Mayoral Race
• As mayoral election looms, Toronto is still a city divided [ Toronto Star ]
• James: Despite attacks, Rob Ford’s simple message takes hold [ Toronto Star ]
• John A.D. Tory hones his political instinct on Thompson mayoral campaign [ Globe & Mail
• Confident Ford busily bashing foes [ Toronto Sun ]
City Building
• Toronto’s ‘Clubland’ no longer booming as condos move in [ Toronto Star ]
• Sugar Beach is one refined place [ Globe & Mail ]
• Bailão slams Giambrone over Dufferin Jog [ National Post ]
• City construction projects $5 million over budget [ Toronto Sun ]
• And the winner of the Golden Cockroach is… [ Toronto Sun ]
Other News
• Toronto’s Tamil-Canadian community gears up to host new refugees [ Toronto Star ]
• Green onions suspected in salmonella break-out [ Toronto Star ]
• Fence Fight: Balm Beach brouhaha cools now… for now anyway [ Toronto Star ]
• Toronto’s taxis are not the green way to travel [ Globe & Mail ]
• Diesel spilled in Don River [ Globe & Mail ]
• Councillor slams sole source deal [ National Post ]
• Union Station’s porters are fewer in number, but still proud [ National Post ]
• Fighting in Toronto a dream come true [ Toronto Sun ]
10 comments
This is a headline about Montreal rather than Toronto, but interesting for comparison’s sake. Can you imagine the New York Times gushing over Toronto as a “biking town”, or a “city of design”?
Quite a change from the early 90s, when Montreal was in the dumps and everything was “a louer”.
Congrats Montreal on the nice review, and someone please show this article to the Toronto politicians/cranks the next time they want to debate a Jarvis bike lane or pedestrian malls or streetscape design.
36 Hours in Montreal
http://travel.nytimes.com/2010/08/15/travel/15hours.html
Re: As mayoral election looms, Toronto is still a city divided
Can the Star please explain this article’s premise in the context of the Three Torontos report? Or the fact that of Toronto’s 13 Priority Neighbourhoods, not one is in the old City of Toronto?
City Hall is not spending suburban tax money on downtown bike lanes. It is spending Toronto’s tax money on suburban light rail, suburban policing and suburban housing and social services.
Rob Ford and his fans are not divided against downtowners, but against their less-affluent suburban neighbours.
Yes John… but many suburbanites don’t want the things that you’ve identified CityHall will be spending on in the inner suburbs. Hence the Ford phenomenon. It’s not just a matter of what municipal dollars are spent where — but also of whether the monies spent reflect the perceived priorities of the respective areas (as perceived by the people in those respected areas). For example, many Transit City proponents speak of how this project will benefit the inner cities primarily … and yet there is tremendously little support for some of these proposed lines even amont the “less affluent” in these areas. That said, let me be very clear that I don’t want to see Ford as mayor.
Globe had a good editorial on the Presto-OpenFare controversy which I think is right on the mark… If the benefits of the OpenFare system are as strong as its proponents say they are, then certainly any contract can wait till AFTER Councillor Giambone has left office. As the outgoing Chair of the TTC, he has little stake and zero credibility to tie the Commission to this path. (And no Paul, this is not a slam against your beloved so much as a comment on what is appropriate conduct for an outgoing Chair.) Here’s the link:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/editorials/not-the-better-way-to-pay/article1672939/
Sorry, in my first comment I typed “inner cities” when I should have put “inner suburbs”.
Hopefully this will shut up the Glens of the world who predict doom and gloom for Toronto’s commercial developments. At least for the day:
“Toronto recorded the highest midyear commercial real estate activity volume of all the major cities, with $2.9-billion in transaction volume, and 563 transaction deals. Current debt levels and available capital gave the Toronto commercial real estate market a boost – factors that have been missing from the market since 2008’s economic downturn. The REIT and private investor groups have been particularly active in Toronto’s commercial real estate market over the past several months. As one of the last-standing tax shelters, REITs have been extremely active in the market since the recession occurred, and are benefiting from the economy’s rebound.”
From:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/commercial-real-estate-soars/article1674489/
Mayor race:
well, in the end this just all goes back to the strike last summer. Had Miller not caved in, there would have been no race at all, he would remain the next mayor. Instead we are staring at the very real possibility of Ford as the next mayor. What a waste!
I could do without your homophobic remarks, samg.
Louise,
If you don’t even understand the difference between real estate ‘deals’ and ‘development’ then I suggest you don’t bother commenting.
Let my give you an example of the issue that I have been raising here.. The old Imperial Oil Building on St. Clair just sold for $96 per sq. ft. It is going to be converted into condos. Now, lets take a look at how this will effect the city’s budget. As condos, every unit will consume more in municipal service than it will generate in revenue. On average for that type of development the shortfall will be ~$1,100 per year per unit for the cost of non mandated and cost shared services (police, ambulance, parks, libraries, etc.).
If it remained as offices it would have produced more revenue than expenses, enhancing the city’s financial position (and keeping your own taxes lower).
The non residential assessment base matters. It relative size and value matters. The location of jobs matters. Get it?
Paul, my comments aren’t homophobic.