The City of Oshawa has authorized senior staff to negotiate and execute agreements for the sale of surplus lands at the Oshawa Executive Airport as officials look to capitalize on potential development interest.
The motion, approved at the Safety and Facilities Committee this week, empowers the Chief Administrative Officer and senior staff to explore investment opportunities for surplus airport properties. The authorization, which still requires full council approval, would be valid for six months and was partly motivated by the upcoming summer recess and election campaign season, when councillors may be preoccupied with other matters.
Councillor Bradley Marks inquired about the level of interest staff had been receiving regarding the lands, but committee chair Brian Nicholson reminded him that specific inquiries would need to be discussed in-camera. Staff will do everything in their power to make the airport as efficient and profitable as possible, Nicholson said, adding the city would not want to miss an opportunity while council is busy.
Following further questions from Councillor Rosemary McConkey about the nature of potential deals, the committee moved the discussion behind closed doors.
A 30-acre plot of city-owned land known as the East Field has already been declared surplus to municipal requirements. Any roads or services needed to activate surplus properties will be funded from the Airport Development Reserve.
The Oshawa Executive Airport has a long and storied history in Durham Region, originally opening in 1941 as a flight training school for Second World War pilots. The City of Oshawa took over operations in 1947, and in 1997 signed a 50-year Operating and Options Agreement with the federal government to run the facility until 2047.
The city has emphatically stated that its commitment to keep the airport operational will not be extended beyond the current agreement timeframe, leaving questions about what happens after 2047. In the meantime, Oshawa renewed its management contract with Total Aviation and Airport Solutions earlier this year, extending it through 2031.
The surplus land authorization comes just weeks after the city took steps toward meaningful noise mitigation measures at the airport, addressing long-standing complaints from nearby residents about flight training aircraft noise. Those complaints have escalated significantly over the years, rising from roughly 50 per year in the early 2000s to more than 300 during the height of the pandemic.
The airport was also the subject of a protracted legal battle with the Canadian Flight Academy over the volume of training flights, a dispute that was only settled two years ago after numerous delays.
While the authorization does not mean any specific surplus land deal is imminent, it signals the city’s willingness to act quickly should a viable development opportunity present itself. With the East Field already declared surplus and interest in airport-adjacent land growing, the next six months could prove pivotal for the future of the Oshawa Executive Airport and the surrounding area.
For Oshawa residents living near the airport, the potential land sales represent both opportunity and uncertainty, as the balance between airport operations and new development continues to evolve in one of Durham Region’s most historically significant locations.
