Toronto Council meets today! The agenda includes free AC units, Church Street pedestrianization plans, the island airport, and more. It will get started shortly. I will post various things that happen. Meeting stream is here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVDQ...
For an easy and fun way to follow this thread, I've again fired up the City Hall Watcher Live machine -- posts will automatically appear here. live.cityhallwatcher.com
The agenda also includes some FIFA talk, a mayoral push to expand youth programs this summer, new provincial e-bike rules, and ways to inform Leslieville residents when the neighbourhood gets smelly. This week's newsletter has a full preview. toronto.cityhallwatcher.com/p/council-se...
"If you notice, the lights are flickering," says Nunziata. She says they may opt to just turn them off. "If you see the lights go off, it's not that we haven't paid our electricity bill. It's just... we have a problem."
A new addition to the agenda: Chernos Lin wants an education campaign about road safety, targeting illegal e-scooters, "the use of phones while crossing the street" and "wearing noise cancelling earbuds while walking or cycling in public spaces." secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Conflicts of interest are declared: - Moise on the item re: reimbursing his legal costs, obviously - Colle on every TTC-related item, because his son works for the TTC.
Councillor Chris Moise delivers a petition signed by over 3,500 people in support of the Church Street pedestrianization project. "The benefits of pedestrianization for our local economy and public safety are undeniable," he says.
Councillor Paula Fletcher moves to approve an audit investigation report on the PayIt deal. It CARRIES via show of hands. "I think that we have now corrected all of our systems," she says, thanking those involved in the investigation. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Item approving a $300K deal with TMU to study the "digital divide" CARRIES 22-2. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Item approving a $75K deal with RideShark for a "smart commute online tool" CARRIES 23-2. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Stephen Holyday wants a recorded vote so he can oppose a downtown development near St. James Park. The project "casts shadows on St. James Cathedral," he laments. Nevertheless, it CARRIES 22-3. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Nunziata wants to read a letter she wrote to councillors about attendance. She notes the April meeting had to adjourn early because so many councillors left. She asks councillors NOT to vote to extend meetings if they're not actually going to show up.
"The last council meeting was a nightmare. We didn't have quorum. Everybody left and didn't advise the clerk or myself," says Nunziata. "It was very embarrassing at the last council meeting."
On that note, it's time to get down to business. The first item is Mayor Olivia Chow's motion to expand youth programs this summer, with an extra $615K in funding offset by the federal government. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Specifically, Chow's motion will offer 100 young people eight weeks of paid summer job training under the "CityServeTO" program. And also, apparently, the opportunity to carry a wheelbarrow in a wheelbarrow? Cool.
Quick pause so Councillor Brad Bradford can welcome a Grade 5 class from St Dennis Catholic School. "Did you take the transit to get here?" They did! "Did it work?" It did! "Awesome," says Bradford.
"I don't often get up to commend the mayor, but I will on this occasion," says Councillor Jon Burnside. He praises Chow's work to put together a team and bring new ideas for youth programs. "The impact of that work was phenomenal."
Burnside, a former cop, notes that there was a bit of an issue with a youth program that let people learn about careers in policing. "Because not everyone loves police." But then the fire department got involved, which was better, "because everyone loves firefighters!"
Councillor Mike Colle also rises to praise Chow's work on youth programs, but he's got a complaint. "Where the HELL is the private sector? Where are they? Why aren't they coming up with a program? Why aren't they doing ads on TV? Why aren't they stepping up?"
Councillor Anthony Perruzza praises the mayor and speaks about the importance of youth programs while sitting in his car.
Time to vote. Council votes 24-0 to APPROVE an expansion of the CityServeTO program that gives work experience to young people. 100 more young people will get an opportunity to participate this summer.
Up now: Councillor Jamaal Myers' motion, deferred from last month, about the province's Bill 98 that gives Queen's Park more control over transit agencies and fare policy. The TTC has concerns. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Myers asks staff if the legislation could force the TTC to run services without compensation, introduce a fare-by-distance scheme, and/or share fare revenues with other transit agencies. Staff say yes, in theory, but the province hasn't revealed any specific plans yet.
Myers, the TTC chair, says he has "strong opposition" to Bill 98. "I think this is a disastrous overreach by the province." He has deep concerns about what this legislation could mean for TTC and Wheel-Trans service.
"This is another clear example of why Toronto needs to pursue Charter City status, so we do not keep having these kinds of discussions at every single council meeting about the province getting into municipal affairs," adds Myers.
On Bill 98, Bravo moves for Council to support the TTC's written submission expressing concerns about the legislation. "This is another example of this provincial government and this premier taking from the people of Toronto — taking the power of decision-making away from the TTC," Bravo says.
"This bill is about draining money and authority out of the TTC, for people outside Toronto," says Councillor Dianne Saxe of Bill 98. She says it's about "making the city worse for the benefits of others ... it behooves us to protest in a clear and principled way, over and over again."
