Cost to rename Dundas Street has now doubled to nearly $13 million as public support wanes

New documents from the City of Toronto show how much the projected cost to rename Dundas Street has ballooned, with staff now putting a price tag of $11.3 to $12.7 million on the extensive undertaking — around double initial estimates.

The new information comes in a missive between City Manager Paul Johnson and Ward 2 Councillor Stephen Holyday, who wrote to ask for an updated figure and a other details in his ongoing opposition to the project.

In response, Johnson provided the aforementioned estimate for “costs to City divisions, agencies, corporations, residents, businesses, Transportation Services, Toronto Transit Commission, Toronto Parking Authority, as well as other signage, communication, and public engagement costs.”

He noted that the number has increased drastically since 2021 due to “inflationary pressures, updated inventories, installation contract cost escalations, and additional resources required to plan and administer implementation,” and also that this amount does not include any provincial costs that will be incurred when — or if — the renaming happens.

Cost to rename Dundas street has now doubled to $11.3-$12.7 million byu/ead09 intoronto

Though council voted to act on the recommendation in July 2021 with the full support of then-Mayor John Tory, it seems that public pushback to the initiative has grown since, and will likely worsen given this new cost estimate.

A poll from this fall showed that while 54 per cent of residents were for a new moniker for the thoroughfare in theory, this fell to only 42 per cent when the funding needed was taken into account. This is when costs were purported to be $8.6 million, which was higher than the $5.1-$6.3 million forecasted in 2021, but still far below the current calculations.

The movement to rebrand Dundas gained steam in 2020, when many discovered that namesake Henry Dundas is believed to have had a hand in delaying the abolition of slavery in the British Empire. He also lacks strong ties to the City of Toronto.

Tory said at the time that renaming the street would be the “right decision… to build a Toronto that is inclusive, equitable and reflects the values of its diverse members,” adding that “the names of our public streets, parks and monuments are a reflection of our values.”

But, three former mayors (and others) have since criticized these interpretations of Dundas’s history as misreadings, saying that he was actually “a committed abolitionist who, when facing strong opposition and certain defeat, advocated for interim measures that would ultimately lead to that result.”

Holyday also questioned the research in his recent letter to the City, writing, “what steps have staff taken to inform the mayor and councillors about the analysis… regarding the accuracy of accusations against Henry Dundas?”

He pointed to how Edinburgh responded to the same issue, adding plaques under a monument to Dundas to better explain his history and his role in impeding the abolition of the slave trade.

At present, the City has spent approximately $250,000, per Johnson’s letter, on “consultants’ fees, communications, consultations, and Community Advisory Committee meetings and honoraria” in relation to the rechristening of all things with the name Dundas.

This includes 730 street signs, three parks and 13 park signs, a library, 625 Bike Share stations and Green P lots, a police division, a fire station, eight Toronto Community Housing Corporation sites, multiple transit shelters, highway signage, 60 business names, Yonge-Dundas Square, and more.

The original 2020 petition that spawned formal conversations to rename the road is at 14,759 signatures at the time of publication, while a counter-petition to keep the name has some 6,800.