Live Nation Canada revealed plans today to turn a portion of the YZD community being developed on the former Downsview Airport lands into a culture destination. The entertainment company is building a large-capacity seasonal outdoor concert venue so big that upon completion it will be the largest purpose-built music venue in Toronto and surrounding areas. 

Live Nation’s exclusive telecommunications and entertainment sponsorship deal with Rogers also gives them naming rights. The concert venue is called Rogers Stadium and will be an open-air beacon with capacity for 50,000 people when it opens in the summer of 2025.

By investing in the high-capacity venue, Erik Hoffman, President, Music, Live Nation Canada, says the company is planning to meet current and future demand for concerts. The number of stadium-level acts touring today is unprecedented. There are more acts than available nights at existing venues. Building a facility that can accommodate artists that draw crowds of this size will ensure that Toronto fans won’t miss out on world-class artists, premium stadium show experiences, or the festival vibe that fans love, he adds.

Rogers President and CEO Tony Staffieri believes that Rogers Stadium will be able to meet the demand for capacity, while attracting the best artists from around the world and providing concertgoers with high-quality entertainment experiences in a unique festival atmosphere.

At today’s announcement in Hangar 7 of the former aviation facility and army base, Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow were both on hand for the plan’s unveiling. The new music venue will enhance Toronto’s reputation as a leading destination for the biggest touring acts, said Mayor Chow. Premier Ford seemed certain that the new venue will bring more tourists and investment into the province, boost local businesses, create new jobs and attract artists from around the world. Construction, and the operation of the music venue, will generate thousands of jobs, boost tourism, support local businesses and inject an estimated $80 million to a hundred million dollars into the local economy. 

Rogers Stadium will be positioned at the north end of the former airport’s runway. In its entirety, the 370-acre YZD project is expected to cost $30 billion and take over three decades to complete. Rogers Stadium will be on the site temporarily, but the developers say that it will be a source of financial and cultural infusion locally and to the YZD development site.

The new stadium will serve as a much-needed infrastructure for the city’s arts and culture sector on a seasonal basis. Northcrest CEO Derek Goring says the partnership is one of the many ways in which they will continue to enrich the project before development even begins.

The Rogers Stadium venue is not to be confused with the mixed-purpose architectural pearl close to the waterfront in downtown Toronto that Rogers also has the naming rights to. That venue is the Rogers Centre, formerly the Sky Dome, which serves as a baseball stadium as it is known as home to the Toronto Blue Jays.

Northcrest continues to host free public events and invites thousands of potential residents and business owners to play — skate, wheel, bike, walk — on the two-kilometre runway to showcase the project’s uniqueness after opening up the site to visitors in 2022. 

YZD has access to nearby public transportation but the runway will remain a no-car zone. It serves as the main avenue running through the centre of the new town. Plans for development include seven million square feet of commercial and cultural spaces and about 74 acres of parks and green spaces.

by Cherryl Bird – Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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