Lunch time. Council takes a break. Back at 2 p.m. with a relatively svelte 70 items left on the agenda. See you in 90 minutes.
Council is back. Sort of. Nunziata needs 18 councillors in the chamber to introduce some new business. It takes a minute, but eventually they get the attendance they need. Just barely.
Councillor Josh Matlow introduces a mysterious motion about the "Female Ginkgo Trees of Toronto." Nunziata: I've never heard of it. Matlow: You're about to. Nunziata: I didn't know they had female trees. Matlow: Please don't read too much into it. It's the fruit. The fruit is really stinky.
Councillor Gord Perks objects to Matlow's female tree motion. "I don't see how this is urgent." He asks for a recorded vote on whether to add it to the agenda. Female Ginkgo Tree Motion is ADDED to the agenda on an 18-3 vote. Council will debate the Female Ginkgo trees later.
Matlow tries to pass an item about drainage policy to get it off the agenda but Holyday isn't ready to let it go. "Okay, Councillor Holyday wants to spend time on... bathtubs," Matlow says.
Back to the Bill 98 item. Matlow moves to request the province restore 50/50 operating funding for the TTC and also make GO Transit fares equal to TTC fares for trips within the city.
Time to vote. Matlow's motion to request the province restore 50/50 operating subsidy funding for the TTC and lower GO fares within the city CARRIES 20-1.
All other motions on the Bill 98 item CARRY unanimously, 21-0. Council officially expresses strong concerns about the provincial legislation that'll give Queen's Park more power to direct the TTC and reallocate fare revenue. Will the Ford gov care? TBD.
Up now: another deferred item from the last meeting. Councillor Lily Cheng would like there to be a "design standard" for future transit stations, including platform doors, public washrooms, high ceilings and commuter parking lots in the suburbs. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Jamaal Myers asks if the city has a position on the need for commuter parking at stations outside the downtown. The Chief Planner says the official plan calls for mixed-use development near stations and limiting surface parking lots.
Councillor Carroll asks if the part of Cheng's motion calling for commuter parking lots at all new suburban stations would be "antithetical to the planning act." Thorne says again that the Official Plan seeks to limit surface parking, and to develop the lots that currently exist.
Councillor Nick Mantas asks about the TTC estimate of platform doors costing ~$50 million per station — have they benchmarked that versus other transit agencies? TTC staffer says yes, they compared to MTA costs and others, and found they're in the same ballpark.
Questioning the idea that "people should take transit to transit", Cheng asks what people who live beyond a 10-15 minute walk to a subway station are supposed to do to get to transit. Chief Planner says the answer is generally walking, cycling or another transit connection like a bus.
Councillor Moise asks the TTC to quantify delays caused by people throwing things onto the tracks and/or trespassing on the tracks — which would be prevented by platform doors. Between 2017 and 2022, there were 141 hours of operational delays due to track intrusions, staff say.
"There would be not much of the city that would not have [a bus stop] within a kilometre," staff say in response to some questions from Councillor Gord Perks about bus stop location standards. "So it would be inaccurate to claim that it's impossible for people to get to TTC stations," Perks says.
"In summary, just about everyone lives within walking distance of a bus stop. And the buses typically run at least once every half hour. And we would need a massive parking lot just to replace those buses with parking at the station," Perks says.
Councillor Jamaal Myers, the TTC chair, has a different view. "I understand where my colleagues are coming from in that we'd like to take transit to transit, however that's just not the reality of where the city is," he says, noting that GO commuter lots are jam-packed each day.
Myers says not all transit stations need nearby development. "Take Sheppard & McCowan, which is in my ward. People are saying, shouldn't you want housing there? Actually, no, we don't want a lot of housing there," because it's right beside an employment area with a concrete plant.
Councillor Stephen Holyday is also a big fan of TTC commuter parking lots. He says the existing lots are "successful" and "truly in high demand." "This is what people want. Why don't we give it to them?"
On platform edge doors, Holyday says, "If we think of all the things the TTC needs to spend money on really badly, I can't in good conscience put this to the top. It's more of an aspirational thing."
"We have to make our choice and stop building traffic attractors, stop surrounding transit stations with parking lots, stop betting against Toronto's future," says Councillor Gord Perks, calling surface parking lots the "worst possible land use" for an urban city.
Councillor James Pasternak also praises commuter parking lots. "We people want to eliminate parking lots, they're forgetting about the seniors, they're forgetting about the disabled, they're forgetting about the night shift workers."
Councillor Shelley Carroll is concerned that council is getting into the territory of developing policy on the fly based on a member motion. "That's never our best look." She moves to refer the item to the Transit Expansion Office so they can produce an actual report.
Councillor Lily Cheng urges colleagues to vote against the referral motion. "I think that we need to be future-minded. We need to be visionary."
"I take the bus and the streetcar every day. I stand in the rain and so do hundreds of thousands of people in the city," says Councillor Alejandra Bravo. "So I don't think we should say that there's a problem with taking a bus to a transit station."
