MAYORAL RACE
• Your guide to Election Day [The Star]
• Guide to the mayoral election [The Star]
• Down to the wire in mayor’s race [The Star]
• Boosting voter turnout a challenge [The Star]
• So you think you can win? [The Star]
• Former mayor David Crombie endorses Smitherman [The Star]
• Bitter rivals, bulletproof incumbents face the music [The Star]
• Nasty campaign signs up up throughout GTA [The Star]
• Mayoral race: The choice facing culture [The Star]
• Ford or Smitherman? Neither [The Star]
• Toronto mayoralty: Pros and cons of strategic voting [The Star]
• The best of the smell test [The Star]
• James: Vote evokes caution where others boldly go [The Star]
• Siddiqui: Ranting from the right deafens Canadians to success of pluralism [The Star]
• Hume: Bridging the reality gap [The Star]
• Toto, we’re not in Calgary anymore… [The Star]
• Face it, Torontonians: Miller time was good [The Star]
• Liberals see a possible upside to a Ford win [The Star]
• Toronto, it’s no time for cynicism. Every vote counts [Globe & Mail]
• Poll shows Rob Ford ahead, gaining ground with immigrants [Globe & Mail]
• Behind the Globe’s endorsement for Mayor of Toronto [Globe & Mail]
• Toronto mayoral campaign ends on a hateful note [Globe & Mail]
• Toronto voters grapple with competing anxieties [Globe & Mail]
• The apolitical Torontonian’s guide to voting [Globe & Mail]
• Ford slow to share results of controversial survey [Globe & Mail]
• Teens keen to weigh in on mayor’s race even if they can’t vote [Globe & Mail]
• No longer one Toronto [Globe & Mail]
• Are you there, candidates? It’s me, Mark [Globe & Mail]
• National Post endorses Rob Ford for Toronto mayor [National Post]
• Toronto election timeline: Tunnels, taxes, and a steamy affair [National Post]
• Tamil radio station airs Smitherman smear ads [National Post]
• Last words on the way to the ballot box: Five columnists weight in [National Post]
• Matt Gurney: Enough with the debates already [National Post]
• Chris Selley: Pity the city’s left-wing voter [National Post]
• Terence Corcoran: Smitherman is a left-wing Trojan horse [National Post]
• Kuitenbrouwer: Crombie’s nod is the real deal [National Post]
• ‘Closet’ Ford supporters can finally speak [The Sun]
• Furious George can’t change his spots [The Sun]
• Dalton closely watches T.O. election – Warmington [The Sun]
• With reservations, George Smitherman for mayor [Torontoist]
GTA ELECTIONS
• Candidates for Toronto mayor and city council [The Star]
• GTA mayoral candidates outside Toronto [The Star]
• Municipal elections: Why voting is so important [The Star]
• Is it party time for municipal elections? [The Star]
• A Ford family affair in Etobicoke North [The Star]
• Bid to unseat Sandra Bussin gains steam [The Star]
• Vaughan candidates say voters want change [The Star]
• ‘Country boy’ Krantz in tough in Milton [The Star]
• The people who can bring real change to Toronto [Globe & Mail]
• In Oshawa, move to at-large council stirs controversy [Globe & Mail]
• 500 lawn signs attacking mayoral front-runners crop up in Vaughan [Globe & Mail]
• In Hamilton, a three-way race for mayor goes down the wire [Globe & Mail]
• Candidate alleges opponent’s breaking the bank [The Sun]
• Twelve wards that could reshape Council, and our picks for each [Torontoist]
CITY SIGHTS
• Lights, camera… check-in [The Star]
• Manse restored to glory days [The Star]
• Thousands attend Dalai Lama’s last public event in Toronto [Globe & Mail]
• Inside the newly restored Spadina Museum [National Post]
• Dalai Lama brings star power to Rogers Centre [National Post]
• At the Galleries: Distillery District [National Post]
• Toronto Zombie Walk 2010 [BlogTO]
CITY STREETS
• The Fixer: Trash fire cooks garbage receptacle [The Star]
• “Hidden” streets in Toronto [BlogTO]
TRANSPORTATION
• Presto plans brand expansion [The Star]
• T.O. parking rates ranked No. 2 [The Sun]
G20 AFTERMATH
• Accused G20 ringleader arrested again [The Star]
• Why so much attention for G20 protester? [The Star]
• Crown drops arson charge against G20 protestor [The Star]
OTHER NEWS
• Memo from the Department of Locking the Barn Door after the Horse Has Gone [The Star]
• It’s time to stop worrying we’re not ‘world class’ [Globe & Mail]
• Historicist: Brash, Bunging and Beloved [Torontoist]
9 comments
Re. Face it, Torontonians: Miller time was good
It should be noted that the author of this story, believes that Toronto’s fiscal problems are the result of Toronto not being able to tax renters and businesses more. My pet rock can offer more insightful commentary.
It’s too bad that Torontoist got cold feet and picked Mike Layton over what seemed to be their first choice for Ward 19, Karen Sun.
Layton’s people have been relentlessly going door-to-door urging Sun voters to vote strategically for Layton in order to stop right-winger Sean McCormick (even as Layton has been telling Pantalone voters NOT to vote strategically for Smitherman). Torontoist seems to have fallen for this BS, and with “some reluctance” tells voters to vote for Layton.
