WislaHD
Superstar
Wong-Tam has been something short of bizarre this term of council.
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- Thread starter Amare
- Start date
She has a point about the infrastructure not keeping up with the increased density
WislaHD
Superstar
Over the whole downtown core though?
If she was proposing this just along the Yonge corridor, it would make more sense.
ADRM
Senior Member
This letter is so absurd it's downright offensive. I've seen KWT do good work, but I am one furious constituent of hers as a result of this letter.
DSC
Superstar
There is a shortage of schools, water and sewage capacity(and maybe also Hydro) in the area south of Front Street east of Yonge so these problems are not restricted to the Yonge corridor. At the very least the City needs to put resources into properly understanding the constraints and then proposing plans to deal with them. A complete freeze may be overkill but SOMETHING does need to be done
ADRM
Senior Member
Totally right that something needs to be done - what I'd like to see my councillor do, though, is tackle that problem head-on by doing her job; by rallying public support, by cajoling her colleagues, by working with city staff and the mayor, by actually attacking the problem, rather than by taking a silly, reckless, ignorant stand against economic development in the city and spreading mistruths to try to make foolhardy claims.
This, to me, is the definition of NIMBYism at its worst.
As DSC said, it's not just the Yonge corridor. I don't agree with a complete freeze, but I have long wished that council would pay more attention to the infrastructure requirements before approving new development. Urban planning and all that.
DSC
Superstar
I disagree, this motion may be a way of alerting her colleagues to what REALLY is a big problem. It has certainly got US talking about problem that 'everyone knows about" but which nobody wants to discuss.
ADRM
Senior Member
I don't disagree with the premise that it's a strategy to alert her colleagues of the issues, but I'm pretty strongly of the opinion that it greatly undermines her own argument because of the absurdity of the proposal to address it and the false facts on which she's trying to base it.
WislaHD
Superstar
This is also how populist rhetoric starts. Even if this is a strategy to alert her council colleagues, what if some other politician or members of the electorate decide this was a serious proposal to push for? Serious of a proposal or not, because of Wong-Tam people are now going to be talking about the notion of a development freeze. She has a responsibility as an elected official to not instigate such things.
ADRM
Senior Member
Very well said. I wouldn't be surprised if now other councillors latch onto that notion, and that's a very bad thing for the quality of our civic discourse.
AlvinofDiaspar
Moderator
Mind you, we have a development freeze for the longest time in an overwhelming proportion of land in Toronto - it's called the OP in the form of neighbourhoods.
AoD
AoD
Skeezix
Senior Member
Development is not the problem. The problem is Council's refusal to appropriately meet this City's infrastructure needs.
We have hundreds of millions of dollars in park levy funds in the bank, yet the City is effectively frozen into inaction when it comes to buying land for new parks. And Council refuses to adequately fund the Parks department to properly maintain the parks we have. Council's abject failure to maturely plan for transit in this City, and to accommodate all forms of transportation, is well known and need not be discussed again here. On everything else, Council nickels and dimes when dollars are needed.
If a moratorium is needed, it should be a year off from Council. Let some competent managers start making key decisions.
We have hundreds of millions of dollars in park levy funds in the bank, yet the City is effectively frozen into inaction when it comes to buying land for new parks. And Council refuses to adequately fund the Parks department to properly maintain the parks we have. Council's abject failure to maturely plan for transit in this City, and to accommodate all forms of transportation, is well known and need not be discussed again here. On everything else, Council nickels and dimes when dollars are needed.
If a moratorium is needed, it should be a year off from Council. Let some competent managers start making key decisions.
Skeezix
Senior Member
WislaHD
Superstar
Heh, and how much of that has contributed to our housing supply shortage and rising real estate prices?
Infrastructure notwithstanding, a moratorium on condos in downtown core will not make housing prices more affordable, or make it easier for young people to become home-owners.