"I categorize this as a hostile motion," says Holyday of Carroll's referral motion. He says this debate has unveiled differences of opinion for downtown versus suburbs and he wants to see those differences explored. He says referral might mean the item never comes back to council.
"If you don't agree with the policy propositions or the ideas for further study, just vote no," says Holyday. "You should stitch that on a pillow: Just Vote No," says Perks.
Carroll's motion to refer this TTC station design standard item back to staff for more policy development CARRIES 15-9. The Clerk didn't display the vote result, but I'll see if I can get it. Anyway, moving on.
Here's the 15-9 vote result on referring Cheng's design-standard-for-TTC-stations motion to staff for more robust policy development.
Council loses quorum a couple of times during a quick discussion about dockwalls. Dockwalls — not exactly a hot topic. Anyway, in the end the dockwall report is APPROVED 24-0. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Up now: an update to the city's economic plan, Sidewalks to Skylines. Not a big fan of the name, but at least they didn't call it EconomyTO. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Noting there's an item on this agenda about signing a new deal with Amazon for AWS, Cheng says she'd like more "Canadian software solutions." "We see in Korea they have their own version of Google, their own version of Google Maps. You can't even navigate the city of Seoul with Google Maps."
The economic plan update CARRIES via show of hands. Up now: a weird one. The city held a positive vote on expanding the Riverside BIA boundaries, but City Planning and the transportation department have concerns about part of the expansion and weren't consulted. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
"The City has some different objectives than just more customers," says Councillor Paula Fletcher on the BIA item, noting the area in question that would have seen expansion includes a TCHC community. Anyway, the item CARRIES via show of hands.
Up now: the drainage policy item. "Why on earth would we ever allow a policy change like this that would add water to flooded storm sewers?" Holyday asks. Staff say they'll continue to reject applications to connect to sewers in places where capacity is limited. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Matlow has some drainage motions. He wants a report in Q1 2027 with maps of sewers that connect to rivers or the lake, plus a look at changes to exemptions to the Foundation Drainage Policy where no alternatives are available.
And the drainage policy item CARRIES 21-1. The city will loosen up the regulations somewhat on sewer discharge where capacity exists.
After some quick supportive comments, council votes via show of hands to APPROVE a new requirement that trucks working under a dedicated contract for the City of Toronto be required to have sideguards, to protect cyclists. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Up now: the Ashbridges Bay sewer treatment plant. Sometimes it smells! Councillor Paula Fletcher has asked staff to provide a plan for letting residents know about stink-causing incidents. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
The Ashbridges sewage treatment plant has provided this informational pamphlet explaining what can cause smells and how their "odour control system" works. Graphic design is not necessarily their passion. www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis...
There's some confusion about the sewage item, so Council hits pause and moves on to an item about zoning for Ookwemin Minising in the port lands. The plan calls for many more units of housing. And a pedestrian street. It looks pretty, too. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Fletcher says her goal since day one has been achieving 30% affordable housing in this plan. "Everybody needs to feel they can live on our waterfront. It is not for $5 million condos, or $3 million condos — it is a blend of mixed housing as we might find in different cities in Europe."
Councillor Perks points out Ookwemin Minising will have a population about equivalent to Owen Sound. He says this is the work of "A+ Planners." "100 years from now, people will be benefiting from this work. It's a moment to stop and take pride in what a city council can do when it has vision."
After several councillors praise Fletcher for her work on the port lands, Councillor Mike Colle jokes, "I don't know what else I can say but I think we're praising Councillor Fletcher too much. You would think she was the queen of the lake or something."
"Hopefully we might be able to do something to pay attention to this great achievement," says Councillor Mike Colle of the Ookwemin Minising plan. "Maybe ask the Pope to come and open it. Maybe ask King Charles."
After a few more supportive speeches, Council votes 21-0 to APPROVE the rezoning plan for Ookwemin Minising. Long time coming.
Up now: a proposal for a development at 970 Kipling, with 840 units — 198 affordable. Holyday says he can't support the project, because the towers will cast shadows on homes in his ward. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Holyday's shadowy concerns don't sway council. They vote 20-1 to APPROVE the zoning for the 970 Kipling project.
Councillor Paula Fletcher adds an item to the agenda asking the province to name the Pape & Cosburn Ontario Line Station as "East York Station" in honour of the former borough.
Council wraps early for the day. They'll be back tomorrow at 9:30 a.m. to deal with the remaining 58 items left on the agenda. See you back here then.
Had no idea! Love the photo. “Look, your highness: Mexicasa taco shells!"
Council is back. Nunziata, really leaning into the passive aggression, thanks Councillor Paula Fletcher and Councillor Rachel Chernos Lin for being on time this morning. Everyone else was late. The day two meeting stream is here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZfw...
