a Movie Maker" in a survey conducted by MovieMaker Magazine in 2024. The screen sector employs more than 30,000 Torontonians, a number that is expected to continue to grow. A June 2022 consultant report identified Toronto's film industry as a high-growth sector poised to play an outsized role in driving Toronto's future economic development.

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In that same year, film and television productions spent a record $2.6 billion in Toronto. Roughly 70 percent of Toronto's production volume comes from international projects, which are highly mobile. With more cities competing for these economic opportunities, the City must continue to enhance the attractiveness, competitiveness, and viability of Toronto's screen sector. School sites are desirable film locations for film and television productions but can be challenging to permit due to the potential impacts on school operations. Securing an unused school as a film location would build on the xoTO Schools program by providing predictable access to a high-demand film location and support the continued growth of Toronto's film industry.

Staff recommended

Councillor Rachel Chernos Lin, seconded by Councillor Paula Fletcher, recommends that: 1. City Council direct the General Manager, Economic Development and Culture, in consultation with the Executive Director, Corporate Real Estate Management, to work with the Chief Executive Officer, Toronto Lands Corporation to explore opportunities for the City of Toronto to secure a closed Toronto District School Board school for

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the purpose of providing a dedicated location for film and television production and to report back with options to the Economic and Community Development Committee in the third quarter of 2025.

On the record

The item as the City filed it

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