By Vihaan Bhatnagar and Shumaila Mubarak
Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) will cover all costs of Dundas Station’s renaming to TMU Station, confirmed after the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) board approved the project on Wednesday.
TTC chair Jamaal Myers announced that no taxpayer money will be spent on the renaming and that the university will cover all costs.
The university also told The Eye that student tuition fees and scholarship funding will not be impacted by the station renaming.
Coun. Chris Moise told reporters in 2023 that the estimated cost of the renaming was $1.7 million, as previously reported on by The Eyeopener.
The university’s project proposal states that TMU’s proximity to the downtown Toronto subway station is a main reason for choosing TMU Station as its new name.
The renaming proposal includes the creation of the Transit Innovation Yard (TIY), a collaboration between the TTC, TMU, and the DMZ, TMU’s startup incubator.
The TIY is designed to improve transit innovation in Canada and provide the TTC access to “cutting-edge solutions from both TMU researchers and top-tier startups, while providing a real-world testing ground for transit innovation,” according to the project proposal.
In an emailed statement to The Eye, the university said they are actively working with partners—including those in venture capital and the financial sector—to help offset the project’s costs and are delighted to bring its “expertise in research, innovation and partnerships to the TTC.”
Daniel Tate, founder of a change.org petition to stop the renaming of Dundas Street, Dundas Station and Yonge-Dundas Square called for extended public consultation over the decision.
He cited TMU’s two-year consultation before the renaming of TMU from ‘Ryerson’ as an example the TTC could follow.
Tate also criticized the lack of transparency around the project due to the financial agreemen’s confidential nature of the financial agreement between the TTC and TMU. Tate’s petition currently has over 34,000 signatures.
Caswinii Gnanathasan, a second-year business management student, believes the funds should’ve been allocated to student-focused initiatives.
“I find it ridiculous because if funding is low for universities right now, then why are you going out of your way to change a subway station name?” said Gnanathasan.
In an emailed statement to The Eye, the TTC said the station will remain open and active during the renaming process but the project’s expected overall duration is tentative.
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