Our little Billy Bishop Airport generated almost $2 billion for the city last year.
That’s according to a study, commissioned by the
Toronto Board of Trade and the
Toronto Port Authority, that was released last week.
That money, roughly $1.9 billion, includes $640 million in gross domestic product, $290 million in wages for the 1,700 jobs directly associated with the airport and the 4,000 others that owe their existence to it indirectly. About $57 million is generated in taxes and payments in lieu of taxes.
"Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport is more than a convenient transportation link into and out of the Toronto region," said president and CEO of the Board of Trade Carol Wilding in a prepared statement, "it is an economic driver vital to ensuring our economy remains globally competitive."
Though the airport first opened in 1939, it's only since 2006 when
Porter began flying from it—hyping its convenience to a primarily business clientele and providing relatively high levels of service—that the airport became the economic and cultural force that it is.
Writer: Bert Archer
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