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Published on June 4, 2022 at 1:53 p.m.
If this mall in Mississauga had been built, it would have been the largest mall in the world at the time.
Imagine an amusement park and mall for $ 1.5 billion, just south of Pearson Airport.
Well, it almost happened!
In the 1980s, a proposal for the Fantasyworld entertainment, shopping and leisure complex was made in Mississauga by Triple Five Development, the company that built the West Edmonton Mall, once known as the world’s largest shopping mall.
Fantasyland, shown in connection with existing shopping centers in the area, 1986 (files with works of the Peel Planning Department, PAMA)
The entire project would be 10 million square meters in Mississauga. Just to compare what 10 million square feet look like, here are some comparisons.
Square One Mall – 1,700,000 sqftThe Rogers Center – 479,160 sqftCNE – 15,246,000 sqft Canada of Wonders – 16,509,240 sqft
Fantasyworld was to occupy one and a half million square feet and will include a submarine ride, a water park and wave pool, a marine animal theater, the world’s largest amusement park, a pet zoo, an NHL-sized arena, an interactive space museum. gardens, art exhibits, a sports hall of fame, 20 choreographed fire and water fountains, 26 movie screens, a concert stage, an international themed hotel with 1,250 rooms and “the best shops and boutiques in the world.”
Site plan for the proposed mega-mall, 1986 (files with works of the Peel planning department, PAMA)
The site plan showed how massive this project is, as it stretches from Hwy 401 in the north to Eglinton in the south.
Themed “neighborhoods” filled with live entertainment, shopping and restaurants will include Bourbon Street in New Orleans and Piccadilly Circus in London. Little Italy would have real gondolas passing through the inner canals, while the replica on the left bank of Paris (La Rive Gauche) would include live theater.
Sounds amazing unless you’re a local mall, like Square One, or a theme park like Canada’s Wonderland.
Both were vocal about the damage Fantasyworld would do to their business.
The rejection of Mississauga’s first proposed site prompted developers to explore other lands in the area, but they eventually dropped the offer. Mississauga’s “Fantasyworld” was not supposed to be.
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