Good question - speaking from a service delivery point of view, given that is a significant function of the City, I think the City needs to sit down and define its service standards and secure resources to implement that. If that means extending/intensifying services access in the old suburbs...

What services could we/should we be expanding and improving? I was going to post this in a new thread, but turns out I don't have sufficient privileges. Anyway, the reason I ask is that a lot of people are getting worked up and organised for what seems to be an all out effort to stop cuts...

Yaaargh, Communists!!!!!!!! Does he know that they put a man in space!? At some point, Mammoliti has to become a liability to the Ford executive, doesn't he? This is the man in charge of the child care, arena construction and homelessness task forces. NFL stadium rented out for childcare and...

Check out the Toronto Public Library website and the Toronto Public Library Board minutes. All the data you of which you speak is publicly available.

For me, the bigger picture question is whether its enough to have someone else as Mayor, or is there a necessity for a different slate of Councillors as well?

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/toronto/the-team-that-keeps-the-hordes-from-fords-door/article2121450/singlepage/#articlecontent "calls to the mayor’s office are not formally logged into a centralized database, and Mr. Beyer throws his unofficial tallies away at the end of each...

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/toronto/the-team-that-keeps-the-hordes-from-fords-door/article2121450/singlepage/#articlecontent "calls to the mayor’s office are not formally logged into a centralized database, and Mr. Beyer throws his unofficial tallies away at the end of each...

Check out Nick Kouvalis' comments buried in this Toronto Star article http://www.thestar.com/news/article/1034752--despite-warning-fire-chief-refuses-to-suggest-cuts

Good question. I would suggest that you can't just hire realtors. Many of these properties need to be rezoned, if not severed, and in some cases remediated to make them viable development properties. Sure you could just sell them, but then you'd basically be selling them for a song because the...

js97, Good question. I'm not sure how it breaks down exactly, but the argument is premised on the number of tax incentives available to owners that are not available to tenants, in addition to the difference in property tax rates that a multi-residential dwelling owner is expected to pay (2.09%)...

typezed, You don't have to be a property owner to contribute to the tax base. I think arithmetically, a renter contributes 4x as much to the property tax base as an owner. I forget how those maths work, though. Moreover, your opinions/thoughts on the direction of a neighbourhood as a short-term...

typezed, I totally agree that the city is dependent on a healthy vibrant core area. And I know all too well about the challenges of NIMBYism. It is . . frustrating . . to say the least. But in a way wholly understandable. You've (not you specifically, but a general you) bought into a...

jje1000, let's hope so.

Greenleaf, That's a very interesting take. I hadn't considered it from that perspective. Sadly, I find myself agreeing with the sentiment "it's just words". And the more time I spend doing what I do, it's easier to believe that. Sometimes it's all too easy to imagine a controversial study was...

I submit that this last election was lost/won (depending on your viewpoint) in the suburbs, for very good reasons. One doesn't need to poke too far to hear suggestions that those who were campaigning for the Mayoralty, apart from Ford, never really spent time in the suburbs. Ford did, and his...

In principle, Metroman is correct, securing the support of as many Councillors as possible is what needs to be done. The challenge, however, is being able to demonstrate to someone like, say, Cllr. Minnan-Wong, or Cllr. Berardinetti, that there are 9,000 people prepared to vote against them in...

Interesting thread. But I take the position that it is less about who the Mayor is and more about who the Councillors are. You could have the most visionary, progressive Mayor (if you think that's a good thing) but if the Councillors don't support her/him politically at Council or Committee...