Council will start this morning with a debate about the mayor's initiative to provide free air conditioners to low-income people. Following that, there will be a debate about reimbursing Councillor Chris Moise for legal costs incurred during an integrity commissioner investigation.
Oh wait, Councillor Paula Fletcher wants to push back the Moise legal costs debate until later in the afternoon. She says she's working on a motion and trying to get Councillor Jon Burnside on side. The schedule is altered.
Up now: keeping cool. Mayor Olivia Chow would like to expand a program offering AC units to low-income households. With the expansion, ~2,400 more ACs would be provided this summer at a total program cost of about $1 million. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
On questioning from Holyday, staff say these are portable AC units with about 10,000 BTUs. They cost $450 + $100 for delivery/installation. From enviro perspective, staff say they'd like to look at portable heat pumps in the future, but found tech wasn't there yet.
Mayor Olivia Chow talks about a 2021 heat wave in BC where 600 people died. She shows a chart on her phone. "Yes, heat can kill. It has killed. And it will continue to do so if we do nothing."
On the AC item, Councillor Josh Matlow moves for staff to bring forward a maximum temperature bylaw in June, requiring landlords to keep units below 26 degrees. "When it comes to renters in this city, boiling in their own homes, the city has not moved quickly at all," he says.
Councillor Alejandra Bravo: You're asking for a bylaw to come in on June 16. By the way, that's Tupac's birthday... Councillor Josh Matlow: I don't know what that has to do with... Bravo: Just a coincidence.
Tupac aside, councillors are concerned that Matlow is pushing a max temperature bylaw too fast. There are worries that effectively requiring landlords to install AC in units would trigger applications for above-guideline rent increases, passing big costs onto tenants.
"Are you comfortable with tenants paying MASSIVE rent increases to make this work?" Councillor Gord Perks asks Matlow of his max temperature bylaw push. Matlow says he doesn't believe above-guideline rent increases should exist, and that this is a health and safety issue.
Councillor Holyday says he remains skeptical of the program to provide AC units to low-income people. "What this literally is is the provision of a gratuitity or benefit to a very lucky select few," he says. "What's happening in their life, we don't really know."
Councillor Shelley Carroll urges council to vote against Matlow's max temp motion, saying there are still too many questions that need to be worked out re: impacts on rents, citing a stat in the report showing 90% of landlords said they'd pass the cost of installing AC onto tenants via higher rents
Councillor Paula Fletcher warns about the risks of pushing bylaws through too quickly. She recounts the old tale of council's botched attempt to ban plastic bags. A part of our heritage. "The heart is always good. It's whether or not the head is matching the heart in this circumstance."
Councillor Bravo moves a compromise motion, asking for a report in June on a "framework" for a maximum temperature bylaw, rather than a complete bylaw. She says it's important to make sure there aren’t "unintended consequences."
"To suggest that Toronto is doing less than it can is just disingenuous. It's misleading the public about the history of the City of Toronto, working to do everything within its power to avoid the tragedy that has been seen in BC and Chicago and central Europe," says Perks of city's cooling programs
Councillor Matlow's motion calling for staff to prepare a max temperature bylaw for rental units in time for the June Executive Committee meeting FAILS 8-16.
Councillor Bravo's compromise motion, calling for staff to report in June on a FRAMEWORK for a max temperature bylaw for rental units, CARRIES 23-1.
The AC item as amended CARRIES 23-1. Another 2,400 free air conditioners will be provided to low-income households this year.
Up now: the provincial government has proposed some new rules for e-bikes, changing the definition to separate "motorcycle-style" e-bikes. Under new legislation, operating those kinds of vehicles would require licensing and insurance secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Mayor Olivia Chow asks the fire department about fires caused by e-bike batteries. Fire department rep says there have been 47 such fires this year, and a 600% increase since they started tracking. "It is the greatest public fire safety risk growing, not only in Toronto but across the country."
The Fire Chief says most e-bike battery fires have been caused by unregulated & uncertified batteries or modified batteries, where users have tried to "supercharge" them.
On the e-bike item, Councillor Saxe says she broadly supports the provincial changes, but wants some tweaks to the brake standards to ensure these bikes can brake on hills and in wet conditions. She also wants the fire department to make some recommendations to the province re: battery safety.
"This is not just e-bikes. It's also personal transportation companies like Uber. The algorithm demands that you go faster, that you give the customer what it wants, and we are also contributing to that when we use the apps," says Councillor Alejandra Bravo.
And that brings council to lunch. Bravo, presumably, will not be ordering from Uber Eats. They'll be back at 2 p.m. to deal with 63 items that remain stubbornly on the agenda. See you back here then.
Council has returned. Before they get back to business, they are scheduled to celebrate Toronto being named “Film Commission of the Year” and “Best City of Film", apparently. Hoping for a Matt Johnson shoutout.
Mayor Olivia Chow takes the lectern to present the film awards. These awards come from Cannes, apparently! Pretty big movie town, I hear. "These awards recognize that Toronto is a truly film-friendly city."