The idea that lefty Ward 19 is in any danger of going to McCormick is a joke. In fact, it is more likely that the right-wing vote is going to be split. This is thanks to the hard work of fiscal conservative Jim Likourezos, who has endorsed Rob Ford and who has fought an excellent ground war, and whose red signs match or exceed the number of McCormick’s red signs in the ward. At the last all-candidates debate, Likourezos announced that McCormick had asked him to withdraw, and he refused.
Progressive voters in Ward 19 should feel free to vote for whomever they want, without being distracted by blatantly self-serving warnings about split votes in perhaps the most progressive ward in the city.
Glen:
Did you actually read that article? If so, do you have any comments or disagreements with its contents other than an ad hom attack on the author?
I happen to agree that the disparity between non-residential property tax rates in Toronto vs the 905 is problematic. But under Miller Toronto has been slowly reducing it. Something which isn’t particularly likely to continue under revenue-cutting Ford or Smitherman.
Oh, right Glen. I think I’ll take the word of Hugh McKenzie, a noted economist, over yours any day. You might not like Miller but that doesn’t mean your analysis is anything close to accurate.
Michelle, given the great crash of the past few years, which virtually no “noted economist” saw coming, I think you’d be better off trusting the analysis of a pet rock. Just because someone is a so-called expert doesn’t mean they have anything meaningful to say, especially when they have an axe to grind.
Considering that my views are very much aligned with Don Drummond’s (former chief economist with TD), Dr. Peter Tomlinson (UofT), Dr. Enid Slack (UofT), Dr. John MacDonald (UIC) , Dr. William Baumol (NYU,yes that one), all but one whom I have corresponded with (-slack), I will take my analysis over his any day.
Admittedly, my views are entirely sans finances, since I don’t live in the city and miss those details such as taxes, user fees, and deficit proejctions. I only see the big-picture view-from-abroad, and believe it or not Miller Time was in fact pretty good under that lens. The city got good press for a lot of the projects cited in the article and certainly rebounded from its SARS-rut (which scared the hell out of Americans and gave the city a black eye you probably can’t appreciate from within the bubble). Maybe it would have done just as well without Miller, and Miller’s accomplishments do pale next to Daley or Bloomberg, but at least he was trying to play in the same league. He went to global conferences, he did things like green roofs and light rail and waste reduction that are in the news elsewhere. Any other ex-pat readers out there have an opinion on this?
Whether Smitherman or Ford, I don’t think we’ll see Toronto’s name in the American or international press quite so much anymore…
Glen:
Do you have any comments or disagreements with the actual content of that article? It seemed extremely factual and pretty much incontrovertible to me. Your comment seems to bring a lot less insight to the table in comparison.
While I agree that the non-residential property tax disparity between the City and the 905 is a major competitiveness problem, is that really a Miller issue?
His predecessor Mel Lastman froze taxes, permanently cutting Toronto’s revenue stream, and did nothing to adjust the residential/non-residential ratio.
Miller on the other hand did. You can make the argument that it’s being reduced too slowly (i.e. won’t be complete until 2017), but Miller took action on that portfolio, in addition to the many other improvements mentioned in this article.
Will Toronto under Rob Ford accelerate that change? Nope. We’re stuck with a man who believes all taxes are evil, is unwilling to raise the residential property tax (and attempts to cut any other sources of revenue), but will still need to pay for things that the City is mandated by law to do so. I’d be shocked if there’s any room to keep reducing the non-residential side as fast as we have been.
(P.S. Do Torontonians still pay the education portion of property tax twice?)
John,
My remark was about his his past comments demonstrating a bias. As for this article, lets look at the propaganda,
“In 2003, the year before Miller was elected, the City of Toronto spent $109 million more than it raised. And the deficit would have been even higher had the city not transferred $615 million — more than 9 per cent of its budget — from non-capital reserves. In 2008, the city ran a surplus of $81 million, and depended on transfers from reserves for only 2 per cent of its budget.”
Lets look at the Millers transfers from non capital reserves (SLC 10 3020 01, in the books) Hugh’s figures are correct. In 2003 the amount was 615 million, and by 2008 they were only 173 million. What he let out was that in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 the reserves were drawn down by 769 million, 732 million, 836 million and 540 million, respectively. The only reason 2008 is 173 million is that the reserves are empty.
” Current and wannabe federal and provincial politicians taking pot shots at the city’s finances might reflect on that fact, and on the fact that in the teeth of the recession Toronto has balanced its budget every year, before they open their mouths.”
Every municipality in Ontario is, by law, required to have a balanced budget.
The ETBC program was started before Miller was elected, and only begrudgingly implemented after two major high profile employers threatened to leave the city. The Distiller district was started before he was elected. The Waterfront is boring, a couple of parks and lots of condos with the addition of one office building that required the city to fund and pay a tax rate of half the going rate. The streets are not cleaner, the economy is not better (it always lagged behind provincial/federal and global growth). The pollution from commuters who now must travel outside of the city for employment is far greater than any savings his initiatives have provided.The Tower renewal project has not renewed any towers and his transit plan is nothing more than that, a plan.
If your are interested in comparison of expenditure growth between Toronto and the 905 municipalities I can post the details.