A Toronto landlord served the Canadian Air and Space Museum an eviction notice on Tuesday, announcing that a large sports complex would be built in the heritage building.
Downsview Park Inc., the museum's landlord, handed an eviction notice to all of the tenants at the facility.
David Soknacki, chair of Downsview Park's board, said that tenants were evicted to make room for a four-pad ice complex.
Soknacki told CTVNews.ca that the building also needs renovation and that it is "falling apart and not up to code."
"We recognize change is traumatic," he said. "But we see this as a tremendous benefit to the wider community."
The Air and Space Museum was behind on its rent by about $100,000 and has gone through several management changes in the last six months.
Robert Cohen, CEO of the museum, said he sent $22,000 in cheques to the museum's landlord earlier this month and received the money back on Sept. 14.
"They sent us over these notices…stating that we are in default and they returned the money to us," he told CTV Toronto.
Downsview Park started discussing the ice-rink complex two years ago and hope to have the rinks operable by Sept. 2013, Socknacki said.
Museum staff is packing up decades of aviation history and will now need to search for a new home for the priceless artifacts, such as the historic red-tipped Avro Arrow.
"We're a large warehouse of history. Each and every day we have people that come in here that bring us their collection to proudly have it on display," said Cohen.
Soknacki said that Downsview Park has offered the museum help in moving.
"We will help with moving costs, store artifacts and if they have a proposal for carrying on the museum we welcome evaluation from their board," he said.
Downsview Park's other tenants include a catering company, fashion company, a contractor and two soccer associations.
With a report from CTV Toronto's Zuraidah Alman