Chow shouts out local productions THE BOYS, HEATED RIVALRY ("Oh yes, Heated Rivalry. Yeah," the mayor comments), and Guillermo Del Toro's FRANKENSTEIN. Del Toro told Chow Toronto is "the best place to make movies." "We intend to keep it that way," Chow says.
Dealing with some quick items now, Council votes 20-3 to APPROVE zoning for a 26-storey project on Broadview Avenue. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
On to member motions now. A motion from Councillor Paul AInslie to ask the province to allow homeless people to collect the shelter portion of the ODSP benefit CARRIES 22-1. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Deputy Mayor Malik's motion calling for "clear education for cyclist behavior" for Bike Share users on Toronto Island CARRIES via show of hands. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Chris Moise's motion directing some Section 37 funds to the Church Street pedestrianization project CARRIES via show of hands. Could be a good sign for the debate they'll have later about approving the project itself. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Deputy Mayor Ausma Malik's motion asking staff to look at ways to improve access to Toronto Island with ferry fare discounts is ADDED to the agenda on an 18-7 vote. Holyday holds it for debate. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Lily Cheng's motion to ask the province to let hte city use noise cameras gets added to the agenda via a show-of-hands vote. Holyday holds it for debate. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Saxe's motion calling for a referendum on the island airport expansion issue is ADDED to the agenda after an 18-7 vote. Fletcher holds it for debate. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Chernos Lin's motion calling for a road safety campaign about things like e-scooters, walking with headphones, and crossing the street with your phone out CARRIES via show of hands. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Fletcher's motion to request Metrolinx name the Pape-Cosburn Ontario Line Station as "East York Station" CARRIES 25-0. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Dianne Saxe rises to welcome members of the Bad Dog Theatre company to the chamber. They're getting a new home in Mirvish Village, she says. "Welcome. I hope you enjoyed the council meeting," says Nunziata. "I think we're all theatre in here.
Back to the e-bike item. Councillor Brad Bradford has a long motion that he says will step up enforcement. He wants the province to give Toronto cops the ability to seize illegal e-bikes and e-scooters.
Mayor Olivia Chow also has a long e-bike motion. But she says it turns out some of her recommendations are the same as Bradford's, so she has revised to strike out the duplicates.
The motions by both Bradford and Chow CARRY via show of hands. The e-bike item as amended CARRIES 26-0. Council signals its support for the province's new e-bike rules and calls for more enforcement and regulations to reduce the risk of battery fires.
Up now: should Councillor Chris Moise get reimbursed for $20,807.61 worth of legal costs he incurred during an Integrity Commissioner investigation, which resulted in a report that was NOT adopted by council? Moise leaves the room so his colleagues can discuss. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Council quickly loses quorum while asking staff questions about the reimbursement issue. "It seems like councillors don't want to sit down," complains Nunziata. After ringing the bells for a while, enough people come back.
Councillor Pasternak asks the Integrity Commissioner if perhaps this whole Moise issue could have just been resolved with an apology. The Integrity Commissioner is not in the chamber, though, so the answer is unknowable. This debate is going great.
The Integrity Commish does eventually show up. But Nunziata then rules the apology question out of order, so the Integrity Commissioner cannot answer Pasternak's question. Okay then.
Nunziata explains that council has already debated and voted on the Integrity Commissioner report re: Moise — rejecting the finding that Moise breached the code of conduct — so questions about the investigation aren't relevant. Councillors need to focus on the repayment issue only.
Councillor Holyday rises to move to take no action on the report, denying Moise reimbursement for legal costs beyond the $5K he already received. ...But the clerks don't have his motion. He says he submitted it yesterday. An exasperated Nunziata declares a five-minute recess. Shambolic.
After a 12-minute-long five-minute recess, they get things sorted. Holyday moves to RECEIVE the item, which means taking no action on it. If this passes, Moise will get no reimbursement for legal costs beyond the $5K he's already received.
Councillor Burnside moves to reduce the amount Moise would receive, so he'd get 50% of his legal costs rather than the full amount.
"For me, as a steward of public funds, I would have never gone and spent $23,000 more [in legal costs] and put council in this position," Burnside explains, criticizing Moise for racking up the legal bill in the first place.
Councillor Paula Fletcher moves to delete the $5K threshold for eligible legal reimbursement, saying the amount dates all the way back to 2008 when... quite a few current councillors were around, actually.
On questioning, Fletcher says the second part of her motion — which would make the Moise claim eligible for reimbursement under her motion's amended policy — was included by mistake. She agrees to remove it.
Fletcher says the effect of her motion is that councillors would now have a $20K limit on reimbursement for legal costs, as per existing City Clerk policy.
Councillors are struggling to understand Fletcher's motion, which is making her quite mad. "I'll just withdraw my motion, because no one understands it!" she declares.
