GALLERY: Donald Trump, Rob Ford and more VIPs at the opening of the Trump Tower

GALLERY: Donald Trump, Rob Ford and more VIPs at the opening of the Trump Tower

The new Trump International Hotel and Tower is over the top—naturally, so was the opening. Rob and Doug Ford (along with Rob’s wife Renata, who made a rare public appearance with her husband), Blue Jay J.P. Arencibia and Maple Leaf John-Michael Liles were all on hand to watch Donald Trump and his kids Ivanka, Eric and Donald Jr. cut the ribbon on the tower (using gold-plated scissors brought in on silver trays by scantily-clad models, of course). Technically, the 65-storey luxury behemoth at Bay and Adelaide opened its doors in January, but, hey, everyone loves a ceremony, especially when it involves The Donald entering in a procession of Toronto police officers and bagpipes.

Arencibia and Liles each gave Trump a jersey to take home, emblazoned with his last name and the number 1. Trump returned the Toronto love, even saying that Ford—always controversial among the locals—has a “spectacular” reputation around the world. Still, in spite of the hoopla, it’s hard to ignore the fact that the luxury hotel and condo has had a few hiccups, namely, falling glass and angry investors looking to back out condo deals. Needless to say, the Toronto Star, which faithfully kept tabs on the development and its many shortcomings, was not invited to the party.

Check out all the photos from the ribbon cutting »