"I think this simply gives us a chance to hire legal counsel, to get advice, to speak to the Integrity Commissioner on our behalf, without coming here on broken glass bending for something more than a 2008 number!" says Fletcher. "But I'm happy to withdraw it if you want me to!"
Councillor Anthony Perruzza lays out a hypothetical scenario in which he puts a shoplifter in a "headlock", and then that shoplifter complains to the Integrity Commissioner. He would then need to hold a fundraiser to pay his legal costs, he explains.
"I could go to a Canadian Tire, chase some guy in a parking lot, tell him I'm going to kick his ass all over the parking lot!" thunders Perruzza. "Now what am I faced with? Charges, and an Integrity Commissioner complaint!"
Anyway, Councillor Stephen Holyday's motion to NOT reimburse Councillor Chris Moise for any additional legal costs related to an Integrity Commissioner investigation FAILS 6-16.
Councillor Burnside's motion to cover just 50% of Moise's legal costs CARRIES 16-6.
Fletcher's motion to remove the $5K threshold for automatic reimbursement of councillor legal costs related to Integrity Commissioner investigations CARRIES 18-4.
On an item about revisiting minimum parking requirements for Scarborough, Councillor Jamaal Myers moves to remove his ward from a clause that could prohibit new developments from requesting on-street parking permits. That CARRIES. So does the item. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Up now: a four-storey women's shelter has been planned for 3838 Bloor West in Councillor Holyday's ward. He's got concerns. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Holyday says the majority of people he's heard from oppose the shelter, and so he's opposing it. He moves to reduce the allowed height under the zoning from 19 metres to 15 metres.
"The proposal that I have here right-sizes the zoning to the building," says Holyday of the women's shelter. He says the current process of bringing this shelter forward has led to mistrust in the community.
Holyday explains that even if his motion to reduce the permitted height of the shelter passes, he will still oppose the shelter item because that's what his community has asked him to do.
Perks and Bravo explain that the extra permitted height is both part of bringing this site into the harmonized zoning bylaw passed eons ago and making sure the shelter site can be converted into housing when demand changes.
Holyday's motion to reduce zoning permissions for the height of 3838 Bloor West FAILS 4-19.
The rezoning for the new women's shelter at 3838 Bloor West in Holyday's ward is APPROVED 21-2.
Up now: a proposal for a four-storey self-storage facility on Mendota Road in Councillor Morley's ward. She moves to REFUSE the application. The refusal motion CARRIES quickly via show of hands. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Now: an item about various rezonings to make way for the Yonge North subway extension. Councillor Cheng asks about the Star's recent reporting that the project has been delayed. Staff say Metrolinx has "not indicated any change to their timeline." secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
"So what are we to do with this news in the newspaper?" Cheng asks. "Do we feel like the Toronto Star's article is not... true?" Staff say they can't comment on that, but Metrolinx has confirmed "their schedule has not changed from what was previously provided."
Staff say Metrolinx is in the middle of an RFP for Rail Safety & Operations System for the Yonge North subway extension. "They will not be able to provide any further schedule updates until that RFP is completed and then they have a schedule from the contractor."
With 26 items left on the agenda, Mayor Chow moves to extend the meeting tonight to finish. Nunziata insists on a recorded vote. "Everybody that votes yes, do NOT leave. If you leave, the penalty is you don't get paid." Motion to extend CARRIES 19-2.
On the Yonge North item, Councillor Lily Cheng moves for an updated traffic study on the impacts of construction.
Councillor Josh Matlow rises to rightly defend the reputation of the venerable Toronto Star. "The Star's reporting was 100% completely accurate, and it was based on a TTC report." Matlow notes "the TTC has a history of being far more transparent than Metrolinx."
Pasternak jumps in to defend the province's record. "At least transit is being built," he says. "Look, if anyone's renovated a kitchen or a bathroom in their house, tell me how many times it comes in on budget and on time. Multiply that out by a subway line and you can see what you're dealing with."
Cheng's motion for an updated traffic study looking at impacts from the Yonge North subway extension CARRIES via show of hands.
Up now: a proposal for an 11-storey project on Ellesmere Road in Councillor Neethan Shan's ward. Planners supported the project, but Shan successfully moved to refuse it at Scarborough Community Council. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Gord Perks, the Planning & Housing chair, moves to APPROVE the Ellesmere Road development as per the original planning staff recommendation. He says he hates this process, but says the provincial government has "stacked the deck" with their changes to planning law.
Councillor Neethan Shan says the community was clear in its opposition to this project. "This is just going to add a lot of strain in that particular area," noting it's a part of Scarborough with a big student population. (He says there's "no real need" for more student housing.)
After Councillor Holyday takes a quick shot at the avenues policy for enabling this kind of development proposal (he's not a fan!), Council breaks for 30 minutes to grab dinner. Back at 6:30 with 25 items left on the agenda. Say a little prayer for me.
Council has returned. Nunziata jokes that she'll be "submitting to human resources" the names of councillors who voted to extend the meeting but aren't in attendance. This is gonna get silly. The evening stream is here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_Cx...
Dealing with some quick items, Council votes 19-5 to APPROVE a development at 1233 Yonge Street in Councillor Dianne Saxe's ward. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Malik's motion about improving access to Toronto Island via ferry fare discounts is deferred to next month after a show of hands vote.
Up now: should the city ask the province for permission to put the island airport expansion on the ballot as a referendum question this fall? secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
I kind of like the general idea of having a city referendum. It's been a while. Let us weigh in on something specific. It'll be fun.
The Clerk explains that typically, council must pass a bylaw before March 1 in an election year to get a referendum question on the ballot, so the city has missed the usual deadline for this kind of thing.
"This is our generation's Spadina Expressway in my view," says Councillor Dianne Saxe about the island airport expansion. "Doug Ford is taking away our rights. He's taking away our land. He's ignoring the decision of this council."
Councillor Fletcher says the question is bigger than jets or no jets, but rather about what kind of waterfront Toronto should have. "Councillors Matlow and Saxe, it would have been very wise to talk to us who are on the waterfront. Because last time I looked, you aren't a waterfront ward."
Councillor Holyday moves to add another ballot question: do you want Toronto to de-amalgamate? That prompts some cheers and jokes. "Do you want to be mayor of Etobicoke?" "Yes! Mayor Holyday! Mayor Holyday!"
Nunziata rules Holyday's de-amalgamation motion out of order. He challenges that ruling. The chair is UPHELD, 19-5. "Well, that's a shame," says Holyday. "Maybe I'll bring the motion back another time."
"I think it's not unreasonable to send a clear message today that we want to go to Torontonians, and do what Doug Ford should have done from day one: talk to people. Ask them, what do you think - what do you want for your waterfront? For your future?" says Councillor Matlow on the island airport.
Councillor Brad Bradford supports the idea of a referendum on the island airport expansion. "Torontonians need to be at the table. And they deserve a public and transparent process on issues of this magnitude. If you're not at the table, then you're on the menu."
Bradford says Toronto needs "strong leadership fighting for the city." He says that kind of leadership has been lacking in recent years, suggesting Chow has been making "backroom deals." "The island airport debacle is the latest example of that." This is an interesting political pivot.
Councillor Carroll warns against referenda generally, citing examples from history of "big mistakes and horrible outcomes." "If I want to go all the way back — and I'm not trying to be sensationalistic — then in 1934, the German referendum..."
Councillor Saxe's motion to ask the province for permission to hold a referendum this fall about island airport expansion FAILS 9-16.
Up now: the item you've ALL been waiting for. Councillor Josh Matlow's motion about Female Ginkgo Trees. Let's Ginkgooooooo. ...And it carries via show of hands with no debate. Okay then. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
After the Toronto Port Authority declined to pay the full cost, Council votes via show of hands to spend $310,500 this year to install buoys marking motorized watercraft exclusion zones in the lake. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Back to the Ellesmere Road development. Councillor Paul Ainslie says the developer is planning this as student housing, but he's reached out to UofT Scarborough and they're not anticipating many additional students. He says the community was unanimous in opposing the project.
Up now, at 8:12 p.m.: an update on Toronto's housing plan. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Bradford wants to know why staff can't provide a list of housing projects where the city has applied for federal funding under Build Canada Homes. Staff say it's because "active negotiations" are underway. Bradford isn't happy with that answer. City Manager promises info at next council meeting.
"I had a chance to eat with Councillor Ainslie earlier. And he wanted to go to Burger King. I suggested there are many other places we could go — Burger King would not be my choice to eat. So I suggested shawarma — and it was perhaps the worst decision I could make," says Councillor Michael Thompson
You want context, don't you? An explanation? I can offer only scraps. Thompson says he thinks he has food poisoning, from the shawarma, but still has questions about the housing plan. And so things go.
Councillor Bradford has a motion about the housing plan. He formally moves for a report with details on the city's new submission to Build Canada Homes at the next council meeting in June.
Councillor Amber Morley moves to look at ways to speed up an affordable housing project on Eighth Street in her ward. "We don't want to miss this opportunity," she says.
Councillor Perks moves to amend the Bradford motion so that the Build Canada Homes application info will be provided next month only if negotiations with the feds are complete. He says it'd be "irresponsible" and "foolhardy" to put out info before a deal is done.
"600 applications were made to the Build Canada fund. We're competing with 600 municipalities and provincial governments. If we jeopardize those, if we give them the slightest excuse, there's a long line of other municipalities" who could get the money, Perks says.
"Right now, the private sector is building NOTHING," says Perks. "If we have any hope of dealing with the homelessness crisis and the housing affordability crisis, we have to stay the course with the public builder model."
"The number of leaks that have come out of this council is so serious that the Integrity Commissioner for the City of Toronto felt it incumbent upon himself to send a memorandum urging us to stop leaking private information into the public," says Perks.
The context of all this is some councillors feel like Bradford is trying to get staff to publish info about the city's ongoing negotiations with the feds re: affordable housing money, and they're worried that info could leak even if it was provided as confidential.
"Some people would suggest that what your motion is doing is actually obstructing information that this council ought to be provided with," Bradford says. "People suggest all kinds of things," says Perks. "I'd certainly hope nobody on this council would suggest that, because it would be inaccurate"
Fletcher: The federal government, would you agree they're a little testy sometimes about how they're funding things? Perks: Boy howdy. Fletcher: That's a yes? Perks: They sure are. When I talk to my MP, I lower my voice, I talk in calm, soothing tones — you've got to be real careful.
Perks' motion to only report on the City's Build Canada Homes funding submission in June if negotiations with the federal gov are complete CARRIES 22-2.
With that amendment, Bradford's motion CARRIES unanimously. Morley's motion CARRIES via show of hands. The housing update item CARRIES 22-1.
Up now: a 24-storey development on Kingston Road. Scarborough Community Council overruled planning staff and moved to REJECT it. Councillor Perks moves to APPROVE it. Councillor Ainslie moves to DEFER it til July. Deferral CARRIES via show of hands. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Up now: Take me to Church. Councillor Chris Moise has brought forward a plan to pedestrianize Church Street this summer between Wellesley Street East and Alexander Street. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Brad Bradford, saying the city needs an "escape hatch" in case the Church Street pedestrianization has negative impacts, moves to give staff the authority to cancel the project midway through.
Councillor Chris Moise says he's talked to several city departments about Church Street pedestrianization and they've put in several contingencies as a result. He urges colleagues to reject Bradford's motion, saying some people are always going to complain, but that shouldn't cut this short.
Bradford's motion to authorize staff to cut the Church Street pedestrianization project short if there are too many "unacceptable impacts" CARRIES 16-8.
The Church Street pedestrianization project is APPROVED 20-4. Church between Wellesley Street East and Alexander Street will be made car-free between June 19 and August 21.
Up now: an item from the mayor about making it easier to build more housing. Mayor Olivia Chow moves for Toronto Hydro to report on ways they can help to build multi-unit housing.
Councillor Stephen Holyday holds up his laptop to show the mayor a photo of "a beautiful street in Ward 2." He says a new multiplex on the street is "very controversial" because Hydro had to run new power lines on poles across lawns on the street.
Holyday asks if Chow's motion will lead to more "stuff like this" — neighbourhoods seeing more hydro poles installed to serve new housing units. Chow says Hydro needs to replace much of its infrastructure anyway because it's quite old. So neighbourhoods are going to see impacts regardless.
"Toronto Hydro can always do better," Chow tells Holyday, saying the board can look at ways to install power connections while minimizing disruption.
The mayor's motion to request Toronto Hydro report on ways they can help make it easier to build new multi-unit housing CARRIES 21-1.
Council votes 20-2 to intervene in a Supreme Court of Canada case about municipal powers: Westcan Recyclers Ltd. v. Calgary. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
On an item about an OLT hearing regarding a development at 155 St Dennis Drive, Councillor Burnside moves to have the city look at acquiring the property. That FAILS 7-15. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Up now: Councillor Matlow's motion requesting the Medical Officer look at the potential health impacts of jets at the island airport. Councillor Holyday moves to amend the motion so that the study will also look at the health impacts from the planes at Pearson. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Deputy Mayor Malik moves to have the Medical Officer also consider the health impacts from "ultrafine particles" that would be emitted by jets at the island airport.
All motions on the airport health impacts item CARRY via show of hands. So does the item as amended. Three items left.
Up now: Councillor Lily Cheng's motion requesting the province pass regulations that'd let Toronto use noise cameras — cameras that can identify and snap photos of noisy vehicles. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
Councillor Mike Colle wants to know what a noise camera is. "Could I do that with my phone?" he wonders. "Could I get a noise camera app?" "Likely not," staff say, diplomatically.
Councillor Holyday moves to request the province develop stricter regulations on after-market vehicle mods.
All the amendments to the noise camera item CARRY via show of hands. The item, as amended, is APPROVED 21-1. City will ask the province to pass regulations enabling the use of noise cameras that can identify noisy cars. Over to you, Doug.
Up now: the last item. Deputy Mayor Malik has a motion about protecting Hanlan's Point from high water levels. "A significant portion of the south beach is underwater," staff say. secure.toronto.ca/council/agen...
After supportive speeches from Malik and Bradford, the Hanlan's Point protection item CARRIES via show of hands. Zero items left. Zero. I never thought I'd see the day.
Council wraps up at 10:50 p.m. If I had to sum up that meeting in one word, it would be: loooooooooooooong. But we got through it! If you want to say thanks, a subscription to my newsletter is always appreciated. It keeps the coverage going. toronto.cityhallwatcher.com/subscribe